Click on the below-mentioned, numbered subjects:
- Welcome
- What’s Happening?
- Changing the Human Mindset by Stepping Out of Human Notions
- My Understandings on Looking Inside and Group Study
- Finding the Human Notions that Obstructed My Cultivation
- My Take on “Sickness”
- Breaking Through an Old Notion, Dissolving the Persecution of Illness
- Western Practitioner: Letting Go of the Attachment to Illness
- 1. Welcome
Welcome to the October 2014 Falun Dafa India Newsletter.
In this issue, we have 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?
Practitioners from Bangalore talked about the practice to students of Maharani's College of Science and distributed fliers to all students and teachers.
Practitioners also visited the Agricultural Institute of Bangalore and distributed Fliers.
Bangalore practitioners also visited the Dayanand Sagar College and distributed fliers. The College authorities said they had already screened the Introduction video for the students. They wish to introduce the practice later this year.
Hyderabad practitioners distributed fliers at the march of Physiotherapy Association meet to doctors, participants and students.
Practitioners also distributed fliers at a health meet conducted by doctors of Care hospital and other doctors from other places, students and the public.
Practitioners from Hyderabad also met the Director, Jt. director of National Police Academy, foreigners and IPS trainees and clarified the truth. The Director and Jt director happened to know about Falun Gong since they had seen many practitioners in USA in parades. They wanted to introduce the practice in November to their staff and then to the new IPS trainees for the next batch.
Practitioners also met the managing director of a reputed TV channel, explained and clarified the truth. He was shocked to learn the truth. He advised his deputy to telecast a program about the practice in their TV channel in November. They distributed the fliers to their staff members also and clarified the truth.
Practitioners also distributed fliers to Mr. Bandaru Dattatreya, member of Parliament (BJP) Telangana and others in a meeting.
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- 3. Changing the Human Mindset by Stepping Out of Human Notions
(Minghui.org)
"What is human? Sentiments and desires fill the body.
What is immortal? Human mentalities do not exist.
What is Buddha? Benevolence and virtue in abundance.
What is Dao? A pure and tranquil true being."
("Distinction Between Human and Enlightened Beings" in Hong
Yin)
Cultivation is a path a human being travels to achieve godhood. Cultivation
requires that people transcend and improve and reach higher realms, with the
intent of bringing people to heaven. How do human beings achieve godhood? What
do cultivators cultivate? I realized that to cultivate is to change the human
mindset, to get rid of human thoughts, to use the universe's righteous laws to
replace human laws, to step out of all human notions and attachments, to return
to our true self that is selfless and pure and assimilated to the universal
principles, and to become enlightened beings as part of the righteous Fa in the
new universe. The cultivation path Master initiated for us requires us to
upgrade our xinxing and step out of human notions. It is very
difficult because we have lived in the human world all our lives. We face the
temptations of fame, material interests, and qing every day and
could be easily polluted and follow the flow. We are easily immersed in qing and
are often not able to escape it. This requires that we study the Fa
more often and that we use the Fa to cleanse ourselves, purify ourselves,
control ourselves, and rectify our degeneration. When we face issues, we should
view them from the standpoint of the Fa and do well in every single thing. We
need to get rid of human notions in every single thought, truly comply with the
standards of the various levels in the universe, and eventually return to our
real home.
I'm sharing my personal cultivation experience. Please kindly point out
anything improper.
Understand the Fa from Within the Fa, Believe in Master and Believe in the Fa
One day in October of 2003, I was cleaning up in the ward. The director
reminded me to be careful because there was a nail on a board in the floor. I
acknowledged him and continued to clean up. Sure enough, I accidentally stepped
on the nail and it punctured me really deep and it hurt. I shouted with pain and
thought, "There is rust on that nail. It could cause tetanus." The
director said right then, "Hurry up and clean up that wound! Then go get a
tetanus shot." I hesitated. According to "common knowledge"
(human notions), this is an absolutely necessary treatment procedure. Tetanus is
very dangerous. My heart became very heavy. Again the director urged me to get a
shot. I didn't say anything but was fighting inside. I remembered that Master
said, "...A qigong master has gong." (Lecture Two in Zhuan
Falun, March 2000 translation version) I then realized that
practitioners are not ordinary people. We can't use human notions to measure the
things that happen to us. We need to judge things using laws from higher realms
and meet higher standards. Dafa practitioners have powerful gong that has strong
elements. How is it possible to get tetanus? Master mentioned in the Fa a
practitioner who was a medical doctor who did experiments with bacteria. All the
bacteria around him died, which indicates that Dafa practitioners have the
capability to kill bacteria. Why would we need medical treatment? Aren't these
human thoughts and notions? Is the fear of acquiring tetanus consistent with the
Fa and believing in Master? Why couldn't I change my human mindset? Master said,
"But if you want to cultivate into a Buddha, your understanding has to
be extraordinary in every regard. If you don't let go of that attachment, you
won't be able to pass this test, and it will be impossible for you to reach
Consummation." ("Teaching the Fa in New York City" from Lectures
in the United States)
With a clearer understanding of Fa principles, the righteous thoughts will be
stronger and the attachment of fear will be gone.
