(Minghui.org) Thought karma was recently interfering with me a great deal. I work in an office, and at work and in public, I found myself often developing thoughts about the people I encountered regardless of whether they were acquaintances or strangers. The thoughts could be good or bad. My standard for judging them changed as my cultivation level elevated.

I analyzed this and found that I was a bit conceited and looked down on others before I started my cultivation in Dafa. I did not trust people, and always thought negatively of others. After I began to cultivate, I realized that this wasn't right.

Perhaps what happened recently reflected my cultivation status. My first thoughts were always negative or bad when I was faced with someone or something. It happened immediately like a spontaneous reaction. Following the bad thoughts were suspicion, jealousy, resentment, combativeness, revenge, lust, and contempt. I looked inward to eliminate my thought karma and the attachments behind them.

Bad thoughts would emerge unexpectedly on small matters. For example, I became angry when a car suddenly cut in front of me without signaling: “You idiot! Don't you know how to drive? What if I hit you? You think you own the road?” Then I thought, “I am a cultivator. I should not be jealous, resentful, or combative. Maybe he's in a rush. Yielding to him is not a big deal.” I felt good again when I changed my thinking.

Sometimes I saw a male and a female together showing affection. I would think that they might not be husband and wife, but rather, they might be having an affair. Then I would feel contempt, which then generated lust. I would sense right away that my thoughts were bad and then get rid of them with righteous thoughts.

I once felt that a colleague was looking at me in a strange way because he and I previously had conflicts. I suspected that he criticized me behind my back. So I also gave him dirty looks. Fortunately, I got rid of the bad thoughts right away when I realized they were bad.

I felt exhausted by being carried away so often by bad thoughts.

Teacher said:

“We dispel the evil side and use only the good side to safeguard the Fa. When others say something bad about us, we can let them know how good we are, and we can reason with them entirely using the good side.” (Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Singapore)

I enlightened that we need to cultivate away all the bad thoughts in our minds when we reach the final stage. We would have only good thoughts by then and we would reach consummation. I began to be strict with myself on each thought of mine. When a thought occurred, I first tried to distinguish if it was good or bad. If it agreed with the standard of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, it was good. Otherwise it was bad.

Teacher said:

“We believe that one thought can determine the outcome of things, for better or for worse.” (The Fourth Talk, Zhuan Falun)

Teacher also said:

“As I've said, everything that happens today in the ordinary society is the result of Dafa disciples' thoughts. Even though the old forces do exist, if you don't have those thoughts they can't do anything.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.”, Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. II)

I told myself right away when the bad thoughts occurred, “I want only good thoughts and not the bad thoughts. The bad thoughts are not mine. I don't want them.” I kept reciting it in my mind until the bad thoughts disappeared.

It was a bit difficult in the beginning. Sometimes I did not catch it when a thought appeared. It just slipped through. But by continuously being strict with myself, gradually I was able to catch it as soon as it emerged. I was able to tell whether it was good or bad, and eliminate the bad ones. What remained were only good thoughts. With the bad thoughts being eliminated continuously, I felt happy and relaxed both physically and mentally.

My relatives and friends around me also changed. More of them would say hello to me or smile at me. Even strangers would smile at me.

Teacher said:

“Ordinary people don’t know that all of this is encompassed by the expression “the appearance stems from the mind.” So, put another way, one’s own factors can in fact change one’s surroundings. “Cultivate yourself” and “search within” are words that I have said in a very straightforward and clear manner. (Laughing) But, there aren’t that many people who give these words due weight. What I was describing holds true for Dafa disciples when they do things.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the Epoch Times Meeting”, Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. X)

We recently got a new department manager. Prior to my cultivation in Dafa, I had a big conflict with this man. We initially worked together at the same level. Then after he was promoted, he was hard on me. I managed to get transferred away from him, but he became my manager again. I felt uneasy about it and wondered if he would be hard on me again. I thought that I needed to move away again. I was quite upset.

Then I thought, “I am a cultivator. My cultivation path is arranged by Teacher, who has arranged the best for me. Teacher has told us about the origin of people in the world today. I need to follow the standards of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. No matter who he is, he is one of Teacher's relatives. He has a predestined relationship with me. He needs to be saved.”

I decided, “I need to put down my resentment and truly be kind to him, no matter how he treats me.”

With my mindset adjusted, I was able to treat him with the benevolence and kindness that I cultivated from Dafa. I worked hard and tried my best to relieve his burdens. He felt my kindness and sincerity and also changed. He was supportive and caring towards me both at work and outside work. It felt like we were old friends, as if nothing negative had ever happened between us.

The first thing I do when I get to work is to send forth righteous thoughts for the whole company, to clear away the evil factors behind and dissolve the interference and persecution by the old forces. I want to have the true selves of the sentient beings around me to wake up and believe in Dafa and quit the Chinese Communist Party and its affiliates.