A Lifelong Student Meets Falun Gong

A miracle happened to me on March 16, 2002. I propped myself against a desk and tried to learn the Falun Gong exercises. That very day, I was able to rise from my bed and go down the stairs, to meet a few people coming to the house to read my dead husband’s poems. It would have been his 73rd birthday. I was able to sit up till 11 pm. The visitors (who had heard that I was ‘deathly ill’) said that they had never seen me looking so well. I felt like a phony, as if I had been faking my high blood pressure, the tremors, vertigo, left arm pain, difficulty in breathing, allergic rashes, joint problems, water retention and so on. My blood pressure was often unreadable, and it was 279/135 or thereabouts when it could be gauged. I was rushed by ambulance to hospitals. The doctors said, the base line of my heart was affected. I was also suffering from reactions to medications being prescribed. On March 16th, my blood pressure started dropping, within days it had dropped 120 points. I stopped all medications. I am no longer housebound because of my poor health.

To understand the enormity of this miracle, I need to give you a bit of background information. I was born in India, 70 years ago. I came to the US on a Fulbright grant 41 years ago, and married another Fulbright grantee from India. We lived in Chicago. My husband died unexpectedly nine years ago: he had been in perfect health, he was slim, he had no gray hair, he exercised daily, he was the author of 25 books and he was greatly admired and appreciated in many countries; his sudden death was a great shock to many people.

I have been a student all my life; I received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. I have written several books, and taught people who have become published authors. I was working six days a week, running a creative writing school for professional men and women. My health had been poor since 1976. As a result of surgery, and reactions to medications, I have had a horrible time. I needed alternative doctors, as I have had life threatening reactions to penicillin, sulfa, cortisone, steroids, fiorinol, morphine, Novocain etc. I have spent a fortune on complimentary medicine. I went to the best people in each field: acupuncture, acupressure, bio-energy, yoga, biofeedback, Nampudripad Allergy Elimination, Nutritional Therapy, Naturopathy, Naprapathy, homeopathy, along with regular visits to chiropractor, massage therapist, and reflexologists. They alleviated the symptoms, but could not cure me.

We moved to Northfield, Minnesota three years ago. I was now without the alternative healthcare people. In the last year or so, I became very ill, my blood pressure was often unreadable, and I could scarcely walk. I said, “Old age needs a lot of courage.” My daughter was no longer sure that I would make it this time.

At that point my friend at the University of Chicago who had written a witness report in "Pathways to Enlightenment" (A Falun Gong practitioners' publication) about his own recovery played an active role in putting me in touch with the Falun Gong books. It took me three weeks to read the books, as I could scarcely hold them in my hand as I lay in bed. When I had grasped some of it, I propped myself against a desk and tried the exercises. That very day, I rose from my bed and came down the stairs. It was a miracle. My Chicago friend sent me the Falun Gong video and audio tape. He arranged for two practitioner-volunteers to come to my house to teach me the exercises. One of them happened to be one whose witness report in "Pathways to Enlightenment" had both amused and inspired me. They demonstrated the exercises for over two hours, and then urged me to come to the practice site in St. Paul. I do not drive outside my neighbourhood, but my driver also started practising and cultivating so we could attend.

I have a long way to go: I have only glimpses of understanding; I realize daily my shortcomings; I have trouble emptying my mind, having cultivated an over-active mindset; I cannot yet do the double lotus (sitting with legs folded on top of one another); I can only take in a page or two of Zhuan Falun each time. But I see also miraculous changes: my surgery scar hurts me less, my feet feel healthier, my joints no longer hurt; I no longer take medication, not even vitamins; my heart is not being squeezed painfully, my left arm does not hurt, I have no tremors, I can get up in the morning without vertigo and breathing problems. I am less alienated from the life around me; I feel less anxious about the welfare of my children; I enjoy my garden more.

After I designed a copper pyramid 8 ft tall and 3 ft wide for my garden, my Chicago friend told me: “Master Li Honghzi mentions the pyramid in Zhuan Falun. The three sides of the pyramid represent the three central virtues sought by all practitioners of Falun Gong: truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance.” I am so thankful! I find that there are no words to adequately express my gratitude.