Eliminate Human Notions to Better Understand the Tribulations Encountered During Fa-Rectification Cultivation Practice
By Dafa Practitioners in Dongying City, Shandong Province
(Clearwisdom.net) Since 2005, twenty-six Falun Dafa practitioners have
been arrested and persecuted by personnel from the Shengli Oilfield 610
Office and from the Binhai Police Department. Amid the persecution, some
of the arrested practitioners did not comply with any of the evils' requests,
and walked away from detention using the power of their righteous thoughts and
actions. Other practitioners did not have strong righteous thoughts and failed
to completely negate the old cosmic forces' arrangements. They went wherever the
police told them to go and revealed to the police whatever was requested. As a
result, these practitioners are still being persecuted in brainwashing centers,
and some were even given forced labor sentences. There are still others who have
failed to view things from the perspective of the Fa. Their minds are severely
affected. When learning that some fellow practitioners met with persecution,
they failed to search within themselves and failed to find the loopholes they
have and the attachments they should let go of. These practitioners instead used
their human mentalities to view the persecution. They hid all the Dafa materials
in their homes, and did not dare to even go home. They went anywhere to hide
themselves and completely forgot the three things Master has told us
to do. They ignored the fact that they are Dafa practitioners. They have failed
to improve themselves in their understandings of the Fa, thus resulting in an
unstable cultivation environment in the region and a false, superficial
manifestation of the evils' frenzied nature. Faced with these tribulations, through guidance from the Fa, we saw some of
the practitioners' shortcomings: 1. Failing to Study the Fa This is caused by a lack of righteous thoughts and perseverance in regularly
sending forth righteous thoughts. The evil thus takes advantage of and
persecutes these practitioners. Some practitioners do not reliably send forth the righteous thoughts on the
four global pre-set times. Some other practitioners cannot even finish reading Zhuan
Falun once in six months. There are still some practitioners who, for two
weeks, cannot calm themselves to study the Fa. So, with a mindset of depending
on their luck, they went out to clarify the truth and consequently
were arrested and persecuted. In "Teaching the Fa in the City of Chicago" (2005), Master said, "So that problems won't arise for you, Dafa disciples, I have often
told you to study the Fa a lot and keep up your righteous thoughts. When you
do these things, it is then possible for you to walk correctly on your own
path and to do well at what a Dafa disciple is supposed to do. No matter how
busy you get, you need to study the Fa, no matter what." In "Teaching the Fa at the Western U.S. International Fa
Conference" (2005), Master told us, "In this situation where you can't see completely, as gods do, the
real changes in yourself during your cultivation, you have instead been
relying--amidst interference and the trials in which you painfully sever
your attachments--on righteous thoughts that come from your constant study
of Dafa, and you have been forging ahead." In "Drive Out Interference" (Essentials
for Further Advancement II), Master lectured, "When I taught the Fa I told you before about all the problems that
might occur during this malicious and destructive examination. It is indeed
difficult for those who haven't truly done cultivation to come through this.
Now you can see why I've often told you to read the book more, right? The Fa
can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter
all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts." We believe that some practitioners encountered the persecution because they
do not have strong righteous thoughts and fail to understand the Fa from the
perspective of the Fa. They view the persecution using human mentalities. In
"Expounding on the Fa" (Essentials for Further Advancement),
Master said, "Whenever a tribulation comes, you do not see it with the side of
your original nature but view it completely with your human side. Evil
demons then capitalize on this point and inflict endless interference and
damage, leaving students in long-term tribulations. As a matter of fact,
this results from an inadequate understanding of the Fa by your human side.
