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It Is a Frightful Thing Not to Be Aware of Omissions
By a practitioner from Taiwan
(Clearwisdom.net) During the recent Fa-conference in Canada, Master again
met with Dafa practitioners from Taiwan and taught them the Fa, and asked them
to pass the teaching to others when they went back to Taiwan. There is still an
issue of division amongst practitioners in Taiwan regarding party affiliation,
and this has become an issue that concerns the whole cultivation body in Taiwan.
When I heard this, my heart became rather heavy. In the last year or two, Master
has on numerous occasions asked practitioners from Taiwan to pass on the same
message. How then, did we treat this issue? During the last year or so, whenever
practitioners mentioned this issue, I would immediately think, "I do not
have such a problem. It is some other practitioners who cannot let go of their
attachments. We should view the issue this way..." I have come across many
practitioners in the last year or so, and almost every one of them felt the same
way and thought that this issue had nothing to do with them, and it was someone
else's problem. I also held the same view. I have now come to the understanding that it is a very frightful thing not to
be aware of our omissions. I previously thought that I had no political stance and opinion when
colleagues talked about politics. I would only clarify the truth,
and all along I thought that the issue of party affiliation (either with the
Blue camp, the National Party--or the Green camp, the Democratic Progressive
Party) had nothing to do with me. This time, when I heard that this is an issue
that concerns the whole cultivation body in Taiwan, I must not keep myself out
of it and must cultivate myself. As a Dafa practitioner in Taiwan, I have no
excuse for not looking within, and I cannot continue to think that I am always
in the right. If it is only someone else's problem, how can it be a whole body
issue? We all know that in Dafa cultivation, when a conflict arises, even the
third party who sees it needs to look within and check oneself, not to mention
that I'm part of the whole cultivation body in Taiwan. So I tell myself that I
must keep calm, look within and face myself. I thought about the Blue camp and the Green camp, the people involved, and
incidents. I looked within and gradually I found that I had a heart against
certain people in the Blue camp, because they criticized many things except for
the Chinese Communist Party and they had even developed a close relationship
with the CCP. I thought these people were "so bad, so weak," and I
held a feeling of "disgust" or "disappointment" toward them.
I suddenly thought: Is this right? From another angle, when I compared them with
others, I liked others better, and when someone criticized those people I felt
like defending them. Isn't this party affiliation? Suddenly I remembered that in 2004 when I was on my way back to Taiwan from
the Washington, DC Fa-conference, I bumped into a member of the Legislation
Committee of Taiwan in the bookshop at the airport. Without thinking much about
anything I went up to him and said hello, telling him that I came from Taiwan.
After we started chatting, I clarified the truth to him (some other
practitioners saw us and started to send forth righteous thoughts). In the end
he said to me that when he went to China he would tell the CCP people that it
was wrong for them to persecute Falun Gong. When I was recalling this incident, my mind opened up. I thought, "If
these people from the so-called Blue camp who have close connections with the
CCP get to know the truth, they might also play a positive role." Of
course, we should not try to pursue anything, but at least they would know the
truth and would not be deceived by the lies of the CCP. They would be on guard
and not go along with the CCP. Once they get to know the truth, at least they
themselves could be saved. Whether they play a positive role or not depends on
themselves, and perhaps they can do even better. They did not persecute Falun
Gong themselves, and they are only sentient beings that are deceived. Why should
I categorize them? They are already deceived by lies, and if we put more
restrictions on them and label them, won't it be more difficult for them to make
a breakthrough? Won't it become even worse and allow them to fall into a vicious
cyle? If they indeed cannot be saved in the end, wouldn't the reason be because
I did not save them, and pushed them away? Master said, "The only thing you have a role in is saving people."
("Teaching the Fa in the City of Chicago" 2005) In fact, this is a matter of my cultivation. Because I have omissions in my
cultivation, I developed a feeling of disgust toward certain people and a
feeling of kindness towards others. This is sentiment. How can I have compassion
when I have not let go of sentiments? This is also a matter of having a
preference, and with such a mindset I will not be able to clarify the truth
thoroughly and will be lacking patience. I will not be able to understand how
these people think or find out where their attachments are or where they have a
mental block, and consequently I will not be able to clarify the truth to them
properly. As a result they may become more confused, and their confusion could
in turn reinforce my notions about them: "They are just so weak!"
Then, wasn't I the person who contributed to their state of mind? When I looked deeper inward, I realized that when I felt disappointed or even
lost hope for the people in Mainland China who did not respond positively when I
clarified the truth to them, wasn't I also labeling these people? If I was not
successful in clarifying the truth to them, maybe someone else would be. How
could I define them this way? Did I really do well? Will I be able to save
sentient beings effectively? Is my heart pure enough to save sentient beings?
This is a matter of sentiment. If we cannot let go of it, we will not be able to
truly save sentient beings and it will be like everyday people doing Dafa
things. Isn't it I myself who have denied the seriousness of cultivation? The above understanding is limited by my own level of cultivation. Please
kindly point out anything improper. |