(Minghui.org) In February 2022, just before Chinese New Year, it was time to collect rent for a storefront I had rented out in the city, but the tenant said that things were financially tight due to the pandemic, so for the time being, he could not pay the rent. He had wanted to borrow money from his relatives and friends but as the New Year was coming up, everyone needed money, so he could not bring himself to ask them.
The tenant asked, “Why don’t we do this? For example, if I borrowed a hundred thousand yuan from others, I would need to pay ten thousand yuan in interest. Why don’t we treat it as if I borrowed the whole amount from you. I will pay you the interest first, then pay you rent after the New Year?” I replied, “Doing business during the pandemic is not easy, so you do not need to pay me the interest. Just pay me rent after the New Year. I’m a Falun Dafa practitioner, so I cannot accept your offer. The tenant felt a bit guilty, so he still transferred the interest to my account.
As we have been dealing with each other for a few years, he knows that I cultivate in Dafa. I had also explained the facts about the persecution to him in the past. Not only did he understand, but he also agreed to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its youth organizations. I initially thought that most businesses had been affected by the pandemic, so I decided to treat his interest payment as a goodwill gesture of compensation. However, after he transferred the money to me, I didn’t know his account information, so I could not transfer it back. So I just treated it as a deposit for rent, and that he would owe me the remaining amount without interest.
Letting Go of My Attachment to Personal Gain
However, after the Chinese New Year passed, for half a year, he did not pay me the remaining rent. Ordinary thoughts of resentment then started popping into my mind. I thought that I’m a cultivator.
Master Li said:
“From now on, whatever you do, you should consider others first, so as to attain the righteous Enlightenment of selflessness and altruism.” (“Non-Omission in Buddha-Nature,” Essentials for Further Advancement)
I thought to myself, “I abide by Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, so I’m not going to be calculative with him. I can allow him to owe past rent as he continues to do business. If this happened to other people, how could they let him owe rent while he continued to do business? I can see his point of view. He wants to observe the development of the economy before he decides whether to continue with his business. However, he already owes me more than a hundred thousand yuan. If he winds up his business, can he still pay me the back rent?” This thought kept disturbing me, and my heart started to waver. I tried hard to study the Fa.
Master said:
“The altercations or mistreatment that you encounter as you practice might be either of two scenarios. One is that you mistreated the other person during a past life. Perhaps the situation preys on your mind, and you can’t believe someone would treat you as they are. Well, then you shouldn’t have treated them that way in the past. You might say that you didn’t know better back then and that this lifetime has nothing to do with that one. But you can’t write it off like that. Another thing is, karma is surely being reworked with any altercation you get into, so we should be magnanimous and not handle it like most people would.” (The Fourth Talk, Zhuan Falun)
My heart immediately relaxed.
Looking back, I realized that I had not let go of my attachment to personal gain. I was also ashamed that despite having cultivated for so long, when tests and tribulations came, I still let my human side lead my behavior and thoughts. After realizing these shortcomings, I immediately got rid of my selfish mindset. When I let go of this attachment to personal gain, I was able to stand in his shoes to consider this matter. The pandemic for the past few years had really affected his business. Even if he does not pay me the rent, it may be what I actually owed him from a previous life.
After letting go of this burden, I became so relaxed. Not long afterward, he transferred me the rent. I then asked him to subtract the ten thousand yuan he had transferred to me earlier. He was very happy and all the more agreed that Dafa practitioners are the kindest people in the world!
I later approached him about throwing away the photo of former CCP leader Mao Zedong he had hanging in his shop, and he agreed. Afterward, he even called me specifically to say that the photo had been disposed of, and his business improved so much! I’m very happy for this sentient being, and I have further learned that only by cultivating ourselves well can we save sentient beings.
My Mentally Handicapped Daughter Became Normal
My daughter has been congenitally mentally handicapped since a young age, so I need to help her with her daily living needs. However, she has never made a fuss. She was very quiet, and only when people asked her something would she answer yes or no. Her reaction was very delayed as well.
She had to drop out of primary school as she was not able to study normally, so she is not able to recognize many words. Over the past few years, I often brought her along to a small Fa study group. When others read the Fa, she just looks at the book and listens quietly. She is very happy to come out and study the Fa with me. She can sit still for a few hours without moving, and never complains about being tired. When she’s at home, I let her watch Master’s lecture videos. I also read through Zhuan Falun with her once.
When we went out to clarify the truth, I was initially scared that her condition might affect others’ impression of Dafa, so I sent her to my sister’s house. I gradually changed this thought, however, as my daughter is also a sentient being who is here for the Fa. Therefore, other people would not have any negative thoughts about her. I now bring her along when I go out with other practitioners to talk to people about the persecution. My child was very quiet. If I ask her to wait somewhere, she stands there quietly and watches us. Sometimes, when I have walked alongside someone I approached, the practitioner I was with would walk alongside my daughter. Other times, when I walked a bit far away, she would stop walking and watch me from afar, waiting quietly for my return.
I started to realize that my daughter was becoming lively, and now liked to talk a lot. She even takes the initiative to talk with other practitioners. A woman once came walking towards us, and my daughter voluntarily told me to clarify the truth to her! I was a bit shocked. Was this really spoken by my daughter? I could not believe it. Afterward, another women came walking towards us, and my daughter spoke out again, “Clarify the truth to her!” I heard it clearly this time. I cried tears of joy. My daughter can speak normally! Her thoughts and reactions have already increased in speed. Sometimes, she will ask me at night, “What time are we leaving tomorrow?” (referring to what time we were going out to clarify the truth). The other practitioners all also felt happy for the changes in her.
A few days ago, I wanted to buy a shirt but felt that going out to shop would waste too much time. Therefore, I just took a look at the video advertisements online. My daughter sat at my side, and I saw that she seemed a bit unhappy. So I asked her if she was hungry. She said, “Not hungry.” I said, “Let me finish buying a shirt, then I will prepare a meal for you.” She then reached out her hand and turned off the video on my mobile phone. I asked her, “Why did you turn off the phone? You do not want to let me watch it?” She replied, “The things that are coming from the video are not good.” I was shocked! Is this what my daughter truly said? I asked her three times, and she replied very quickly, “The things that are coming from the video are not good!” I promised her I would not watch the videos anymore. She then laughed heartily.
The change in my daughter validated Dafa’s miraculous and supernatural nature. This is something that I would never have imagined in the past! This is Master’s benevolent protection! These are Dafa’s mighty virtues!
We are now both immersed in Dafa and are so happy every day! Thank you great Master for your benevolent protection! Despite the fact that we still have many shortcomings, Master has given us too much, really too much. We, as disciples, can only be more diligent in our cultivation! More diligent so that we do not let down Master’s benevolent salvation!
The above are my personal understandings. Kindly correct me if there is any room for improvement.
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Category: Improving Oneself
