(Clearwisdom.net) During the recent phase of Fa-rectification, I read some articles posted on the Minghui/Clearwisdom website that reported on severe persecution in some areas. We should deeply ponder once and again that Teacher has told us we should deny this persecution: "...we don't even acknowledge their existence." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference") Why are we repeatedly suffering from persecution? After thinking about it, I believe it is because we have not been working on improving ourselves, and therefore have failed to meet the even higher requirements of the Fa.
Cultivating in Dafa is limitless. The more relaxed the environment is, the more strict we should be with ourselves. We should constantly look inside ourselves. From studying the Fa, we know that before reaching Consummation, we all make mistakes. If a practitioners were surrounded by compliments from fellow practitioners, then they would be consumed in their own merits. Therefore, it would be difficult for the practitioners to improve by correcting their mistakes. Regardless of how relaxed our environment is, if the evil forces still exist, we should not neglect the matter of safety. Furthermore, we should not ignore our own improvement and that of the whole body.
Often, when things are on the verge of success, our human mentality becomes more vulnerable, but slacking off even a little bit might cause disastrous losses. It could cause a total defeat. Currently, our cultivation is no exception. Until the evil forces are completely eliminated, the demons will constantly seek opportunities to create interference for us. Teacher said in "Teaching the Fa in the City of Los Angeles," (2006)
"Dafa disciples, all the way until their last step to Consummation, will be tested as to whether they can make it. There could be very, very critical tests for you all the way until you are just one step away from finishing. That is because every step becomes more and more critical to your cultivation and your tests, especially toward the end. You know, those lawless gods of the old cosmos will try to maneuver things until the very end, as long as they are still around."
I understand that the closer we are to the end, the more crucial it is for us to improve as a whole body. When we are able to improve as one body, we can demonstrate the mighty virtue of Dafa, and our energy field will be stronger. The demonic forces will be frightened, so they won't dare to interfere with us any longer.
In our everyday practice, we should not ignore improving ourselves. Teacher wants all of us to become masters and kings. Therefore, when we rectify the Fa, we should improve our abilities to carry out tasks by ourselves. We should avoid worshiping anyone or relying on other fellow practitioners. We have to walk our own solid paths. Many practitioners like to think that we should help lessen the volunteer coordinator's load and reduce the pressure on the truth-clarification materials production centers. Therefore, we participate in some tasks. As a matter of fact, this happens as a result of righteous enlightenment in the Fa. This is walking on one's own path. Some practitioners in remote areas hand-write their truth-clarifying materials and post them by themselves because they do not have access to the ready-made materials. Some practitioners who did not know how to read and write, learned to write and wrote the truth on Chinese currency. They are all walking their own paths. For a long period of time, those practitioners who did not have any special skills simply told people the truth of Falun Gong, and they persuaded people to renounce their Chinese Communist Party (CCP) membership. They are also walking their own paths. To clarify the truth of Fa, fellow practitioners have not waited, nor have they relied on anyone else. They have all been clarifying the truth from the perspective of their understanding of the Fa. They are all walking their own paths, and at the same time, they are also improving and rising.
As the end draws closer, coordinators should be more clear-minded and more rational. We should not bring the focus of the whole area onto ourselves, nor should we keep fellow practitioners revolving around us. If we do, it can bring negative effects to us and the whole body as well. We are all particles of Dafa. Whatever we think and do should reflect what the Fa teaches us. We should use the Fa as the only means of measurement for ourselves and our cultivation. It does not matter how well one practitioner is doing, we should always operate from the basis of being responsible for the coordinator and fellow practitioners. We should help them understand that Dafa is great and sacred from our own behavior. We should understand that practitioners are not validating themselves, but are instead validating the Fa. We should, therefore, avoid falsely leading fellow practitioners into learning from certain persons instead of from the Fa.
Our volunteer coordinators should pay attention to fellow practitioners' improvement. Coordinators should share the coordinating jobs among fellow practitioners and let fellow practitioners walk their own paths as soon as possible. Unless a task requires the whole group to work together, coordinators should help practitioners to work individually based on their own understanding of the Fa. In addition, coordinators should let fellow practitioners do some small-scale coordinating jobs. In doing so, we can all experience what Teacher described, which is that everyone is a coordinator and everyone is responsible. While working with fellow practitioners, coordinators should pay even more attention to their own improvement, broadening their minds, and taking the initiative to accept and use suggestions and ideas of fellow practitioners. It is like in a play; coordinators should be willing to play the supporting roles and even assist others in the play. In doing so, they can help fellow practitioners to develop their abilities to solve problems independently. We should do our best to cooperate with fellow practitioners and silently harmonize when problems occur.
Fellow practitioners should also keep coordinators in mind. If the coordinators ignore certain points, we should help to fill in the gaps. When they are not doing things according to the Fa, we should point it out to them immediately. If we all take responsibility for the whole group, and regard the coordinating jobs as our own, our environment will improve. We should all voluntarily do positive things for the group, and point out things that are not consistent with the Fa. We should react to and stop anything inappropriate from spreading. We should be concerned with fellow practitioners. Besides doing the three things well, we should encourage each other and improve together. Every single practitioner's improvement is connected with the improvement of the whole group, and every practitioner's safety relates to the safety of the whole group.
If the majority of practitioners in one area can walk their own paths, not shy away from difficulties, not worship anyone or rely on anyone, not blindly follow anyone, but instead follow Teacher's teaching at all times, be responsible for the Fa, and unconditionally harmonize with Teacher's requests, they will become a whole body of solid gold as they work together, and be shiny particles when they work by themselves. If we, as a whole body or by ourselves, can meet the requirements of the Fa at different levels, the persecution will end by itself.
This is my personal understanding. Please point out anything inappropriate.
March 17, 2008
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