Click on the below-mentioned, numbered subjects:
- Welcome
- What�s Happening?
- Letting go of attachments to successfully walk our path
- Falun Dafa Is the Gift I Had Given Up Hope of Finding
- Do Not Try To Hide From Cultivation By Doing More Things
- Why I Was Unable to Help My Friends and Relatives Understand the Greatness of Falun Dafa
- My Personal Experience and Enlightenment Regarding �Directly Target One�s Mind�
- Letting Go of the Attachment to "Illness"
- 1. Welcome
Welcome to the November 2008 Falun Dafa India Newsletter.
October was an eventful month with the Divine Land Marching Band performing at Mysore and Nagpur at large gatherings. (Click on articles below for more details)
India: Divine Land Marching Band Becomes a Focus of Attention in Mysore (Photos)
Falun Dafa Warmly Welcomed in India (Photos)
More and more people got the opportunity to learn more about Falun Dafa. A practitioner from Bangalore has shared her experience in an Article about what she enlightened to from the various tribulations and xinxing tests she had to go through to get the Band to come to India.
We wish all readers a Happy Diwali, the Festival of Lights which just got over last week. Diwali is symbolic of coming out of darkness into the light of peace, prosperity and enlightenment.
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?
After the Divine Land Marching Band�s visit, practitioners in Bangalore have been doing follow up work of teaching the exercises at various institutions. The Vincent De Paul International School in Mysore where the practitioners from the Band had stayed had made a special request to introduce Falun Dafa exercises to more students of the school.
The Police Academy and the girls� school attached to it also had a large audience to whom the exercises were introduced. The Inspectors from the Police Academy said they found the meditation very peaceful.
The practitioners from Pune had a stall in a Book Exhibition where they demonstrated the exercises and sold the books.
Employees from a General Insurance Company in Mumbai who had visited Nagpur were very impressed with the Divine Land Marching Band and were keen on learning the exercises.A practitioner from Mumbai explained to them about Falun Dafa and demonstrated the exercises. The President of the Insurance Company�s Welfare Union said he would like the main office bearers of the Union to first learn the exercises and then introduce it to the other employees.
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- 3. Letting go of attachments to successfully walk our path
By a Dafa practitioner from Bangalore, India
Last year a practitioner suggested �Since the Mysore Dasera is a Royal Festival celebrating victory of Truth over Evil, why don�t we take a stall at the Exhibition to introduce Falun Dafa. This is patronized by many hundreds of thousands of people from across the country and overseas.� But I was not really ready for taking up this responsibility as I thought that I didn�t have the time to organize such a big event in a city 150 km away from home. So I asked that practitioner �Why don�t you try and find what it entails?� He took the necessary material and found out that a stall costs Rs. 95000 (Approx USD 2,000). Since it was such a large sum of money he said �Maybe we should try next year when we can raise the money.�
Earlier in January 2008 the Divine Land Marching Band had taken part in the HRTR (Global Human Rights Torch Relay) at Bangalore. So I thought �Since a huge Dasera procession takes place in Mysore, why not the Band participate in this procession?� If we knew someone who was directly connected to the committee members, it would be easy.
The very next day another practitioner came home, and I asked him if he knew someone in Mysore in connection with the Dasera Committee. He replied, �My sister knows the previous Chief Executive Officer of the Dasera Exhibition.� So we met him and introduced Falun Dafa. He was very open to the participation of the Band, and told me �I will inform you when the Dasera Committee is formed since they are the final deciding authority.�
A week passed without any answer from him. Since the Band members from Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan had to book their tickets in advance to come to India, I asked him again about the progress. He said �Check with me in a few days.� My anxiety increased, because I knew that a lot of preparations had to be done to arrange for this event.
A few days later I called him again, and he said: �Come tomorrow, and we will meet the Police Commissioner of Mysore who is also the President of the Dasera Committee.� We introduced Falun Dafa to the Commissioner, showed him the video of the Band at the Global Human Rights Torch Relay, and asked him permission for the Band�s participation in the Dasera procession. He was eager, but couldn�t confirm as the decision had to be taken by the Dasera Committee. He said �If the final decision was in my hands I would definitely allow you to participate. If not in the main procession then at least alongside with it.�
The same day we met a few more important committee members who also wanted the Band to participate and they finally asked me to meet the Chairman of the Committee. He was the first person to disagree with the Band�s participation and confronted me with the question �Everyone in the procession has to be of the cultural heritage of India. How is your Band related to this?� We had no answer and tried to clarify that Truth is universal and beyond all boundaries. But he made it clear that the Band could not participate. This seemed like the end of the road and we decided to withdraw.
