 Greeting a new day by doing morning exercise |
(Clearwisdom.net) Today is Sunday. A cool wind gently blew in the morning. We cherish this time because today is the day for our local area (Taoyuan, Taiwan) to do group practice, send forth righteous thoughts, study the Fa and share experiences (the fourth Sunday morning every month). Therefore, there are more practitioners than usual.
After doing the exercises, we studied the Fa together. We read aloud the book with clear and bright voices. People passing by stopped to observe us. After studying the Fa, we shared cultivation experiences from our daily lives. One practitioner shared her process of purifying herself through studying the Fa and being diligent in cultivation. She also talked about how cultivators should "spontaneously" look within. She noticed that when she intensifies her looking inward herself, she does not have negative thoughts about anyone. When striving forward diligently, she abandons many bad thoughts and feeling of "baggage" on her body become smaller. She lives an easy and carefree life.
 Sending forth righteous thoughts |
 Reading and studying the Fa |
Another practitioner talked about how some fellow practitioners told her that her words were not compassionate enough recently. She looked within and found that through four years of practice, she has changed from speaking softly to speaking loudly, and she would unconsciously raise her voice when she speaks. Actually, when she exchanged opinions with fellow practitioners, what she meant was to show concern for the other, but she did not consider her tone, which may cause the fellow practitioner’s misunderstanding. So she said while smiling that she will pay attention to this issue now.
Some practitioners shared that during the process of cultivation, we should let go of our human sides, but strengthen our divine sides, and hold ourselves to the standard of divine beings. Then there would be no unstable states in our studying the Fa, sending forth righteous thoughts, clarifying the facts or associating with people in our daily lives. One practitioner shared one story of his "looking within" in his daily life. His daughter repeatedly asked him to drive her to a place and then fetch her. He was unwilling to do so at the beginning but later he was happy to do so. In the process, he realized that a cultivator should let go of the attachment of "considering oneself always right," so as to treat non-practitioners with a compassionate heart.
Some practitioners thought that the issue of "Blue-Green" (Taiwan’s parties) is not a problem, but an issue of cultivators’ xinxing. Through the manifestation of the attachment to the Blue-Green issues, we should constantly look within, self-examine our human thinking, and our xinxing will constantly elevate.
In addition, some practitioners also shared that during the five minute break after finishing sitting mediation and before sending forth righteous thoughts, instead of chatting and talking about projects, the practitioners at the practice site started spending the five minutes reciting Hong Yin. They now feel purer when sending forth righteous thoughts afterwards. Practitioners from another practice site spend the five minute break in a different way. They continue with their sitting meditation after the music of the mediation stops, until the time for sending forth righteous thoughts.
Though there are sounds of equipment from ongoing construction in the park, they do not at all disturb our inner peace and tranquility. The preciousness of cultivation lies in the process of letting go of attachments after improving xinxing. All practitioners cherish this moment of getting together, opening our minds to exchange our understanding and opinions, and reminding and encouraging each other to walk every step well on the path of cultivation.
