Looking Within from the Perspective of Fa-rectification
By a Falun Dafa practitioner from Changchun, Jilin Province
(Clearwisdom.net) Through studying the Fa, I arrived at certain
understandings, which I would like to share with my fellow practitioners. 1. Letting go of selfishness and walking diligently on a righteous path Not so long ago, I felt that I was cloaked in something evil and surrounded
by an enormous field that separated me from Dafa. It was as if I was trapped and
unable to make any further progress. I had been less diligent in doing the three
things Master asked us to do. I began to suffer from a number of unwholesome
symptoms. I looked within but couldn't find the root of the problem. I send
forth righteous thoughts more intensely, but improved only fractionally on and
off. It troubled me and I wondered about the negative substances that held me
back. What was separating me from the Fa? One day, Master's words hit me like a bolt of lightning: "Master sees
that danger is already approaching you." ("My Version of a "Stick
Wake-up."") I was shocked. I thought I didn't belong to those who
failed to step forward. I calmed down and kept on studying the Fa. I saw what my
problem was. Master says, "From what standpoint you view Dafa is
fundamental."("Digging Out the Roots") I now could look at myself from the perspective of the Fa-rectification. I
asked myself, "Does everything you do meet the requirements of Fa-rectification?
Does each and every step of yours meet the standard?" I could be honest
with myself now and realized that I was not meeting the standard of a Fa-rectification
disciple. Although I was doing the three things, what did I hold fast to? What
were my basic attachments that I couldn't let go of? Looking further inward, I
searched layer by layer and what I found deep within me was selfishness. It was
the root of many of my attachments and was covered up by all kinds of sensible
sounding excuses. It made me appear wonderful. But the real reason was to
protect and preserve my human self. How much it resembled the behavior of the
old forces! On the surface, they participated in the Fa-rectification. In fact,
they are using the Fa-rectification to reach their selfish goals. No matter how
much I do or how brilliantly I am doing it, I was still crawling within the
framework of the corrupted old cosmos, based on selfishness. Therefore, am I not
taking the path that was arranged by the old forces? This selfishness is not my
true self. It is the fundamental flaw of the old cosmos and I adhered to it. As
a being assimilating to the Fa and entering the new cosmos, can I let it trap me
and dictate my actions? Realizing this, I sent forth strong righteous thoughts
to eliminate it and my mind became clear. I realized that every time Master lectures on the Fa, he is not talking to a
particular group of people. The cosmos is going through Fa-rectification. As the
Fa-rectification is moving forward at the greatest speed, it is rectifying
everything that is not righteous. Isn't the sphere and field of every
practitioner included in this rectification? We have to measure everything
against the Fa and actively rectify everything from the standard of the Fa-rectification.
We have to assimilate to the Fa unconditionally. This is the standard required
by the Fa-rectification. It is immensely dangerous if one remains apart from
that standard and believes that one's own standards meet the criteria of the Fa-rectification!
How far is this removed from the requirement of the Fa-rectification? Who can
stray from the requirements of the Fa-rectification? In Fa-rectification cultivation, there is no self, only what Master requires,
what the Fa-rectification needs, and the standards of the Fa-rectification. To
follow the standards requires that one has a righteous mind and behavior. All
that is unrighteous within us will be eliminated during the process. "Genuine practice toward higher levels is in a state of wuwei and free
of any mind activities. Everything is installed in your body, ready-made. They
are automatically formed, and these internal mechanisms cultivate you..."(Zhuan
Falun). This tells me that I am required to walk on the path arranged by Master. It
is a bright and a safe path. The more we act from the selfish point of view and
measure ourselves while retaining selfishness, which is certainly safe and
reliable within the human mindset, the farther away we are from the
characteristics of the new cosmos. As a result, the fewer righteous elements we
have within us, the more the evil has power over us. Such behavior follows the
old laws of this realm. Under such laws we only do things that we think can
validate the Fa from a human standpoint. Our understanding of the one body is
superficial. We couldn't treat the Fa-rectification during different phases with
rationality. We couldn't get rid of the attachment to doing things. We don't
have a calm mind when studying the Fa or sending forth righteous thoughts. We
are involved in all sorts of Dafa work, but we can't handle them properly. When
looking within, we are unable to discover the root of the attachments. We also
have concerns about loss and gain and bargain with others who are also involved
in Dafa work. We have an attachment to establish our own mighty virtue.
Consequently, we are suffering from much external interference, and we live in a
chaotic state of mind. The worst that could happen is to be persecuted by the
evil or even going astray. That is a path arranged by the old forces. One
validates oneself, with a path strewn with tribulations and tests. No matter how
one cultivates, one remains within the tribulations arranged by the old forces
and is unable to make a clear break. In fact, such a situation should not exist
in the first place. It is our unrighteous heart that can bring this situation to
the forefront. When we let go of ourselves, no longer hold on to the human self, and regain
our true selves--only then are we truly melting into the Fa and becoming a
genuinely pure Dafa particle. No one can damage Dafa. Then who can touch us?