Two days later we were surprised to get a telephone call from the Deputy Commissioner of Police of Mysore city. He said �Meet the Vice President of the Committee, and you will be able to participate.�
The very next day we met the Vice President. He, too, was very excited when he saw the video of the Band, and promised �The Band will definitely participate in the Dasera celebrations, if possible even in the main procession. So ask all your Band members to come to India.� We informed all the Band members to confirm their tickets to India.
But two days later when we asked him for the formal Letter of Permission he avoided us, because after reading our material he thought that there could be a political issue. Master�s words �we cannot rely on everyday people� turned out to be true.
By then one hundred Band members had booked their tickets to India. Human thoughts arose and I wanted to call a press conference to expose this unfair situation. Then I remembered Master�s words �When you take a step back in a conflict, you will find the seas and the skies boundless, and it will certainly be another situation�. As a practitioner, how can I not have compassion towards them to clarify the truth thoroughly! I always had the notion that it was not very important to clarify the truth in India, as I thought that people here could easily understand it. At that point I realized why Master always spoke about clarifying the Truth. I regretted and thought to myself that I should have thoroughly clarified the Truth to the officials before inviting the Band.
I spoke to a practitioner from overseas, and explained the situation. He encouraged me not to give up and to keep trying. Only then did I realize Master�s words �whenever we face difficulties we should look within, and look for our attachments�. I understood that the problem was my complacency toward the success of the HRTR, and an attachment towards participation in the Dasera Procession. I started to accept that probably Master�s arrangement was different from what I thought, probably to save a large number of sentient beings at Nagpur, 800 km away, since the practitioners had offered to ensure the Band�s participation there.
Preparations were initiated at Nagpur. Following this everything fell in place in Mysore, too. We were offered the stall in the exhibition for free, and permission for the Band to perform in three different places!!
The Divine Land Marching Band performed at the Chamundeswari Temple, the Mysore Palace and Dasera Exhibition at Mysore. This was witnessed by a very large number of people. The Band also received certificates of appreciation for their performance by the CEO of the Exhibition. At Nagpur the Band performed at the Buddhist Dragon Palace Temple and Dhamma Chakra Stupa (Diksha Bhumi) before a gathering of around 300,000 people and was greatly appreciated by all. Falun Dafa was introduced through flyers to a large number of people at all the locations.
Later at the experience sharing among all the practitioners from Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and India, a practitioner said that in other countries the Divine Land Marching Band could not perform since the practitioners could not overcome the interference, but the Indian practitioners finally succeeded. This deepened my faith in Master even further, and I remembered Master�s words �If we let go of the attachment, the outcome is magnificent�.
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- 4. Falun Dafa Is the Gift I Had Given Up Hope of Finding
(Clearwisdom.net) I'm a practitioner from Switzerland. Today I work as an accountant. Previously, I studied economics and worked in different fields.
Even at a very young age, I remember very clearly asking my mom, "What are we doing here on the earth?" Well that was not an easy question! After some time of reflection, she found a way to answer: "You will learn later in high school when you study philosophy. Philosophy explains it." Hearing this, I could only wait.
Quite a few years later, I attended my first philosophy class. I had a lot of expectations and my ears were wide open. But quickly I had a strange feeling: even as a lot of words flew out of the teacher's mouth, the language was complicated and it was difficult for me to understand what he really meant. In the end I had to admit that even if the subject was interesting, philosophy could not help me to understand what life was all about, or at least it could not help to guide me in the way I should live my life.
Following this experience I was quite lost and decided to try to find some answers myself. I read a lot of books from different cultures. At the same time, having found no better way, I also began to take some drugs, but of course, I also knew this was not a right path, that I was only cheating myself and that it was dangerous for my health.
I looked into various things such as psychology, yoga and capoeira (a Brazilian martial art). Each had something to offer, but none of them answered my questions at a fundamental level.
It was at that time that I saw Falun Gong practitioners outside in the park practicing the exercises. There were information boards displayed and I started to read them, when suddenly one of them was blown down by the wind. A practitioner came over to put it up and we started a discussion. He said I could participate if I wanted to and that was what I did. I looked at them practicing, tried to imitate them, and during a break listened when they read Zhuan Falun. The section they read was, "The Issue of Treating Illness." I was impressed about how everything was so clearly explained and said to myself, "Wow, you have to remember what you just heard so as not to make mistakes later that could harm yourself."
