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My Understanding of Fa Study, Exercises, and Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
By a Dafa Practitioner in Hebei province, China
(Clearwisdom.net) All Dafa practitioners study the Fa, but there are big
differences among our attitudes towards Fa study. I feel that we must have a
pure heart before we can calmly study the Fa. The purpose of Fa study should not
be to solve problems or to fulfill certain expectations. The Fa-rectification
has progressed to the present stage, so we must examine our attitudes, seriously
look inside ourselves to discover all of our impure approaches, and eliminate
all selfish ideas towards Fa study. When we study the Fa, it is as if we are listening to Master's lecture in
person, and we should not have any selfish goals mixed in with this. It should
simply be our natural wish, from the bottoms of our hearts, to study the Fa, in
which all of our lives are rooted. We started learning the Fa and cultivating
because our original, true selves became distant and unfamiliar. Our true selves
are created by the Fa. Since this opportunity has been given by Master, we
should naturally assimilate to the Fa and follow our Master's teachings. We
should not pay too much attention to formalities, such as how many hours we
study in a given day, or how many pages we have read ¨C Fa study is not a
chore. Yet we should be demanding of ourselves, to live within the Fa, and to
not tolerate separation from the Fa even for a second. Sometimes when I deviate
from the Fa, I feel as if my life will become desperate and uncertain. I have noticed that some Dafa practitioners who are doing Fa rectification
work are so busy with their work that they overlook Fa study and raising their
level through self-cultivation. This is truly not a small problem. It is not
only a time management problem, but in fact shows that they do not really
understand the Fa, and are still following basic human notions. There appears to
be a phenomenon here: Some practitioners who have special talents or who have
been working on important Dafa projects have been arrested and detained by
police. This makes some other practitioners who are doing the same kind of Dafa
work feel great pressure. Is it true that those working on important Dafa
projects will be very easily arrested? I think that the main issue is that these
situations are caused by the individual problems of practitioners. Master and
Dafa have given some practitioners special talents, to enable them to play an
important role during the Fa rectification period. We must improve our mind
nature, otherwise it is very easy to become lost or confused by false phenomena.
While focusing only on Dafa work, we can be easily moved by our personal
interests or achievements. We can forget our fundamental mission, neglect
learning and assimilating to the Fa, and stop continuously upgrading ourselves.
However, all of these things are the basic premises and safeguards to aid us in
fulfilling the age-old arrangements that we made! I want to talk about exercises. For a long time my mind wandered while I was
doing the exercises. I was not paying attention to Master's instructions, and
just focused on finishing the exercises with the standard movements. Gradually
it became clear to me that this was not right. Why have thought karma and messy
negative thoughts prevented me from listening to the instructions? When I became
clearer and clearer, I realized the profound meaning of the word
"Master." I noticed that while being a practitioner in the Fa
rectification period, I am being deeply honored. Master personally leads us
through the exercises with his instructions, and I should follow every gesture
with respect and deep concentration. As a result, when I practice now, my mind
does not wander, my thoughts are tranquil, and my emotional state is calm. Now I
can see that some other practitioners have a similar problem when doing the
exercises. Sometimes it's easy to think that we are only practicing exercises,
but in fact they are "The Great Consummation Way of Falun Dafa," the
gestures that embody deep meaning of the Fa. When sending forth-righteous thoughts, much of the time we pay attention only
to the form, and neglect the quality, or the correct point of view for sending
forth the righteous thoughts. The key is to try our best to define our focal
point through following the Fa, and to act according to the requirements of Fa
rectification. We need to continually find our remaining attachments and
loopholes, and continuously upgrade ourselves. Our minds will become more and
more righteous, and through this the quantity of our righteous thoughts will
also increase. However, if we send forth righteous thoughts only from our
personal standpoint, only think about the basic requirements, worry due to not
wanting to be left behind, only pay attention to the form of sending forth
righteous thoughts, or neglect the improvement of our mind nature, that will not
be enough. We will be easily satisfied with ourselves for following the routine
of sending forth righteous thoughts according to time schedules, and not realize
the disparity that can exist between form and quality, and in the end becoming
bogged down in our cultivation. My personal understanding is that when we send forth righteous thoughts, we
should eliminate the evil elements within all dimensions of Dafa practitioners.
Dafa practitioners are one body. Our fields should join together, and within
this dimension, we should coordinate among ourselves. If it's possible, we
should study the Fa and practice together, exchanging our understandings of the
Fa and improving together. We should encourage the practitioners who have gone
astray to return to cultivation, and support those who have not stepped forward
or who are just beginning to step forward in becoming more steadfast. We should
give further encouragement to those practitioners who have had many tribulations
due to their attachments, and to those who are being persecuted in the prisons.
They need our help and support. We should do this with initiative, and should
show them our biggest compassion. I understand that this is what we have to do:
We should send forth righteous thoughts together to eliminate all evil elements
within all dimensions of Dafa practitioners. 1-8-2004
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