(Clearwisdom.net)
I would like to share my experiences of encountering demons of lust in order to expose these demons and warn fellow practitioners who may have similar problems.
A while ago I looked at pornographic photos and watched pornographic movies, which I understand a true cultivator should not do. Afterwards, I saw a big pale face with protruding red eyes as soon as I closed my eyes to go to sleep. The face was horrifying. It stared at me with no other facial expression. I realized this was the demon of lust in other dimensions.
I felt very frustrated, yet I would have a bad thought whenever I made a mistake, which was that I was wrong anyway, so it was not worth it to correct the mistake. As a result, I did not send forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the demon of lust. In addition, I stopped doing Dafa work and reading Dafa books. I was afraid the Gods, Buddhas and Daos in the books would laugh at me, and I was afraid to see Master's disappointed face. I felt that I was not worthy to be a Dafa practitioner any more.
Several days later Clearwisdom published a practitioners' experience sharing paper discussing the demon of lust. This practitioner had similar experiences to mine. I recognized this article as our benevolent Master telling me to get up after making mistakes. I realized self-regret will not change anything. I needed to melt myself into the Fa, and eliminate any interference with righteous thoughts and righteous actions.
I realized the reason I did not pass the test of lust was because I treated myself as an ordinary person, rather than a cultivator, when facing the test. A true cultivator's heart is unmovable. Master told us in the section of "Breeding Demons in Your Own Mind" in Zhuan Falun,
"It doesn't matter what so-called Buddha, what Dao, what Deity, or what demon it is--they can't sway me. When you're like that there's definitely a good chance you'll succeed."
No matter what kind of interference we encounter, our master consciousnesses must be strong, and we must clearly remember that we are cultivators at all times. If we can do this, those low level spirits, demons or devils will not be able to control us at all, because they are not worth us paying attention to them. We only follow our Master's guidance and cultivate on the paths that Master has arranged.
Master can help us when we have righteous thoughts. Therefore, we must have strong righteous thoughts and eliminate those low level evils spirits whenever they try to interfere with us. Master will help us to eliminate them also. However, the key is how we treat ourselves when encountering tests--as an ordinary person or as a true cultivator.
In Hong Yin (version B), "Mighty Virtue," Master said,
"Dafa does not leave the body,
The heart harbors Zhen-Shan-Ren;
In the world is a great Arhat,
Spirits and ghosts fear greatly."January 6, 1996
The evil will not be able to take advantage of any omissions if our righteous thoughts are strong, because they will be eliminated by our righteous thoughts as soon as they approach us.
In Essentials For Further Advancement, "Cultivators' Avoidances," Master said,
"Those who are attached to lust are no different from wicked people. While reciting the scriptures, they even cast furtive glances; they are far from the Dao and are wicked, everyday people."
The attachment to lust is wrong for a qualified Dafa practitioner. We must completely eliminate any evil spirits that try to stop us from cultivating.
The key to eliminating demons of lust, and any other interference in our cultivation is righteous thoughts. We should eliminate interference with righteous thoughts as soon as it arises.
May 24, 2005