By a practitioner in Sydney, Australia

(Clearwisdom.net) I watched the video of Master's "Fa-Teaching Given to the Australian Falun Dafa Practitioners" several times. I found shortcomings each and every viewing. As one member of the whole Australian body of Dafa practitioners, I really felt distressed about my inability to cultivate well according to the Fa for such a long time. The attachments of fear, reliance on others, selfishness, and other notions made me fail to do well in safeguarding Dafa and keeping the integrity of one body of practitioners. I have caused irreparable losses to our effort to offer sentient beings salvation.

I remember once complaining to a fellow practitioner, "I do not know why all the practitioners I have encountered are those whose egos are so strong. They get attached to just doing things, and even to doing 'big things' to prove themselves. They have taken this very sacred and serious matter of saving people as ordinary people's anti-persecution efforts in some ostentatious and large-scale way." I tried to share my views with these practitioners from the perspective of the Fa, but in the end was excluded and treated with indifference. Regarding their cultivation states, I was initially quite worried. Later, I just felt helpless, and then gradually numb, and eventually turned away and did my projects alone.

I believe there are other practitioners like me in Sydney. Consequently, the whole body of Australian practitioners has fallen into an incorrect mode in which a few practitioners form a small circle to do things or each person does things alone. Now I realize I have already deviated too far from the realm of a potentially enlightened being. That happened because of my inability to develop even greater tolerance and compassion toward fellow practitioners. I have failed to think about the issues from the perspective of being responsible to Dafa and to the whole body of practitioners. I have become attached to my personal feelings and have dodged conflicts and selfishly protected myself so as to not "get hurt." I have neglected my responsibilities toward positive elements and altruism.

Recently I had a dream: I was in a tiny bathroom that appeared to be in a basement. I spent quite some effort and remodeled it into a small, luxurious room that I liked. Because it still smelled a little stinky, I sprayed some perfume. After I awoke, that unspeakable smell was still trapped in my mind. This dream has made me understand an analogy: a Dafa cultivator doing Fa-validating work must not use good-looking clothes to cover up dirty things. The work cannot be accomplished without getting rid of my undesirable human attachments, even though I may want to do even more Dafa-validation work. Doing so would be the same as deceiving myself.

I also want to point out some of the shortcomings that I have observed in other practitioners. Please correct me if I am wrong.

While doing Dafa-validating work and offering sentient beings salvation, some practitioners have placed themselves above others. They always consider themselves the most capable. They exclude others by regarding other's suggestions or criticisms as interference. They make others feel that they are a little like those officials in society who enjoy privileges. They have forgotten that they are Dafa cultivators who should search within themselves when encountering conflicts. They want others to follow what they want to do; otherwise, they criticize the others for being uncooperative. They speak of Dafa principles to restrict others rather than themselves. For a long time they have gotten attached to just doing things and have failed to study the Fa with calm minds. They have failed to solidly cultivate themselves according to the Fa. They have incorrectly seen many Dafa projects as a reflection of their ability to keep up with the Fa rectification process and to cultivate themselves diligently. There are also some who only follow others to do things. They do not have a good sense of responsibility for Dafa and the whole body of Dafa practitioners.

There are many reasons for the big gaps between the condition of Australian practitioners' whole body and that of practitioners in other countries. One of the causes, in my view, is that Australian practitioners, owing to their relatively strong human mentalities, do not have adequate understandings of Dafa and have failed to truly believe in Master and Dafa and cultivate themselves solidly.

Dafa has created everything in the universe, and everything originated from Dafa. Being able to learn Dafa, we are the luckiest beings in the universe. If we still do not cherish this opportunity, how can we be worthy of Master's benevolent salvation? How can we avoid letting down sentient beings who have placed their infinite hopes in us?

The skills and abilities we have in society, no matter how great they are, are still ordinary people's things. A Dafa cultivator's comprehension of boundless Dafa is merely that little bit he has gained on his own level. A human being can only use his feet to walk, but an enlightened being can fly, can reach his destination with just one thought, can create everything with just a single thought, and is all-capable.

The power of saving sentient beings originates from the energy field the righteous minds Dafa practitioners as a whole has created and is the manifestation of Dafa's power. Everything is done by Master!

Let's study the Fa more, search within ourselves, purge our human mentalities, and catch up quickly. During the process of saving sentient beings, let the divine powers of all Dafa practitioners function as a whole. We should no longer hinder the process of Fa-rectification.

Posting date: 11/25/2007
Original article date: 11/25/2007
Category: Practitioners' Insights
Translated on 11/16/2007
Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/11/12/166373.html

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