Click on the below-mentioned, numbered subjects:
- Welcome
- What�s Happening?
- Cultivation Issues That Should Not Be Neglected
- Re-Thinking the Issue of Jealousy
- Improve Together During Conflicts
- Some Issues Regarding Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
- My Understanding of "A Spontaneous Thought"
- In A Few Words: Belief and Disbelief
- 1. Welcome
Welcome to the May 2009 Falun Dafa India Newsletter.
It is time to celebrate the seventeenth anniversary of the World Falun Dafa day. Let us look inwards and see how we can do better and show Master how we value and treasure what he has given us.
On a sombre note, please help save Gao Zhisheng. We would request you to visit http://www.freegao.com/ and sign the petition. Please do it if you haven�t already done it.
This issue has a compilation of experience-sharing Articles gleaned from Clearwisdom that always shine through because of their insights and fine quality of sharing. It is important to read the Clearwisdom, Pureinsight and other Dafa sites. We make an effort to select Articles from the Archives which people don�t go back to and are relevant even today. Contributions are welcome from practitioners.
Heshi! Hope, you like the selection of Articles and gain some new insights!
Note: "All the contents in this newsletter - except for quotations and excerpts of writings of the founder Mr. Li Hongzhi - are only ideas and experiences of practitioners and do not represent Falun Dafa in itself."
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- 2. What�s Happening?
The Divine Land Marching Band had come to Delhi. Please click on the below link to read the report and see the pictures on Clearwisdom.
Divine Land Marching Band Members Teach Student Police Falun Gong Exercises (Photos)
Practitioners from Bangalore had visited Goa on the invitation of a multi-national to introduce Dafa and the exercises at the Annual Motivational Event of the company.
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- 3. Cultivation Issues That Should Not Be Neglected
By Jing Lian, a Falun Dafa practitioner in Gansu Province
(Clearwisdom.net)
1. Doing the Exercises is a Serious Issue
Although it is important to cultivate our "xinxing," we cannot neglect the seriousness of doing the exercises. Some practitioners' exercise movements are not accurate, and some people even add other movements during the exercises. This is often common in more rural areas where practitioners do not see each other frequently.
Cultivation is a very serious matter. We must be responsible for ourselves, and we have to take these things seriously. Hence, I believe that we must strictly follow our Teacher's exercise movements. The movements should be generally consistent without too much variance. It's almost the end of the Fa-rectification, but our exercise movements are still inaccurate. How is it that we cannot do well on this fundamental issue? I suggest all practitioners read The Great Consummation Way of Falun Dafa. We haven't shared regarding this particular issue for quite some time, and no one seems to have thought much about it. Even though I was aware of this problem, I didn't pay attention to it. Several days ago, while reciting the Fa, I was suddenly aware of the seriousness of this issue.
Teacher said in Zhuan Falun:
"Anyone who tries to change the Falun Dafa exercises is undermining Dafa and this school of practice. Some people have turned the exercise instructions into rhymes, and that is absolutely not permitted. A genuine cultivation way is always passed down from a prehistoric time. It has been preserved from quite a remote age and has successfully cultivated numerous great enlightened people. No one dares to change a bit of it. Such a thing can only take place in this Dharma-ending Period of ours. These things have never occurred throughout history. Everyone must be very careful with this issue. "
"Under no circumstances and for no reason can anyone alter even a bit of the movements with which we are to reach Consummation. Otherwise, this person is undermining the Fa, regardless of whether his motives are good or not." ("Immutable," Essentials for Further Advancement)
If our exercise movements are incorrect, will that be okay? If we add other movements, doesn't it alter the exercises? Furthermore, when doing meditation, some people sway back and forth, like a Chinese tumbler. When some practitioners legs slip down during the sitting meditation, they put them back up. This may occur several times during the exercise. If both one's hands and legs are changing positions, doesn't this interfere with the qi mechanism? A disciple asked Teacher about this issue:
"Question: If we're bitten by a mosquito while doing the meditation, is it okay to scratch the bump?
Teacher: If you've scratched it, you've scratched it, but it's best if you don't. When you scratch while practicing, your qi mechanism will be fouled up." ("Teaching the Fa and Answering Questions in Jinan," Zhuan Falun Fajie - The Law of Zhuan Falun Explained)
Yesterday, we held a small-scale Fa conference and all who participated were veteran practitioners. Eight or nine of them did the exercises inaccurately, and some had problems performing them. Has performing the exercises improperly over time warped the qi mechanisms? We have to truly take responsibility for ourselves!
2. Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
Sending forth righteous thoughts is one of Teacher's three requirements. There are many experience sharing articles about this issue. However, a number of practitioners still ignore the importance of sending forth righteous thoughts. Many practitioners have decreased the frequency of sending forth righteous thoughts and neglect doing so every day at the four set times. Also, some people's righteous thoughts are not strong enough, they become sleepy, or their hand position is not correct. The ability to send forth righteous thoughts is an important tool Teacher bestows on us. Hopefully, practitioners who have these problems can correct their wrong states as soon as possible, eliminate the evil, and fulfill their pledges!
The above is just my personal understanding. Please correct me if anything is inappropriate.
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- 4. Re-Thinking the Issue of Jealousy
By a Dafa practitioner in China
(Clearwisdom.net) Master said, "A wicked person is born of jealousy. Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself. A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion. With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy. An enlightened person has no attachments at all. He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions." ("Realms" from Essentials for Further Advancement) In the past, my understanding of jealousy was narrow-minded. I thought that jealousy is like what we usually call the "red-eye syndrome."1 I had not tried to understand jealousy more deeply based on the Fa. Recently, when disagreements occurred between fellow practitioners and me, I calmly thought through the disagreements and came to realize that jealousy is not limited to only one attachment; it includes many factors, and it is an assortment of things from a person's bad side.
If one is entangled in a conflict and cannot let go for a prolonged period, strictly speaking, he is behaving like a wicked person no matter what he has done or said, or if it is right or wrong. The reason that he keeps arguing and won't let go is because he attaches himself too strongly to the flawed reasoning or mistakes of others. Looking from another angle, isn't he attached to his own reasoning or being right? Isn't it obviously an attachment to "oneself"? How can one, if overly attached to his own things, avoid arguing angrily when in conflict? When arguing angrily he would surely feel unfairly treated. The feeling of unfairness would again intensify the conflict. At that moment if one could not rationally examine oneself, he would get even angrier, and to relieve the anger he may do bad things. Then, in this conflict, hasn't he behaved like a wicked person?
From a different perspective, why should one focus on other people's faults, shortcomings, or mistakes and not let go of it? Why shouldn't he look at others' strengths and where they are right, and appreciate these things? This is a telling reflection of one's realm. If one's mind is filled with other's faults, then it is just like a principle Master taught us, "A person is like a container, and he is whatever he contains." ("Melt Into the Fa", Essentials for Further Advancement) If all that is contained in one's mind are other people's faults, shortcomings, and mistakes, and these faults, shortcomings, and mistakes have penetrated the depths of his mind, then can he have a pure thought? If a living being can let go of others' faults, be magnanimous and tolerant, and from the bottom of his heart sincerely and benevolently accept others' strengths, he is then a great being. Isn't this the mentality that we should have as a Dafa practitioner?
As for jealousy, I think it is not simply a question of whether we can get rid of it. If we judge and deal with things using a jealous mentality, we are seriously limiting ourselves from achieving further and higher understandings, and preventing ourselves from fundamentally changing this bad state of mind. Furthermore, if one tightly catches other's faults and does not let go, where can his Shan2 come from? "Shan is the manifestation of the nature of the universe at different levels and in different dimensions. It is also the fundamental nature of Great Enlightened Beings." ("A Brief Explanation of Shan," Falun Dafa Essentials for Further Advancement) If one is cultivating Shan, shouldn't he first have a magnanimous and tolerant mentality when judging things?
Master talked many times about achieving "benevolent solutions" to the things when teaching the Fa. He taught us to have "the benevolence that can melt steel." ("Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference") My understanding is that this is also a requirement set by Master for a Dafa practitioner's state of mind when facing conflicts. "A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion. With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy." ("Realms," Falun Dafa Essentials for Further Advancement) I understand that resentment also arises from jealousy. If one has too much resentment, how can he understand the cultivation state of "takes hardship as joy"! Now I understand that, in the current Fa-rectification period, especially when in conflict with fellow practitioners, limiting oneself only to finding and discarding individual attachments is far from enough. We are required to use a benevolent person's mind to deal with the conflict, recognize the root of the conflict and resolve the conflict with the wisdom of an enlightened being. This is perhaps to break the old forces' arrangement in the process of elevating our realms.
This is my personal understanding. Please benevolently point out anything inappropriate. Let us encourage each other with Master's poem.
Realms "A wicked person is born of jealousy.
Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself.
A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion.
With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy.
An enlightened person has no attachments at all.
He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions." 1: "Red-eye syndrome" -- used here to describe a person, when seeing other people doing better than he is, feels uneven and uncomfortable, and thinks that he should be the one who is doing better.
