PureInsight | May 24, 2004
[PureInsight.org] When I read the headline of Newsweek's cover story in its April 26 issue, "Treating Back Pain: The New Debate Over an Affliction Shared by 65 Million Americans", I smiles at my incredible good fortune because not so long ago I had also suffered from terrible back pain.
I came to the U.S. ten years ago and started working for the National Institute of Health (NIH) as a medical researcher. My body did not respond well to the stressful and intense research work there. In less than a year, I developed back pain. I woke up every morning with a stiff back from the waist down. The pain was unbearable. Getting out of bed became a torture I had to suffer on a daily basis. I went to see a doctor, but he couldn't do anything about it. He told me exactly the same fact that is mentioned in the April 26 Newsweek story, namely, that, 65 million Americans are also suffering from back pain as I was, with no apparent cure. He only suggested me to maintain proper posture for lifting things. Based on my medical knowledge, I knew that having a good posture wouldn't help eliminate the back pain. I could only accept my fate. Every morning I continued to suffer from back pain, not knowing when the pain might end.
In March of 1997, a friend told me that the founder of Falun Gong, Mr. Li Hongzhi, was going to give a lecture in New York City, and asked me if I wanted to go to the conference. Prior to 1997, I had already heard from my mother that Falun Gong is a good qigong practice, and that it was very good for the body. However, I did not think I'd have time to practice Falun Gong. I debated a long time in my mind whether to attend Mr. Li's lecture. First of all, in order to attend the conference, I would have to do what I hated most – get up early in the morning. I would have to get up early to catch the train to New York City. Secondly, I was having diarrhea at the time. Even though there were many reasons for not going, I ended up in New York as if I was meant to be there. During the trip to New York, a young Chinese man sitting behind me kept whistling a song titled "Missing You" that was once very popular all over China. I still recalled part of its lyrics: "Where are you from, my friend?" For some reason I knew in my heart that I would not regret going to New York for the lecture.
When I arrived at the conference room, the whole place was packed. The book Zhuan Falun was already sold out. I listened to Mr. Li Hongzhi's lecture. An interesting thing was that Mr. Li started the lecture by talking about the issue of taking medicine. Back then, I had already learned during my conversation with my mother that she had stopped taking drugs for her high blood pressure after she started to practice Falun Gong. She had high blood pressure for many years and had to take pills on a regular basis to maintain her blood pressure. Due to my background in the field of medicine, I knew very well that it would be very dangerous if she did not take her pills every day. On the other hand, I also knew that she had suffered many side affects from taking the pills as well. It seems true that no one can have it all. Yet after she started to practice Falun Gong, she stopped taking her pills and didn't experience any discomfort at all. I was glad to know that she was feeling well without having to take medicine, but I was still concerned about her health. After listening to Mr. Li Hongzhi's lecture, my concerns disappeared without a trace.
Since all the Falun Dafa books were sold out at the conference, I had to go online to find Falun Gong books after I returned home. At that time I could only find Mr. Li Hongzhi's lecture in Sidney in 1996. After reading Falun Dafa Lecture in Sydney , I knew that my quest for truth had concluded. I also knew that once I had determined to walk the path of cultivation, I would never give up my cultivation and I would persist until the end. With this in mind, everything else worked out well. During the Easter of 1997, when cherry blossoms were blooming in Washington DC, I got a copy of Zhuan Falun, a Falun Gong exercises teaching videotape and an exercise music tape, as well as a poster with photos of the different exercise movements. I felt as if I was a lost soul given a second chance at life.
I began to study the Fa on a more regular basis. Because I was extremely busy with my research work, I hardly had time to practice the Falun Gong exercises. But one day I woke up and discovered that my back pain was gone. I was overcome with surprise and realized that reading the Falun Dafa books can heal sickness as well. To someone who has received many years of education in modern medicine such as myself, it was an earth-shattering discovery. My real life experience fundamentally changed my views on modern science, human body and life. I can't express the joy that Falun Gong has brought to my life. Through reading and following the teachings in Zhuan Falun, one can eventually reach Consummation. After reading Zhuan Falun, I feel that Confucian classics, history and philosophy books that I have read throughout the years can't hold a candle to it. After reading Zhuan Falun, I learned what true boundless wisdom is.
Tragically, such a marvelous cultivation and meditation practice that has benefited over 100 million people is now subject to Jiang Zemin's most barbaric, cruel and bloody persecution because of his jealousy over Falun Gong's popularity. In order to justify the persecution, the Chinese communist government claimed that Falun Gong doesn't allow its students to take medicine or go see the doctor. The people in China have fallen prey to Jiang Zemin's slanderous lies and misinformation. By burning and confiscating Falun Dafa books in China, Jiang Zemin has deprived Chinese people suffering from sicknesses of the chance at a life free of sickness. Hospitals can treat people's diseases, but, if there's an alternative method that enables people to become healthy without taking any medicine, why not allow people to have that choice? Take the 65 million Americans that are suffering from back pain for an example. They keep trying different types of treatment, including surgery, acupuncture and other types of alternative medicine to ease their pain. I used to be one of them. However, I refused to keep crawling within the boundary delimited by my limited knowledge of science and gave Falun Gong a try. I was rewarded with a priceless treasure. I sincerely wish that millions of others who are now suffering from sickness will read Dafa books. I believe that you too will enjoy the happiness of rebirth.
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2004/5/4/26970.html