After the exercises, a practitioner loaned me a Falun Dafa introductory book. I could not wait to get home and start reading it. I was very excited. That evening, even though I had to go to work the next day, I read the whole book during the night. It was just incredible. I was amazed that so much was disclosed, and in such a simple way. There were explanations for so many things I never understood before. There were also a few parts in the book that I could not understand or found strange at the time, but I told myself, "This book is so deep. I will just leave it at that, maybe I will understand later." I also started to practice the exercises and could feel their power.
Once I had finished it the same practitioner loaned me Zhuan Falun, and it was even more impressive. I had read so many books from different people, so many things, but here, everything I was looking for was clearly pointed out in one book. I almost could not believe it. One or two weeks later at the practice site, the practitioner asked me if I had finished the book. I said, "I am on the second lecture" (the book Zhuan Falun is divided into nine lectures). He told me that it is was better not to take too long when one reads it the first time. What I did not want to tell him was that it was already my second time through it! I knew this was not a good way to start my cultivation of "Truth-Compassion-Tolerance," the guiding principle of Falun Dafa, but I felt that this book was precious and I was afraid I would have to give it back before I was able to buy one myself!
Now, four years later, when I think about that experience it makes me smile. The teachings of Falun Dafa have become even more precious to me, and each day something new comes up. I think that the further one goes along this path, the more he will be able to discover. Of course cultivation is sometimes not easy, but at the same time it is easy because you know why you are doing it and learn how to act well. Moreover, everything depends on oneself. You can go as far as you wish.
In conclusion, I would say that Falun Dafa is the gift I had given up hope of finding, even in my dreams, and yet one day I suddenly found it, and it was real! I also found out that the further one goes, the more there is to discover about oneself, about life and the universe. It is truly a wonderful experience.
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- 5. Do Not Try To Hide From Cultivation By Doing More Things
By a practitioner in North America
(Clearwisdom.net) Recently I failed a large illness karma test and ended up in the hospital. Practitioners were telling me that it was an attack by the old forces and to not acknowledge the old forces. I knew this was true but I also realized that the fundamental reason why I was attacked was my low level xinxing. If my xinxing was not so low, the old forces would have no loopholes to use against me.
I have always been very busy doing many important things for Dafa. This busy-ness actually took my thoughts away from looking inside during tribulations and I continuously ignored my attachments and failed many emotional tests in my years of cultivation. When I read Teacher's article "The Closer to the End, the More Diligent You Should Be," I had a deep understanding of the first line:
"A person has many tests to overcome in the course of cultivation."
The more I read, the more I understood that Teacher is telling us to be more diligent in cultivating our xinxing as the fundamental starting point for the success of our Fa rectification work.
When Teacher speaks of being more diligent in this article, many practitioners right away think of how many more things they should "do" to be more diligent at this serious time.
The fact is, many practitioners are stressed out with the many things that they are already doing, and in some cases, the things they're already doing are not going as well as they should. It is also the case that veteran practitioners who have taken on many important responsibilities are being attacked with huge illness karma. Why is this the case if doing more things is supposed to be the answer?
So many times Teacher tries to help us to awaken to the seriousness of cultivating our xinxing and our despondency to upgrading our xinxing during our tribulations!
I felt very ashamed when during the article "The Closer to the End, the More Diligent You Should Be," Teacher tells us,
"That is why I often tell you to study the Fa a lot as you cultivate and why I periodically publish articles meant to point out common problems, continuously correcting the direction of things."
Teacher tells us that he has to continuously correct our direction. However, it seems time after time we continue to ignore Teacher's words, and continue to argue and stress over issues, and feel great pressure as we try to be more diligent by doing more and more things instead of truly cultivating better.
As I understand it, if we don't have a solid and high-level xinxing state, we will have very weak righteous thoughts and no power in other dimensions to deny and eliminate the old forces or any evil elements.
I have learned the hard way that success in Fa rectification and cultivation is not based on doing things first. Although Fa rectification things are extremely important and necessary, their success or failure is based on our xinxing and how diligent and determined we are at our cultivation first and foremost.
Practitioners must not use the act of doing things to hide from their attachments and xinxing cultivation. Our xinxing must reach the standard of a Dafa disciple. Otherwise all we do in Fa rectification will be for nothing.