2: Shan -- "Compassion," "Benevolence," "Kindness," or "Goodness."
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- 5. Improve Together During Conflicts
By a practitioner from Taiwan
(Clearwisdom.net) At this moment I feel extremely relaxed and pleased because the long-term friction between a fellow practitioner and I has been resolved. Previously, neither this fellow practitioner nor I wanted to face the conflict between us. Instead, we always tried to get around it. But there are no accidents in what happens to practitioners. As long as we don't let go of our attachments, the friction will strengthen and enlarge. It will even be taken advantage of by the evil and affect our overall environment of validating Dafa.
Master said in "Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Singapore:""I've often said that when two people have friction between each other, each one should examine him or herself. Not only should the two people with the friction examine themselves, but also the bystanders who happen to observe the incident should. That's when you'll really improve by leaps and bounds." When there is friction, if we don't look within but just blindly look at the other person's shortcomings and insist on our own point of view, then that will become a fatal obstacle in cultivation. Thus, we will be unable to make progress in cultivation.
We often see the cultivation state of fellow practitioners from our own viewpoint, and conflicts will arise when we cannot share openly. As time passes it will even affect the overall environment in which we validate Dafa. In the past I always had the attachment of fear when I shared with fellow practitioners because I was expecting or wanting harmony among us! My thinking was: "Why cause conflict and make everyone feel uneasy?" Actually, this was an attachment that needed to be eliminated. Non-practitioners hope to be in harmony. We are cultivators who should allow these attachments to be exposed and fundamentally eliminated, creating an environment in which all of us will learn and cultivate together. This is the nature of cultivation!
Master also said in "Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Singapore:""Having you expose your weaknesses during frictions with each other is how I enable you to improve most rapidly. And yet as soon as you encounter a problem, you push it aside and point out others' shortcomings instead of examining yourselves. How can you cultivate, then? This is precisely the best way for me to have you improve." I openly shared with the fellow practitioner face to face, and we came to respect the each other's understanding. When we tried to let go of self, the friction suddenly and completely vanished. We improved together during this process. It must have also been vigorous in other dimensions because the energy field on which the evil relied was completely disintegrated.
Master said in "Teaching and Explaining the Fa at the Metropolitan New York Fa Conference:""At present there are some frictions among students, and you all need to watch out--you can't let minor things affect the important things that Dafa disciples are supposed to do. I'm going to tell you that no matter what kind of conflicts arise, or what kind of situations emerge, it's bound to be that we have gaps in ourselves. That's for sure. If there weren't a gap nobody could exploit it. " We should cherish the predestined relationships among fellow practitioners, work together and coordinate to do the three things well in validating Dafa. There is no need to worry when there is conflict, but it should be a concern if we cannot share in an open manner.
Please kindly point out anything improper in the above. Thank you Master! Thank you fellow practitioners!
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- 6. Some Issues Regarding Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
By a Dafa practitioner in China
(Clearwisdom.net)
Among the practitioners I have met, I have noticed that there are some problems in sending forth righteous thoughts. Here I would like to share my understanding with fellow practitioners.
1. Not Paying Enough Attention to Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
Due to a limited understanding from the Fa-perspective regarding sending forth righteous thoughts, some practitioners only do it four times a day at 6AM, 6PM, 12AM, 12PM [Beijing time], as if it is unnecessary or impossible to send forth righteous thoughts at any other times. It is really a pity. Why are some practitioners among us not doing well in sending forth righteous thoughts? Some practitioners find that one of the reasons is that they do not study the Fa sufficiently.
Master has mentioned many times the importance of sending forth righteous thoughts in his lectures and articles. Master says, "Let me tell you, all those who remain and that can persecute Dafa and Dafa disciples are due to our students themselves. Students who haven't taken sending forth righteous thoughts seriously: the evil in the dimensions that you are supposed to shoulder and be responsible for has not been eliminated. That's the cause. So you must take sending forth righteous thoughts seriously. No matter whether you think you have the ability or not, you should do it." (from "Fa-Lecture at the Conference in Florida, U.S.A.") In the article "Righteous Thoughts," Master says, "Dafa disciples are now sentient beings' only, sole hope for salvation. So, in order to do Fa-rectification more effectively, while you clarify the facts you have to take sending righteous thoughts very seriously, and in a timely manner purge the evil and your own problems so that you won't be taken advantage of by the evil." As Dafa disciples, if our minds are filled with Fa and if we can melt into the Fa, our true nature will know what to do. We will follow Master's instructions and experience the effects of sending forth righteous thoughts, and thus take it more seriously.
