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We Should Not Understand the Fa Out of Context

Sept. 12, 2005 |   By a Falun Dafa practitioner from China

(Clearwisdom.net)

During Fa-rectification cultivation, xinxing levels and cultivation states differ among practitioners. The Fa principles that we have enlightened to are different, as well. This is normal.

However, it does not mean that it's okay to understand the Fa in whatever way we like, nor does it mean that whatever we have "enlightened" to is always correct. When we have conflicts or arguments among us, some fellow practitioners simply quote Teacher's words in order to justify their ideas or actions and to prove others wrong. It is not right to do this. Besides, this is not respectful to the Fa. Since anything that practitioners encounter is not accidental, we should first look inside to dig out our shortcomings. Even when others make mistakes and are wrong, we should not use this as a reason not to correct ourselves and remove our attachments first.

Quoting the Fa out of context is wrong. We tend to do so when we are not willing to give up our attachments. In fact, when our heart is not righteous, anything, even the Fa, can be distorted in our minds.

For example, when some practitioner saw the sentence "Different Levels Have Different Fa" (Zhuan Falun), he understood it as "Fa principles can be understood in whatever way possible." When he read Teacher's article "Perfect Harmony" (Essentials for Further Advancement) and the articles where Teacher talked about killing, he said, "A Fa principle can be understood by its opposite meanings." When he saw Teacher's articles "Huge Exposure" (Essentials for Further Advancement) and "My Version of a "Stick Wake-up," he said, "It was Teacher that told the evil to start the persecution."

Another practitioner read, "If I were to disclose the truth, I would be teaching an evil practice..." ("Further Elimination of Attachments" from Essentials for Further Advancement), "You cannot always rely on me to bring you up to a higher level while you, yourself do not move. Only after the Fa is explicitly stated do you make a move. If it is not taught clearly, you do not move, or move backward. I cannot recognize such behavior as cultivation practice." ("Digging Out the Roots" from Essentials for Further Advancement) and "But in fact when something really needs to get done, I may not explicitly tell you that that is the new situation." (Teaching the Fa at the Western U.S. International Fa Conference) He explained these Fa principles as, "There is no use doing the things that Teacher explicitly asked us to do." All these kinds of degenerate notions caused confusion among those practitioners and had a negative impact on their cultivation because they were not doing the three things that Teacher asked us to do.

There can be many reasons for this. The major one is that those practitioners have some strong attachments such as the show off mentality, fear, being attached to themselves, not giving up their fundamental attachments, and so forth. This led them to understand the Fa out of context. They won't be able to break through all those ordinary people's thoughts unless they let go of their attachments.

Understanding the Fa out of context is similar to how Zen Buddhists explain, "No Law is absolute." It is not respectful to Teacher if we understand the Fa incorrectly. This is a serious issue. Besides, we won't be able to actively do those three things that Teacher asked us to do if we don't have a correct and clear understanding of the Fa. Some practitioners even "enlightened" along an evil path because of this.

Of course, Dafa is so profound that nobody can clearly understand all of its meanings. However, at this point, no matter how different our understandings are on the Fa, there is one understanding that should be the same. That is, we need to actively do the three things that Teacher asked us to do. The Fa-rectification of the whole cosmos has never happened before. It's urgent for us to save sentient beings. No matter how we understand the Fa, we should agree that it is wrong not to try to save sentient beings when they are in danger.

The above is my personal understanding. Please correct me if my words are inappropriate.