(Minghui.org) I first started hand-copying Zhuan Falun, the main book of Falun Gong, back in 2015. The first time I copied it, I missed a lot of words and sometimes whole sentences. Looking back, I can see that I was only going through the motions of copying the Fa, instead of paying attention to the seriousness of what I was doing.
The second time I copied it, I wrote the words more neatly and missed fewer words and sentences. The third time around, I recited each sentence while hand-copying it. Thus, Master kept showing me deeper meanings of the Fa.
Through this process I realized that it's vitally important to calm down, look inward, and remove our various desires and attachments while studying the Fa. Only in this way can we continually improve.
Master taught us:
“Cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one’s master.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
Getting Rid of Human Attachments
At one point it felt like I was being dragged down by a big bag of old “stuff” in my life, including old clothes and lingering financial issues, making it difficult for me to improve myself. Master pointed this out in a dream where I was sitting atop a big pile of clothes in the back of a truck filled with old quilts and bed covers.
As the truck moved steadily along, I suddenly realized that no one was sitting in the driver's seat! A few moments later, the truck crashed into a large bush.
I woke up realizing that I should stop holding onto this “stuff” of mine, as it was blocking my way home.
In another dream, I was in an open field when out of the blue, I heard Master calling my name. I looked over and saw Master and a group of sentient beings staring at me. I quickly grabbed the bag of stuff I was carrying and walked towards Master.
All of a sudden, a steep plateau appeared in front of me. No matter how hard I tried, I was unable to climb it. I asked the people on top of the plateau to help pull me up, but no one was willing to assist me.
I understood from this dream that it's up to me to correct myself, and that no one can do it for me. I realized that the sentient beings who were standing beside Master were the lives that I had once saved. I knew that I had to hurry up and cultivate myself, since I was one level below them!
I thought, “If I can't correct myself, what will happen to all those sentient beings that I had managed to save with Master's help? I absolutely must deal with this 'bag of old stuff,' right away!”.
Shortly after, my eldest daughter and I went through all the quilts, bed covers, as well as the new and old clothes that I had been collecting throughout the years. In the end, several truckloads of clothes were either donated to charity or given to families in need.
Now, my home looks more spacious, clean, and neat. I also got rid of many attachments in the process, and my heart feels lighter, too.
Removing Character Flaws
I used to feel tired after doing the sitting meditation and sending righteous thoughts. Thus, I always took a nap afterward. This habit or character flaw not only cut into my Fa-study time, but also blocked me from improving myself. As a result, I stopped taking cultivation seriously; no longer felt a sense of urgency, or the need to hold myself to a high standard.
However, as cultivators, we need to improve ourselves as quickly as possible, and keep up with the Fa-rectification in order to follow Master home. If we cultivate in a leisurely manner, seeking comfort and avoiding hardships, we'll never be able to meet Master's requirements.
Master said:
“If you can’t manage to conduct yourselves according to Dafa when you do things, can’t manage to think things over with righteous thoughts, or are not on the Fa in dealing with problems, then you are an ordinary person. There isn’t any difference, then. ” (“What is a Dafa Disciple,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. XI )
Calming the Mind
Master told us:
“Qigong practice requires one to value de. In doing the exercises, if you do not think about good things, at least you should not think about bad things. It is best if you do not think about anything.”(Lecture Five, Zhuan Falun)
Looking inward, I realized that my inability to quiet my mind was due to the many attachments that I had yet to discard.
Instead of being alarmed at my complacency and lack of urgency in my cultivation, I relaxed my main consciousness to the point that outside entities began to interfere with me.
I either coughed, wheezed, or spit while studying the Fa, doing the exercises, or sending righteous thoughts, making it difficult for me to calm down. This cultivation state lasted for years, making it hard for me to elevate myself.
Master taught us:
“The Fa can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts.” (Essentials for Further Advancement II)
One night, I had a dream in which Master gave me a hint. In the dream, I quickly rode up a mountain trail with my 14-year-old grandson sitting on the back of my motorcycle. Suddenly, the trail ended. When I looked down, I saw a road far below. I began to fret, “Now, how are we going to get down from this tall mountain?” I then woke up.
I immediately realized that I should introduce Falun Gong to both my grandson and his sister. I also enlightened to the fact that reciting the Fa while copying it had enabled me to understand the Fa at a deeper level and quickly improve.
I then began to change my viewpoint from looking outward to looking inward, while cultivating myself. When I saw someone behaving poorly, I first checked my own behavior, to see how I was doing.
Since I began earnestly improving myself, other people around me seemed to be changing as well. For example, the conflicts that I used to have with my younger brother, sister-in-law, and wife have all been resolved, and my cultivation environment is a lot calmer, too.
I noticed that my main consciousness was getting progressively stronger and more focused while studying the Fa, doing the exercises, and sending righteous thoughts. I was also able to quickly eliminate all forms of interference that came my way. Now, I hardly have any random thoughts crowding my mind.
It's been 22 years since I first began practicing Falun Gong, but only after I gradually removed my various human concepts, could I truly improve myself.
I will continue to strive forward and guard my thoughts. I know that I need to reach the standard required for a cultivator before I can ascend.
Master cherishes each one of us, and so do all the gods who are helping Master in the Fa-rectification period. We really must learn to cherish ourselves, as our responsibilities are simply enormous. The more I think about it, the more I feel this sense of responsibility in my life.
If we boldly and vigorously forge ahead to meet the standard set by Master, we'll be able to quickly improve ourselves. Diligently doing the three things well and keeping up with the Fa-rectification process is absolutely essential.
Only when we reach a high standard, will we be able to return to our real homes! Thus, we must work very hard on our minds. On the path of cultivation, there is absolutely no room for complacency!
Category: Improving Oneself
