(Clearwisdom.net) In the ever-accelerating Fa-rectification process, many pre-persecution assistants and coordinators have reassumed their roles after gaining release from detention, joining the immense force of the Fa-rectification. This is definitely a good thing, but we have encountered problems, some of which are even serious, which need to be addressed. I hope that everyone can benefit from this article.
1. The Frequency and Scale of Experience Sharing Conferences
For example, quite a number of experience sharing conferences have been held in a specific province over the past six months. This has even extended to "holding small meetings daily, and big meetings frequently." It appears as if some areas are competing with each other. The opinion is being fostered that the number of conferences judges whether coordination is good and whether practitioners cultivate well in a particular area. Some arbitrary decisions were even handed down, which require that "practitioners working at truth clarification materials production sites must participate." This is a very serious situation
Teacher told us to "Compare in studying, compare in cultivating." (From "Solid Cultivation" - Hong Yin). Today is the Fa-rectification period, where individual cultivation has become Fa-rectification cultivation. Large conferences certainly involve the participation of many fellow practitioners, as do frequent small-size conferences. However, such conferences draw attention and bring with them significant security issues for fellow practitioners. Especially for practitioners who man the materials production site, more than one issue develops, including individual safety as well as the safety of the entire materials production site, and even the safety of the materials source for the entire vicinity. Potential security breaches could result in unrecoverable losses, and may even cost the lives of practitioners. I have no alternative but to bring this issue to the attention of all practitioners.
Teacher said in Essentials for Further Advancement:
"Large conferences for sharing cultivation experiences that are organized by the general assistance centers at the provincial or city level should not be held on a national scale. A national or an international one should be organized by the Research Society, and it should not be held too frequently. Once a year should be good (except for in special cases). Don't turn them into a formality or competition; instead, make it a solemn Fa conference that can truly bring about progress in cultivation." ("The Fa Conference")
2. The Purpose of an Experience Sharing Conference
I would like to share with you my thoughts concerning experience sharing conferences. Such conferences should in essence provide helpful points of reference for practitioners. They should help practitioners become clearer regarding the old forces and the evil persecution, put emphasis on how to completely negate the old forces' arrangements, help practitioners understand more clearly Fa principles, and share methods used by practitioners in clarifying the truth. It is important to talk about how to improve in saving sentient beings through truth-clarification, how to use the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party to save more people, and help practitioners who have not understood the Nine Commentaries to truly understand them based on the Fa. We should not forget to find ways to help practitioners who have not stepped forward to understand truth clarification activities based on the Fa, so they can play their part. In my opinion, if experience sharing conferences will address the aforementioned issues, they will serve their purpose and will certainly be truly successful. We should not hold a conference for the benefit of a certain vicinity or in honor of a particular person. Regrettably, this trend has become notable in certain areas.
3. Direct Contact Between Two Practitioners Does Not Equal Disunity Among the Larger Group
When some pre-persecution coordinators wished to take up where they had left off before their imprisonment, they found that practitioners no longer maintained such close contact among the larger group. Thus, they might feel anxious. Therefore, they brought practitioners together in an interlocking or crossover network, claiming to "build up the group of particles from the ground up" and described the one-way contact as "a state of disunity."
Their frame of mind can be understood, as they had missed out on much that had happened. But, one must understand that it is the Fa-rectification period. The current situation is very different from pre-persecution times. If practitioners maintain contact with each other as before, irreparable damage may occur when one person or a given link runs into problems. In some areas, a great number of practitioners have been arrested by the evil because of this. Why can't we bring attention to this potential problem?
As a matter of fact, "one-way contact" has become the norm among Fa-rectification period disciples. This experience has arisen from the lessons learned through serious losses, including the loss of life. Small groups of practitioners spontaneously communicating and working together do not equate to a state of disunity. We need to remember that with Dafa practitioners, "together there's a form, and separated there are particles," and "a great way has no form." We can adopt different forms, fitting different situations, especially in the current situation of many practitioners encountering persecution and sentient beings waiting to be saved. We should adopt the most advantageous format to validate the Fa and save sentient beings.
