(Minghui.org) When I first started practicing Falun Dafa some 20 years ago, I was quite naive about cultivation practice. I just believed that Falun Dafa was good, so I wanted to learn it and practice it. I also wasn’t clear about the Fa principles.
Master said:
“…cultivating as if you were just starting…” (“Fa Teaching at the 2009 Greater New York International Fa Conference” from Teaching the Fa at the Conference IX)
I kept pondering what “cultivating as if you were just starting” truly meant.
I recently made up my mind to cultivate well and spent more time studying the Fa and doing the exercises. It got to the point where the more I studied the Fa the more I wanted to study it, and the more I did the exercises the more I wanted to do them.
I have now found the same joy as when I first started practicing. I take hold of every opportunity to study the Fa and do the exercises. I talk to people about Dafa with a sense of responsibility and participate in Dafa projects and activities, even if it means skipping meals. I am full of energy and joy all day.
When I re-discovered my state of “cultivating as if you were just starting,” I experienced tremendous changes both physically and spiritually. I was able to study at least three lectures every day. I started getting up at 3:00 a.m. every morning, and never felt that I hadn't had enough sleep.
Master said:
“Have you ever thought of the fact that practicing cultivation is the best form of rest? You can obtain the kind of rest that can’t be obtained through sleeping.” (Lecture at the First Conference in North America)
Now that my main consciousness is in charge, I can truly concentrate and be in a state of tranquility while doing the exercises. I can feel the flow of energy around my body and can feel my karma being eliminated piece by piece. It is a wonderful feeling that I’ve never experienced before.
Master encourages me, and allowed me to see a scene in another dimension. I saw a vast plain with trees covering the mountain tops. The top branches of some of the trees were full of pink flowers, and there were buds growing on many other branches. This was the first time that I’ve ever seen such scenes. I know that Master was telling me that there are plenty more areas that I still need to cultivate well in.
Master said:
“Pause for a moment of self-reflection,and increase your righteous thoughtsThoroughly analyze your shortcomings,and progress with renewed diligence”(“Rational and Awake,” from Hong Yin Vol. II)
Many Dafa practitioners are doing so well in their efforts to save people, so I made up my mind to catch up and do the same.
I used to get up at 3:00 a.m. but I wanted to prolong my time for doing the sitting meditation, so I decided to get up 15 minutes earlier. When I finish my exercises I send forth righteous thoughts. I then ask Master to reinforce me and open up my wisdom so that I can help save more people.
Master has seen my wish in my heart and has made arrangements for people with predestined relationships to appear in front of me. As soon as I finish talking about Dafa and the persecution to one person, another is waiting just a short distance away.
I noticed that many parents drop their children off at school, so I decided to talk to them about Dafa, and found them very receptive.
I have realized that as long as our hearts are in the right place, Master will take care of everything. We just need to put in the effort.
During the first days when I began advancing diligently in my cultivation, the old forces in other dimensions started to interfere.
When I lay down to sleep, evil spirits and rotten ghosts would show up and try to fight me. I sought Master’s help and recited the verses for sending forth righteous thoughts, but they were not scared off.
I was feeling quite distressed upon waking up. I looked inward and realized that I had the attachment to combativeness, so I worked on eliminating it.
I believed that I had made steady progress in my cultivation, yet the interference kept coming...
I know that nothing happens by chance, and believed that it must be Master’s plan to let me break through the old forces’ arrangement on my own, to have me enlighten by myself and earn my own mighty virtue.
So I kept searching inward, thinking that it might be that studying the Fa so fast was a show of disrespect toward Master and the Fa... But even though I have the tendency to read fast, my thoughts have always remained focused.
Was it because I had inadvertently developed an attachment to zealotry? Or perhaps I hadn’t paid enough attention to sending forth righteous thoughts.
I increased the number of times I sent forth righteous thoughts to almost every hour, if time permitted.
The last time the old forces interfered with me my head was in excruciating pain. I held on to the interference and sent forth a strong righteous thought. I told it sternly, “You dare to interfere with a Dafa practitioner who is here to assist Master in saving sentient beings. I have Master’s protection. You will be destroyed immediately.”
I used the mighty divine powers that Master has bestowed on practitioners to destroy the old force elements. I held the evil firm in my grip and sent forth righteous thoughts until it was totally annihilated.
Master said:
“Layers upon layers of particles are layers upon layers of heavens, and the smaller the particle the more powerful it is. Those studying physics say that the tinier and more microscopic the particle is, the stronger its radiation, with more power and more energy.” (“Fa teaching at the 2016 New York Fa Conference”)
I remained in tranquility and entered into a state of deep stillness all the way to the microscopic level, until layers and layers of old force elements were destroyed so that nothing could interfere with me any longer.
I said solemnly to all the lives in my dimensional field, “You must all assimilate to Dafa. If I owe you debts from before you will receive blessings and the most incomparable rewards when I consummate, but only if you don’t interfere with my cultivation practice. Master will see to it.”
I bought some cakes from a shop one time and praised the owner for his fine products. He replied, ‘Thanks, but I mustn’t feel proud.”
“Yes. We must keep on making good efforts.” I said. We then both laughed.
I realized that our exchange was not accidental. Master is always using people around me to remind me not to succumb to any mentality of zealotry or showing off, as this could bring harm to others and myself.
I can feel that Master is constantly by my side. The only thing I can do to show my appreciation is to continue to improve and work on cultivating away all my attachments to save more people.
Thank you, Master!