While On The Path
Illness Is A Blessing By Sister Initiate Fang Pu, Taipei, Formosa

My health had always been excellent, my bones and muscles being stronger than most people's. I rarely fell ill, especially after I became a vegetarian. I often thought that God had designed this almost super-human body for me to live to a hundred and fifty years old! I often joked about it, thinking that God might have intended for me to stay in the world to do more work; and in my heart, I truly began to believe it too!

Little did I imagine then that a medical checkup by my doctor one day would reveal that I had a tumor. The news came like a thunder bolt. It brought to mind my childhood days when my family was in the meat business and my parents sometimes bought illegally slaughtered pork because it was cheaper or for other reasons. I had seen pigs' tumors with my own eyes. My parents had no bad intentions but out of sheer ignorance, my mother cooked us the tumors because they tasted more tender than pork. When I think of it now, I realize that we were really most ignorant. Before we even mention the invisible karma this could have brought on us, unconsciously we might have transplanted cancer cells in our own bodies at that time. My mother died of cancer. Therefore, I recommend readers to abstain from non-vegetarian food, for we consume a lot of diseases along with it.

I had often heard that fellow initiates had many miraculous experiences and recovered from incurable diseases, so I prayed to Master in front of Her picture. I was not ready to die yet. I was destined to live a hundred and fifty years and my term had not yet expired. I prayed and prayed, but the hard lumps grew more and more obvious. I even found them in more than one area and they hurt sometimes.

Every time I thought that I might have to be prepared to say good-bye to this world, it would remind me that there were many things I should not put off any longer. My husband had often told me about my tardiness. Suddenly I showed improvement with this "problem". That was a recovery from another "disease"! The medical society uses many light and sound treatments today and as I came to truly believe in the therapeutic effect of the inner light and sound, I began to take meditation more seriously. That could also be considered a form of progress!

One day when I was watching one of Master's videotaped lectures, I heard Her say, "People in this world are unaware of its ephemeral nature. They just don't feel it. A true spiritual practitioner knows it very clearly. He cherishes every moment and cannot sleep or eat well for a single moment, for he doesn't know whether he will be able to solve his problems before he passes away; that is, he has not become completely enlightened and doesn't completely understand the world and the universe. But most people are different. Therefore, they will not achieve much progress in their spiritual practice. They think they can take it slowly, and they have time."

Master also said, "When a birth or death relates to us or to our relatives and friends, our feelings are involved. Then we realize clearly that the world is indeed ephemeral. The world is truly unreliable. If it is other people's business, we aren't so deeply affected emotionally. We might even talk lightheartedly, "Well! Never mind! The world is ephemeral; people come and go all the time." We may even console them. However, when it concerns our personal feelings, or when it happens to our relatives or friends, we have different feelings. Sometimes, because we, ourselves, cannot perceive the impermanence of the world, God gives us some mishaps, using the so-called shock treatment method to awaken us. Only then will we be deeply impressed and realize that it could happen to us tomorrow. This world is really not a permanent place. At that time, we feel we should pursue spiritual practice quickly, and understand our inner self as soon as possible. Therefore, disasters are not bad. It's just that we have to pay a high price."

After listening to Master's teachings, I realized that the shock that God had given me was in fact Hiers blessing. I also realized that my prayers still focused on my physical body. Since then, I would rather have these diseases all the time to remind me that I need to be more diligent. Otherwise with my weak mind, I would never know when my determination for diligent practice would grow or wane. I have learned that disease is one of God's ways of strengthening our mind power. I cannot help but praise the Old Man's power. I have also realized that Master always responds to my needs. What She has given me is what my soul needs rather than what I ask in my prayers for my ephemeral physical body.

Illness Is A Blessing Through The Valley Of Death With Master