(Clearwisdom.net)

For several years, I have being thinking that this section of the Fa is for people with serious illness, and is to let them know that without giving up the attachment of being cured one cannot really cultivate. But, today when I read this section of the Fa, I felt a jolt to my own conscience. Especially the words, "the idea of being ill" shook me. I again and again tried to understand this statement, and I felt some of the deeper connotations: Does one have to let go of the idea of being ill? One even cannot have the idea of being ill. That is really difficult to do. Let's not talk about the significant karma which shows up as serious illness. Even for the karma that presents itself as a common illness, who can really let go of the idea of being ill? Who can really ignore the pain he is suffering? If one can really let go of the idea of being ill, can the factors that result in the illness still exist?

Each time karma manifests as what appears to be illness, how many people can really not be moved by it? More often one is trapped with the illness, especially when it appears to be serious. One starts to wonder why the illness has come. Was there anything that he did wrong? Was there anything he did that was exploited by the evil? One starts to look inside for shortcomings. When he finds the shortcomings and if the illness shows no change, he would think that he had not found the root problem yet. He would keep looking inside, he would then find something again and do better. Sometimes, he thinks that he has found very important shortcomings that needed to be improved, and at the same time he comes to understand more of the Fa. Then he would think that the hardship should be over. Of course, if the hardship persists, he would keep looking inside. If one deals with karma that presents itself as illness in such a way, wouldn't he deal with other conflicts in the same manner?

One fellow practitioner said with deep feelings: "How difficult it is! For several years, it seems that I have been trying to come to understand things while in the midst of hardships. I have not been able to get out of the hardships. I have been constantly in hardships." His words woke me up. I looked back at my own path, and it is really like he had said: It was all kinds of hardships that pushed me to cultivate, pushed me to look inside myself for insufficiency, and the way I tried to do better seemed to be because of the hardships. If there were no hardships, I would seek an easier life and would not be as diligent to cultivate myself. My cultivation was very passive. I only raised my righteous thoughts in reaction to hardships or interruptions. It is just like one example mentioned in Zhuan Falun,

As for myself, if the environment eased a little bit I would relax myself, I would not deal seriously until the hardships and interruptions came again. Why? Because my main consciousness became alert; I was afraid of being persecuted; I did not want to be persecuted. Now I realize more and more that we have to guide our cultivation with the Fa, and I understand more clearly the importance of Master Li's teaching that we must cultivate ourselves according to Zhuan Falun. The Fa includes everything, and it is for us to come to understand it.

Facing evil interference, many times I was able to hold up righteous thoughts to deal with the interference, to resist the evil with a strong will, and to eliminate the interference. Although many fellow practitioners spoke well of me about my strong righteous thoughts, I realized that something was still not quite right about my cultivation status, and whenever I read the Fa I realized that my cultivation status did not meet the requirements of the Fa.

Looking back on the paths I traveled, to break through traps I had set for myself, I broke through one after another and I went through many difficulties. I thought that I had been doing well in my cultivation, but what I had done was trying to enlighten in the midst of hardships, trying to learn through my tribulations.

Time after time I experienced "Endure it when it's difficult to endure, and do it when it's impossible to do," and time after time I experienced "bright flowers after passing the shady willows." Cultivation is difficult, but it is joyful after each breakthrough. I truly experienced the pleasure of being a cultivator. But I still could realize that my cultivation status was not quite right.

Cultivating during the Fa rectification period I had not made my priority saving living beings. My mind was not for saving living beings and my cultivation was focused more on myself breaking through and did not have a strong sense of responsibility about the mission of saving living beings. To speak in simple words, I was elevating myself in the hardships arranged by the old forces. I did not break this barrier until the fellow practitioner said that he seemed never to get out of the hardships over the past several years. This woke me up. I was trying to break through, to elevate myself in the midst of hardships arranged by the old forces. For each hardship, I tried hard to learn and to understand just for the purpose of breaking through various evil interference. I had been trying to break through the hardships, but I had not tried to learn and to understand with the goal of saving living beings.

An article published on the Clearwisdom website described a practitioner who told people the facts about Dafa and shouted "Dafa is good" wherever she went. The labor camp authorities were so scared that they quickly sent her back to her work unit. Teacher said,

"Now that you've arrested me, I haven't thought at all about going back." I have thought about this sentence many times. Why did she not think of returning home? So many practitioners all mentioned that labor camps are not the places we should stay. Shouldn't we deny the arrangements of the old forces? Shouldn't we restrain and stop the persecution? Don't we have many stories of walking out of the evil places with righteous thoughts and actions? I thought about this a lot, but I always felt that I did not quite comprehend it and my understanding was vague and fuzzy.

When I studied the Fa and read

I suddenly became clear. For a very sick patient, it is very difficult for him or her to let go of the mentality of the need to be seen by doctors and to let go of the mentality that he or she is sick. When one is sick, how can one let go of those mentalities? Who can remain unmoved? In the course of Fa-rectification, if we are arrested because our loopholes were exploited by the evil forces, it is really difficult to let go of the tribulations, to not to think of the tribulations, and to let go of the mentality of being arrested and jailed, as well as the mentality of breaking through the tribulations. If a practitioner can recognize all the delusions in this human world, is not moved and swayed by the "demonic tribulations" arranged by the old forces, and is not moved by any interference, this practitioner is truly great.

My understanding became much clearer on this matter. We should not hold onto the concept of jail, or of being jailed. We are not here to break through any tests, and we do not recognize the environment arranged by the old forces. No matter where we are, what we are thinking is to validate Dafa and to offer salvation to all sentient beings. No matter what kinds of interferences the old forces create, we will just do what Dafa practitioners should do. We simply do not accept the tests and demonic tribulations arranged by the old forces, and we do not have this kind of mentality. We are here to validate Dafa and to offer salvation to all sentient beings.

If all jailed Dafa practitioners act according to the Fa, do not accept the environment arranged by the old forces, and simply follow the three matters that Teacher asks us to do, then what excuses could the old forces have to continue to exist?

I also thought about the fact that many practitioners have different viewpoints toward some matters. In fact, Teacher has explained to us very clearly:

It is not to say that going on a hunger strike is right and not doing so is wrong. Nor does it say that you are right because you can return home after being forced to wander away from your home and you are wrong because you do not return home. It is also not to say that if you are arrested and jailed, the only thing that is right is to walk out of the jail, etc. These are not the critical issues. Dafa practitioners should not overemphasize the formality, should not accept the environment arranged by the old forces, and should not accept this persecution. We simply do what Dafa disciples should do. Everyone has a different path and everyone has to walk his or her path on his or her own. We should not become attached how other practitioners walk their path. We should walk our own path well. Everyone has a different understanding. What's important is to coordinate well as a whole.

One practitioner was physically tormented by disease so severely that he was almost not going to make it through. The practitioner went out to give out flyers to clarify the truth. By simply doing so, the practitioner was able to break through the interference and torment of the disease. What does this tell us? I do not accept the arrangement of the old forces, and as long as I am still alive, I will do what Dafa disciples should do. This is to take on the path arranged by Teacher and Teacher will take care of us and everything else. Didn't Teacher comment at the Metropolitan New York Fa Conference on some individual cases where practitioners were suffering from sickness karma:

Teacher wants us to validate Dafa, right? The old forces arranged the tribulation of illness karma, so if we do not truly let go of it, if we only partly let go of it, aren't we doing it for the old forces? Teacher has warned us about this and has taught us to do what Dafa disciples should do. Take on the path arranged by Teacher-- what is there to fear?