(Minghui.org) I used to think that memorizing the Fa (teachings) was too difficult because it would take a lot of time, effort, and persistence. I memorized the Fa once but I started from Lecture Five because I was reading that lecture at the time. It took me a long time to finish memorizing the rest of Zhuan Falun. I didn’t cultivate diligently then, so my mind was not focused when I memorized. I didn’t gain many insights into the Fa principles and I didn’t look within according to the principles when I came across problems.
The other practitioners memorized the Fa for a few years, and they urged me to memorize the Fa again. From experience sharing articles, I learned how beneficial it is to memorize the Fa. I also didn’t realize that memorizing the Fa was part of our cultivation.
I was touched by an elderly practitioner’s sharing article. He did all the exercises every day, and if time permitted he did them again. His body experienced big changes. I realized that I probably did not do the exercises enough because my body didn’t change much.
It was a bit difficult for me to practice all five exercises every day. I decided to start by memorizing the Fa and cultivating my xinxing.
It requires a focused mind to memorize the Fa. When I began memorizing, I was able to memorize the first paragraph of the first lecture quickly. I had to read some sentences or paragraphs many times before I was able to remember them. When this happened I stopped and looked inward to see where I didn’t understand the Fa clearly.
Before I started to memorize the Fa every morning, I asked Master to strengthen me. At first it took me an hour to memorize three pages. I was later able to memorize five or six pages in an hour. When I couldn’t complete the goal I set, I examined myself to find out why. Was it because I was impatient or was I eager to complete my goal so my mind was not focused?
Master said, “cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while transformation of gong is done by one’s master”. (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
I realized that I only needed to have the wish to obtain the Fa and the persistence to memorize it, and Master does everything for us. I shouldn’t have the attachment of gaining something from memorizing the Fa. The process of memorizing the Fa was a process of cultivating my xinxing. I shouldn’t pursue how fast or how much I memorized the Fa. When my mind was really focused, I actually enjoyed memorizing the Fa.
One day I woke up at 3 a.m. and couldn’t go back to sleep. But I didn’t get up and do the exercises or memorize the Fa. I thought it was still dark and I would like to lie in bed. The next day I was full of energy and didn’t feel sleepy. Over the following two days, the pattern repeated. I realized Master had helped remove the substance of laziness. I used to sleep all the way through.
I rearranged my time on the third day. I set my alarm half an hour earlier and got up at 5:20 a.m. I practiced the exercises for half an hour and then memorized the Fa for one hour, until 7:00 a.m. Then I asked myself if I could get up a bit earlier so that I could do the sitting meditation. I set my alarm to 4:50 a.m. Looking back at that period of time, I realized Master must have seen my heart and strengthened me and helped remove the substance of laziness from me.
By memorizing the Fa, I was able to act according to Falun Dafa’s principles and look within when I encountered conflicts. I tried to eliminate my selfishness.
I visited my parents and didn’t return home until late in the afternoon. As soon as I walked in the door, my husband lost his temper. He said I didn’t tell him that I would be home late and he was not sure if he should prepare food. I realized he was helping me improve my xinxing and it was a good thing, that I shouldn’t get angry and I should thank him. I hadn’t think from his perspective; it was my fault. He came home and was tired. He was waiting for me to get home so we could eat together. I was calm and didn’t argue with him. I apologized sincerely, “I’m sorry I came home late. Going forward, I will come home a bit earlier and will let you know in advance if I’ll be late.”
My coworker May said I was assigned more work than the others. I thought about talking to my manager and asking him if he could assign me an easier job. I stood outside his office for a while but then left.
Another coworker soon confronted me because she saw me outside the manager’s office: “The work schedule hasn’t been announced yet. Someone went to see the manager and he wasn’t happy.” I told her it wasn’t me.
It was good that I didn’t go into the manager’s office. May’s intention was good. If the manager blamed her for telling me to see him, I would cause trouble for May. On the other hand, it’s not easy to be a manager. If no one wanted to do more work, how could the manager manage his employees? As a practitioner, I shouldn’t behave like an everyday person and want to live an easy life. If I got what I didn’t deserve, then wouldn’t I owe other people?
I knew it wasn’t accidental that this happened. Master arranged it to help me get rid of my attachments to seeking comfort and being afraid of hardships so my cultivation would improve. I told my husband that I passed a xinxing test. Thank you, Master, for always taking care of me.
There was an adjustment in our work hours this year and we had to start 10 minutes earlier. If we were late a certain number of times, we would be penalized.
I had the habit of waiting until the last minute and then rushing to work. I arrived late several times but I was never penalized. I felt I was lucky but I never thought I was selfish or that this was not in line with the Fa principles.
I didn’t know how to look within, but after I started memorizing the Fa, when I had issues, Master enlightened me on the Fa principles. I was able to cultivate myself according to Master’s Fa. Thank you, Master, for taking care of me.
I still have attachments of jealousy, competitiveness, resentment, seeking personal interest, lust, and desire. I will cultivate diligently to get rid of these attachments, assimilate to the Fa, and do as Master asks.