(Minghui.org) Practitioner A is known for his kindness. He is a good son, father, and husband. In our area, he is someone people can go to for help. He was arrested and sent to a detention center in spring 2013 for talking to people about the persecution of Falun Gong.
Practitioner A's wife, also a practitioner, went to the police station, the detention center, and other legal agencies to demand his unconditional release, but to no avail. Our local Fa-study group decided to do a petition drive to help secure Practitioner A's release by collecting signatures from local residents and presenting it to the responsible agencies.
Everyone involved in the project took it seriously, so almost all the residents we asked signed the petition. The old forces, however, brought interference: the county office ordered the town and village government agencies to find every person who signed the petition and have them sign a repentance statement that slandered Dafa. Several practitioners then became fearful.
Practitioner B told the people he had collected signatures from, “If someone asks you who told you to sign the petition, you can say that it was just a passerby.” Practitioners C and D collected the signatures together, and C told D to let people know the government was investigating this petition. Practitioner C, however, was afraid to talk about it, so D pointed out, “If you tell me to do it, then the virtue you should have gotten from saving those sentient beings would be mine.”
While some practitioners' attachment of fear surfaced during this period, others did very well. Practitioner F had strong righteous thoughts and no fear. She said, “We Dafa practitioners are doing the most righteous thing in the world, with Master's Fa always in our heart.” Master said in, “What's to Fear?” from Hong Yin Vol. II,
“Should you have fear,
it will seize upon you
If thoughts are righteous,
evil will collapse
The cultivator’s mind
is loaded with Fa
Send righteous thoughts,
and rotten demons explode
Gods walk the earth,
validating the Fa”
Practitioners who weren't attached to fear were not fooled by the appearance in the human world. These practitioners didn't go look for the people they had gotten signatures from to tell them what to say if they were approached by a local government agency, and, in the end, nothing happened to those people, as good eventually overcomes evil.
I would like to share three points. Please kindly point out anything inappropriate.
1. Let Go of Fear
Most practitioners probably have different levels of fear that need to be eliminated during cultivation. However, there are some practitioners who only want to gain from Dafa. They know Dafa is good, but act like everyday people when their personal interests are involved. Do we call that true cultivation? Who are they cultivating for? We should be rational and responsible to our environment. We should measure our actions against Dafa at every moment, so we don't do the wrong thing.
2. If Our Starting Point Is Righteous, the Evil Will Be Afraid
Practitioner F always had Master's Fa in mind:
“Be resolute cultivating Dafa, the mind unstirred
Climbing in levels is what’s fundamental
Faced with tests, a person’s true character is revealed
May you Consummate—
a Buddha, Dao, or God”
(“True Character is Revealed” from Hong Yin Vol. II)
Once a practitioner's starting point is correct, Master will give that practitioner energy. Isn't righteous thought what Master asks us to have? Once our righteous thoughts emerge, Master will immediately eliminate the old forces' interference.
3. Proactively Cooperate in Rescuing Fellow Practitioners
Our local coordinator asked everyone to share their thoughts, so we could better utilize our efforts in rescuing our fellow practitioner and clarifying the truth about the persecution. However, no one spoke up. After the coordinator shared his thoughts, several practitioners who didn't want to cooperate used Master's Fa to find an excuse for themselves. They also weren't able to give constructive recommendations. The coordinator felt the rescue effort couldn't be delayed any longer and asked every practitioner in the group to participate in the signature drive. When the Party officials tried to persecute practitioners and those who signed the petition, several practitioners began to accuse the coordinator of thoughtlessness.
Every truth-clarification project we participate in has cultivation elements in it, and the old forces are always watching. If we don't act according to the Fa, the old forces can easily interfere and cause damage. Did the practitioners who had resentment towards the coordinator look at the matter from his angle? Why did we remain silent and unwilling to cooperate from the beginning? A rescue effort needs everyone's coordination and cooperation. In the process, conflicts and clashes of xinxing may arise. However, if we don't focus on our self-interest and ego, but emphasize the goal of rescuing our fellow practitioner, then we can let go of selfishness and will be able to cooperate with the coordinator to supplement what has been overlooked. We would become one body, and the evil wouldn't be able to interfere. We would thus be able to achieve what Master wants.
Several practitioners have been cultivating for a long time, but appear indifferent when it comes to Fa-validation. They are “Mr. Nice” and don't get involved or argue about anything. Some of them know they should validate the Fa, but delay it until their self-interests are affected.
Master said in “Non-Omission in Buddha-Nature” from Essentials for Further Advancement, “From now on, whatever you do, you should consider others first, so as to attain the righteous Enlightenment of selflessness and altruism.” Fa-rectification is in its last stage, so we should be clear-headed. Master also said,
“All beings, quickly come to!
Traps have been planted in the heartland
‘Tis for the Fa that all have come
Why are you not sensible?” {“Gods, Awaken” from Hong Yin II )
We should constantly remind ourselves that we are cultivating.
Related articles:
Quietly Cooperating with Fellow Practitioners to Save People
Get Rid of Attachments When Cooperating with Other Practitioners
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