Another reason might be that those practitioners do not communicate often with other practitioners. Those who are in an isolated situation should communicate more with other practitioners. At the same time, other practitioners should actively contact them and help create a better environment for their cultivation. More communication will help them see the differences and their own shortcomings so as to help them keep up with the Fa-rectification.
Still another reason is that they haven't completely rejected the arrangements of the old forces or realized the evil nature of the persecution. That's why there are all sorts of interference when we send forth righteous thoughts. When that happens, we should reject it and expel it rather than submit to it and be restrained by it. "Of course, each one of our Dafa disciples says that we don't recognize the old forces' arrangements, but that's not something you just say--you have to follow the requirements of Dafa and the Fa-rectification. I absolutely will not acknowledge any of those things you arranged in the past, old forces. I don't even acknowledge you. When your righteous thoughts are very strong you can purge it and you can reject their arrangements." (from "Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.") Accordingly, when we can really break away from the old forces while sending forth righteous thoughts are we really cultivating and are rejecting their arrangements.
2. Limited by the Concept of Three 5-Minute
In "Teaching the Fa at the 2001 Canada Fa Conference," Master says, "...our students can quiet their minds for five minutes, sitting with their hands in Jieyin and thinking about eliminating the bad thoughts, karma, bad notions, and external interference in their minds. As you're like this, think that they die, and then they will be eliminated. Five minutes will do. When we get together for group practice, think about eliminating the evil in the Three Realms, while holding one hand vertically (li-zhang) in front of the chest, and just think with True Thoughts for five minutes--this should do it." Some practitioners and I enlightened to the fact that we can extend the period of time while eliminating bad things from our minds according to our specific situations. We shouldn't be limited by the 5-minute concept. When Master said, "Five minutes will do," he didn't mean that you can only do it for 5 minutes. The same holds true when eliminating the exterior evil. We can do it for a longer period of time. If we take it as a task and keep peering at our watches while sending forth righteous thoughts and rigidly following a time period of 5 minutes, we are being superficial and focusing on the formality. Some practitioners change their hand gestures or stop sending forth righteous thoughts when the 5 minutes is up even if they have barely entered the state of sending forth righteous thoughts, and forgetting all about the point of sending forth righteous thoughts. We should correct that now.
We think that it's better to hold hands up at integral points. We can also send forth righteous thoughts at other times and extend the period of eliminating the evil; don't necessarily be bound by the idea of doing it for only 5 minutes.
3. Not Concentrating When Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts and Letting Miscellaneous Thoughts Disturb Us
This might be a very common phenomenon. Of course, it is not an issue of methodology; it's related to our levels of cultivation, how many attachments we have eliminated, the state of our progress, and how seriously we take sending forth righteous thoughts. We ought to follow Master's instructions: "You should focus your attention and your effort, your mind has to be absolutely clear and rational, the force of your thoughts needs to be focused and strong," ("Righteous Thoughts"). We should ignore anything that comes into our minds and eliminate it right away, as it is severe interference, and further eliminate the evil factors that are manipulating us behind the scene. The miscellaneous thoughts that we have could be something we are attached to in everyday life, which should be taken lightly. At the same time, we can eliminate all the arrangements by the old forces in the Fa-rectification and all the evil beings that are being used in their arrangements to damage Dafa. Apart from the Fa-rectification verse, there is only one word "Mie" in our minds that fills every part of the cosmos. Then, all the jumping thoughts and interferences will be swept away.
4. Hand Gestures Change While Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
Some practitioners do not hold their hands upright when sending forth righteous thoughts. Or they hold their palms upright at the beginning, but let them fall to the side after a while. With the lotus-palm gesture, they keep their hands open for a while, but gradually let the hands close and are deceived by the illusion that they are still holding their hands upright and are not even aware of the change. For some practitioners, such a problem has lasted for a long time. I think it is also a kind of interference that fellow practitioners have to pay attention to. We need to eliminate the evil factors that cause the changing of the hand gesture, and to also look within to find the problems in ourselves. We think that it's critical to not let go of the main consciousness. We ought to keep our spirits alert. We are doing such a divine mission of eliminating the evil and saving sentient beings. How can we not keep our spirits alert? "That's why when a person lets his main consciousness go he'll turn irrational...it's not just those concepts that can interfere with him, but any external messages. (from "Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.") Then the evil will take advantage of the loopholes. Under such circumstances, instead of eliminating the evil, it is interfering with us. Therefore, we have to maintain a clear mind while we are sending forth righteous thoughts and keep a strong main consciousness. Sending forth righteous thought is having the mind intent dictate super-normal abilities to do things. If we don't have a clear mind, or are not being rational, the supernormal abilities will not fully demonstrate their power.
