(Minghui.org)
Greetings, revered Master, and greetings, fellow practitioners!
I am grateful to Teacher for offering me salvation and providing us with another Internet Fahui to share our experiences.
I am a middle-aged veteran Falun Dafa practitioner, having stepped onto the cultivation path in 1996. I have faced trials, let go of attachments and lacked diligence at times, but Teacher was always on my side. I won't disappoint Teacher and sentient beings and will carry out my historic mission as I promised so many eons ago.
I would like to share my cultivation experiences of looking inward, true cultivation and how to clarify the facts about Falun Dafa face-to-face.
Looking Inward Unconditionally
Not long ago I had a disagreement with a fellow practitioner and the competitive mentality was controlling us. We knew that our attitude was wrong but neither of us was willing to concede. Since we wanted to avoid each other, we quit the study group and studied the Fa at home. We forgot that we were practitioners during the Fa rectification period and that we should be compassionate. Our action resulted in creating a large loophole that allowed evil factors get a foothold and some within our study group began showing symptoms of illness.
What happened to get us into this bind? One practitioner asked if we could meet in the evening, given the excessive heat in the afternoon. I went on the offensive and said, “The time to save sentient beings is most urgent. How can hot weather interfere with saving sentient beings. We must do the three things well to qualify as practitioners. A good practitioner will not be stopped by wind or rain.” This practitioner responded, “You are rather critical when it comes to me. I may be wrong, but you could speak with some compassion.” I attacked again and said, “Yes, I did not speak with compassion, but I was helping you improve yourself. Whether you want to improve or not is up to you.”
After that we had a lot of minor conflicts and the feeling of bitterness, competitive mentality and jealousy surfaced. I stopped attending the study group. When I looked within, I only saw the mistakes of other people. One day I visited an elderly practitioner who asked why I no longer attended the study group. I responded that fellow practitioners did not want to hear what I had to say. She told me that when there was a conflict, we must look inward unconditionally and that was the real meaning of cultivation as stated in “Fa-Teaching Given to the Australian practitioners.” She said that similar statements could be found in the book Zhuan Falun.
Teacher said:
“Accordingly, in your future cultivation practice you will run into all kinds of tribulations. How can you practice cultivation without these hardships? If everyone is good to one another without conflicts of interests or interference from the human mind, how can your xinxing make progress by your only sitting there? That is impossible.” (Zhuan Falun)
She told me that conflicts occurred for the purpose of improving our character. In dealing with fellow practitioners we should be lenient, tolerant and look at their strengths. The discussion with this practitioner helped my mind to calm down. I studied and recited the Fa quietly. Master said:
“He's right, and I'm wrong. What's to dispute?”
(“Who's right, who's wrong” in “Hong Yin III”)
Understanding the True Value of Looking Inward
Now I realize that during the past ten plus years when I encountered a conflict, I always applied the Fa to others instead of myself. I wanted others to cultivate instead of myself. I didn't notice this serious omission of always looking outward instead of truly inward. When I saw fellow practitioners using human notions, I felt very uncomfortable. I did not realize that the attachment and human notions I noticed were my own to remove. It was an opportunity for me to improve myself. Teacher said,
“As a matter of fact, this is because the same Fa has different transformations and forms of manifestation at different levels, and it can play different guiding roles for practitioners at different levels.” (Zhuan Falun)
Practitioners have their own cultivation states, which are determined by their level of understanding. Can one reach consummation by insisting on one's own standard of right or wrong? When I calmly looked within myself, I found that I held a firm belief in ordinary people's ways and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) culture. These wrong notions were caused by my own failure to cultivate myself. I didn't have a quiet mind when I did the exercises or studied the Fa and I got angry with others. This impacted our study group negatively.
Once I understood my omission, I was remorseful and wanted to apologize to my fellow practitioners. I went to the home of the fellow practitioner I had criticized. Unexpectedly, when he saw me, he apologized. He said that what I told him was right and his attitude of seeking comfort and his fear of criticism were wrong. I felt really great because Teacher had guided both of us to move forward. Our study group has returned to a healthy state.
