By Zhengyu, a Dafa disciple from Nanyang City, Henan Province

(Clearwisdom.net) I'd like to tell a story. There once was a very good man, of the finest sort. A great god wanted to save him, so he decided to test him to see how he'd fare. It was a cold day in the early winter, and the man was tending his land by the river. The god transformed himself into a scholar and approached this man, asking him to carry him to the other side of the river. Though the river was not yet frozen, the water was ice cold. Without a word, the man kicked off his shoes and rolled up his pants, then helped the scholar climb up on his back. After he carried him over and returned, he dried his feet and put on his shoes, and then he resumed his work in the field. Suddenly he heard the scholar shouting from the other side of the river, asking him to bring him back, saying he needed to fetch something he'd left at home. So the man crossed the river and brought the scholar back again. A few moments later, the scholar came from his home, and the farmer took him over again. No sooner had the farmer returned to his side of the river than the scholar shouted for him again, saying he needed to tell his family something. So once again the farmer went over and brought him back. When the scholar returned from home, the farmer again took him over the river. So it went back and forth a few times, but the farmer never complained or felt upset. Each time he came back from the trip, he'd go right back to tending his field without even a glance at the scholar, as if nothing had happened. The scholar never even thanked him.

This story tells us that this person did indeed have a very good moral character. He did not think he was great when he did good things for others; he wasn't afraid of hardship even though he had to walk in freezing water, nor did he get annoyed when he was asked to carry the scholar back and forth repeatedly. And he wasn't attached to seeking rewards when the scholar didn't even utter a word of appreciation. He just focused his mind on the tasks at hand, harbored no complaints or regrets, took everything lightly, and maintained a calm mind--not an ounce of attachment was left in him. He was a cultivator of the Dao in the past.

Today this story can teach us that while we work to save sentient beings by clarifying the truth, we'll only do well if we can let go of all attachments. It's critical for us to succeed in truth-clarification, because it's both our mission and a part of our own cultivation. If all of us can be like the farmer in the story and remain unattached under any circumstance, then I think we'll definitely succeed in saving sentient beings.

Truth-clarification is the noble mission of each and every Dafa disciple, and it's a duty we shouldn't avoid. Only by studying the Fa well and more frequently will we be able to let go of various attachments. Getting rid of attachments is the real guarantee for success in our efforts to save sentient beings through truth-clarification. The following are some attachments we should be aware of:

The attachment to fear. With this attachment, one will be full of fear and worries. One will be afraid of this or that, and of losing something. This is in fact the result of not being able to abandon fame, gain, and qing. If one clarifies the truth with this attachment, he or she will have an unstable mind and won't achieve good results.

The attachment to complacency. With this attachment, one will become overjoyed when he or she explains the facts to someone who understands the truth easily.

The attachment to depression. With this attachment, one would feel depressed, weak, and groggy whenever he or she meets people who are unwilling to listen.

The attachment to showing off. We've cultivated for many years, and have experienced big changes in our minds and bodies. The states in our cultivation will not show among ordinary people, so when we talk to them, we can't tell them high level things; otherwise, they'll think we are mentally unstable and what we do will be counterproductive.

Saving sentient beings through truth clarification is like saving someone from drowning. We need to bend over and reach out, and use all the strength we have to pull him up. Finally, let us be inspired, one more time, by Master's words:

Posting date: 1/27/2006
Original article date: 1/27/2006
Category: Practitioners' Insights
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/1/16/118663.html

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