(Minghui.org) I recently realized that vanity is a bad human attachment. I used to exhibit strong vanity. Though it's been weakened a lot through cultivation, I can still sense its presence. The mentality of showing off is part of vanity. It manifests in every aspect of life, such as wearing a gorgeous outfit and showing it off to my colleagues, competing with others, looking down on others, or feeling jealous. Vanity intertwines with many human notions and desires.
People around me manifest their vanity so that I can see mine. It's my responsibility to look inward to find my faults, rather than looking at the faults of others.
We cultivate in everyday society, and all human attachments manifest themselves through the people around us. Without these manifestations, it would be harder for us to realize our own attachments. We have to study the Fa well, realize our attachments, and be able to understand Master Li's hints. We need to fully understand that human attachments are the obstacles on our cultivation path, and at the same time, when we identify and eliminate them, they are the stairs upon which we can use to elevate our level.
On the surface, my vanity may not be as obvious as an ordinary person; but I always thought that I was better than others. I felt it in my thinking and speech. For example, when discussing in a group about our relatives and friends, I wanted to show off by mentioning the ones that have high social status, or whose children do very well in school. However, I felt very guilty for behaving this way afterward. The things I talked about were not worthy of showing off.
After I calmed down and studied the Fa with a pure heart, I was able to maintain a cultivator's righteous thinking. When my vanity was about to surface, the Fa was reflected in my mind as a reminder. Sometimes when I awoke, Master's teaching would be in my mind. This also helped me keep a righteous mind.
Vanity is a collection of many different substances. When my cultivation state was poor and my human notions were strong, this attachment sometimes felt overwhelming.
Many of the interests and habits I developed before I started to cultivate fed into those bad attachments. It was a challenge to get rid of them. But Master has taught us how a true cultivator deals with human attachments.
He said,
“The Fa can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts.” (“Drive Out Interference,” from Essentials for Further Advancement II)
The more I study the Fa, the fewer human attachments I have. Gradually, I can understand a deeper meaning of Master's teaching,
“Gong cultivation has a way, the heart is the pathDafa has no bounds, hardship serves as the ferry” (“Falun Dafa” from Hong Yin)
Thank you Master for your benevolent salvation and protection.