(Clearwisdom.net) Firm belief in Master and Dafa and righteous enlightenment are integral parts of a practitioner's cultivation process. Having righteous thoughts is essential for one's consummation through the process of validating the Fa and saving sentient beings.
Firm belief in Master and Dafa is a result of enlightening to the Fa principles and the improvement of xinxing. Before the persecution began, we watched a video called The Story of Jesus Christ. One of the scenes was about Jesus going on a sea voyage with his disciples. All of a sudden, a fierce storm kicked up and the ship was about to capsize. The disciples were panicking, Jesus was asleep, and they could not wake him up, no matter how loudly they shouted. When the situation truly looked dire, they pushed him until he woke. Jesus then walked to the end of the boat and shouted to the sky. Suddenly the waves calmed down, and the sun began to shine. His disciples cheered, but Jesus said to them seriously, "Where was your righteous belief?" The disciples immediately fell silent.
Indeed, when the ship was about to capsize, how many of them thought of the safety of Jesus first? They were stricken with fear for their own safety and they asked for their master's help to save themselves.
Over the years, Master has given us so many chances in his compassion, yet many of us still cannot enlighten due to our human attachments. If we reached the state of truly believing in Master and Dafa, would the persecution still exist today? Master said,
"Just by staying unaffected you will be able to handle all situations." ("Teaching the Fa at the Conference in the Midwest-U.S") Every human thought could lead to doubt in Master and Dafa. When that righteous belief is compromised, the person will become unsteady and unreliable when handling relevant matters. This would obviously have an adverse effect in our efforts to do the three things well and to save all beings
Every doubt of Master and Dafa is a stumbling block on one's cultivation journey. In Zhuan Falun, Master told the story about one of Shakyamuni's disciples cleaning the bathtub. To clean the bathtub, Shakyamuni's disciple only thought about what rules he might be violating by cleaning it out, but he did not realize that this thought caused him not to fulfill his Master's requirements. Isn't this an example of lacking in righteous belief? Today during our cultivation, we face many serious tribulations, but in doing so, are we able to always think of the salvation of sentient beings and validating the Fa?
Every human thought that looks after self-interest is a filthy one, and Master is waiting for us to transcend human thinking. Let us do our best to fulfill this requirement and remain steadfast, because sentient beings are waiting for us to offer them salvation. Master has paved the way for Dafa disciples to reach Consummation and save sentient beings.