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- 6. Why I Was Unable to Help My Friends and Relatives Understand the Greatness of Falun Dafa
By Taiwan practitioner Xin Ming
(Clearwisdom.net)
Over the past two years I have been trying hard to help my friends and relatives know of Falun Dafa. Every time I talked to them about it, I'd described in detail how cultivation in Falun Dafa has miraculously cured many people's illnesses and how many people have witnessed magical and wonderful scenes, but the effect was not good. I continuously felt very regretful and annoyed, yet I did not know how to do it differently.
Recently, through reading Master's lectures again, I have come to some realizations. For instance, whenever there is a problem we should search inward. In the past few days I have been thinking of why I just cannot help my friends and relatives understand the greatness of Dafa. After careful self-examination I finally realized the problem is within myself. I have had the attachment of using Dafa's miraculous aspects to guide them to accept Dafa, but I was wrong! The true value of Falun Dafa does not lie in keeping fit or curing illness, nor manifesting divine powers; instead, the true value lies in cultivating Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance.
Previously I had only paid attention to the superficial effects. I was attached to the fact that cultivation can cure illness and miracles will happen. I had not realized the profound Fa principles! It seems that I had never thought about why cultivation can cure illnesses. Is it possible that by just reading the Fa and doing exercises the diseases are gone and cultivators are free of any illness? No! The real reason and key point is that practitioners follow the principles of Dafa, truly cultivate their minds and let go of all their attachments, so that Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance is always in their hearts and minds, and thus they obtained ultimate health. Dafa principles place the emphasis more on cultivation of the mind and improvement of one's xinxing (moral character) than doing exercises to keep fit. It is known that what actually causes people to become ill is seventy percent psychological and thirty percent physiological. Only by keeping righteous thoughts can a person be healthy in body and spirit. As for the miraculous aspects of Dafa, it only takes effect for those who truly cultivate and truly believe in Dafa.
Now I finally realize why I have not been able to help my friends and relatives understand the greatness of Dafa. I'm writing down my understanding in hopes that it might be helpful to those practitioners who have experienced a similar situation. I'd appreciate fellow practitioners pointing out anything improper.
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- 7. My Personal Experience and Enlightenment Regarding �Directly Target One�s Mind�
Ding Ping (Mainland China)
Master says, �We, on the other hand, directly target one�s mind and practice cultivation according to the universe�s highest characteristic and to the universe�s form. Naturally, gong increases quite quickly. This is because the ways of cultivation practices are like a pyramid; only the central path is the main route.� �Our practice has a focus and truly points out those attachments. By abandoning them, one will make very rapid progress in cultivation.� (from �Consecration� in Lecture Five of Zhuan Falun)
The surface meaning of �directly target one�s mind� is so simple and easy to understand, but when we truly comprehend it with our mind, we then find it to be a supreme secret of heaven. �Human nature,� as Master reminds us, encompasses all the warped mentality of postnatal life, which has deviated from �Truthfulness- Compassion-Forbearance.� What�s the purpose of �Aim directly at human nature?� Isn�t it to let go of our �human nature?� Isn�t it to make everything in the cosmos return to the origin and go back to the truth?
�At present, I am the only person genuinely teaching qigong towards high levels at home and abroad. Why has no one done such a thing as to teach qigong towards higher levels? It is because this relates to questions of major concerns, profound historical reasons, and a wide range of issues, and very serious matters. It is not something that an everyday person can teach, for it involves the practices of many qigong schools. In particular, many of our practitioners who study one practice today and another tomorrow have already messed up their own bodies. Their cultivation is bound to fail. While others advance by taking the main road in cultivation, these people are on the side roads. If they practice one way, the other will interfere. If they practice the other way, this practice will interfere. Everything is interfering with them, and they can no longer succeed in cultivation practice.� (From �Genuinely Guiding People Toward High Levels� in Lecture One of Zhuan Falun)
Reading this, I recalled the cultivation forms of the past, which did not articulate the matter directly, instead it more or less tried to cover it up and let people enlighten by themselves, �On those side and small paths, one�s xinxing level in cultivation practice may not be high. One may become enlightened without achieving a high level of cultivation. They are, however, far inferior to the main road of genuine cultivation practice.� (From �Consecration� in Lecture Five of Zhuan Falun)
Since a master at a lower dimension does not have enough mighty virtue, he is not able to and even dares not to directly target one�s mind otherwise he couldn�t even free himself, let alone save others. Human nature runs through many layers and dimensions from bottom to top, and even reaches the layers higher than that of the master at the lower dimension. Whoever aims at human nature will have to help people remove it and bear their sinful karma. When such immense, sinful karma overwhelmingly presses down, the master of the lower dimension will be crushed and bent down. Considering things this way, I have further understood why people crucified Jesus and why Sakyamuni had to undergo Nirvana.