You have humanly restrained your divine side; in other words, you have
restrained the parts that have been successfully cultivated and have
prevented them from doing Fa-rectification. ...When a tribulation arrives,
if you, a disciple, can truly maintain an unshakable calm or be determined
to meet different requirements at different levels, this should be
sufficient for you to pass the test." 2. Selfishness Upon hearing that some practitioners encountered persecution, some
practitioners in the region failed to view the issue according to the Fa. Their
first thoughts were of themselves and their own protection. In the article
"Non-Omission in Buddha-Nature" (Essentials for Further
Advancement), Master said, "I also want to tell you that your nature in the past was actually
based on egotism and selfishness. From now on, whatever you do, you should
consider others first, so as to attain the righteous Enlightenment of
selflessness and altruism." These practitioners base their reasoning on warped notions of the evil
Party's culture and education. They always put themselves in the positions of
being persecuted and are worried about the consequences of implication (due to
the mentality of fear). In Zhuan Falun ("Cultivation Insanity" in "Lecture
Six"), Master lectured, "If you ask for an illness, it will come inside your body." Because they view these tribulations with their human notions they have been
persecuted by the evil. They have failed to assimilate themselves well into the
one body. They have not used the many methods available to rescue the arrested
practitioners, such as sending forth righteous thoughts, exposing the evil
persecution, clarifying the truth to persons involved in this persecution or
improving the practitioners as one body through sharing understandings among
practitioners and searching within ourselves. 3. The Attachment of Fear Some practitioners became afraid after learning that fellow practitioners
suffered persecution. They could not study the Fa calmly, and some even went
into hiding. Isn't the attachment of fear an attachment that we need to
eliminate in cultivation? Master said in "Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference
in New York" that, "For a god or a cultivator, fear is considered a major attachment, and
it truly won't do if it's not removed." In Essentials for Further Advancement II, "Dafa
is Indestructible" Master said, "Even if a Dafa cultivator truly casts off his human skin during the
persecution, what awaits him is still Consummation. At the same time, no
attachment or fear could possibly enable you to reach Consummation. And any
attachment of fear is itself a barrier that prevents you from reaching
Consummation, and is also a factor in your being "reformed" toward the
evil side and in your betrayal." Master told us in "Touring North America to Teach the Fa," "There are two circumstances in which they can't touch a Dafa
disciple. One is that he is rock-solid. They don't dare touch him"...
"My only concern is that Dafa disciples themselves won't be firm inside;
when there's some kind of attachment, some kind of fear, or what not, then the
old forces see it and take advantage of the omissions and persecute
them." In Essentials for Further Advancement II, "Dafa
Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful" Master told us, "The more fearful they are inside, the more the evil specifically goes
after such students." Some practitioners did not cultivate according to the Fa, but rather treated
the persecution with ordinary peoples' notions, thinking it was safe as long as
they were hiding. As a matter of fact, it was the evil forces in other
dimensions that controlled evildoing people to persecute us. These evil forces
in other dimensions can clearly see where a person hides. Our unrighteous
thoughts and attachments to fear caused the persecutions we suffered! Unless we
let go of the attachment of fear, hiding in human society cannot protect us from
persecution. On the contrary, such an unrighteous notion could cause more severe
persecution. Why are we afraid? We are great gods, forged by Dafa. We should
correct all unrighteous factors. How could human notions and evildoers'
persecution control us? As cultivators if we can let go of the attachment of
fear and truly improve ourselves in the Fa, then nothing can touch our hearts
and we will do well what we must do, righteously. Master said in "Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference
in New York," "Whether you are abroad or are in an environment where you are
directly persecuted by the evil, you should display Dafa disciples' righteous
thoughts and righteous actions, as that strikes fear into the evil. The evil
is raucous on the surface, but inside it is afraid. You are Dafa disciples,
and you can't have fear inside. If a cultivator can truly let go of [the fear
of] death, then that death will forever be far removed from you." As a matter of fact, our attachment of fear is the cause of the persecution.
If we let go of this attachment there is nothing in this world that can make us
afraid. The reason these above-mentioned issues existed among local area
practitioners is because we did not spend enough time studying the Fa and
sharing experiences to improve as a whole body. When facing persecution, we did
not achieve the mindset of righteous thoughts and righteous deeds. We faced
persecution with human notions. I hereby suggest that all fellow practitioners
study the Fa more with calm hearts, strengthen sending forth righteous thoughts
to purify our own fields, disintegrate all the evil forces and the CCP evil
specters that interfere with Dafa practitioners, and do the three things well. In conclusion I would like to share Master's wisdom in "Teaching the Fa
at the Western U.S. International Fa Conference" with fellow practitioners, "To walk this path well and progress to its end--nothing is more
extraordinary. I say that because during the journey you will have hardships,
tests of every sort, unforeseen ordeals, and you will have unexpected
interference from all kinds of attachments and emotion. The interference will
come from family, society, good friends, and even fellow cultivators. And
along with this there is interference from changes in the state of human
society and from human notions that were formed in society. All of those
things can drag you back to being like an ordinary person. But if you can
break through all of it, you can advance towards godhood. So as a cultivator,
what is truly remarkable is when you can be steadfast and have righteous
thoughts so firm that nothing can sway you. Be solid and firm like diamond, or
granite, and then nothing can affect you--evil will be afraid at the mere
sight of you. If upon encountering trying circumstances your thinking can be
truly righteous, then, when faced with the evil's persecution and when faced
with interference, just one sentence of yours fortified with steadfast
righteous thoughts can instantly make the evil disintegrate (applause), and it
will make those who are being used by the evil turn and flee, it will make the
evil's persecution of you dissolve, and it will make the evil's interfering
with you disappear without a trace. One thought born of righteous faith is all
it takes. And whoever can hold firm that righteous thought and go the distance
will become a magnificent god forged by Dafa." July 19, 2005
Chinese version available at
http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2005/7/21/106521.html
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