(Clearwisdom.net) Since obtaining the Fa in 1996, I have always felt that I am deeply indebted to Master. I believe that the issue of respecting Master and the Fa is of the highest importance. Therefore, I have tried my best in my daily life to exhibit my most profound and purest respect to Master: I would set up a Buddha stand for respecting Master wherever I am, start a Fa-study group wherever I go, and safeguard the Fa wherever I happen to be.
Ever since July 20, 1999, when the Jiang regime started persecuting Dafa, I have always attended group Fa-study. After reading the experience sharing articles on the Minghui/Clearwisdom website, I felt that I was not good enough to share my experiences. However, in group studies, my fellow practitioners often encouraged me to share my experiences and thoughts in writing. The following are my preliminary thoughts on why I respect Master and the Fa.
1. There is no reason not to respect Master
What Master has taught us is Dafa, the origin of all lives and matter in the universe. In Lecture at the Conference in Switzerland, Master said,
"Lives have become more and more impure throughout endless historical ages, and everything is deviating. If it continues like this for a long time, even the most fundamental base of Zhen-Shan-Ren will deviate. This is incredibly horrible. Nonetheless, I cherish the lives in the cosmos. I wish to preserve the original lives as much as possible and avert the process of elimination. This wish came forth, and so I came."
The truth in the Fa helped me understand the origin of my life. I must not forget what I owe to Master!
2. There is no reason not to respect Master and the Fa
Our greatest Master created the greatest Fa. It is the greatest Fa that is guiding us in our cultivation. It is the Fa that is remaking us, the lives that were contaminated and lost in the human world for so long. It is the greatest Fa that is going to return us to the original and the most beautiful state, or to an even better state. In Lecture at the Conference in Switzerland, Master said,
"Since I've come here, I come in a manner such that I'm bringing with me everything that is most original, most wonderful, and of the beginning of time--which is more perfect. You know that the Falun rotates. The Falun you see is just a superficial form of the Falun. It also has a Fa side that you can't see. It's continually rotating and has an automatic repair mechanism, returning everything to its most original and optimum state."
The Fa principles helped me understand where lives are heading.
3. Without respecting Master and the Fa, one cannot even plant the seeds to cultivate
"But people have heard sages say: 'Worshipping Buddha can plant causal seeds for the opportunity to practice cultivation; cultivators who chant incantations can receive protection from higher beings; observing precepts can enable one to reach a cultivator's standard.'" ("The Teachings in Buddhism are the Weakest and Tiniest Portion of the Buddha Fa" from Essentials for Further Advancement)
What Master said touched me deeply. I had a much better understanding about cultivation, and I realized that whatever we do, we do it for ourselves.
4. We will regret it forever if we do not respect Master and the Fa, and we will feel uneasy facing the honor Master gives to us
In Lecture at the Conference in Switzerland, Master said,
"But there is one thing you should pay attention to: Some people (of course, they are all new students) have a brash attitude when they ask questions, not showing due respect for their master. Of course, it's not so much that I'm demanding respect for a teacher by upholding old-fashioned formalities, but I am your master after all and will save you to a realm that high. What I'm giving you is something that you will never be able to repay in the eternity of your lives."
"As for you, once you reach Consummation you will know. At that point, language won't be enough to describe the greatness of your master!"
Master's teaching has engraved in my heart, word by word, sentence by sentence. How could I not show respect to my Master, only to regret it all later?
5. We do not have any reason or excuse not to express our gratitude to Master
To respect Master and the Fa is a part of our cultivation, and we should do it unconditionally. In Lecture at the Conference in Switzerland, Master said, "I've given my utmost concern not just to you, but to all lives. I have almost depleted everything of mine for all lives." Tears were rolling down when I read this.
"Worrying about all things in the human world,
laboring the heart over the hardships in heaven.
Having something to say, telling it to whom?
It's more frigid in high places."
("High Places are Extremely Cold" from Hong Yin)
My heart was so deeply touched that I could find no words to express my gratitude to Master. After years of cultivation and repeated omissions, I ask myself: How much comfort have I brought to Master? This is an issue that every Dafa disciple in the Fa-rectification period should think about deeply. Master taught us the Fa again and again, awakening our conscience and entrusting us with responsibilities. Time and time again Master acknowledged our progress and encouraged us to go forward, inspiring us to advance diligently. Let us do our best, coordinate well in Fa-validation, understand the Fa better as a whole body, accomplish our great promises we made in pre-history, and deliver the good news to our Master as early as possible. Master will be happy to see us doing well in the course of Fa-rectification cultivation.
Please kindly point out if there is anything inappropriate. Due to limited space, I'm not able to express many of the understandings I feel in my heart.