Master says, �I have said that our school of practice directly targets one�s mind. It does not make you actually lose anything in terms of material benefits. Instead, you are to temper your xinxing amidst the material benefits of everyday people. What is truly upgraded is your xinxing. If you can give up the attachment, you are able to abandon everything; when you are asked to give up material benefits, you will certainly be able to do it. If you cannot let the attachment go, you will not be able to discard anything. Therefore, the real purpose of cultivation is to cultivate your heart.� (From �Demonic Interference in Cultivation� in Lecture Six of Zhuan Falun)
Master�s mighty virtues are incomparably enormous. Looking back at the course of our past cultivation and searching our conscience, when Master is aiming directly at disciples� hearts, have we ever so truly understood Master�s infinite mercy? Have we ever so eagerly let go of our human nature? Instead of letting go of our human nature, we even agonize over the most trivial losses.
�In other words, what you lose is something bad. Thus you can return to your original, true self. So what do you gain? The improvement of your level; eventually you achieve Right Fruit and complete cultivation, solving the fundamental issue.� (From �Loss and Gain� in Lecture Four of Zhuan Falun). We, however, just let our �human nature,� which is an obstacle for our path toward consummation, make us feel happy or sad. We have forgotten that our Zhu Yishi (Main Consciousness) is the genuine �me.�
I think of the complications and difficulties of the past cultivation forms. Also I experience the rising of my true nature while cultivating Dafa and look down at the dangerous situation of those falling down and re-emerging lost sentient beings. From this I then have great enlightenment into Master�s boundless mighty virtues, the enormous mercy contained in �aiming directly at human nature� and Master�s immense enduring for all beings. I have recognized that it is a tremendously good fortune to be a Dafa disciple and learn the truth and real meaning of life, and come to realize the sacredness of our mission. Moreover, I have come to see some of the wonder and glory of the new cosmos and have strengthened my faith of shattering the old forces� persecution and offer salvation to all the sentient beings.
(Pureinsight)
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- 8. Letting Go of the Attachment to "Illness"
(Clearwisdom.net) As practitioners, we all know our attachments during the process of cultivation will be reflected in our minds. When we become aware of our attachments, we can eliminate them. I want to share the reason my body felt unwell based on my understanding and hope it will benefit my fellow practitioners.
Although we eliminate all the old forces, the dark minions, the rotten demons, and Communist evil spirits that affect our bodies, some symptoms of "diseases" that existed before practicing Falun Gong still reappear. We must rid ourselves of the attachment to the belief that those are "illnesses." For example, before practicing Falun Gong, my arms would feel numb when the wind blew on them while I was sleeping. After I practiced Falun Gong, the phenomenon disappeared. This symptom has reappeared even though much time has passed. At first I considered this a normal phenomenon for a practitioner to have, because Master said the phenomenon does exist where we will feel heat, electric shocks, and numbness. Then I began to think it was not normal. The feelings of heat, electric shocks, and numbness are only a reaction at certain level of cultivation. I should not be experiencing this phenomenon. Until recently, I did not understand the reason I was having this feeling again. When I eliminated the thought, I let the attachment die. When I noticed this attached notion, the phenomenon did not occur again.
Before practicing Falun Gong, my stomach felt bloated when I drank cold water. After I cultivated in Falun Gong, the phenomenon did not occur any longer. Recently, I drank a lot of cold water after I came back from the field. I began to feel my stomach becoming bloated. I suddenly understood and immediately eliminated the thought, "If I drink cold water, my stomach will fell bloated." Very quickly I felt just fine.
When I was learning the practice, we did the exercises outside at night. When we were bitten by mosquitoes, we considered it eliminating karma. One night, I felt an itch. When I took off my clothes, I found I had grown two boils. My previous thought was, "This is eliminating karma." Then I understood this is wrong thinking because I do not have this kind of karma. I immediately let go of this thought that, "to be bitten by mosquitoes is to eliminate karma." And soon I did, I did not feel the itch.
I hope the three examples I listed above will be helpful to my fellow practitioners. There is something else that I have personally experienced. From the beginning of our process of cultivation, although we are not always clear, it is the person him or herself that is cultivating. However, they may still have some bad thoughts. These thoughts will also be reflected from one's mind and should be eliminated. Each practitioner has energy. If you do not eliminate bad thoughts, you will be interfered with by them.
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