Thoughts about Advising Other Practitioners to Write Down Their Cultivation Experiences

By Lianlian, a young practitioner from China

(Clearwisdom.net) My grandmother, a Falun Dafa practitioner, was recently experiencing all kinds of tribulations. After a physical exam in the hospital, she started to show symptoms of serious illness. Soon afterwards her home was burglarized. Fortunately, with Master's help, the loss was not too bad. These tribulations puzzled the ordinary people in our family. When my grandmother finally found her attachments of showing off and sentimentality toward her family, I tried to encourage her to write down her experience. However, she kept putting me off, saying things like she was too old, she didn't have enough education, etc. I wasn't happy about this. I thought she did not have confidence and was not closely following the Fa. Later, with my continued encouragement, she wrote down her experience, but she said it was not good and asked me not to publish it. I felt angry, and thought that she failed to live up to Master's expectations.

Afterwards, I thought of Master's words:

"Do you realize that as long as you're a cultivator, in any environment or under any circumstances, I will use any troubles or unpleasant things you come across--even if they involve work for Dafa, or no matter how good or sacred you think they are--to eliminate your attachments and expose your demon-nature so that it can be eliminated, for your improvement is what's most important." ("Further Understanding" in Essentials for Further Advancement)

I found my own attachments here, the first being the attachment of feeling inferior.

Since I was a child, I have felt inferior. No matter what I have to do, I always feel I'm not able to do it. This has been the biggest obstacle preventing me from being able to persuade other practitioners. I really should not think this way. I have Master, I have the Fa, what "cannot" be done? Saying "I cannot" lacks righteous thoughts. When I clarified the truth to my family, I had the thought: "I'm so young, with so little experience; are my words powerful enough?" This thought caused me to fail in clarifying the truth to my family. They responded, "You are too young, and you don't have experience." I discovered my attachment. I must eliminate this attachment and never say "I cannot."

Also, I discovered that my righteous thoughts were not strong. Writing articles is a good way to eliminate attachments, but they must be from one's own true heart. Forcing other people to do things won't work, and using Dafa to cover my own attachments and imposing my own notions on others won't help, either. My approach to advising them was not right, nor was my attitude compassionate, and this is very important. I enlightened to the principle that a practitioner should show genuine compassion rather than try to move others by force.

"The paths of cultivation are varied
But none is outside the Great Law
When one is attached to nothing
The path underfoot is naturally smooth"

("Unimpeded" in Hong Yin)

I must remember Master's words and always look at myself no matter what kind of contradiction I encounter. This way, everything will be smooth.

May 25, 2007

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/5/27/155689.html

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