Kindly Pointing Out Practitioners' Shortcomings Is Being Responsible to Fellow Practitioners

By a practitioner in Mainland China

(Clearwisdom.net) After moving to different locations several times, I came to work at a truth-clarification materials production site, where there were only two practitioners. When I first arrived, I did not know how to do the work and the other fellow practitioner taught me how to use a laser printer and inkjet printer and also taught me some computer techniques. This practitioner is meticulous and has fairly high requirements. I used to think that there should not be many problems between practitioners and we should be easy to get along with. However, shortly after, I found that there were indeed conflicts among practitioners. This fellow practitioner that worked with me tended to lose his temper easily. When he saw that I made mistakes and the resources were wasted, he would look unhappy. At the beginning, I often made mistakes, so I often saw his gloomy face. At first, I did not think much about it and thought that it was an opportunity for me to improve my xinxing. But later, when I saw him get angry many times, I felt afraid. My mind was not calm when I did things and I often was worried about making mistakes. I was afraid of seeing his unhappy face.

Fear is also an attachment. Master said,

"To tell you the truth, the entire cultivation process for a practitioner is one of constantly giving up human attachments." (Zhuan Falun)

Since it is an attachment, I should remove it. I thought that if I made a mistake, I should try my best to correct it. At the same time, I felt that as a practitioner, he should not lose his temper so easily. Since I saw it, I should be responsible to him, and I should point it out to him. I realized that I should not feel reluctant to speak due to my fear. Master said,

"While working, your tone of voice, your kindheartedness, and your reasoning can change a person's heart, whereas commands never could!" ("Clearheadedness" from Essentials for Further Advancement)

I thought that I should not fight with him. When he calmed down and was no longer angry, I took the opportunity to share with him. When I pointed out the problem with his temper, he also realized it. "Yes, I am a practitioner, how can I behave like that? In the future, I will eliminate this bad behavior." I told him, "You have been doing Dafa work for such a long time (he stepped forward to do Dafa work several years ago), didn't other practitioners point it out to you?" He said, "No, we used to discuss how to work well together. Maybe they also felt that my temper was not good, but they seldom pointed it out to me. We just cultivated on our own."

Since that conversation, this practitioner has been trying to resist and expel his bad temper and he has really changed a lot. Occasionally he would say a few coarse words and sometimes I felt very uncomfortable. On one occasion, he said some angry words and I felt very upset at the time. I said to myself, "He is helping me improve my xinxing and I should ignore it." I picked up the book Zhuan Falun and started to read it, but I could not calm down. The thought kept coming up in my mind, "How can you treat me like that?" The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to cry, and I felt a great sense of injustice. At the same time, I also realized that such a mind-state was not right, but I could not let it go and could not calm down.

"But normally when a problem arises, if it does not irritate a person psychologically, it does not count or is useless and cannot make him or her improve. Accordingly, his mind cannot get over it and is still bothered by it." (Zhuan Falun)

I put down Zhuan Falun and picked up the new article, "The Closer to the End, the More Diligent You Should Be" (which had just been published at the time). Master said,

"It can even be to the point that you know full well it's a test but still can't let go of your attachments."

I suddenly woke up: Isn't Master talking about me?

Right then, I let go my attachment and I felt my whole body become light. I went over to this practitioner and he asked me, "Why did you suddenly change into another person?" I talked to him and he realized that he was not being compassionate. It truly was a situation of,

"Advance together, ever diligent,

To a glorious future."

("One With the Fa" from Hong Yin)

I remember once when I came back after finishing the work, he criticized me harshly and said I had no merit at all. At that time, I could not maintain my xinxing and started to argue with him. I thought, "I have been working quite hard, and you do not say one good word and you even show me a gloomy face. I do not want to work with you any more." As soon as I had this thought, I immediately realized that it was not right and this thought was not from me. I stepped forward because I wanted to do things well and I came here to fulfill my pre-historical wishes, not to live an everyday person's life.

"Let joy be found in hardship.

Physical pains count little as suffering,

Indeed, cultivating mind is hardest."

("Tempering the Will", Hong Yin)

If I had conflicts and did not want to cooperate with fellow practitioners, isn't that what the old forces want? I should not be deceived by the old forces.

Because practitioners at truth-clarification materials production sites did not have much contact with other practitioners, we just talked about the work of producing Dafa materials when we met. We are all cultivating, so we also have tests to pass and have many attachments to remove, and we need to upgrade our xinxing. When we have conflicts, we should look inside immediately and solve the problem. We should not leave the problems to accumulate and become larger and larger. Master said in "A Reply to the Dafa Disciples of Peru":

"Dafa disciples' cultivation is done among ordinary people, and this is something never done before in history. If you each travel well your respective paths there are bound to be difficulties, and going forward to meet those difficulties head-on is for the sake of validating Dafa, saving all beings, doing away with the old forces' arrangements, and countering the persecution. The cultivation done in the past never had these things, and Dafa disciples are the pioneers. That is why in cultivation sometimes you will do well, and sometimes you won't know what to do. When you encounter difficulties, sit down and study the Fa some more, and as long as you are righteous in thought and action, there will be no barrier that you can't pass through."

Master also said,

"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." ("Drive Out Interference" from Essentials for Further Advancement II)

If practitioners can't cooperate with each other, do not trust each other and have conflicts, these are all what the old forces want. We should completely deny the old forces' arrangements. When we see other practitioners' shortcomings, we should kindly point them out. This is also being responsible to fellow practitioners. We should not try to avoid trouble and just be good people without principles. That is the behavior of a human being, not a divine being. Let's strive forward more diligently.

If there is anything inappropriate, please kindly point it out to me.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2006/9/25/138602.html

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