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Ridding Myself of Conceit and Self-Importance

Oct. 21, 2015 |   By a Falun Gong practitioner in China

(Minghui.org) When I first read the sentence, “I have an independent system of my own,” in Master Li's Fa-Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference, some doubts and irreverent thoughts towards Master had surfaced.

I immediately stopped reading and looked within. I realized that these thoughts stemmed from the atheistic teachings of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

While sharing these feelings with my local Fa-study group, the word “conceit” kept popping up in my mind. I realized that this attachment was the root cause of my incorrect thoughts.

In "Towards Consummation," Master said:“After cultivating for a period of time, are your thoughts still the same? Are you continuing on the path because of those human attachments? If so, you cannot be counted as my disciple. It means that you haven’t gotten rid of your fundamental attachments and that you are unable to understand the Fa from the Fa.”I had always regarded myself as superior to others. After practicing Falun Gong, I had understood the importance of cultivating oneself. However, I failed to see that my motive to cultivate was to feel even more superior than others! I also remember feeling jealous of Master Li.

As time went by, my conceit developed to the point that I began to look down on everyday people. I also found it hard to tolerate other practitioners' attachments, thinking that they did not cultivate as well as I did.

If someone refused to accept my “pearls of wisdom” when I pointed out their attachments, I always felt resentful. This attitude of mine created lots of conflict and distance between me and everyone around me.

Master Li treats all sentient beings equally. But because of my conceit and self-importance, I misconstrued his great compassion to mean that I was innately better than others.

Thus, my conceit grew to the point that I started to create demons in my own mind, and began showing even greater irreverence towards Master Li and Dafa.

My conceit seemed to be directly tied to my sense of self-importance. These two human attachments pervaded my entire being making it hard for me to look within and see my own shortcomings. For example, it became second nature for me to blame others for starting quarrels with me.

I used the Fa's high-level principles to measure other people, but never myself. I also began to indulge in other incorrect states, like pursuing fame, self-interest, and showing off. This is exactly opposite of the selflessness and compassion of beings in the new universe.

After realizing all of this, I decided to rid myself of these burdensome attachments. I began by consciously doing away with any incorrect feelings or thoughts towards others. In time, I became more understanding and tolerant.

The changes I underwent made it much easier for me to clarify the truth to those who had been deceived by the CCP's lies about Falun Gong.

I now feel like I am in a very different realm, a realm filled with understanding and compassion. Thank you Master!