(Minghui.org) I was disturbed after reading a sharing article about a new practitioner who quit cultivating due to veteran practitioners’ inappropriate behavior. I’d like to share some of my understandings in this regard.
After reading the article, I suddenly remembered what happened when I lost my job ten years ago. Back then, I thought my manager treated me unfairly and was unjust. In front of my co-worker, I was very emotional and made some irresponsible remarks about the company.
My co-worker looked at me in disbelief. His expression was a mixture of confusion and disappointment. I’d clarified the truth to him in the past and he understood the facts about Dafa and had quit the Chinese Communist Party. He had respected me for my words and deeds. But I think what I said then shattered his beautiful image of a Dafa disciple, and he was really disappointed.
I had forgotten about this incident, but after reading that sharing article, I suddenly remembered it. Back then, I did not study the Fa attentively or cultivate myself solidly. I was still attached to fame, profit, and sentimentality. My words reflected my state of mind at the time and negatively affected my co-worker who’d had a good impression of Dafa.
I felt regretful and uncomfortable when I recalled what happened ten years ago. Ordinary people might not understand the process of cultivation, but, as a cultivator, it serves as a good reminder that we need to pay attention to our words, deeds, and even our thoughts, at all times.
I have always felt that I was clarifying the truth, but today I realized that our own words and deeds are actually a very important part of the truth, and people aren’t only listening to what we say, but also watching our behavior.
People cannot evaluate our inadequate deeds from the Fa; they can only see our surface level. How we behave at any given moment, positively or negatively, can save or destroy a sentient being.
Recalling my inappropriate behavior back then when I was still very attached to reputation, profit, and sentiment, I only cared about venting my resentment—I didn’t take the feelings of sentient beings into account. That was really very selfish. I was simply not taking the well-being of all sentient beings to heart.
When we do not cultivate solidly, it is very easy to give others and new practitioners the perception that we are saying one thing and doing another. Those who seriously deviate from the Fa are destroying sentient beings and preventing people from obtaining Dafa. It’s really frightening.
Later, however, I realized that the excessive remorse and self-blame were beating me down, and I could no longer go along with that, so I cleared all the negative factors and replaced them with righteous thoughts and adjusted my state. Now I realize that some of the things I did can’t be undone and that the past is gone. How to recognize my own shortcomings and do well in the future is the most important thing from now on.
I reminded myself that I must take these lessons to heart, that I must truly correct myself according to the Fa’s principles, and that I must consider others in everything I say and do. I think that, when we really keep sentient beings in our hearts, we can always restrain our words and deeds and manage ourselves well. We will become less and less likely to say or do anything that does not conform to the Fa or to the standard of a practitioner.
At the same time, I realized that we can help all sentient beings with righteous thoughts—to bless all the people and sentient beings who have predestined relationships with us; remove the adverse thoughts in their minds about Dafa and Dafa disciples; and remove all the evil beings and factors that hinder their salvation.
I saw that the new student mentioned in that article could not continue to practice for many reasons, both internal and external, and that the evil was also holding him back. This showed me the seriousness of cultivation. From ancient times to the present, it is different, difficult, and arduous.
Master told us:
“…Each and every barrier must be broken through,And everywhere does evil lurk....”(“Tempering the Will,” Hong Yin)
Master also mentioned:
“Every test or every tribulation is related to the matter of either progression or regression in cultivation.” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun)
In fact, it’s not just about new students. Many veteran practitioners have problems improving in cultivation and fail tests. We must remember that we will be tested from the beginning to the very end of our cultivation.
Many people did not hang on for long after they started to practice. They left Dafa for all different kinds of reasons, which made me think that the practitioners who have been able to continue for so many years are really worth cherishing.
Even if a practitioner stumbles on the path of cultivation, as long as he or she can always follow Master through all kinds of harsh “tests” and persevere in doing the three things, they are remarkable and worth cherishing.
The new student mentioned in that article began to doubt Dafa after he saw practitioners, including his mother, behave poorly. It might be common for practitioners to think, “When others are doing well, I will do well and believe in Dafa. When other practitioners don’t do well and their behavior is not up to par, I become less firm as well.” But the fact is, we should think about whether we have the same mentality – that is, measuring others against the Fa but not looking at ourselves.
When the evil ringleader Jiang Zemin vowed to “eradicate Falun Gong in three months” at the beginning of the persecution, he probably just thought about arresting a few coordinator practitioners and when the “leaders” were persecuted, the main body of practitioners would fall apart.
Indeed, some practitioners gave up practicing when the coordinators compromised. But Dafa disciples are cultivators after all. Genuine Dafa disciples are cultivating their own hearts. They don’t look at others. Among Dafa disciples, there is no ordinary human organization or role model. The true disciples of Dafa have experienced the greatness and supernaturalness of Dafa in their cultivation. Their rock-solid faith in Master and Dafa is rooted in the depths of their souls, and nothing can shake it. This is something ordinary people and evil will never understand.
So, three months later, even though the authorities had arrested basically all of the volunteer coordinators (and many of them went to the opposite side), countless Falun Gong practitioners still went to Beijing to appeal for Dafa and remained firm in their faith.
I remember reading many articles on Minghui.org at the beginning of the persecution. In the face of the overwhelming slander and false accusations, the trials of life and death, and the intense pressure, some practitioners had this thought from their hearts: “Even if everyone in the world stopped practicing, I would still practice and follow Master to the end.” What a remarkable righteous thought!
Later, many practitioners who followed others instead of the Fa took detours and suffered losses. Under Master’s compassion, they had the opportunity to cultivate again, knowing that they should no longer look at others, and gradually they matured and were able to use the Fa as their guide. Many practitioners who have endured since July 20, 1999 (the date the persecution began) have gone through such a process.
So it is understandable that a new practitioner may refer to veteran practitioners for help. And veteran practitioners can set good examples for newer practitioners, share with them their own understandings of the Fa, and encourage them to overcome their difficulties.
With the ongoing persecution in China, most practitioners in China can't freely communicate or share with each other. I think we should encourage new practitioners to read Minghui Weekly or read the Minghui website, which is a communication platform for Dafa disciples around the world. If new practitioners can read Minghui every day, I think it’s the best way to help them.
This article only represents the author’s understanding in their current cultivation state meant for sharing among practitioners so that we can “Compare with one another in study, in cultivation.” (“Solid Cultivation,” Hong Yin)