Shen Yun Fundamentally Transformed My Cultivation

Esteemed Master and fellow practitioners,

I was introduced to Falun Dafa in 2012. I had heard about the Shen Yun Performing Arts show. That is to say, I had found out that there would be a Chinese Dance Performance, whose artists are Falun Dafa practitioners. But that was the extent of my understanding.

It was not until the summer of 2013 that I found out from regular e-mail traffic between practitioners on the Austrian practitioner contact list that local practitioners were involved in Shen Yun preparations. I was not clear at the time that a major reason for the existence of the Shen Yun group was the saving of sentient beings.

I wish to share some of the understandings I attained while the 2014 Shen Yun show performed in Vienna. These understandings were instrumental in fundamentally transforming my cultivation.

Letting Go Of Attachments
My desire to take part in the Shen Yun show preparations increased when listening to local practitioners discussing their involvement during the weekly Fa studies. At the same time I found that there was still a lack of enough volunteers to help in preparing for the shows.

However, there were two reasons stopping me from stepping forward. First, I had never seen the Shen Yun show. How could I convince people to go and see the show without having seen it myself? More specifically, how could I recommend something about which I was clueless? Secondly, I no idea about Master’s direction concerning this show. More precisely, I hadn’t yet read what Master had said about Shen Yun.

After sharing with him what was blocking me, my husband suggested that I read Master’s most recent Fa teaching discussing the subject. But, before I followed his suggestion, I decided to be part of the Shen Yun special edition distribution group. As soon as I had made that decision I was deeply contented and absolutely sure that I had made the right decision. After making this decision, I no longer needed to see Shen Yun to believe in it. My belief in Master and the Fa was enough. I was able to discard the thought of lacking proof of the show's value to Falun Dafa.

When talking about the Celestial Eye, Master said: “No seeing, no believing. That may sound quite reasonable. Yet from the perspective of a slightly higher level, it is not reasonable.” (Zhuan Falun, Lecture 2)

Furthermore, I discovered I had a human perception of marketing and advertising, as well as the fear of not being sufficiently knowledgeable if someone asked me questions about Shen Yun. I then read some relevant Fa-teachings and understood that Shen Yun is not an everyday matter therefore I, a practitioner, didn’t need ordinary advertising techniques to promote Shen Yun.

By reading the latest Fa-clarifications I improved my understanding of what it means to be a Fa-rectification Dafa disciple at the present time and how to follow Master’s arrangements. My confidence increased exponentially. I understood that the Shen Yun matters greatly in saving sentient beings. At the same time it saves a large number of people in one swoop. It is an opportunity coordinated by Master personally and is something divine. I was only responsible for bringing sentient beings to the show.

Looking Within and Finding Attachments
My daughter, not yet 6 months old, had just started teething when my husband and I began to distribute Shen Yun materials. Not only that, I was taking classes at the university and faced my first exam. I had to put off my studies until our daughter went to sleep. Therefore, I couldn’t go to bed until late at night but I was then awakened every two hours because of my daughter’s teething pains. The nights were therfore short and my sleeping pattern was greatly disturbed.

Alas, the relationship between my husband and I became rather strained. This was made worse by my coming down with head and joint pains that attacked me out of nowhere and which were, at times, very intense. Initially, I blamed lack of sleep for my pains and therefore began to go to bed earlier than usual. I began to neglect my Fa study and exercises. Then, despite going to bed early, I realised that I still felt lack of sleep on waking up the next day and my pain in fact worsened instead of lessened.

A new thought developed, which told me that my tribulations weren’t due to lack of sleep or to stress over the impending exam. These symptoms developed on the human side. Yet, as a cultivator, don’t I have to measure myself by a different standard? I asked myself the reasons behind these tribulations and so began to look within.

I discovered many attachments, including wanting to relax, laziness, enviousness, fear of falling ill, pain and depressive moods. At the same time I was certain that Master had arranged this opportunity so that I could let go of these attachments. Shen Yun was not only for saving sentient beings, but also to help practitioners advance in their levels. I could not, therefore, forget that I was a practitioner and could no longer live by ordinary people’s principles.