From this incident, I realized that I should always consider myself a
cultivator and use the Fa to rectify myself. It's critical to believe in Master
and the Fa.
For Continuous Improvement, It Is Important to Recognize Shortcomings in
Ourselves, to Look Inward, and to Cultivate Ourselves in Conflicts
For a long time I didn't do well in practicing "Forbearance." I
always looked outward in conflicts and acted like a police officer. I always
looked at other people's shortcomings and didn't look inward to correct myself.
I turned studying the Fa into a formality and didn't view it as a guide to my
cultivation. As a result, in conflict situations I argued and fought like a
non-practitioner. Here is an incident that happened recently. I'm writing it
down to warn myself and to remind fellow practitioners to improve together in
the Fa.
My husband (also a practitioner) and I went to distribute truth-clarification
materials at my mother-in-law's. When we finished that night, I told him,
"I'll go back tomorrow." Surprisingly, my husband became really angry
and started blaming me. I didn't think I had done anything wrong so I couldn't
understand why he would be so angry. So I, too, got angry and blamed him. I was
angry with him for the next several days, and I didn't want to talk to him. But
on the third night I realized that this happened for a reason. Wasn't this a
warning to me? So I calmed down.
"Cultivation practice must take place through tribulations so as to
test whether you can part with and care less about different kinds of human
sentimentality and desires." (Lecture Four in Zhuan Falun)
I suddenly realized that this was my cultivation opportunity, and it was time
for me to improve. Master says,
"It would be good if they could manage to search within themselves for
the things that they have been able to find in others." ("A Dialogue
with Time" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
In my husband's behavior, Master wanted me to see myself--my impatience and
my temper, that I liked to blame things on others and complain when I saw other
practitioners' shortcomings. Fellow practitioners didn't like the way I acted,
but I didn't realize this. Master says, "You have to endure the same
suffering you caused others before." ("Teaching the Fa in New York
City" from Lectures in the United States) This time it's my turn. If
I think about it from other people's standpoint, they must have felt bad. So
starting now, I should really pay attention to this.
"While working, your tone of voice, your kindheartedness, and your
reasoning can change a person's heart, whereas commands never could!"
("Clearheadedness" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
When your counterpart's attitude is not right, isn't it your cultivation
opportunity?
"If everyone is nice to one another, how do you practice
cultivation?" (Lecture Nine in Zhuan Falun)
"How could you improve your xinxing if it weren't for your
difficulties with them? How could the black substance be transformed into the
white substance during suffering? How could you develop your gong?"
(Falun Gong)
When you view it with human notions, it's surely not good for you to suffer.
But from the viewpoint of a higher level, this is a chance for him to help you
eliminate karma and help you cultivate and improve. What is a cultivator
cultivating? Isn't it walking out of human attachments and human notions? I felt
it was unfair because I couldn't let go of human notions: I still crawled within
the boundary set by my own ignorance.
Moreover, why was I angry? A cultivator's heart should always be calm and
unmoved by any human notions. Looking behind this and digging further, I found
that there was an attachment to pursuing comfort. I was afraid of losing face
and of my self-esteem getting hurt. I wanted everybody to treat me well and I
didn't want to face any difficulties. How could this be cultivation?
"Without letting go of anything of everyday people, how can you
improve and elevate? Therefore, you simply cannot improve and elevate. You
must truly let go of these things, attachments that humans cannot let go
of." ("Lecture at the Australia Fa Conference")
From this incident, I realized that I was not able to tolerate and understand
others, and I didn't have a cultivator's calm mind. That state had been with me
for a long time. I was angry whenever I saw him and didn't pay attention to my
cultivation of speech.
"You cannot only pursue transformation of gong in the physical body
without emphasizing improvement of your xinxing. It is waiting for you to
upgrade your xinxing--only then will you make a holistic change."
(Lecture Six in Zhuan Falun)
So when you face conflicts with fellow practitioners, besides kindly pointing
out the practitioner's shortcomings, we should be looking inward to look for our
own shortcomings and correct them. Only if we step out of our human notions and
change our human mindset can we walk towards the brightness.
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- 4. My Understandings on Looking Inside and Group Study
By a Falun Dafa practitioner from Germany
(Minghui.org)
Here, I'd like to share some of my cultivation experiences and understandings on group study and Fa-rectification.
Truly Looking Inside
When I started to practice Falun Dafa in New York City five years ago, I didn't like the cultivation environment there. I would get upset when some of my fellow practitioners would not respond to my emails. This made me look outside of myself and complain about other practitioners, accusing them of being unhelpful.
At the same time I rarely joined group study and group exercise practice, and as a result my fellow practitioners would not see me for months at a time. I experienced a lot of tribulations because of my strong attachments and selfishness.
