(Minghui.org) I watched the movie “Once We Were Divine” three times. When I was reading Solemn Declarations from Falun Dafa practitioners published on the Minghui website every day, I could not help thinking about Wumi the Wise in the movie.
According to the movie, the King of Light descended to the human world as Song Guangming. Because he was tortured and threatened in detention, Song was swayed by sentimentality and started to lose his righteous thoughts. As he started to sign the guarantee statement giving up his faith, Wumi the Wise was shocked, terrified, and trembling. But why?
Because Wumi the Wise knew this meant that the Paradise of Light would be doomed. He said, “It’s more than that. The King of Light represents our Paradise of Light. If he cannot succeed, then when the universe is renewed by The King of Kings, our Paradise of Light will... King of Light, you must overcome this trial. Otherwise...”
Song is the representative from the Paradise of Light. When he was given the precious book Zhuan Falun, all the beings in his heavenly kingdom rejoiced. When his righteous thoughts were weak and his human notions surfaced, all the beings in his Paradise of Light were eclipsed and almost disintegrated.
The battle between good and evil is soul-stirring, and the evil Red Dragon is watching intently. It wants Dafa disciples to lose their righteous thoughts so that it can have its way. Dafa disciples’ cultivation is indeed very serious.
The King of Light made a vow before descending to the human world: “We vow to uphold morality amidst chaos and to save sentient beings in times of peril. United we descend, united we shall return to the heavenly realm.”
His true body also descended with him. This is the path of cultivation for Dafa disciples. We have made a vow to the Creator to follow him all the way to the human world, cultivate our bodies, and become divine once again.
As I watched the movie the third time, I cried so hard that I could hardly breathe. It was as if every cell in my body was trembling. I remembered that I had signed a document 15 years ago, renouncing my faith in exchange for returning home from a desperate situation. Even though I published my solemn declaration later to negate that document that I signed under pressure, I did not realize just how serious signing that document was.
After seeing the movie, I realized it was our compassionate master (Master Li, the founder of Falun Dafa) who gave me another chance at cultivation. I can truly feel Master’s boundless compassion, the serious nature of cultivation, the importance of one’s righteous thoughts, and the importance of studying the teachings.
Since beginning to practice Falun Dafa, almost every Dafa disciple in China has been persecuted to varying degrees. But I have never complained about my situation, and my faith in Master and Dafa has never wavered. I told the officials that I signed the document to stop practicing Dafa not because the practice was bad but because I couldn’t stand how the CCP was persecuting me. I had not studied enough Fa to understand at that time, and I had reached the limit of my endurance.
In the extended version of the movie, when Song’s negative thoughts such as jealousy surfaced, he kept rejecting them and reciting Master’s poem:
“A wicked person is born of jealousy.Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself. A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion.With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy. An enlightened person has no attachments at all.He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions.”(“Realms” in Essentials for Further Advancement)
Finally, he said, “I will be a benevolent person, never a wicked person.” Dafa reinforced his righteous thoughts to overcome his human notions. I think this is what a Dafa disciple who cultivates does.
However, the Sage of the Seas (who descended as Zhao Haifeng) betrayed his friend due to jealousy. He joined the Chinese Communist Party and was ensnared by fame, fortune, and sentimentality. He opposed Dafa, missed his eternal opportunity, and finally fell into eternal destruction.
There are many things in my life that I have not handled well. That is, I have not dealt with them with righteous thoughts but with human thoughts, a human heart, and human feelings. I missed many chances to improve myself, and I failed to live up to Dafa’s requirements.
At 11 o’clock one night, Song finished his sitting meditation and went out to distribute truth-clarification materials. But the security guards caught him in the neighborhood. He spoke the truth frankly with the wisdom Dafa had given him and finally unlocked the chains binding their hearts. When that happened, those two people’s corresponding selves in the heavens had their hearts freed.
When we Dafa disciples clarify the truth, we want to unlock people's hearts, help them free themselves from the control of the red dragon, and be saved by Dafa. But I often skipped sending righteous thoughts at midnight, I am so ashamed.
Just as Song almost had his organs harvested, his feelings made him think of his wife and child. Fortunately, his true thoughts as a Dafa disciple made him aware of his original vow. He thought, “I can’t leave because what I have to do is not done yet.”
Receiving the decree, Wumi the Wise led the heavenly beings in righteous thoughts to strengthen their King. As soon as these divine righteous thoughts came forth, things immediately turned for the better. It was truly thrilling.
As long as we Dafa disciples have righteous thoughts, Master would help us to succeed.
I remembered what Master taught us:
“With such an enormous Fa here, the Fa will be with you when your thoughts are righteous, and this is the greatest assurance.” (“Fa Teaching Given in Manhattan,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume X)
The movie inspired me to adjust myself in a new way, to rectify myself seriously, to be a true practitioner, to cultivate myself, and to go home with Master.
I hope that, from now on, every Dafa disciple will earnestly cultivate, do the three things well, honor their vows, and not to allow evil to take advantage of their loopholes. Then it will be not necessary for solemn declarations by Dafa disciples to appear on the Minghui website. That way, the beings in our own heavenly world will no longer be frightened, assured that we will not let Master down, that we will live up to Master's compassion and Dafa’s requirements. Let us all become divine again.
Editor's note: This article only represents the author’s understanding in their current cultivation state meant for sharing among practitioners so that we can “Compare in studying, compare in cultivating.” (“Solid Cultivation,” Hong Yin)
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Category: Cultivation Insights