4. Firmly Regard the Fa as Master. Do not Idolize!
We read in the article by a fellow practitioner, "Sharing With Practitioners in Mudanjiang, Walk Our Paths Righteously,"
"In the autumn of 2004, several materials production sites were destroyed. One of the fellow practitioners was busy at producing a lot of materials daily, but was unable to calm down to study the Fa and cultivate his heart. He always looked at the attitude of several practitioners from Harbin and copied them, such as producing and distributing ordinary people's article like, 'The Iceberg Is Difficult to Depend On," setting a certain day of a certain month as a candlelight vigil (this is originally a way for practitioners outside of China to clarify the truth), collecting signatures for The Global Coalition to Bring Jiang Zemin to Justice and causing a ripple effect among practitioners. ...some people collected signatures among practitioners, because Harbin was doing the same. Regardless of what others do, why don't we read the articles with Teacher's comments and notices from the Minghui/Clearwisdom editors regarding not collecting signatures?"
Speaking about the incidents in Mudanjiang, we can't always sustain losses and only then wake up and realize the seriousness of the problem.
Some practitioners idolized certain coordinators before they stepped forward during the persecution, and discussed why so-and-so had not stepped forward. They said that if he would organize us, it would be a great thing. Therefore, when the coordinator stepped forward to validate the Fa, others immediately formed a mentality of adulation and of reliance on that coordinator. They moved further away from regarding the Fa as Master and became irrational. If only one person thinks that way, it is not too serious, but in some areas, many practitioners thought like this and thus the coordinator became their main focus. The coordinator began to have more tribulations, and afterwards, the Fa-rectification situation in the whole area was severely interfered with.
Teacher said in "Teaching the Fa at the Meeting with Asia-Pacific Students":
"It caused her to form attachments--see what happened now? You led her to do things her own way. That's why I tell you that you need to study the Fa a lot and use the Fa as your standard. Whenever a person cultivates well in some regard, that's because she has cultivated well in the Fa, not because she is better than the Fa. So if you follow somebody's example instead of learning from the Fa... [remember that] before the person has finished her cultivation she still has flaws, and when she's good in one regard it doesn't mean she's good in every regard. Now it's really happened, you've triggered the student's attachment. Be careful with this type of thing."
5. Let Go of Fame, Interest and Sentiment, Take Praise and Criticism at Face Value
When a certain vicinity held an experience sharing conference, some of the coordinators would speak for several minutes, after which some practitioners from other vicinities were invited to share their experiences. Originally it was not wrong, but after a time of sharing, the sharing gradually turned into a situation where that practitioner was validating him or herself, as well as validating a particular vicinity. It caused some practitioners to idolize a particular person and area and form a small clique. After some time, the people in such cliques could no longer accept any negative comments or criticism. Some practitioners who were members of the clique knew that they were not acting in accord with the Fa, but they did not dare speak out. Some practitioners were deeply disturbed by the situation and submitted an article discussing the problem to the Minghui/Clearwisdom website. However, the practitioners in question did not look inwards, but rather attacked other practitioners. They criticized the practitioner who wrote to the website. Therefore, the practitioner did not admit that he was the writer.
Some practitioners have recognized the problem, but do not point it out because they fear to offend the coordinators. Instead they give praise and flattering remarks. Is this cultivation? Is this truly for the good of fellow practitioners? Once a coordinator hears too many flattering remarks, they won't listen to any constructive criticism. Thus, this has caused a serious problem for the practitioner who is a coordinator. When the problem occurred again, it was difficult to be resolved. It turned serious, to the point of threatening the practitioners' safety, including that of the practitioners who sang the praise. We must cultivate our speech, as cultivation of speech is cultivation of our heart.