I was stuck in this state for a long time before I suddenly realized that I should actively join in with my fellow practitioners. I often complained about others not calling me. Yet, how come I didn't make a phone call to them? I decided to participate more with them. My own notion, that I was not important because I was not a coordinator, caused some practitioners to be overly confident and arrogant towards me, and this made me dislike some of my fellow practitioners.
In fact, I knew that the reason I couldn't tolerate some of my fellow practitioners was because of my own attachments. I knew within that my inability to treat all practitioners the same way was due to my lack of compassion. In order to get rid of this attachment, during our meetings I started to intentionally talk to those fellow practitioners that I didn't like. As I started to pay more attention to them I found that my impression towards them was actually prejudiced. This realization alone was not enough for me to get along well with them. Even more opportunities to uncover my attachments came up as I continued communicating with them. How can we improve ourselves if we only pursue comfort? I came to realize that when we have conflicts among fellow practitioners, we should communicate with each other, since the practitioners that we are in conflict with may be able to easily point out our attachments. We have to get rid of our attachments anyway. Why try to avoid the practitioners who can help us get rid our attachments more quickly?
So I began that whenever I felt I offended, I would try to suppress my desire to find excuses for myself or defend myself. Whenever I was criticized, I tried not to fight back. When I was able to do this, eventually, I felt I had advanced a lot on my cultivation path.
No matter how others treat me, I should treat them with compassion. This thought made me more peaceful and harmonious. When something unpleasant happened, instead of thinking about how I should respond, I tried to calm down and listen to others, and look inside instead of blaming others.
When I no longer blamed others or the cultivation environment for my not being able to cultivate myself well enough, things quickly changed. When I wasn't satisfied with our group environment, I tried to help improve it instead of simply complaining about it. I tried to take care of the tasks that were ignored or missed. In this way, I brought about some very good results for Dafa work. For me, my whole cultivation environment became better and better. Of course, it was because of the changes in myself that things around me improved. From my experience, I realized that the only person that I could change during my cultivation was myself. When I changed myself, everything around me would follow and change.
I feel sad for those fellow practitioners that are still looking outward and are unwilling to come to group study for fear of getting hurt. From my experience, I can attest to how beautiful the realm is when getting rid of these kinds of attachments.
Unfortunately, I haven't completely gotten rid of my tendency to search outside of myself. However, I know that whenever I try to blame others, I won't improve myself. I therefore keep trying to look inside. Over the past few days when I was working on a few Dafa projects, I started to search outward again. You could see my attachments in the long emails that I wrote to others. When I realized it and tried to look inside to remove the attachments, I had conflicts in my heart, since the karma controlling the attachments did not want to be removed. It was a difficult and painful process for me. I know very clearly though, that being unwilling to remove attachments is not what a practitioner should be like. Therefore, I tried my best to strengthen my True Self, not the attachments.
Cultivating Ourselves Poorly Negatively Impacts Our Cultivation Environment
Recently, as I was thinking about how to improve the cultivation environment in our local area, I suddenly realized a fact. Since I arrived in Germany, I have caused many losses to the cultivation environment. In other words, I hadn't contributed much to improve the environment. Why? It was because I didn't do well to eliminate my attachments, along with the interfering elements and bad thoughts in my mind. Most of the time I felt lazy and couldn't break through tests. Therefore, I was constantly interfered with, especially by illness karma, which made me exhausted. If I hadn't gotten stuck in this state for the past year, I would have been able to contribute a lot to improve the cultivation environment.
Had I been more responsible for myself in my cultivation, how many more things could I have done to help others, the progress of Fa-rectification, and our group? The Fa's power would have been able to manifest more through me and I would have been able to do a better job in rectifying our local environment. I cried when I thought about the losses that I caused by not being diligent.
Criticizing or blaming others is not something I should do. Even worse is trying to force my ideas or notions onto others when I think it would be better to do something in a certain way. For me, the most important task is to firmly remove my attachments. Only through this can I bring positive impacts to the environment and make the best use of my time to stop the evil's brutal persecution without getting interfered with. In this way, I will be able to whole-heartedly help practitioners in China and take some of the burden off their shoulders.
Doing well is my duty; it is not a selfish pursuit. My doing well will allow me to do a better job at fulfilling my huge historic responsibilities in this Fa-rectification period (like my fellow practitioners have done) and enable me to meet my responsibilities to my fellow practitioners, the cultivation environment and all sentient beings. Let us deny the evil's persecution.
Group Study is a Very Important Base
A few weeks ago we started to hold three group studies every week in Dortmund. Some time back, I couldn't focus while studying the Fa. However, since I joined the group study, I can now enter a very good state for studying the Fa as soon as I open up Zhuan Falun. Now, I feel as if I am melting into the Fa when reading the book, and my understandings of the Fa have improved quickly in a short period of time. Meanwhile, I can feel that I have become stronger, more relaxed, and more peaceful after improving in realm.