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- 7. My Understanding of "A Spontaneous Thought"
By a Chinese practitioner
(Clearwisdom.net) Through out my cultivation I had been bothered by a question, that is, why I did not do well in certain areas? I was working hard at that time, wasn't I? I did not give up, did I? Why did I not overcome the obstacle? Only until recently did I understand why. I wrote it down in order to share my cultivation experience with all of you.
We all have a habit of forming a definition and conclusion about things in our society. Whenever a situation develops, we would first try to either approve or disapprove, whether it is a person, an object or some issue. After we have affirmed our thoughts then we would pursue the situation based on this understanding. In fact we have confined and limited ourselves by such a mentality. Even if we try harder later on, we would have already been framed by this "spontaneous thought" and unable to transcend it (because we could not realize early on that we could rise above it), ending up unable to perform well in some areas. More seriously, many of us could not recognize that the failure was the result of this "spontaneous thought," and could not realize it. On the contrary, we would make the excuse that the tribulations were very immense and the persecution was severe. This is very misleading and confusing, with devastating effects.
Once I was detained at the county detention center and a policeman coerced me to sign a "repentance paper." What was my "spontaneous thought" at that moment? "If I do not sign it, chances are they will detain me." Yet the Fa had clearly told us and I also knew from my heart, never to cooperate with the evil. I also tried to reason with them and asked them to be fair. Yet being influenced by this "spontaneous thought" my strength was not adequate. I even felt that my own will to stand up against them was lacking. Yet afterwards I comforted myself that I had clarified the truth to them, and I stood up against the persecution... and it was over just like that.
Later on I repeatedly pondered it and suddenly realized that all the tribulations were caused by that "spontaneous thought." At that moment I recalled Teacher's words in "Zhuan Falun," "We have said that good or evil comes from a person's spontaneous thought, and the thought at that moment can bring about different consequences."
Therefore, it is critical that our "spontaneous thought" is always based on the Fa. Especially as we are at the final phase of the Fa- rectification, we are constantly facing the final resistance from the evil old forces, as well as interference from the human elements of practitioners. Thus, it is crucial to purify our thoughts.
We must measure everything with the standard set by Dafa, because we are beings created by Dafa. Whether it's now or in the future, safeguarding Dafa and maintaining Dafa's standards is our sacred mission and obligation. "No matter what happens, one must maintain good xinxing. Only through adhering to Dafa can one be truly right." (Zhuan Falun). Teacher also said, "How was the cosmos created? It was created just by a Great Fa Enlightened Being's one thought." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.") Hence, we must seize the time that we have now to cultivate ourselves to be pure, to be noble, and to reach Consummation.
What I have written here was only my own understanding and I hope it will be of value to my fellow practitioners. Because I am limited by my level of understanding, please kindly point out anything inappropriate.
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- 8. In A Few Words: Belief and Disbelief
By Tong Zhen
(Clearwisdom.net) During the entire course of practicing cultivation in this mundane world, we are always facing the issue of belief and disbelief in the principles of the Fa. It is not we that achieve certain accomplishments -- it's not about how good we are. Instead, it is because when we believe in the Fa, Teacher arranges the accomplishment of everything for us. When we are truly enlightened to the principles of the Fa, it is because we believe in the Fa and hold a determined mind in the Fa, then the Fa will manifest its principles at that particular level to us. If we are not firm in our belief in the Fa and have doubts, we will not be enlightened to any principles. Teacher said,
"Your own enlightening only refers to your continuing cultivation after overcoming difficulties while practicing cultivation. This is what we refer to as your own enlightening. As for truly enlightening to something from the principles, if this Fa doesn't let you know it, you can't enlighten to it no matter how you try. So you have to meet one condition: You must genuinely practice cultivation." (Falun Buddha Law- Lecture at the Conference in Europe, Frankfurt, Germany, 1998, un-official translation)
As a matter of fact, the issue of belief and disbelief in the Fa manifests itself as a process of constantly making choices. Teacher said,
"The Fa can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts." ("Drive Out Interference," Essentials For Further Advancement II)
When we are determined to choose to believe in the Fa, we can then do a good job in all three tasks Teacher has been asking us to do. When we are dealing with the fact that the evil is persecuting Dafa and we choose to believe in the Fa, we are choosing to rectify the Fa with Teacher and to save all sentient beings as well. On the path of practicing cultivation, we are to continuously eliminate disbelief and choose to believe in the Fa. When we are able to always believe in the Fa wholeheartedly, we have made the choice to attain consummation and return to our true and original home.
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