(Clearwisdom.net) When practitioners exchange understandings, they talk about studying the Fa well, looking within, and cultivating oneself diligently. But when conflicts arise, when there are arguments about cooperating with each other; when encountering difficulties, obstacles, or interference, there are practitioners that find it difficult to look within and cultivate. I thought deeply on these issues. Recalling my Fa-rectification path over the past years, I gained some understanding, which I wish to share with fellow practitioners.
Having studied the Fa well, we all know why a cultivator's gong doesn't elevate. If we wish to walk on a straight path, it is important to study the Fa well and understand the Fa from the perspective of the Fa. If we want to cultivate to a high level, we must know the requirements at that level, as the Fa has different manifestations at each level, and every level has its requirements based on the Fa at that particular level. If we don't know the requirements of the Fa at a high level, or we cannot reach an understanding above lower levels, and we can't treat cultivation issues based on the high-level Fa requirements, how could we cultivate to a high level?
As our cultivation level increases, the universes that we represent are being rectified. Only when we cultivate ourselves well, can we save the sentient beings from our universes that have put their hopes in us.
Furthermore, we must look within and cultivate diligently when encountering problems. But, it is difficult to look within when one is in the midst of a tribulation. Although there are persecutory factors in our cultivation during the Fa-rectification period, we can't forget that we are cultivators first. There is still personal cultivation and how well we cultivate ourselves is also of high importance.
Some practitioners can endure a lot of hardship-- hardship that relates to reputation and self-interest. They can endure much unfairness. But when it comes to cultivation, in relation to the rectification of one's universe, consummation, and fulfilling one's vows, why can't one be diligent? Why can't one face any difficulty, or endure any unfairness? We all know that our present reputation and self-interest are only aspects of this one lifetime, so why can't we do well on things that affect our eternal life?
As cultivators, we clearly know that a person's life is arranged, including how much wealth one has. If one is not predestined to be wealthy, one can't gain wealth. Similarly, if one is predestined to be wealthy, one can't give away or throw away ones wealth. In fact, everything is planned. All these things are there to test if our heart is affected. Because of the atheist education promoted under the Communist Party, everyday people do not believe that life is arranged by heaven and that whether one is wealthy or not has causes. Teacher taught us long ago,
"...a practitioner should follow the course of nature. If something is yours, you will not lose it. If something is not yours, you will not have it even if you fight for it." (Zhuan Falun)
There is a relevant story about a practitioner on Clearwisdom. This practitioner sells cooked food for a living. He is really doing well. He doesn't think of how much money he wants to earn; instead, he only treats it as a way of making a living. He puts doing the three things as his top priority. Every day he only sells a limited amount of food so that he can have more time to do the three things. He had let go of any attachment to finances. Yet his business is still prosperous. He sells in few hours the amount of food that took an entire day in the past. He uses all his remaining time for doing Dafa work.
When some practitioners encounter any conflict, especially at home, they always blame others for what happened and how others treated them unfairly. They always wish that others would be more tolerant and they don't want to be treated unfairly. However, the more one holds such thoughts, the more difficult it is to resolve the conflicts. In fact, these practitioners didn't treat themselves as cultivators and didn't realize that they had attachments to let go of, and that the conflict was for them to improve themselves. How could one push it away and look outward for a solution? Although there are many reasons behind conflicts, they are the result of some attachments that we haven't let go of.
If we all use everyday people's reasoning when there are problems and can't get them out of our minds, the more unhappy we get, thinking, "How can a cultivator treat me like this? She is not even as good as an everyday person." But did we forget that we are cultivators too? Is there anything we didn't do well or any attachment we need to let go of to eliminate this problem?
A fellow practitioner had a large tribulation at home. Her husband does not practice Falun Dafa, and he always interfered with her studying of the Fa or doing the exercises. He also beat her frequently. Thus, she had a lot of resentment. Although they did not divorce, they had a rocky marriage. She tried to look within, but she didn't realize that her resentment caused the problems. She felt that she was treated unfairly and that it was always her husband's fault. She remained in this state for several years. Suddenly, one day she realized that she didn't do well from a certain perspective. She realized that she didn't treat her husband with compassion. She also realized that her husband was not so bad after all. Just with this one change in her mind, her husband changed for the better. Later her husband not only stopped interfering, he also helped with Fa-rectification work. She later talked about her experience, "It was indeed my own issues that caused this interference. When I looked within, it was from the mindset of being treated unfairly. So the more I looked, the more I felt that it was unfair. It was my attachments that caused the interference. Now that my thinking has changed, the environment has also changed for the better. Now I know that looking within unconditionally is the step one needs to take to rise to a higher level."
Those with good enlightenment quality will find shortcomings when encountering conflicts and interference. They are able to find their attachments and human notions. They experience the improvement of their character after letting go of these attachments. As result, they are able to feel the changes in their environment and experience the greatness of the Fa.
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