I hope more fellow practitioners can realize that a long period of group study with a peaceful heart is the base for forming a good cultivation environment. We should not give up any chances to study the Fa together. After the Fa-study, we should discuss about Dafa projects and our cultivation experiences. If we don't value these opportunities, we might fall behind without realizing it, since we wouldn't realize we have fallen behind without looking at how well the others have done. With group study and studying on our own, I think anyone could catch up with others within a few weeks.
The Fa is boundless. As long as we study the Fa with a respectful heart, we will be able to improve. As long as we take the Fa as Teacher and join the Fa-rectification whole-heartedly, we will be able to experience beauty and peace at higher levels. Only through this, can we become selfless Fa-rectification Dafa disciples. Otherwise, we may lack the heart of concern for other practitioners even when they are facing difficulties.
The above is my personal understandings. Of course, the Fa has deeper meanings. I hope what I said here are not just theoretical things. I will apply them in my daily cultivation. Here I would like to thank all the fellow practitioners who have helped me up to this point.
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- 5. Finding the Human Notions that Obstructed My Cultivation
By a practitioner from Guangdong Province
(Minghui.org)
"Without 'nothing', it is a human feeling. If it is a human feeling,
then it's not bei (compassion)."
Teacher spoke these two sentences during "Teaching the Fa at the 2004
Western U. S. Conference" on February 28, 2004. I reviewed this Fa teaching
and these two sentences many times during the last two years. Reading this Fa
teaching again one day in June 2006, I suddenly understood the meaning of these
two sentences. Now I will briefly talk about the Fa principles I have
enlightened to and the obstacles of human feelings that I have detected. Please
kindly correct any misunderstandings I may have.
1. The Correct Method of Studying the Fa is with "No Intention"
I felt happy and curious when I saw these two sentences Teacher gave us.
Therefore, I tried to examine the sentences word by word. I wanted to understand
the hidden meaning Teacher was really telling us. Since my thoughts were not
righteous and the method of study was not correct, I found nothing in the end.
Teacher reminded us a long time ago:
"When learning Dafa, intellectuals should be aware of a most prominent
problem: They study Dafa in the same way that everyday people study
theoretical writings [1], such as selecting relevant quotations from renowned
people to examine their own conduct. This will hinder a cultivator's progress.
Furthermore, upon learning that Dafa has profound, inner meaning and
high-level things that can guide cultivation practice at different levels,
some people even attempt to examine it word by word, but find nothing in the
end. These habits, acquired from studying political theories over a long
period of time, are also factors that interfere with cultivation practice;
they lead to a misunderstanding of the Fa." ("Learning the Fa"
from Essentials for Further Advancement)
"While learning the Fa, you should not search for relevant parts,
stubbornly intending to solve a particular problem. In fact, this is (with the
exception of those problems that need an immediate solution) also a form of
attachment. The only way to gain a good understanding of Dafa is to study it
without any intention. " ("Learning the Fa" from Essentials
for Further Advancement)
In June 2006, I enlightened to the Fa while reading it from cover to cover
without any intention. Teacher said,
"As a matter of fact, this is because the same Fa has different
transformations and forms of manifestation at different levels, and it can
play different guiding roles for practitioners at different levels."
("Different Levels Have Different Fa" from Zhuan Falun)
I enlightened to Fa principles during my seven years of cultivation. I still
remember when I first studied the Fa, I did not understand the meaning of
"return to the original, true self." I enlightened to the meaning
gradually through my Fa study. The words are simple in the two sentences I
mentioned above, but I could not understand the inner meaning of the Fa."
Different Levels Have Different Fa," helped me enlighten. My understanding
now is that the Fa principles will not be shown to you until you have cultivated
to that level, your xinxing has reached that level, or it is
time for you to understand that level of Fa. Although, your xinxing may
have reached a very high level, you may still have a lot of attachments you need
to let go. Until you do, it is impossible for you to understand the Fa
principles of higher levels no matter how hard you try.
I have realized how serious and sacred cultivation is. It is not taking
something for granted. Genuine practitioners must cultivate in this complicated
environment of everyday people. Only in this way can we melt into the Fa. It
will not work if you have the slightest mentality of hypocrisy or leaving things
to luck. Teacher said,
"Actually, in cultivation practice you ascend by improving yourself
gradually and unknowingly. Keep in mind: One should gain things naturally
without pursuing them." ("Learning the Fa" from Essentials
for Further Advancement)
"Without 'nothing,' it is a human feeling. If it is a human feeling,
then it's not bei (compassion)." ("Teaching the Fa at the
2004 Western U.S. Fa Conference")
My understanding of the two sentences at the moment is that our compassion
will not come out if we still have human attachments to let go. As a
practitioner, if we fail to cultivate ourselves well and have a preoccupied
human heart, then the good things we are doing today are not from the compassion
of an enlightened being, but from our human sentiment. It's only the kind-heart
of a human being. This is what Teacher said about cibei
"compassion,"
"Of course, the two-character term cibei is now being used in
ordinary human society as well, but it's definitely not something human beings
can attain. That's happened because today's culture has become confused.
