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Enlightening to the Connotations of Reading the Book Over and Over Again
By a Dafa Practitioner in the Western U.S.A.
8/21/2002
(Clearwisdom.net) A fellow practitioner mentions in his article that
reading Zhuan Falun over and over again is like a big falun automatically
changing our bodies and improving us. Upon reading this, Master's article
"Seeking Discipleship with Teacher" from Essentials for Further
Advancement came to my mind. "A person who truly cultivates will gain
things naturally without pursuing them. All of the gong (cultivation
energy) and Fa lie in the book, and one will naturally obtain them by reading
Dafa. Those who learn it will change automatically, and they will already be in
the Tao when they read the book over and over again."áMaster suggests
we "read the book over and over again," which not only lets us obtain
gong in terms of changing our bodies, but has the connotation that the Fa in
the book can also guide us to get rid of attachments and notions, thus enabling
us to improve our xinxing.
Our true nature is covered by layers upon layers of notions, just like a
rusty steel ball. With thick layers of rust covered outside, the shining essence
cannot be seen any more. During the first two years of my cultivation, I always
focused on certain points of the Fa and ignored the others when I was reading
the book. I tended to comprehend one side of Master's words and to become
estranged from society, friends and family. On the surface I still harmonized
with everyone but my heart drifted apart. I thought I was very diligent, but
actually my cultivation was not within Fa. I cultivated on a deviant path.
Master said in Lecture at the Conference in Switzerland, "These
attachments are precisely like a big, sturdy padlock that locks you in. You have
to open every padlock as you progress on your path. If you don't, they will lock
you in and delude you, and you will be unable to see the truth." After I
read this paragraph of Fa given by Master and recalled my cultivation
experience, I realize that these attachments are associated with each other, as
if the padlocks were interlocked, layer by layer, shielding and covering each
other. It is impossible for us to cut off these attachments, which are like
twisted roots and gnarled branches, from the top to the end once and for all. We
can only crush them one by one and get rid of them layer by layer by reading the
book over and over again.
Our individual cultivation is this way. Cultivation during the
Fa-Rectification period also requires our continuing understanding of the Fa
from within the Fa.
Sometimes we notice that some practitioners only comprehend the Fa from one
perspective. They tend to go to extremes when they clarify the truth and send
forth righteous thoughts with intention. The results turn out to be opposite to
their intentions, which has brought a loss to Dafa. This is due to the lack of
studying Fa in depth and as a whole. Not only do we need to tell people that
Falun Dafa is good, but we also need to show that Falun Dafa is good through our
words, behavior, and actions.
The mistakes we have made all have their costs. Master has quietly endured a
lot for us that we do not know, helping us to truly understand the Fa and to
assimilate to the Fa gradually during our Fa-Rectification cultivation. Master
said in Teaching the Fa at the Washington, D.C. Fa Conference (July 22,
2002), "To do well is to not walk down the path arranged by the old forces;
the goal is to not allow the old forces to take advantage of your gaps. Despite
all of this, our Dafa disciples as a whole have become more and more mature, and
they're handling all of this with greater and greater rationality, composure,
steadfastness, and seriousness." It is time for us to be able to study the
Fa correctly and to do all of the necessary things well.
The above is my personal understanding, for my fellow practitioners'
reference.
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