Master said, "Do you think a Dafa disciple's cultivation path is supposed to
accommodate your fear, your pursuit of comfort and ease, and all your
desires?" ("My Version of a 'Stick Wake-up.'") To retain one's human thinking and arrange one's own path will open a
loophole for the old forces. They can use such excuses and impose tribulations
and persecution. "The path that Dafa disciples have walked in validating the Fa--where
as they cultivate themselves they also save sentient beings, accommodate the
needs of the cosmos's Fa-rectification, and disintegrate and clear away the
dark minions and rotten demons that are negatively impacting the Fa-rectification
and doing evil against Dafa disciples, as well as all the elements of
interference and persecution arranged by the old forces--such is the complete
path of cultivation, Consummation, and becoming a magnificent god that
Disciples of Dafa walk." ("My Version of a 'Stick Wake-up.'") Only the requirements and standards of Dafa make up the righteous cultivation
path we have to walk in our separate lives and work environments. 2. Recognizing the nature of "redress" Recently, a rumor was publicized regarding the possibility of the Chinese
government clearing the name of Falun Gong. My understanding is that everyday
people want to maintain the power of the Party. The ultimate reason is related
to the nature of the old forces. The old forces at higher levels eliminate those
at lower levels. They are eliminating the beings that they think are no longer
useful. Their ultimate goal is to maintain the standard of the old cosmos. What
an individual person does is his choice. Master told us to completely deny the
old forces and eliminate them. Master asks us to not acknowledge them. We need
to do the three things without conceding to the old forces. Fa-Rectification
disciples have to seize the time and save more people. They cannot be moved by
what is done in the human world. 3. Cultivate oneself even more in face of the praise Articles on Clearwisdom point out clearly the reasons why practitioners
encountered problems. They developed attachments of complacency, showing-off,
and doing the work, after some practitioners praised them for making progress
when validating Dafa. Consequently, the evil takes advantage of the loopholes. Usually when we have a conflict and other people criticize us, we look
within. Conversely, when other people praise us, we forget to look within. Is it
because we have a potential attachment to contentment and a deeply hidden desire
to validate ourselves? The existence of such an attachment is not easy to
detect. It makes you feel good, complacent, and we see ourselves as being better
than others, as if we had enlightened to higher principles. We become
increasingly more reluctant to listen different opinions and think that we have
enlightened to things from the Fa's perspective when we have not. We are more
likely to find faults in others rather than look within. In the end the
attachments are strengthened and become the excuses for the old forces to
persecute us. As for those who just like to praise other practitioners, are you being
responsible to them? If they do well in one aspect, it means that they have
cultivated well in the Fa, rather than they are better than the Fa. "Taking
the Fa as teacher" is not a slogan. Only when we have a clear understanding
of ourselves and cultivate solidly within the Fa, can we walk our path well. Master has set up a good example for us in his words and behavior. In Zhuan
Falun, a Beijing practitioner had developed the hard Qigong, Master says,
"I did not tell him because I did not want him to develop an
attachment." (Zhuan Falun.) Towards the end of Zhuan Falun,
Master says, "In fact, many veteran practitioners sitting here or who are
not present have already reached very high levels in their cultivation practice.
I had not told you so, lest you develop some attachment or become complacent.
That would affect the development of your gong potency." (Zhuan Falun.) 4. Looking at practitioners' experience sharing properly Clearwisdom has provided a valuable forum for practitioners around the world
to share their experiences. Through reading the articles everyday, I have
benefited greatly. I understand that it is also a part of the cultivation
process. When I first read fellow practitioners' experience sharing articles, I found
them to be quite interesting. I was like a by-stander. When I saw others do
well, I felt that it was good, yet I had no idea why it was good. Being diligent
in my Fa-study, I gained a more profound understanding and read practitioners'
articles with a calm and clear mind. I could view them from the perspective of
the Fa-rectification cultivation. What was based on the Fa and what was based on
the human mindset? Why was the persecution so severe in this case? Although the
practitioner was not afraid when facing the evil, he was being detained, set
free and then detained over and over again. Is he walking on the path arranged
by Master? What are the things arranged by the old forces that he silently
accepted? How can we walk on the righteous path and completely deny the old
forces? I keep looking within and comparing my situation with what I read in those
articles. After reading each article, I feel as if I had been further purified
and I have made some improvement. I am often moved by the practitioners'
righteous thoughts and actions. By diligently studying the Fa, I can feel the
greatness of Master from deep within me. It is Master's benevolence and the
great Fa that created us. All that we are enlightened to comes from the Fa. In the process of looking within, I have gone through a process from
individual cultivation to the cultivation of a Fa-rectification period Dafa
disciple. In the past when I looked within, it was on the basis of improving
myself and letting go of my attachments. Now when I look within for the
attachments, I know that they are huge mountains that impede the Fa-rectification.
I recognize them as places for the evil to hide and reside in. Once the evil has
found a place to stay, they will not only interfere with me, but also the Fa-rectification.
Furthermore, they will persecute Dafa disciples. In the end, they are going to
use my attachments to destroy me. The bad substance is not something that one
can get rid off in the state of individual cultivation, but something we have to
actively rectify by diligently studying the Fa. Only by being within the Fa are
we able to assist Master during the Fa-rectification process and are we doing
the three things well.
Chinese version available at
http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/11/9/88756.html
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