People don't believe in divine beings anymore, and don't know that they should
cultivate anymore. Humans dare to be blasphemous against Buddhas, against Fa,
and against Gods, and use cultivation terms among ordinary people. Humans have
done all of that. But those are not ordinary human terms, it's just that
ordinary people have taken them up and used them." ("Teaching the Fa
at the 2004 Western U.S. Fa Conference")
It was only natural for me to recall the resistance and obstacles I had come
across during of my Fa-rectification cultivation over the past few years upon
realizing this bit of the Fa principles. I dug deep to find the root cause. It
is that I studied the Fa very shallowly and failed to let go of my human
thoughts. The lesson was profound.
2. To Let Go of the Attachment of Benefit and Human Sentiments
I had a fundamental change in my health during my seven years of cultivation.
During all these years, I did not spend a penny on medical expenses. I felt very
happy and began to talk about Falun Dafa with my family members. At that time,
my daughter began to practice, but she stopped when the persecution started. The
lies and fabrications by the CCP-controlled media seemed to eclipse the sky and
cover the earth. My family members misunderstood Dafa. I clarified the
truth to them to clear up any misunderstandings. I wanted them to be able
to be saved, but I clarified the truth to them with an attachment of gain. I
used my own terrific health from practicing Falun Gong as an example. I said
that I have saved many medical fees. I said that belief in Falun Dafa and the
principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance would not only bring them wellbeing
and save medical expenses, but also ensure the younger generation peace of mind
about the health of their older relatives. Normally, old people are weak,
sickly, morbidly obsessed with their illnesses and need to spend a lot of money
on medical expenses. However, my thoughts were not righteous, the aim was not
pure and I put the benefits above anything else, therefore, the results of my
truth-clarification efforts have not been good over the past few years. My
husband would not listen to or read truth-clarification materials. Although he
knew in his heart that Falun Dafa was good, he never revealed it to me. On the
contrary, sometimes he would say, "You are crazy and incorrigible." My
daughter quit the CCP and its subordinate organizations after she learned the
truth. However, it seemed she did this for the sake of my feelings and her
belief in Dafa does not seem to be firm.
Previously, inadequate Fa study and not being able to melt into the Fa
created a serious mentality of fear and interference of human feelings. This
fear interfered whenever I tried to validate the Fa to save sentient beings.
First of all, my human feelings told me that my family members, relatives and
friends had greater predestined relationships with me, so I had to put an
emphasis on them. Secondly, my fear mentality appeared, telling me that it would
be safer just to clarify the truth to these people. I clarified the truth to
them in a very earnest, serious and meticulous manner. I even expressed the
urgency of the matter to them. I clarified the truth to other people without the
same effort. It was not hard to see that I was doing truth-clarification in a
selfish and biased way. Despite this, my truth clarification to everyday people
produced unexpectedly good results, while the results of truth clarification
attempts to family members and friends were not satisfactory. Some of them are
still not quite convinced, and some are even against Dafa. The lesson is
profound. If a practitioner still uses human principles when doing things, it is
absolutely wrong. The requirements set by Dafa are: "Things are gained
naturally, with no pursuit." "If it is a human feeling, then it's not bei
(compassion)."
My husband served in the CCP"s army for many years and he was poisoned
by the Party culture of "deceit, evil and strife." He was deceived by
the CCP's propaganda which describes itself as a "great, glorious and
correct" Party. Though he knows the CCP is corrupt, he seems to suffer from
the Stockholm syndrome. He insists that the Party is "great, glorious and
correct" even though he knows clearly that it is cruel and corrupt. I asked
him to quit the CCP for the sake of peace. He remained indifferent, so I blamed
him in my heart. This human sentiment became resentment. I started to blame him
for not being reasonable and for not cherishing his life. Now that I have
enlightened to the Fa principles, I questioned if I was worthy of being a
practitioner when I had such strong human feelings.
My husband is one who does not want to take responsibility for anything. So,
I handle everything big or small at home, especially the expenditures. He would
never mention, ask about or contribute to the family business, as if he was an
outsider. In the past we combined our incomes to pay our expenditures. Since the
persecution of Falun Gong began, the family income has been divided into two
parts. I felt wronged, but I didn't have any choice. My pension income and money
from some manual labor was used for the family and other extra expenses. He was
unwilling to spend his money on the family. Therefore, I was in a state of
imbalance. I told my daughter, relatives and even fellow practitioners that he
was mean and selfish. Sometimes I would get very angry when I talked about it. I
even said, "If I was not a practitioner, I would be annoyed to no
end."
