(Clearwisdom.net) I used to prefer watching solo dance. However, after I watched the Shen Yun Performance, I was so touched by the highly coordinated group dance, I realized that no solo dances can compare with it.
Teacher said, "...there is a very strong energy field when the exercises are done in a group,..." (from "Lecture at the First Conference in North America")
Teacher also said, "For Dafa disciples as a whole, in the process of validating the Fa, when you work together in concert, the Fa power is great." (from "Explaining the Fa during the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference")
How then, can fellow practitioners coordinate well with one another? I've thought a lot about this issue and have been putting it into practice. Today, I would like to share my thoughts. I hope this is helpful.
The Harm of Being Attached to Self
Being attached to self creates various attachments, which not only interfere with personal cultivation, but also thwart coordination and cooperation of the whole body. It makes a person become self-centered and overly emphasize one's own understandings. Oftentimes we think that we are using the Fa to evaluate things and do not take into account others' concerns, feeling that it is for the good of others and for being responsible to the one body. But, in fact we are all looking at problems based on our own understanding of the Fa and are holding fellow practitioners to our own standards. However, Dafa goes beyond our shallow understanding. We cannot be attached to our own understandings.
For example:
Jealousy
The attachment to self makes one feel that one is better than others. The good things in life and rewards should be reserved for oneself, instead of for others. Therefore, one feels irritated upon seeing others succeed at something. If others gain something, either in the form of acknowledgment or rewards, one feels uncomfortable inside. Yet, without showing any compassion, one criticizes others upon seeing them fail to accomplish something. One is always looking at others' shortcomings and not their strengths, instead of looking inward to find one's own shortcomings.
Attachment to Showing Off
Showing off is another manifestation of being attached to self, which oftentimes prompts you to do things your way, and think that others should agree with your way. You think that your take is "right," and therefore you disregard those who disagree with you. This usually leads to friction between people.
Understanding Others
Every practitioner treasures Dafa. Every practitioner hopes to do well validating the Fa. However, oftentimes there are different opinions because everyone is different and has different perspectives. When we deal with practitioners who hold different views, in particular, practitioners with the exact opposite opinion, we cannot blindly jump to a conclusion and criticize them for not conforming to the Fa. We should not be inconsiderate of others or accuse others of trying to damage the Fa. Blindly jumping to conclusions in a judgmental way often hurts fellow practitioners and intensifies gaps among practitioners, hence obstructing the normal development of Fa-validation projects. Conflicts are actually no big deal and usually originate from misunderstanding. Therefore, we should be compassionate to others and not always have negative thoughts.
One time a practitioner commented on a CD made by another practitioner, saying, "Why aren't you being considerate of fellow practitioners? Are you a cultivator? The labels you put on the CD's are filled with sensitive words. How can you expect fellow practitioners to distribute these CD's? Why aren't you concerned with their safety?" The practitioner who made the CD's felt so wronged, thinking that she was being considerate to fellow practitioners: there are so many different categories of CD's, so the labels will help practitioners sort through them easily. Elegant labels also help attract the eye. We can see that the two practitioners looked at the same issue from different angles, we therefore cannot say who is right or wrong. Yet, blindly accusing fellow practitioners might create gaps. When we constantly express different opinions in a judgmental way without showing compassion, it might be hard to resolve the conflicts as time goes on.
Looking at things from a different perspective can dissolve unpleasantness and antagonism. There was an article on the internet on this topic. Someone once conducted a survey to investigate how people would put away a clean cup. The ratio of the number of people who put the cup right-side up to the number of people who put it upside down is 1 to 1. Most importantly, although they did it differently, they all claimed the same reason, namely, it is "more sanitary." I remember I was shocked when I first read the article. It turned out that half of the people in the world do things differently from me, and yet we do so for the same reason. There is an old Chinese saying, "Different paths lead to the same destination." We should respect those who hold different opinions.
Of course, as cultivators, we should not avoid conflict or fear offending fellow practitioners when we see their shortcomings. We should not act like we won't tell them directly to their face, but talk behind their backs. A cultivator should be truthful. We practitioners should open our hearts when we communicate with one another. We should learn to express ourselves with kindness, humility and sincerity in our communications with fellow practitioners.
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