(Clearwisdom.net) "Studying the Fa well" is the first priority of the three things Master has required of us. I study the Fa every day, but the key is to study the Fa well. Whenever I have odd thoughts in my mind during Fa-study, I send forth righteous thoughts right away to eliminate all factors that interfere with my Fa-study. During the past few years, I have been able to treat Fa-study as the top priority and study the Fa during the most peaceful time of the day. Although I can't always enlighten to greater understandings of the Fa, I remember what Master says in this regard,
"Each time you finish reading Zhuan Falun, you have made progress as long as you have gained some understanding. Even if you understood only one point after reading it, you have truly made progress."("Learning the 'Fa'" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
The more I study the Fa, the more deeply I understand how profound, grand, and sacred it truly is, the better I comprehend the huge responsibilities and the implications of the great mission of Fa rectification period Dafa disciples, and the more I feel the urgency of time and recognize that Master has given us so much and has such high expectations of us at the same time.
When fellow practitioners were imprisoned for clarifying the facts to people, other local practitioners and I came to understand, through Fa-study, that imprisoning Dafa practitioners was not a persecution of humans by humans, but rather a persecution arranged by the old forces against Dafa disciples. It was interference with Dafa and interference with the salvation of sentient beings. Our Master has denied it. Though our fellow practitioners had omissions, the old forces weren't qualified to test Dafa disciples who have the great mission to save sentient beings, so we had to rescue them. During the process, I didn't think about whether or not the practitioners could be rescued, I just persisted in doing the three things Master has required of us. Meanwhile I continued to share with other practitioners about this, clarified the facts to practitioners' family members, and exposed the evil. Eight months later, with the power of Master's benevolence, those practitioners walked free.
In 2002, one of my colleagues said, "There are so many people in China. When will everyone know the truth?" meaning that it would take a long time to let everyone know the truth. Master's words came to my mind right away,
"...everyone in the world was part of my family" ("Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference")
"...let's think of ways to save the world's people, and have more people know the truth" ("Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference")
"If they really correspond to gigantic cosmic bodies, then when you clarify the truth to one of them you're rescuing a gigantic cosmic body, a gigantic group of beings, and you are rescuing a Lord, or a King." (Touring North America to Teach the Fa)
I made up my mind then that no matter how long it took, I must definitely go out and clarify the truth to people, so that one day, through the effort of all practitioners in China and around the world, every Chinese person will know the truth.
Therefore, clarifying the facts has become part of my life. Although there have been hardships to endure and lessons to learn during the past few years, I have come through it. Once during the Chinese New Year holidays, my financial situation was quite bad. I used my last bit of money to buy some colored paper. With it, I made truth-clarifying greeting cards and handed them out to people. I didn't think about how to celebrate the New Year, and we still had some food left. Soon after, my relatives came and gave my child some New Year money. From that, I learned the Fa principle of "obtaining without pursuit." ("Learning the Fa" in Essentials for Further Advancement) Later I understood from Fa study that the old forces had made careful and detailed arrangements regarding Fa rectification, including every thought of Dafa disciples. As a Fa rectification period Dafa disciple, by doing what Master has told us to do, we are negating the old forces' arrangements and persecution. Since then, my financial situation has become better. As Master says, "It's hard for the time being, but it won't be hard for long." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York")
Since the publication of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, I have realized that Master has very high expectations of us. Master says,
"What lies before you is not merely personal cultivation or saving a few people. The entire human race is before you, and the Chinese people, in particular." "For instance, right now in saving sentient beings, it is necessary to resolve the issue of how people understand the CCP, so you have been working on things related to the Nine Commentaries." ("Teaching the Fa in the City of Chicago," 2005).
During the process of spreading the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, I started first with the people I knew well. I prepared what I was going to say to them, but the results were not good. I looked within and found a loophole, caused by my attachment to qing and my heart of pursuit, which the old forces took advantage of. The old forces and the evil party's factors reinforced these already bad thoughts.
