(Minghui.org) From time to time I see some practitioners who cultivate well try to help others, but, over time, they develop attachments to fame or showing-off. I would like to share my understanding on this.
Typically, practitioner Alpha cultivated well, or at least appeared to. Seeing other practitioners falling behind, he shared his understandings with them and tried to encourage them to catch up.
The sharing worked. Other practitioners improved in their cultivation after listening to Alpha. After that, they kept seeking him out to discuss their understandings of Dafa and to get his approval. Gradually, they started to follow Alpha and seek direction from him, but not from Dafa.
Alpha kept sharing his understandings on anything that other practitioners asked him. And, gradually, he started developing attachments and enjoying giving his opinion on everything.
Sometimes there can be multiple role models. For example, people may follow one practitioner for his deeper understandings of the Fa and another for his ability to explain Falun Dafa and the Party's persecution.
The old forces then arrested those role model practitioners. The practitioners who used to follow them did not know what to do.
I think those role model practitioners had good intentions—they just wanted to help other practitioners to improve. But over time, they became attached to fame and the evil took advantage of this.
Even worse, if they lead other practitioners to follow them in cultivation, they take them away from the Fa. This is very dangerous for both the role model practitioners and their followers.
To do things correctly, every practitioner should study the Fa, look within for his own gaps, and try to solve his own problems. If there are issues that he still cannot solve for a long time, other practitioners can help point them out for him. Then he should measure what he has heard against the Fa to see if it is correct.
Several practitioners at a certain Fa study site passed away one after another. Could that mean there was a problem at that Fa study site? The coordinator of that site said that it was because he was too busy and didn't have time to study the Fa. However, if the coordinator's not cultivating well caused practitioners to pass away, didn't it show that other practitioners were relying on the coordinator? Shouldn't they be following Master and the Fa?
I read this in the Minghui article “Three Dreams About the Cultivation of Local Practitioners”: “Dream 1: People are inside a large examination hall taking a test, but many people are simply passing around and copying from the same exam paper in a systematic, orderly manner.”
This is a hint that some practitioners are copying other practitioners and are not trying to cultivate on their own. They forgot Master's teaching “take the Fa as teacher.” (“Fa-Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference”)
In a dream I had several years ago, I was about to go on stage to perform. Many wigs, costumes, and props hung in front of the stage. I picked out a wig and tried to put it on, thinking, “This would make my performance much easier.” All of a sudden, a stern voice came from the sky, “It is not yours. You cannot wear it for the performance!”
Master has told us:
“I just told you all that you need to cherish the Fa, and study it a lot. You have to read the book again and again, and by doing this you are improving. I have infused my abilities into this Dafa. As long as you study it, you will undergo changes. As long as you study it, you will be improving. As long as you practice it to the end, you will be able to reach Consummation.” (“Teaching the Fa at the Eastern U.S. Fa Conference”)
Master also said, “No matter what happens, one must maintain good xinxing. Only through adhering to Dafa can one be truly right.” (“The Mentality of Showing Off,” Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun, 2014 Translation)
Dafa is the origin of everything. Dafa practitioners are lives within it. We should follow Dafa, not other practitioners, to cultivate. Let's be careful, cherish the opportunity, and truly cultivate well at the final stage of Fa rectification!
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Category: Improving Oneself
