(Clearwisdom.net) For a long time now, I've been having trouble getting up in the morning. Sometimes I continue sleeping after I hear the alarm, and sometimes I don't even hear the alarm. I finally get up at 5:00 a.m. instead of the planned 3:50 a.m. for the worldwide group exercises. [As large as China is, it only has one time zone.] After the morning exercises, I still feel sleepy and go back to sleep again. Then I feel muddleheaded for the rest of the day.
I was greatly touched after reading fellow practitioners' sharing articles on the Internet. Some practitioners did the three things after their regular jobs and took on several Fa-validation projects, ending up with no time to sleep. Looking inward, I found that I had the following issues:
Using human notions
I mistakenly convinced myself that how much sleep I got was the determining factor for what it means to have a good rest, and thus created an excuse for my pursuit of comfort. Being controlled by this notion for a long time, I formed a wrong notion that I would be muddleheaded and groggy if I didn't go back to sleep after getting up to do the exercises.
Not understanding Fa based on the Fa
Teacher told us in "Lecture at the First Conference in North America:"
"Let me tell you that if you do as I've taught in this practice system, it's guaranteed that there won't be any harm, only benefit. You claim that you're too busy and don't have the time. Actually, you are afraid that you don't get enough rest. Have you ever thought of the fact that practicing cultivation is the best form of rest? You can obtain the kind of rest that can't be obtained through sleeping. Nobody would say: 'The exercises are making me so tired that I can't do anything today.' One would only say: 'The exercises are making my whole body relaxed and at ease. I don't feel sleepy after a sleepless night. I feel full of energy. It doesn't seem to bother me at all after a day's work.' Isn't this the case? So if someone who doesn't come out to do the exercises says that he has no time or uses other excuses, I'd say that it's completely because he doesn't have a deep understanding of the Fa and lacks the will to make painstaking efforts. Of course, it's strictly a different situation when a veteran student is in that state. But it's not right if someone hasn't reached that state, yet uses that excuse to not come out. Practicing cultivation is about cultivating oneself. Fooling others is, in fact, fooling oneself."
Teacher has told us clearly that doing the exercises is the best rest. However, I thought that getting up early to exercise would adversely affect my rest. It showed that I didn't have a strong faith in Teacher and Dafa, hadn't studied the Fa well, and didn't have a good understanding of the Fa.
Everyday people's attachments to laziness, avoiding hardship, and pursuing comfort
My intention of being diligent was far from enough. When encountering difficulties, I did not use righteous thoughts. When I was sleepy, I wanted to sleep. I followed the "sleep demons" and relaxed my diligence. Sometimes, I got up really late and behaved like just an everyday person with a poor mental state.
Writing this article was also part of my cultivation. It took me two days to write it, and the "sleep demons" also interfered. When that happened, I managed not to lay on the bed, but did the exercises instead. I am determined to overcome this hurdle. My family members and I keep encouraging each other that doing the exercises is the best thing and is better than any other form of rest.
Original Article: June 23, 2010
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Category: Improving Oneself
