Some Understanding of “Cultivation Is a Serious Matter”

(Minghui.org) It’s an extremely precious opportunity—once in a million years—for me to have become a Fa-rectification period Dafa disciple. For the past 20-plus years, I have followed Master Li (Falun Gong’s founder) closely and tried my best to do well the three things we are required to do. I have been involved in some local coordination work and improved a lot in xinxing cultivation.

I am now 73 years old. Since I entered my 70s, I have gained an even deeper understanding of the seriousness of cultivation and have cherished the cultivation opportunity even more. I know that my extended life is for cultivation, not for living an everyday person’s life. Cultivation is a very serious matter and to harbor any human attachment is dangerous because it will prevent us from returning to our true selves.

I would like to share some of my understandings of how to strengthen our main consciousness and treat cultivation seriously. Please kindly point out anything inappropriate.

We Must Reach the Fa Standards in Cultivation

In an article I recently read about cultivation, it said that after a lifetime of vigorous cultivation and enduring countless hardships, not to mention the constant rectification of oneself, each cultivator will still need to pass an extremely strict “test” before reaching consummation. If we fail to meet even one requirement, we will not be allowed to reach consummation and we will not be able to go beyond the Three Realms. The Fa has standards to control and balance all in the universe.

Master said,

“That is why the Fa is solemn. Every Dafa disciple must meet the standards of every realm that he is in. This is solemn. What needs to be eliminated during the cultivation process has to be eliminated. There is no two ways about it.” (Teachings at the Midwestern U.S. Conference)

I am also fully aware that if I fail to succeed in reaching consummation, it will not only be to my own regret but also a failure to fulfill my promise to the sentient beings in my dimensional world and profound sorrow for not living up to Master’s compassionate salvation. I will also have to bear the consequences of my failure. As Master said, “For all of them there will be consequences in keeping with the vows that they made.” (“Wake Up”)

Some fellow practitioners say that, even if they fail to reach consummation, they can still go to a paradise with karma. But I don’t know if they’ve thought about the requirements for that. It is not that we can go to a paradise with karma regardless if we have done well or not in cultivation. Besides, even if we can go to a higher realm with karma, we will not be allowed to truly go to the paradise for gods and Buddhas because we are not qualified and have not completely purified our bodies in cultivation. The divine beings may have to put a cover over us so that we don’t pollute the paradise of gods and Buddhas while cultivating in a place nearby.

It is said that what can be achieved in a few days of cultivation in the human world will take a very long time for those who are allowed to go to a higher realm with karma because they improve very slowly since there are no hardships there. They will not be allowed to enter the paradise of gods and Buddhas until they have finally reached the required standards.

In particular, we are cultivating during Master’s Fa-rectification period, and Master is delivering sentient beings into the new universe, whereas “going to a paradise with karma” was what happened in the old universe.

Master said,

“The cosmos is undergoing Fa-rectification and celestial bodies are being re-constructed. After Fa-rectification everything will be in the best state, so those who don’t meet the standard can’t become beings at levels higher than their standard; wherever their standard is, that’s where they are. In fact, let me tell all of you, in the past the Paradise of Ultimate Bliss did have that phenomenon [you described], but it’s hard to say whether that will be the case after Fa-rectification.” (Teachings at the Conference in Australia)

As Dafa cultivators, we must rectify ourselves well in the maze of this complicated environment of everyday people, and improve ourselves step by step to reach the realm we should be in so that we can fulfill our vows and reach consummation.

Guiding Our Cultivation with Fa Principles

In the past when I studied the Fa, I didn’t have much in-depth understanding, but after 20-odd years of cultivation, I now truly feel that Dafa is different from any other form of cultivation in history. This time, Master has personally come down to the human world to guide us to cultivate to high levels with the most fundamental Fa principles of the universe.

There are heavenly secrets in the Fa, and Master has taught us all that can help us improve in cultivation. Studying the Fa cannot only help us dispel confusion, get rid of attachments, enhance our enlightenment, and purify our bodies, but also give us wisdom and strengthen our concentration, our righteous thoughts, and our goals. The Fa has been guiding us and helping us discover our fundamental attachments, human thoughts, and notions.

