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A Brief Discussion of “Pursuit”

Feb. 11, 2011 |   By a practitioner in China

(Clearwisdom.net) During the past year I have often seen articles on the Clearwisdom website, and heard local practitioners speak about practitioners who have physical pain or discomfort asking for help from Master. Some practitioners who were not so steadfast in their beliefs were unable to remember Master and the Fa during critical times. If they could remember Master, I believe this would have been an improvement. But this is not absolute and should not be used like a never-failing formula. Master talked about the principle that “No Dharma is definitive” (Zhuan Falun) and also about “solid cultivation” as well as the principle that, “One should gain things naturally without pursuing them.” (“Learning the Fa” from Essentials for Further Advancement)

We all know that when we are unable to bear pain or have difficulty facing a tribulation, we often seek Master’s help to be relieved from it. However, when seeking help from Master, we may easily forget that this pain has to be borne by Master on our behalf. Some have sought help when they felt they were in danger, some still had long-standing attachments and asked for help, and some hadn't tried to look within to find the reason or problem when they sought help. Furthermore, it seemed that once they asked for help, they had received an answer. They said that Master told them exactly what the problem was and at the same time helped to solve the problem. Should we seek help in this way? If we are not steady in our cultivation, should we seek relief and push all the pain to Master? Then why should we cultivate so hard? Cultivation would no longer be cultivation. We would only need to seek and expect that “if we ask for help, help must come.” If this approach did not work, then we would lose our faith in Master and Dafa. Wouldn’t we be taking a deviant path?

Master said,

“Unless danger threatens your life and you are told how to eliminate it, all those who tell you that you will have a tribulation today and how to avoid something about to occur, those who tell you the first-prize lottery ticket number and tell you to try it, and those who want to have you obtain good things in ordinary human society, are demons.” (Zhuan Falun)

Thus we would be seeking physical comfort in human society and not be improving our xinxing. Doesn’t this count as seeking benefits? My understanding is that for matters which Master should take charge of, He will take care of, even if you don’t ask for help. For matters that Master should not take care of, even if you beg Master, He will not help you. Thus we all need to be doing things from the standpoint of the Fa.

If the above understandings are not appropriate, fellow practitioners please point them out to me.