(Minghui.org) In May 1992, Falun Dafa was made public in China. Within a few years, around 100 million people had learned the practice. They came from all walks of life, including high-ranking officials in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), scientists, professors, engineers, and businessmen. Their educational backgrounds are just as varied, with many holding PhDs, Masters degrees, and bachelor's degrees, but some had no education and were even illiterate. As they cultivated, many experienced phenomena which science has so far been unable to explain. They came away with the understanding that Falun Dafa is actually a higher science.
There are so many examples to choose from, but only a few of the many are told here. Each story shows how the lives of elderly people without any prior schooling can be fundamentally changed, and their wisdom enhanced through cultivating Falun Dafa.
Story One: Once Unable to Write My Own Name, Now Able to Read
I am 62. I was the eldest sibling in my family. I have three younger brothers and two younger sisters. When I started going to go to school, it was common back then for everyone to eat from the same big pot, a custom that was encouraged by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). I would go to school for a few days and then work in the fields for a few days to earn some “working points”. We could redeem the points to get something to eat. When I returned home I had to take care of my younger brothers and sisters. I worked like a machine. I didn't have much of a childhood, and the only thing I knew from a young age was how to work hard. I didn't even know how to write my own name, and I really envied my friends who got to go to school full-time.
In the spring of 1998, my daughter's friend told me that Falun Gong was able to cure illnesses. I became very excited because my husband had been bedridden from diabetes complications. He was so discouraged that he wanted to die. I hurriedly got a copy of Zhuan Falun for him. He earnestly read the precious book. One month later, my husband had miraculously restored his health. He could even ride his bicycle to the market.
The changes I saw in my husband deeply touched my heart. After witnessing such an amazing recovery, I too wanted to read the book. But I was disheartened because I was illiterate, so how could I ever read the book? I would constantly complain, “How lucky you are since you can read and write. I wish I could. I knew only hard work as a child. When it came time to learn how to read, I was unable to. I've really regretted it since then.”
My daughter saw how worried I was. She thought of a way. She dictated the book word by word into a recorder, and then asked me to listen to the recording while looking at the book. My daughter recorded 30 pages and I learned to read by listening to the recording.
Soon I was able to read all 332 pages of Zhuan Falun without the recording. Now I am able to read Teacher's new articles and Minghui Weekly.
When my brothers and sisters came to visit me they laughed when they saw a book in my hand, saying, “What are you holding a book for, can you read?” I read a paragraph to them and they were all stunned, “Hey, you must have memorized that, right? You had no schooling. How come you can read now?” I explained to them I wasn't memorizing the words, that I really understood how to read. Dafa is just that powerful; people of my age still can learn to read. If I had not been cultivating Falun Dafa how would I have been able to read? I would only forget. How could I memorize things so easily?
They thought it was unbelievable. My second sister said to herself, “Ah, how can it be true? You didn't even go to school. How can you learn to read? ...” Everyone felt the the wonder of Dafa.
Story Two: From Being Illiterate to Learning Falun Dafa and How to Read
I was born in a mountainous area and my mother passed away when I was nine, so I lived a very poor life with my father. Ever since I can remember, my job was to cut firewood in the mountains, fetch water, collect manure and turn a millstone. Cutting the firewood was the most dangerous job. I was once almost blown off a cliff. Even now, I still feel afraid when I remember it. Only now do I look back and understand that I did not die because I was waiting for Teacher to spread Dafa.
When I was a kid I was always crying when I saw the other kids go to school. I grew up and eventually got married. My husband was 9 years older than me and his family was very poor. I usually did all the work that needed to be done around the house. I worked hard through the years and as a result I suffered from all kinds of illnesses. When I coughed I would vomit blood and every time I had my period it would last for more than 20 days. Since I lost so much blood I suffered from anemia. The vomiting just made things worse, and as I was bleeding heavily during my period my face would become pale and I often suffered from headaches. I felt like I was always recovering from illness for most of my life.
In 1997, people from my village began to practice Falun Gong. I thought it was worth a try, and joined in as well.
I encountered many wonderful things as I practiced. But to get there I had to overcome challenges as well. The first obstacle I faced was that I could not read the Fa since I had not had any schooling. At the practice site, when practitioners read Zhuan Falun, I felt bad since I could not read. When I returned home, I would cry holding onto Teacher Li's book, thinking I had to find some way to read such a wonderful book. So I asked local practitioners and young student to teach me to read.
One day, while I was reading Zhuan Falun, I did not feel hungry or thirsty though I had been reading for several hours. I had a stomachache because I was resisting going to the bathroom, but I still did not want to put down the book. While reading the book, I had a thought, asking Teacher to help me. At that moment, every character in Zhuan Falun appeared to me in different colors: red, green and yellow. Some were spinning, and the character “cultivation” was jumping. It was very beautiful. The more I read, the more I wanted to read. Sometimes I would read until midnight, but I still didn't feel sleepy.
