Hi, my name is Iván. I’m 25, and I’m from Argentina.
I come from a Christian background, but later began gravitating away from this kind of
lifestyle. Through my adolescence, I started rejecting the idea of the divine and became an
atheist. I thought that science was the ultimate method for discovering the true nature of
reality, and that everything was bound to only what science could discover.
This mindset led me down a path of hedonism and indulgence that could never truly fulfill
me. I went through a phase of video-game addiction, unrestricted alcohol and drug abuse,
and self-destructive behavior that harmed my body and soul. Every time I did these harmful
things, in the back of my mind, I always knew that this was wrong and that the happiness it
brought me was only temporary. I was trapped in a cycle of addiction and self-destruction,
but I couldn’t stop because I didn’t know any better. I thought that this was how it was
supposed to be. This was what everyone else enjoyed and what everyone else wanted, so
unfortunately for me, I didn’t question this behavior for a big part of my youth.
I always tried to pretend that this lifestyle was good and made me happy. But, deep down,
I’ve always felt sad and broken because I didn’t understand how to cope with life and not
having a purpose.
When the pandemic started in 2020, during quarantine, my older brother and I were talking
about the current state of society and how it was worsening rapidly. We talked about how
self-interest governed everyone’s minds, and how people were willing to do unspeakable
things for profit and pleasure. He mentioned some principles written in the book Zhuan
Falun, which is the main book of the cultivation school of Falun Dafa. I was fascinated
immediately because these were so simple, but I had never been able to properly articulate
them. These principles were concepts that I always felt existed and applicable to life, but I
was never able to actually recognize them. My brother gifted me a copy of Zhuan Falun and
suggested that I read it.
Every page I turned revealed answers to the questions I faced through my life and
awakened my spirituality. I was reminded of the true purpose of life, which was a blissful
feeling.
Shortly after, I started studying the book regularly and doing the exercises of Falun Dafa. It
was easy and effortless to abandon all these things that harmed me and led me astray.
Now, I understood what I was living for and what I had to do.
It made me a lot more conscious of the present and aware of my thoughts. I was able to
recognize that life was precious and must be cherished. I realized that resisting the easy
pleasures of what modern life could offer was worth it because the real improvement was
through hardships.
The principles of the universe: Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance served as a
guideline through life and improved my relationships, my work, and my overall well-being.
Living by and cultivating these virtues gave me an unmatched sense of tranquility and peacefulness.
The thought of Falun Dafa practitioners and anyone with a belief being persecuted in China
and sent to a concentration camp for organ harvesting by the Chinese Communist Party is
stomach-wrenching. This should be rejected by everyone.
People who believe in Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance to become better
humans should not be persecuted, tortured, and forced to abandon this lifestyle.
Unfortunately, this is something that has been happening since 1999. Hopefully, this will
come to an end really soon!
I want to thank Master Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Dafa, for sharing this invaluable
knowledge and freeing us from a life without purpose.
Thank you very much for reading my story, and I hope it sparked something in you to take
action if you have a situation like mine.
Iván