"This is because in another dimension it will know whatever you want to do--as soon as you think about it" (Zhuan Falun, 2000 version, Chapter 7)
Later on, I was able to maintain a pure heart and the results were much better. Similar problems also manifested in my distribution of the Nine Commentaries. Before going out and distributing those books, I purposely planned where to distribute, how to distribute, what to do when I met with problems, etc. I couldn't stop worrying about it even during Fa-study, exercising and sending forth righteous thoughts. In the end, I didn't do well with any of the three things required of me. I was treating it as an everyday person's job, so the old forces again took advantage of this loophole. I strengthened my Fa-study and righteous thoughts, and I tried to eliminate these attachments. As Master says, "...what you do then, with a pure heart, will be the best and most sacred." ("Further Understanding" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
I had had a few years of experience and lessons in making truth-clarifying materials at home. To me, the key is not in the technique, because "Cultivation depends on one's own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one's master." (from Zhuan Falun, 2000 version, Chapter 1). The important thing is whether or not we can strictly follow Master's requirements as Fa rectification period Dafa disciples and do the three things well and take matters such as money and materials seriously.
"...cultivation is the most serious of matters." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York")
"When a person fails a test or can't let go of a strong human attachment, he might reverse himself or go to the opposite side." ("Dafa Can Never be Plagiarized" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
Recently, when my Fa-study slacked off, I had problems with my printer and I wasn't able to print any materials. I knew it was my own problem, so I began studying the Fa with a tranquil heart. A lot of Master's Fa principles were revealed to me. I realized that I should have enlightened to more Fa principles recently. Master says,
"Different levels have different Fa, and Fa assumes different guiding roles at different levels." (Zhuan Falun, 2000 version, Chapter 1).
The printing problem naturally disappeared.
I was quite attached to food before I began cultivation. As I gradually eliminated my attachment to food, I no longer cared much about what I ate. I have also learned to handle money wisely. I am often able to get good quality but inexpensive things when shopping, a bit like "...gain things naturally without pursuing them" ("Learning the 'Fa'" in Essentials for Further Advancement) I can often get a lot of vegetables for only one yuan, enough to last me for several days. The money I save can go towards making materials.
Making each piece of truth-clarifying material is a serious matter, as it carries the hope of saving sentient beings. For the past few years, whenever I made truth-clarifying materials at home, I always downloaded materials from the Minghui/Clearwisdom website and also incorporated local persecution news. I send righteous thoughts whenever I make, package or distribute materials, hoping that each piece of information will carry with it the mission to save sentient beings and carry out this Fa rectification task under Master's power. When I send righteous thoughts, I say in my mind, "Predestined people, kind-hearted people will see the materials. Evil persons and the police will not see them. Those who see them should choose a good future for themselves." Master's law body is always protecting me when I distribute materials. The side of me that has cultivated well also knows what to do. Once when I was hesitating on whether to distribute a piece of material or not, I unconsciously raised my head and saw a police car not far away, so I quickly left the area. Many similar situations took place. Master says, "When you conduct yourselves righteously Master can do anything for you." (Touring North America to Teach the Fa)
As I am able to log on to the Minghui/Clearwisdom website, I am up to date on the important information, so I can communicate and share with fellow practitioners about current persecution cases and other relevant news. In this way, we are able to form one body to send righteous thoughts and rescue our fellow practitioners. Speaking of sending forth righteous thoughts, I only participated in the four set times at first, but later, through Fa study, I realized that there are evil beings looking for loopholes all the time, that practitioners are imprisoned and being persecuted all the time, and that sentient beings are waiting to be saved all the time. I therefore increased the frequency to once every hour except for when I'm sleeping. Now that the mechanism is so established in me, no matter where I am or what I am doing, I send righteous thoughts at the top of each hour, around the clock. When I sometimes forget about it, the magpies sing to remind me. Once when I was crossing the street, a magpie sitting on a nearby power pole was singing. I took a quick look at my watch, and it was exactly five minutes to the hour. When it is time to send righteous thoughts while I'm doing material distribution, I stop doing so and focus my mind on sending righteous thoughts. Master says, "Each opportunity will not occur again." ("Digging out the Roots" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
I have not been that diligent lately. I don't put my good intentions into action in terms of advising people to withdraw from the CCP, and there is still a big gap between those diligent fellow practitioners and me. The key factor is that it is a matter of whether or not we believe in Master and in Dafa, and a matter of our determination and will. I think we should all follow Master closely in the final stage of Fa rectification. Master says,
"Rest momentarily for self-reflection, add righteous thoughts
Analyze shortcomings explicitly, advance again wholeheartedly" ("Be Rational, Awaken" in Hong Yin II, provisional translation subject to improvement).
"Don't entertain or get attached to any human thoughts, and just do what a Dafa disciple should do. Everything that's wonderful, that's the most magnificent, and that's the most glorious awaits you!" ("Fa-Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference")
Thus, we should be responsible to ourselves so that we are able to say to our benevolent Master and sentient beings, "I have done what I am supposed to do."