When I came across characters I didn't know, I would hear their pronunciation in my head. When I later checked with my grandson it was the same. This is how Teacher helped me learn to read Zhuan Falun. Now I can read most of Teacher's articles, as well as Hong Yin, Hong Yin II and truth-clarification materials.
People would never think that I, an elderly lady, would be able to learn how to read. Even my family was surprised. If I had not been cultivating Dafa, I wouldn't have been able to achieve this.
When I first obtained the Fa I was able to see Falun. Wherever I went, Falun would follow me. In the evening, when I came back from Fa study I did not need to turn on the light since the Falun were bright enough for me to see the bed. It was Teacher who looked after me, eliminated all the bad things from my body, and made me feel very pure.
I am now able to read because I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to learn Dafa. Teacher also gave me good health and let me experience the feeling of lightness without any illnesses.
Story Three: My Mother Able to Read Through Zhuan Falun
My mother is now 85 and has been cultivating for more than 5 years.
In 2006, my mother was 80 and was suffering from several illnesses, one of which was severe headaches. She asked me and my sister to take her to a hospital for a checkup and CT scan. We took her to the hospital twice but strangely enough, both times something happened to block our attempts at seeking treatment. One time, the hospital lost power due to a blackout, and another time some other problem occurred causing her to miss the opportunity to see a doctor.
My sister said to me, “Doesn't Teacher want her to practice Falun Gong with us? I think this makes more sense now. If we can get her to practice Falun Gong with us, then doesn't that solve all our problems?” We talked to her saying, “Let's do the exercises and study the Fa together so your illnesses can be cured without having to bother taking medicine every day.” When she heard that the exercises could cure her illnesses without medication she agreed and we started doing the exercises together.
While studying the Fa, my mother found it very difficult to understand the meanings since she had very little schooling and could hardly read. However, she believed in the Fa given by Teacher so she studied the Fa earnestly. Whenever she came across characters that she did not know, she would just ask. She would forget very quickly what we told her, but she was persistent and kept asking.
Her reading gradually improved, and along with it her understanding. She learned to read a lot of characters that she never knew before and was eventually able to read the book just like us. She could also understand the Fa so she believed what Teacher said about becoming a good person and a true practitioner.
Because of her age, my mother found it difficult to remember the exercise movements, and because of stiffness in her body her movements weren't quite right. However, she persisted in doing the sitting meditation for one hour every morning and doing the standing exercises for one hour during the day. With the passing of the time her body improved greatly and her legs and arms were not that stiff anymore, and her movements improved a lot.
Miraculously, my mother, at over 80 years old, even had a period. Her health improved, and her lips looked rosy just as if she had applied lipstick.
She continued doing the exercises, and was in very good health. She often said to others, “If I had not practiced Falun Gong, I would have died a long time ago. My neighbors and relatives passed away a long time ago. Now I am the only old one who is still alive.”
She encountered challenges in her cultivation, and sometimes was in low spirits. After sharing with practitioners she would say, “Cultivation is no joking matter. From now on I will be focused when I study the Fa and do the exercises well so that I won't let Teacher down!”
Story Four: My Mother Learns How to Read
My mother is 78. When she was young, her family was poor and they didn't have enough money for her to go to school. She started to twist cotton when she was 8, and later learned how to weave cotton cloth. In 1958, she was sent to the countryside to do farm work. She worked hard all her life and as a result she suffered from all kinds of illnesses such as hypertension and severe thrombocytopenia (low blood platelets) so she was on medication all year-round. She was also tormented by a stomachache for a long time. Sometimes, the pain was so bad that she had to rely on morphine.
My mother began to practice Falun Gong in October 1998. She was very dedicated in studying the Fa and doing the exercises with other practitioners. She strictly followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. In a few months, all her illnesses disappeared. Even more unthinkable was that this woman, who had never been able to read or write, was able to read through Zhuan Falun from cover to cover in three months. She could even read the book without wearing her glasses.
The process of her learning to read was also a miracle. When she began to practice Falun Gong and saw other practitioners read the Fa, she was very worried. One day she stood in front of Teacher's portrait and said very devoutly, “Teacher, others are able to read the Fa, but I never had the benefit of schooling. What can I do? Please help me!”
After that, when she was doing the sitting meditation, the characters in Zhuan Falun appeared in front of her eyes line by line. And she learned to read the book without much effort. When she joined the group Fa study, she was able to read the Fa with other practitioners. Now she is able to read other Dafa books as well as Minghui Weekly.
My mother witnessed the supernatural beauty of Falun Dafa. Eight relatives and neighbors learned Falun Gong because of her. In particular, my uncle, a former party member and a production team lead who opposed Falun Gong because of the propaganda on TV, is now wholeheartedly convinced and says, “I believe Falun Gong is real because of the very fact that your mother has learned to read Zhuan Falun.” He also became a practitioner.
