The Orbit of Life

Ever since I was very young, my parents told me to be a good person. As a result, at school I was happy to do anything that I could to help people—regardless of whether it was big or small. Back then, I always wanted to be good. As long as someone called me a good boy, I was happy and did everything I was asked to do.

During my first year in middle school, one day my school asked us to cut grass for cows on a nearby farm. Our teacher told us that whoever cut more grass would be rewarded with a piece of cake. Back then, cake was very rare in the town where we lived. To receive a piece of cake, all of us young students worked hard in the field. When I took my grass to be weighed, the person who did the weighing was surprised and said, “Young man, how come you have so much grass? Other people have about 30-40 jin (15-20 kilograms), but you have more than 80 jin (40 kilograms). Hurry to the dining hall for a piece of cake!”

I went to the dining hall and found my teacher and classmates were having cake. The teacher asked me how much grass I cut, and I said more than 80 jin. The teacher did not believe me and went to ask the weighing person, who confirmed that I had cut more grass than the other students. At that point, the teacher said, “Why did you spend such a long time cutting the grass? It is too late and there is no cake left. You’ll have to wait until next time.” With those words, the teacher left.

That was the first time that I began to think about what was truly good—why did I receive nothing when I did so well? Since then, fate seemed to play tricks on me. Although I worked very hard, I did not receive praise or favourable comments. There was always something that came up, things then went out of control and I was blamed for what happened. At those times, somehow I realized that there were reasons behind the criticism and unhappiness, but I did not know exactly what they were. In order to find the answers, I sometimes got up late at night and sat calmly by myself in a place where others could not bother me. I enjoyed the serenity and harmony. Sometimes, I felt my body trave;ling in an orbit and I could feel other people travelling in orbits of their own. But I did not know what it all meant. Sometimes I felt uneasy about my orbit because I was hoping and waiting for a time when the orbit would be completely stable and true.

Only after practicing Falun Dafa were all my questions answered. Although I seemed to have done good things in the past, I did those merely to receive praise from other people. After practicing Falun Dafa, however, I gradually understood that true compassion is selfless and not something one could achieve by pursuit. Therefore, I changed my previous notions. Since then, fate suddenly stopped “playing tricks” on me and everything returned to its own orbit and became harmonious. During the sitting meditation, I clearly felt the energy that drove the harmony came from Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance (the nature of the universe).

During daily life, we sometimes run into astrologers who study the effects of heavenly bodies on people’s lives. Now, it seems that every one of us—at least everyone on the earth—does have an orbit of his or her own, an orbit of life.

During my cultivation, I gradually understood more about the orbit. If I am able to look within, my orbit will travel more smoothly together with other orbits, which will result in more energy that will benefit many beings. True compassion, which is selfless, will dissolve human notions. It is a feeling of happiness and a feeling of home, which only comes from cultivation.