Now, when I recall that period of time, I remember that I had that unbalanced
feeling for a long time. In recent years, I have paid attention to Fa study and
constantly let go of human feelings and attachments. I have realized that the
problems that occurred were the result of my own karma and karmic relations. I
enlightened to the Fa principles through continuous Fa study, genuine
cultivation and following the Fa in everything. I let go of a lot of human
feelings and attachments. My xinxing has improved as well. I
maintain a peaceful mind and do not feel uncomfortable when other people
verbally abuse and/or accuse me. I pay all the daily expenses for the family
with my money and I do not feel unbalanced. However, when I needed to pay for
something big, for example, buy an air conditioner or pay for our child's
wedding, my husband did not give me any money or offer to help. I would then
lose the balance in my heart. Why was that? Why would this happen at a time when
I thought my xinxing had improved? I find that I still have the
attachments of gain and selfishness when I dig deep. For example, when my
husband and I mentioned money in our talks, my attachment of personal gain and
loss emerges. My husband would cut in instantly saying, "You said you
people don't talk about money. How come you are so preoccupied with your
personal gains and losses. I am not cultivating, but I am doing better than
you!" I had nothing to say, but I felt wronged in my heart at the time. Now
I enlightened that Teacher used my husband's mouth to give me a hint. Teacher
has really paid close attention to our cultivation. Teacher arranged one thing
after the other and set up test after test for my improvement in cultivation and
to help me reach consummation. His purpose is to help us let go of our
attachments and human feelings. Teacher is saving me with grand compassion.
Teacher said,
"Our school practices cultivation this way, enabling you, yourself to
truly obtain gong. That is unprecedented since the beginning of heaven and
earth--you may examine history. It is good because you will obtain gong
yourself, but it is also very difficult. Amidst the complex environment of
everyday people and its interpersonal xinxing frictions, you are able to rise
above and beyond¡V¡Vthis is the most difficult thing. It is hard in that you
knowingly lose your vested interests among everyday people. Amidst your
critical self-interests, are you moved? Amidst interpersonal mind games, are
you moved? When your friends or family suffer, are you moved? How do you weigh
them? This is how difficult it is to be a practitioner! Someone said to me:
"Teacher, it's enough to be a good person among everyday people. Who can
succeed in cultivation?" After hearing that, I felt really disappointed!
I did not say a word to him. There are all kinds of xinxing. One enlightens to
however high one can; whoever enlightens obtains." ("Lecture
Eight" from Zhuan Falun)
Didn't my husband provide me with a very precious environment? Without this
environment how could I let go of my human attachments? Therefore, I should not
have any resentment against my husband, instead I should thank him. As my
mentality changed, so has my husband. Now he pays for expensive milk powder,
washing powder, body lotion, tea and even meat. As a matter of fact, his
behavior in the past was to provide me with a cultivation environment. Now when
I look at him, I see that he is actually a very honest person. He does not cheat
on me or gamble, nor does he smoke or spend money extravagantly. He is a
righteous man who is not greedy, as far as money is concerned. He is only a bit
selfish, but who hasn't got a shortcoming? I believe that, when I let go of all
my human feelings, he might suddenly change and come to learn Falun Dafa.
Note:
[1] theoretical writings--this refers to the theoretical writings of Marxism,
Leninism, Maoism, etc.
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- 6. My Take on “Sickness”
By a Dafa practitioner from Hebei Province, China
(Minghui.org)
Experience sharing articles on “sickness” have appeared online multiple times. I would like to offer my own take on this subject.There are many practitioners nearby who have been in this "sickness" state for a long time. Some have had swollen legs for quite a while; some have festering breasts that have been oozing pus for quite a while; some have symptoms of diabetes; some have small problems that don’t really amount to anything yet just won’t go away; and so on. These practitioners do the three things very well and are very consistent in clarifying the truth on the front lines to save people. Faced with these fellow practitioners’ adverse physical conditions, other practitioners are very anxious. They study the Fa together, share experiences, exchange ideas, send forth righteous thoughts, and try benevolent solutions, but all to no avail. After quite a few times, they just let the matter drift out of their minds. Some practitioners casually say, "That is a false appearance, don’t believe it," or, "Let it assimilate to the Fa." Have these practitioners ever considered that, if it is a false appearance, what is the true appearance? If you let it "assimilate to the Fa," it’s like a poison. It’s poisonous, and it's here to persecute you. One word from you, and it will assimilate to the Fa? I obtained the Fa before July 20, 1999. At first, whenever I experienced symptoms of “sickness,” I would be very happy, because Master was cleansing my body again, rendering my body more purified. That way, my body could produce gong, that way I could go up to a higher level to cultivate. Back then, every time I eliminated karma, it always came fast and went fast. Generally it wouldn’t take more than three days and two nights. I liked to use the expression “it came to a grinding halt” to describe what happened. I would just very suddenly get well. It didn’t go away slowly, the way ordinary people describe getting well. After July 20, 1999, Dafa disciples entered into Fa-rectification