I am thankful to the fellow practitioner who reminded me about how to look inward. From that point onward I always look inward whenever there is a problem.
Clarifying the Facts Face-to-face
When the CCP was holding its eighteenth congress, the area was saturated with undercover agents. I thought, “ We are moving towards godhood. We follow Teacher, do the three things and deny any type of interference. We continue to do what we should, which is to save sentient beings.”
Over the last few years of distributing truth-clarifying materials and clarifying the facts face-to-face about Falun Dafa went very well. Most of the people accepted, “Falun Dafa is good. Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” and were willing to do the withdrawals from the Youth League, Young Pioneers and the CCP. I had met with the young and the elderly, people from all walks of life. They had chosen a bright future for themselves. These past years helped me to gain greater confidence.
When I went out to clarify the facts face-to-face, I sent forth righteous thoughts. Hence, all interference and evil factors were removed. I also asked Teacher to bring to me those with a predestined relationship.
I contacted people and if someone did not want to withdraw from the CCP and its affiliates, I did not put pressure on them. If someone wanted to report me to the police, I send forth righteous thoughts to remove the evil spirit controlling him. Of course, there were cases where things did not work out, but I realized that this was either zealotry or lack of compassion on my part.
People with a predestined relationship usually said, “Falun Dafa is good” to me and I was happy for them. I tried to keep my thoughts on saving sentient beings, because otherwise my space would be polluted and negative factors would show up and interfere with what I was doing. Thus, watching my own thoughts was important. Once I went to a market place in the hope of meeting with predestined people. When I sensed one near by, he would stop, waiting for me to come. Quickly, I did the three withdrawals for him and gave him the truth clarifying materials.
There was a vegetable farmer selling vegetables at a market place. I found out that he was a party member but had not been paying his dues to the CCP. When I advised him to withdraw from the CCP, he said that he got money from the CCP and he did not want to go against the big boys. I told him that this was not going against anyone but just for his personal safety. However, he did not want to withdraw. After returning home I felt very uncomfortable. I decided that I should be more compassionate and talk to him again.
The next day I went to see him and while purchasing vegetables I said, “Uncle, how old are you?” He said that he was 58. He appeared older than his age and I asked what he did when he was young. He said he was a truck driver. I asked him whether he had to pay fines often. He was agitated and said, “Today, officials are greedy and corrupt.” I spoke to him of the CCP being corrupt, its many movements and killing of the Chinese people. He agreed with what I had to say. I told him that since he knew that the party was bad, he should not be fooled to become a Marxist-Leninist descendant instead of a son of the Chinese people. When I paid him for the vegetables, he gave me a bill in exchange with words written on it. He asked me, “What do the words on this bill mean?” I answered, “You are blessed when you distribute this bill. The words written on it are, 'Falun Dafa is good. Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.' and 'Heaven will destroy the CCP. For your safety withdraw from the CCP.' 'Falun Dafa is Buddha Fa. It provides guidance to people so that they can raise their moral standard and become better people than they are now. For the last thirteen years the CCP has persecuted Dafa practitioners and about four thousand have died as a result. 'Good is rewarded with Good and Evil is met with Evil' is nature's law. This has been true throughout the ages. When Heaven destroys the CCP, you don't want to be part of it.” He said, “I'll withdraw.” I gave him the nickname, “Predestined Person”.
The above are just a few of the stories I could tell. What I did is very little compared with what Teacher wants. I shall put in more effort, do the three things well, keep up with the Fa-rectification, and cultivate in a dignified manner. I shall remove my attachments, look inward, and negate the arrangements of the old forces. I shall be a genuine practitioner returning home with Teacher.
The above is my cultivation experience. Please point out anything that is improper!.
Thanks,
Heshi
Views expressed in this article represent the author's own opinions or understandings. All content published on this website are copyrighted by Minghui.org. Minghui will produce compilations of its online content regularly and on special occasions.