I no longer saw lack of sleep as a serious impediment. I no longer calculated how many hours I had slept, but got up when my daughter needed me and went to sleep once everything was taken care of. Furthermore, every night I read a chapter of Zhuan Falun after I had put my daughter to bed. It didn’t take long for me to realise my situation had improved. Yes, I still had to face the pain and the tiredness, but they no longer affected my daily life or my mood. They stopped taking precedence and had taken a back seat. The situation between my husband and I grew more harmonious by the day. We went to weekly Fa-study on Saturdays and Sundays together and decided to distribute Shen Yun materials on an additional day.

Slowly I began to realise in greater depth that cultivation while participating in the distribution of Shen Yun materials was connected to the saving of sentient beings. Surprisingly, I felt more energetic with a lightness that was instrumental when distributing Shen Yun materials, no matter how many problems I had encountered the night before. Also, the disposition between my husband and I grew ever more harmonious. I often felt that the Fa sustained us and pushed us forward.

It was still difficult for me to leave the house at that time and there were times when I felt foggy headed, rather crabby and in a bad mood when walking to the tram that took us to where we distributed the materials. My crabby mood reflected at times on my husband and we frequently quarreled when going to the assigned area.

One time, whilst on the tram, I read an article published in Essentials for further Advancement and my fogginess disappeared. There were also times when it needed no more than the walk to the tram to return me to clear-headedness. These difficulty really was an obstacle that we had to overcome before distributing the materials. It was a test that showed if we were worthy of being Dafa disciples.

Trusting in Master
Finding time for my nightly studies towards my university exam, that took place the same day as the Shen Yun opening night in Vienna, was rather difficult. Besides, my concentration after a full day's work was lacking. I often fell asleep during class at the university and I couldn’t remember what I had read. It didn’t take long for me to doubt that I would pass the exam if I continued to study so little. I considered studying more during the day, but figured out that if I did that, distributing the Shen Yun materials would have to be shortened. Then I thought, “I shouldn’t think like an ordinary person, because I’m a cultivator. I should do my best to distribute the Shen Yun materials and at the same time study as much as I could towards the exam, no matter how tired I was.”

I decided to understand the test I was facing on my cultivation path. What was more important, my personal success in human society or my success in saving sentient beings? Therefore, I continued to learn the Fa and put aside my doubts. I was certain that I would succeed as long as ordinary peoples’ views didn’t take the front seat. I needed to follow Master’s arrangements.

Passing the Test
When the time of Shen Yun 2014 had ended I remember that my husband and I had agreed that everything that had happened, including our daughter’s long-term teething were no mere happenstance, but a test. Specifically we had to let go of our attachments and we had to discover our understanding of the Fa. In summary, Master had tested our hearts and our trust in Dafa.

There were times when we joked about the subject matter of the university exam and said that everything would disappear in one fell swoop and truly, that is what happened. The first day of my exam at the university turned out well. On the second day I saw the Shen Yun show and my illness symptoms disappeared. Also my daughter’s teeth broke through just a few days after the Shen Yun closing night.

Remembering back, I can say that my cultivation during the Shen Yun shows has resulted in breakthroughs and this has fundamentally changed me. The cultivation tests during that time resulted in my rising in level and gaining deeper insights. I have mentioned only a few, but gaining a deeper understanding of the Fa and sending forth continuous righteous thoughts helped a great deal. All of that was instrumental in my realising that I’m a Dafa disciple inside out and that I can trust Master’s arrangements during times when I want to give in to my human attachments.

I thank Master for the wonderful opportunities that allowed me to find and eliminate my attachments, discover my ordinary human thoughts and let them go. Also for the compassionate hints and help I received on my cultivation path.

The above is my understanding at the present time. Please kindly advise me if there is anything I need to let go of.