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Looking Within Is Critical for Genuine Cultivation

Sept. 13, 2006 |   By a senior practitioner in China

(Clearwisdom.net) During my cultivation, Minghui Weekly has helped me a great deal. By reading about other practitioners’ experiences and sharing, I found the gaps in myself and was motivated to do better. I also enlightened to more understandings from the Fa. I did not write anything for the Minghui/Clearwisdom website in the past because I felt I did too poorly compared to other practitioners. This lack of confidence hindered me. Then I suddenly had a realization: isn’t writing articles for Clearwisdom a way to validate the Fa? Every practitioner has the responsibility. Therefore, I decided to write down some of my understandings.

I would like to use several stories as examples. Please point out anything improper.

In 2002, because of my refusal to stop practicing Falun Gong, the Chinese Communist Party persecuted me and sent me to a brainwashing center. After returning home, through cultivation, I felt sorry for the officials at my workplace who were committing bad deeds in going along with the persecution. So I decided I would clarify the truth to them and save them. In 2004, I wrote a letter to the officials that persecuted me, telling them about my experiences in the brainwashing center. I also told them that their actions were unlawful, and that good is rewarded with good and evil meets with retribution. I hoped that they could have a positive attitude towards Dafa and Dafa disciples, so that they and their families would have a better future. (As I look back, clarifying the truth face to face might might been more effective than writing letters.) When the evil was at its most rampant this year, officials from my workplace attempted to send me to the brainwashing center again and ordered me to write a Guarantee Statement to give up practicing Dafa. This time I remained undisturbed, nor did I try to evade the persecution. With Teacher’s help, I had a strong thought: "I will write nothing for you. I am a Dafa disciple, and nothing can shake me." As usual, I did the three things that Teacher asked us to do. I sent forth righteous thoughts, and other practitioners also helped me to send forth righteous thoughts. Eventually, the old forces’ attempt to persecute me was disintegrated. From this, I realized that, in the face of the evil persecution, our strong righteous thoughts can void the old forces’ arrangements as long as we have firm faith in Teacher and the Fa and as long as we remain undisturbed.

In Zhuan Falun, Teacher said,

"Any time some kind of interference comes along in your practice, you have to look within for the cause and find what it is you still haven’t let go of."

Now I have a deeper understanding of this sentence. In the past, I sometimes had conflicts with my husband, thinking, "We are already very old, why are you still interested in sex?" I was annoyed about this, and sometimes locked myself in my room to avoid him. Other practitioners said I did not handle the situation correctly, and I agreed with them. Still, my heart was attached to it. Later, as I was memorizing the "Fa," the section about the demon of lust went straight to my heart. I was no longer attached to avoiding intimacy, my husband's attitude also became better, and he no longer bothered me anymore. So I realized that, "Genuine cultivation is very important. Looking within is critical for genuine cultivation."

One time when I was cooking, I accidentally cut my finger. Immediately after there was no bleeding, and it appeared all right. However, my human notions surfaced, and I used some anti-bleeding medicine. Right after that my finger started to bleed, and a piece of flesh came off. I realized that it was due to my human notions. One single thought can make a big difference, and I did not consider myself a practitioner right at that time. Not long after, I experienced a similar occurrence. I was washing my feet with warm water, with a kettle of boiling water nearby. My feet were on the edge of the basin as I poured in the boiling water. Accidentally, all the boiling water poured right onto my feet. I was stunned, but remembered my lesson from the last time. I thought that nothing would happen, and indeed nothing happened, and my feet were not even red. I immediately realized that Teacher was protecting me, and I was very grateful. I also realized that Teacher is always near us, caring for us.

In the past, I was often moved to tears when I read practitioners’ experiences of attending Teacher’s classes, thinking that they were very fortunate. I also miss Teacher very much and have wondered when I could see him. Through these experiences, however, I know that Teacher is by my side, and I do not worry about seeing Teacher in person any more.

Let us all encourage each other with Teacher’s words in "Diligence and Righteous Enlightenment" from Hong Yin II:

"Don’t let up in studying the Fa;

amidst it transformation happens

Let nothing sway conviction;

of it comes right fruit and the blooming lotus"