(Clearwisdom.net) Group Fa study is a form of studying the Fa Teacher left for us. Many fellow practitioners have shared their insights on the many benefits of group Fa study in "Minghui Weekly." I will not waste time by repeating these points. With the encouragement of fellow practitioners, I joined group study again in 2006. Living in the unsafe environment of China, it was a breakthrough for me to attend group Fa study. Once again I started to enjoy the benefits of group study, where fellow practitioners exchange cultivation insights, improve cultivation in a group environment, and foster a good cultivation environment.
Recently I discovered some problems, which I think are important to bring to fellow practitioners' attention. Some practitioners do not study the Fa outside of group Fa study. They don't study the Fa when they are alone. Some practitioners with a daytime job go to group study every evening. I have also noticed that some practitioners skip, add, or mispronounce words when they study the Fa. Sometimes they even alter the original meanings. I am really anxious for them. This goes to show that these practitioners don't even understand the meanings of the words in the Falun Gong books.
I think that memorizing the Fa would be a great tool to overcome that limitation. Inspired by fellow practitioners, I started memorizing the Fa in 2007. Because I wasn't diligent, I stopped a few times. It took me nearly a year to memorize Zhuan Falun once, but I benefited immensely. When I was memorizing each and every word in Zhuan Falun, my understanding and memory of the Fa grew deeper. I often enlightened to new meanings on the Fa. Then, when I read the Fa in the group, I am able to read the accurate meaning of the words, instead of just reading on mechanically without knowing what I read.
It is my humble suggestion that every fellow practitioner, besides attending group study, should make time to memorize the Fa. Some fellow practitioners argue that they are unable to memorize the Fa because they are old and poorly educated. Actually, memorizing every word in Zhuan Falun will overcome the constraints of age and education. If you diligently memorize Zhuan Falun once, you won't have to struggle with words in Zhuan Falun when you study in the group. (I am not asking that everyone be able to recite the entire book from memory. I am talking about memorizing Zhuan Falun one sentence at a time.) It all comes down to whether you see yourself as an ordinary person or a divine being. You can memorize the Fa as long as you want to. For a period of time, I memorized the Fa until 7 a.m., after I finished the exercises. The effect was pretty good. It was even more effective for me to memorize the Fa in the early morning and at night. I seemed to remember the Fa better, too. I went to work as usual, and it didn't interfere with my schedule at all. It also helped with the quality of my group Fa study as well. I don't have to look hard at each and every word in Zhuan Falun to read it fluently. Fellow practitioners can understand me well when it is my turn to read. I felt great in my cultivation practice. I suggest every fellow practitioner try memorizing the Fa.
I suggest that every practitioner study "Take the Middle Way" in Essentials for Further Advancement. We should balance group and personal Fa study. I would especially recommend that every practitioner memorize the Fa, in addition to keeping up with group and personal Fa study. As the quality of our Fa study improves, so will the quality of the Three Things.
This is my understanding at my current cultivation stage. Please kindly point out anything inappropriate.
