(Clearwisdom.net) Recently, the subject of "the attachment of fear" has been frequently discussed. It seems that fear has become a severe obstacle in "validating Dafa, clarifying the truth, exposing evil, and saving people" in our area. Through Fa study, I know that the reason fear became an obstacle is because we have attachments behind the fear. Other than the fact that fear itself is an attachment, we are also afraid of hardships, afraid of losing fame and fortune, afraid of hurting our family members' feelings, etc. Can we reach Consummation if we don't remove this attachment of fear? The answer is no.
First of all, fear is selfish, as we are always afraid of losing things that we are attached to. However, it's precisely because our beings developed selfishness over a very long period of time that we fell down level by level. If we want to return to our original true selves, don't we need to cultivate into selfless, altruistic and righteous enlightened beings that think of others before ourselves? Secondly, fear is also a warped notion; it is a substance existing in other dimensions. Can we bring this substance up into heaven? "At the same time, no attachment or fear could possibly enable you to reach Consummation. And any attachment of fear is itself a barrier that prevents you from reaching Consummation" ("Dafa is Indestructible").
Looking from another perspective, fear is acknowledgement of the old forces' persecution. Teacher said, "Originally they wanted to treat us the way religions were treated in the past. Their warped notions have made them think that the persecution of Gods in history was rightful. Incidents such as Jesus being nailed to the cross have become the precedent for high-level beings who come down to save people. How could this be acceptable? This itself is degenerate!" ("Teaching the Fa at the Great Lakes Fa Conference in North America") "A Dafa disciple completely opposes everything arranged by the evil old forces" ("Dafa is Indestructible"). If we are afraid of being arrested by the evil, then aren't we conforming to the old forces' degenerated mentality? Looking from this viewpoint, removing fear is also negating the old forces' arrangements. Furthermore, Dafa disciples are the future Buddhas, Taos and Gods, how can we be afraid of the degenerate beings in the cosmos? Moreover, if we don't eliminate fear toward the evil in the human world and toward the old cosmic forces, we cannot reach the standards of Buddhas, Taos and Gods in the new universe. Therefore, fear must be removed.
During the Chinese New Year, Teacher continuously published articles, and Dafa disciples all felt the pressing of time. Shall we let go of all attachments and do what Dafa disciples are supposed to do, or shall we hold onto human attachments and find excuses for our pursuit of comfort, and therefore lose the opportunity? It is time to make the final decision.
Then, how do we eliminate fear? Personally, I think it is important that we must study the Fa seriously, "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") If we have the Fa in our hearts, we will have wisdom and righteous thoughts when encountering tribulations. We will thus be able to get rid of our impurities and require ourselves to act according to the standard of Dafa. As for our actions, we must move forward in spite of all pressures. It is exactly these pressures that enable our impurities to be exposed. In early June 2000, I declared to my supervisors at work that all the "guarantee statements"[promising not to appeal for Falun Gong] that I had written before to be completely void, and that I had to go to Beijing to appeal. My supervisor told me, "If you go to Beijing to appeal, first, your Party membership will be revoked and your government official status will be taken away. You will be fired and your apartment will be taken away as well. You will also likely receive a jail or forced labor camp term."
Facing such pressure, I knew clearly that if I went to Beijing, my Party service and work of nearly 30 years, in addition to more than 1,000 Yuan salary and my government post; in other words, all I had in my whole life in the ordinary human society would be gone. I used to think that I could give them up, but when I really had to give them up, I felt bitterness and difficulty. Because I was clear on the Fa principles, in the end, I decided I would give up my life to validate the Fa. Therefore, I took this difficult step under these pressures. After I was released from the labor camp, although from an ordinary person's perspective I had lost a lot, I had no worries. The attachments of fear I had before also disappeared. It was only for an instant that I felt I was bearing the tribulations. Teacher said, "Those disciples who have stepped forward to validate the Fa in the face of the pressure are courageous and admirable." ("Towards Consummation") Dafa disciples can give up things ordinary people can't, because ordinary people think of themselves first. Dafa disciples think of the Fa, and they think of others instead of themselves.
The Fa rectification process has progressed until today, and Dafa disciples should not be obstructed by fear any longer. "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." ("Fa-Lecture at the Conference in Florida, U.S.A."). I understood through further Fa study that saving people is a sacred and great thing; it is the most important thing for us Dafa disciples. We should clearly understand Fa principles, completely negate the old force's arrangements, and send forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil that persecutes Dafa and Dafa disciples. Even if we suffer hardships, it is only for an instant, and it is not proportional to what we will gain in the future. Then what are we afraid of? Furthermore, "Even if a Dafa cultivator truly casts off his human skin during the persecution, what awaits him is still Consummation" ("Dafa is Indestructible").
Teacher said, "Cultivation is hard. It's hard in that even when a terrible calamity strikes, even when evil madly persecutes, and even when your life is at stake, you still have to be able to steadfastly continue on your path of cultivation without letting anything in human society interfere with the steps you take on your path of cultivation" ("Path"). The attachment of fear also should not stop us from doing all of the things Dafa disciples are supposed to do.
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