cultivation. Master has not arranged for us any more karma to be eliminated. Tribulations involve only persecution from the old forces under the pretext of our attachments and other gaps. When I shared exchanges with fellow practitioners suffering from “sicknesses,” I noticed they were all looking inwards, discovering a whole pile of deficiencies and attachments, as if having these deficiencies and attachments were a matter of course. Looking inward is a magical tool that Master has bestowed on us. However, hand in hand with looking inward, we mustn’t forget to use righteous thoughts to deny the persecution forced on us by the old forces. Whenever I encounter this situation, the first thing I do is take the old forces to task: 1. You make me drag this body to distribute Dafa materials, to clarify the truth, to save sentient beings. You create a negative impact for Dafa. What you are manifesting to all sentient beings is not the extraordinary nature or the wonder of Dafa. You are slandering Dafa. You are destroying the sentient beings who shall be saved. Old forces, just for this one enormous sin, you deserve to be annihilated! 2. You use the excuses of gaps, attachments, or administering tests, to shake a Dafa disciple’s righteous thoughts and faith in Dafa. Old forces, you want to destroy a disciple of the Lord Buddha. Old forces, there is no way your sin can be considered small! This sin of yours is sufficient to have you eliminated. 3. I am a Dafa disciple here to assist Master to rectify the Fa. I have a responsibility, a mission. Every Fa-rectification moment is immensely valuable. But you are making me late, you are delaying me, you are negatively impacting the process of Master’s Fa-rectification. Old forces, you have committed a capital crime of the highest order, the worst sin imaginable. You deserve to be destroyed, form, spirit, and all. Whenever the old forces persecute me, whenever I have abnormal physical symptoms, my first thought is: "Eliminate! Eliminate the old forces, eliminate all the rotten matter the old forces place on my body! "Even if you only do a tiny bit, you have nonetheless committed a sin, and you deserve to be destroyed completely! I am a disciple of the Lord Buddha, who has already cleansed my body, which is now the purest, the cleanest. How can I allow you to sully it, to damage it so casually?!" The more pain I feel, the more discomfort, the more I’ll eliminate. I’ll come down with the word “eliminate” in overwhelming force on that particular location. I empty my brain of any distracting thought, leaving only one word: Eliminate! "Maybe I have gaps. I’ll destroy you first, then I’ll look for my gaps. It won’t be too late for that. Because I’m in a maze, I’m cultivating in the maze, but my cultivation path is like that. You old forces are destructive to Dafa; you create negative impacts for Dafa; you want to destroy the Dafa disciples Master has made; you will destroy sentient beings. Every sin you commit is a deadly, unforgivable sin! "I can’t allow you to continue on for even one moment. I will be committing a sin if I allow you as much as one second. Because my body is a small universe, that second may be a couple thousand years, tens of thousands of years. I am the sovereign and lord of this universe, I absolutely will not allow evil beings run rampant with evil deeds in the space that is my universe." Just like that, in normal circumstances, I can terminate the persecution forced on me by sickness demons at the time I designate. My family members all declare what I can achieve miracles. They all respect Master and Dafa. Nobody dares to say “No” to Dafa! Fellow practitioners, before the persecution began, this state was called "eliminating karma;" now it is persecution, honest to goodness persecution! It is strengthened by the old forces' excuses, and it’s they who are committing sins. As Dafa disciples in this Fa-rectification period, we have the responsibility to eliminate these evil beings, much like sweeping dust away. Our cultivation is our Master’s affair, not theirs. We assimilate according to Dafa. We don’t use their standard as ours. Their appearances are forms of interference! We are Dafa disciples here on this Earth to help Master rectify the Fa! We have such a high status. Master has bestowed on us such great supernormal power. How can we allow these lowly rotten creatures to persecute us?! Fellow practitioners, lift up your divine side! It’s actually very simple. Master tells us, "I regard eliminating the evil as whisking dust away" (“All For This Day” from Hong Yin III) Everything is in your one thought! This is just my personal take. It may be one-sided. My intention is merely for exchanging experiences. If you find anything inappropriate, please bring it up for discussion again.
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- 7. Breaking Through an Old Notion, Dissolving the Persecution of Illness
(Minghui.org)
I am a Falun Dafa practitioner in my 80s. Recently, due
to my lack of righteous thoughts, the old forces took advantage of me. As a
result, I spent a month in bed.
At that time, there was a knot in my mind. I had no energy at all and did not
want to eat. My sight was blurry, and I couldn't see well. My daughter stayed at
my bedside every night. Many people brought nutritious foods for me and hoped
that I could regain my energy. However, my illness persisted. I started to
wonder if I could hold on until my illegally detained son returned.
My fellow practitioners came, studied the Fa, and sent forth
righteous thoughts at my bedside, but I could not hear them.
Then, one night, I heard every single sentence of the Fa that the
practitioners were reading and felt that every single sentence was directed at
me. I realized, by then, that I had not done things according to the Fa and that
I did not treat myself as a practitioner. Eating nutritious foods I was treating
myself as an ordinary sick person. As a Dafa practitioner, how could I use
ordinary people's concepts?