Only by studying the Fa well, understanding the Fa principles, and assimilating to the Fa can we proactively commit our time and energy to cultivation, to looking within and doing well the three things, and to cultivating to consummation in the process.

I often remind myself that, if we fail to grasp this opportunity in which Master personally has offered us salvation, we will be forever in the cycle of birth, old age, sickness, and death of the human world and will have to reincarnate. There will never be another opportunity for us to cultivate. It is just such a serious matter.

I keep reminding myself that no matter how busy I am, I should never slack off in Fa study because the Fa offers us all the abilities Master has given us and can solve all the problems we come across in cultivation. Only by studying the Fa well and cultivating ourselves according to the Fa principles can we become Buddhas, Taos, and Gods at various levels. So studying the Fa well is extremely important.

Be More and More Diligent in Cultivation

In cultivation, we should first of all have firm faith in Master and Dafa, in addition to a determined aspiration to cultivate well. Such faith and aspiration will enable us to be persistent in cultivation and to keep forging ahead in the face of hardships and tribulations.

I heard some practitioners say recently that they didn’t want to do the exercises, that they found them very tiring, especially the second one. They regard doing the exercises as a difficult burden and often oversleep in the mornings and miss the time to do the exercises. As a result, they end up doing them less or only doing half an hour of the second exercise, the Falun Standing Stance. Some elderly practitioners cannot stand still for long due to pain in their legs, so they sit down to do it.

In fact, when we have physical discomforts, we should view them with righteous thoughts, knowing that our body is going through a process of transforming our karma and paying off our debts. It is a great opportunity for us to elevate in cultivation. We need to be diligent in our cultivation and temper our will and be as diligent as when we first obtained the Fa. We must be constant in our respect for Master and our faith in Dafa. Only then can we be strict with ourselves in cultivation.

I have missed sending forth righteous thoughts at 12:00 a.m. a few times as I found it hard to wake up. I felt very guilty afterward, thinking that I had let Master down and didn’t do the three things well. I made up my mind that I would not let it happen again. Every evening, before I go to bed I remind myself to wake up in time to send righteous thoughts. Indeed, I can now get up to send righteous thoughts at midnight with no problem.

Because I am determined to cultivate to consummation and return home with Master with no regrets, I must fully focus on cultivation and doing the three things well and be diligent at all times.

Nothing Is Trivial in Cultivation

Master said,

“...he is full of great aspirations while minding minor details.” (“Sage,” EssentialsforFurtherAdvancement)

Cultivation is solemn. We must not overlook anything we come across in cultivation, big or small. Otherwise, trivial things will build up and become big issues, and the old forces will take advantage of them to interfere with us. Some practitioners start to have health problems, some have family problems one after another, and others are under all sorts of pressure.

Tribulations occur when we have attachments. When we let go of all our attachments, the old forces will have no excuse to persecute us. Dafa cultivators must live up to the Fa standards, otherwise, we cannot be counted as cultivators, but only as everyday people.

Cherishing Our Cultivation Opportunity

I have been cultivating Falun Dafa for 26 years, and I understand deeply that cultivation is solemn and we must walk our paths righteously. I have also realized that money, status, and material wealth in the human world do not bring us any real benefits, and they cannot fundamentally free people from troubles and misery. Even billionaires cannot escape birth, old age, illness, and death. Wealth in the human world may disappear in the blink of an eye, whereas Dafa cultivation can completely relieve suffering and enable cultivators to break away from the Three Realms and reincarnation. How can we not take such a solemn and sacred matter seriously?! We must truly cherish our cultivation opportunity.

Our compassionate Master is earnestly waiting for us to improve, but the old forces are also keeping an eye on every Dafa disciple. So, we must pay attention to our thoughts and actions and follow Master’s guidance: “The Closer to the End, the More Diligent You Should Be.” We must study the Fa more and study the Fa well, completely cleanse ourselves through solid cultivation, and return to our true home with Master.

Editor’s note: This article only represents the author’s understanding in their current cultivation state meant for sharing among practitioners so that we can “Compare in studying, compare in cultivating.” (“Solid Cultivation,” Hong Yin)