Teacher told us in Essentials for Further Advancement:
"For a cultivator, all the frustrations he comes across among everyday people are trials, and all the compliments he receives are tests." ("A Cultivator is Naturally Part of It")
6. Fa-rectification and Truth-clarification Projects Can't be Stopped Except Under Special Circumstances
In one area, two kinds of truth-clarification materials were suddenly stopped for more than three months, for no other reason than individual personality conflicts and coordination problems. It is now the Fa-rectification period, which is different from the individual cultivation of the past. Truth-clarification materials are to save people, and cannot be compared to publications of everyday society. These materials must not be sabotaged. Saving sentient beings cannot afford the loss of even a second. We must make the best use of time. We should not stop the flow of truth-clarification materials because of personality conflicts, or because we see a threat to our authority. The salvation of sentient beings is actually the most important task at this time, and delaying it is no small matter.
7. Rationally Deal With Safety Issues and Fear
Regarding the issue of safety and fear, we find that some coordinators still regard neglecting safety precautions as "completely negating the old forces." Such thoughts are known to be incorrect even by new practitioners. There are some areas where a wrong attitude towards safety has reached the point where one is no longer able to talk about safety issues. If the issue of safety is mentioned, one is said to have an attachment of fear. Then, the entire area is considered to hold the attachment of fear - not just certain people. This insinuates that the entire area does not cultivate well or do well. In the end, nobody dares to bring up the safety issue.
For example, it is well known that we should not bring cell phones to a conference, or at least we should remove the battery from the phone, or switch it off and keep it in another room. Yet, some coordinators insist on bringing their phone, and claim that they negate the old forces by doing so. It was observed that one coordinator was followed, and fellow practitioners reminded him to pay attention to safety. Afterwards, this coordinator went to the conference and said, "Someone told me that I was followed. I do not acknowledge it, I negate it. I do not care if I was monitored [by Chinese government authorities] on my way to the conference."
In fact, aren't safety precautions also a manifestation of the Fa on the human level? If we do not care about safety precautions, aren't we flawed in this regard? Our heart is important, not the form. Taking necessary safety measures does not connote an attachment to fear, but is the manifestation of non-omission and righteous thoughts, and is a manifestation of truly and completely negating the old forces.
I must point out that although practitioners were released from detention into an improved environment, these coordinators should realize that the evil won't easily miss any opportunity to persecute us. Therefore, all coordinators should take security measures seriously.
8. Understand the Difference Between Fa-rectification Period Cultivation and Individual Cultivation
Many of the pre-persecution coordinators had excellent organizational skills. They should be able to organize practitioners without any problem. But, due to the long-term detention, they lost a great degree of contact with the external environment. Therefore, after they are released, until they catch up, they lack a deep understanding of validating the Fa and Fa-rectification period cultivation. This can't be avoided. This is the main reason for many of the aforementioned problems.
Recently-released coordinators' organizational abilities in comparison to the practitioners who were not imprisoned, are most likely better. But, during the past years, those on the outside have accumulated much experience and understanding as to how to do the three things of the Fa-rectification period well. They have established good patterns, and have a deeper understanding of Fa-rectification and Fa-rectification period cultivation. Their opinions are actually worth considering. Therefore, I think the coordinators who were recently released should consult them more, keep an open mind and ask them for ideas. In this way, the coordinators can quickly catch up in whatever area they lack due to their long absence from Fa-rectification activities, and do the coordination work even better.
Finally, I would like to quote two paragraphs from Teacher's lectures. In "Teaching the Fa at the Meeting with Asia-Pacific Students," Teacher said,
"The coordinators among Dafa disciples are in fact just coordinators, points of contact, and people who relay information. Don't think of them as Master, and don't have such high expectations that you rely on them as you cultivate and expect them to handle everything just right. It's not like that. If the coordinator were really like Master, or able to consider things from all angles and never be wrong, then a lot of people in that area couldn't cultivate successfully, since with him thinking things through so well there'd be nothing left for you to think about. If he were to do everything just right you wouldn't have a chance to show your great qualities. You see the idea, right?"
Teacher told us in "Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference,"
"Each of you is like an Assistant, each of you is a particle of Dafa, each of you is immersed in and being tempered in the Fa, and each of you knows what to do. The Dafa disciples in Mainland China have already verified, in their actions and without the benefit of Master's presence, that Dafa is indestructible. As long as you do what Dafa disciples should do, everything can be resolved."
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