After improving my understanding of the Fa, I listened carefully to the Fa
lectures and strengthened my righteous thoughts. I refused to eat any special
food and did not allow anyone to bring me any. Without resorting to any special
diet, I ate the regular meals prepared by the family. I used righteous thoughts
to reject the persecution of illness. I believed firmly in Teacher and the Fa.
Not too long after, I could get out of bed and began to walk. Now, I have more
black hair and my back is straight. I look a lot younger than I used to.
Witnessing my complete recovery from the severe illness using my righteous
thoughts, the whole village was stirred. Many people started practicing Falun
Gong, and almost all the people in the village support Dafa. Many people thought
that I would die after such a long illness that had me bedridden. But I
miraculously recovered, which, once again, let people witness the greatness of
Dafa.
In the following days, I will improve myself in cultivating and practicing
Dafa. I will not let the old forces take advantage of me again, and I will
firmly follow Teacher in Fa-rectification.
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- 8. Western Practitioner: Letting Go of the Attachment to Illness
(Minghui.org)
Greetings to Revered Master and fellow Dafa practitioners!
I would like to share with you my experience of letting go of the attachment to illness and to the state of non-omission that followed.
I started the cultivation way of Falun Gong in 1999. At that time I was seriously ill with a progressive heart disease. My family doctor did not give me much hope that my condition would improve and this view was confirmed by a cardiovascular specialist. The future looked bleak. I was surviving by taking medicine, the effect of which was that other parts of my body were not functioning properly. My general health was very poor and although the medicine was a factor in keeping me alive, it was actually shortening my life.
In August 1999 I started reading Zhuan Falun in the hope that it might heal my illness. I soon gave up this thinking when I reached page two where Master is quite clear that:
"...you must be here to genuinely study this Dafa, if you hold various attachments and come to gain supernormal abilities, have illnesses cured, listen to some theories, or come with some ill intentions, that will not work at all." ("Lecture One" in Zhuan Falun, March 2000 translation version)
I continued reading the book, and it had a profound effect on me. I no longer had any uncomfortable feelings and I made the decision to give up taking medicine. My thinking completely changed to wanting to live by this new way of life, and I was already convinced that I was being cared for by the Fa.
I continued reading Zhuan Falun repeatedly and followed Master’s guidelines of letting go of attachments as best I could. However the attachment to the illness or having been ill was stronger than I could cope with. I had previously adjusted my daily routine to that of a sick person. Many of my friends and family still regarded me as a sick person even though they could see that I had returned to good health and that I was now a changed person. Through this I may not have let go of the attachment to the illness completely.
In the article "Non-Omission" (Essentials for Further Advancement), Master says,
"There is sacrifice in forbearance. Being able to make sacrifices is the result of improving in one’s cultivation. The Fa has different levels. A cultivator’s understanding of the Fa is his understanding of the Fa at his cultivation level. Different cultivators understand the Fa differently because they are at different levels."
These words indicated that I needed to upgrade my cultivation level. I had to look inside. I realized that I was not putting others before myself and I needed to develop compassion and tolerance.
I read Zhuan Falun frequently. I tried to develop compassionate thinking and to be careful that anything I said did not wrongly affect others. I tried to be calmer when encountering conflicts and to persist in studying the Fa.
When I needed to renew my driving license, I paid a mandatory visit to my family doctor. My doctor was aware of my cultivation of Falun Gong. My husband, who is also a practitioner, had clarified the truth to him, and at his request, gave him the book Zhuan Falun. While I waited to be called for the examination, a state of acute anxiety overcame me. My thinking was that if any trace of illness was detected, it might affect the doctor’s view of Falun Gong. The doctor performed the usual perfunctory tests on me and declared that apart from my slightly high blood pressure, I was in a remarkably good state of health.
When I looked inside I realized that my thinking before entering the examination was at an everyday person’s level. Again Master’s words came to mind,
"The Fa has different requirements for cultivators at different levels. Sacrifice is evidenced by one’s being detached from ordinary human attachments. If a person can indeed calmly abandon everything with his heart being unaffected, he is actually at that level already. Yet cultivation practice is to improve yourself: You are already able to abandon the attachment, so why not also abandon the fear of attachment, itself? Isn’t abandonment without omission a higher sacrifice?" ("Non-Omission" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
Again, I needed to improve my cultivation state. This time I focused more emphasis on getting rid of the attachments to fear and anxiety. I had cultivated as best as I could by enduring conflicts. Now I try to just cultivate and allow everything to unfold while trying to cultivate benevolence through compassionate thoughts and actions. I believe I am making progress because recently I paid another mandatory visit to my doctor. This time I did not experience any anxiety or fear. On completion of the medical examination the doctor told me I had the health of a young person.
I believe that on the first visit to my doctor Master used the situation to expose my lingering attachment to the illness as well as an attachment and disposition to the state of illness. On the second visit I felt that I had cultivated beyond this state. I had been made aware of the necessity to practice cultivation with a clear mind rather than looking at my cultivation in an everyday manner.
Thank you Master. Thank you all.
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