Fellow Practitioners Are Our Mirrors

(Minghui.org) Master has cautioned us repeatedly to look within in our cultivation. As Falun Dafa practitioners, we all know the importance of looking within and getting rid of our attachments. However, it is not always easy to do so.

A few recent incidents made me see that my fellow practitioners are a mirror that reflects my own attachments. I came to the enlightenment that looking within requires us to be mindful of our every thought and every action and to constantly rectify ourselves with the Fa.

One local practitioner complained that it was hard to communicate with me, as if there was a wall blocking us. I wondered why she felt that way. After some self-reflection, I realized that I feared criticism from her, a person who I considered acid-tongued and overbearing.

I then recalled what Master said in “Cautionary Advice” (Falun Dafa Essentials For Further Advancement,”

“If you do not change the human logic that you, as an ordinary human, have formed deep in your bones over thousands of years, you will be unable to break away from this superficial human shell and reach Consummation.”

I saw that I had a heart to protect myself and began to ponder whether I looked just like the above practitioner. Was I also too talkative during our group Fa-study sessions? Did I also try to force my opinions on others?

It dawned on me that the shortcomings I saw in the practitioner were exactly the attachments that I still harbored. She was like a mirror reflecting how I looked in others’ eyes. I realized that my selfishness was the root cause of my other attachments, including jealousy, competitive mentality, showoff mentality, looking down on others, and fear of being criticized.

I knew that I must change the human logic that I had formed deep in my bones and rectify myself with the Fa.

Not long afterwards, another practitioner in our area fell ill and became bedridden. We went to send forth righteous thoughts for him and shared our understanding of his sickness karma. His wife, also a practitioner, suddenly went into a rage when she felt we were blaming her for her husband’s condition. She complained that Master wasn’t taking care of her and her husband even though they both had been practicing Falun Dafa for many years.

I was shocked at her words, but realized at the same time there must be some attachments for me to remove. Master said in “Fa Teaching at the New York Fa Conference on the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of Dafa’s Introduction to the Public”:

“From beginning to end, the old forces would never allow a peaceful cultivation environment for Dafa disciples. When they see that Dafa disciples in these regions harbor some kind of attachment, they would stir something up and show it to everyone. This is to have you cultivate, so look at yourself and see what thoughts crop up in you. Are you thinking righteous thoughts, or thinking with human attachments? This is the way they’ve done it all along.”

The wife-practitioner’s reaction reminded me to dig deep in my heart. Did I always treat sickness karma with righteous thoughts or human attachments? Did I have firm faith in Master when plagued with sickness karma?

I recalled what happened to me two years ago, when my right eye suddenly became blurry, as if something was covering it. I didn’t pay much attention to it, until the condition kept deteriorating. I tried hard to identify and remove my attachments, but my eye didn’t improve much.

The incident at the above couple’s home helped me see that I lacked righteous thoughts in dealing with my own sickness karma. Once I realized this, a poem written by Master appeared twice on my phone. I remembered what Master taught us in “Teaching the Fa in the City of Los Angeles”:

“What's important for cultivators is righteous thoughts. When you have strong righteous thoughts, you are able to withstand anything and do anything. That's because you are a cultivator: someone who is on a divine path and who is not controlled by the factors of ordinary people or low-level principles.”

I knew that Master was reminding me to treat everything with righteous thoughts. It is easy to go down the slippery slope while struggling to get out of long-term tribulations. As Dafa disciples, we must not waver in our faith in Master and the Fa. As long as we follow Master’s teachings, there is no test we cannot pass.

A fourth practitioner never fails to do the three things well. He recently reminded us again to sit upright during Fa-study and to keep up with sending forth righteous thoughts. I felt ashamed that I sometimes slacked off while reading Dafa books and forgot to send forth righteous thoughts after doing morning exercises.

This practitioner again is like a mirror that reflected my shortcomings. When I looked within, I found that I failed to do the three things well and that I still had lots of attachments, such as jealousy and tendency to go extremes when doing things.

Master said in “Fa Teaching at the New York Fa Conference on the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of Dafa’s Introduction to the Public”:

In cultivation, there is a saying, “Cultivate as you did in the beginning, and you are sure to succeed.” Isn’t that right? (All disciples applaud enthusiastically) How did you feel when you first obtained the Fa and began cultivating? When you learned what the Fa is, wow, you simply felt so excited that you couldn’t contain yourself, and you steeled yourself to cultivate well! If you could maintain all along the heart you had in the beginning through to the end of your cultivation, even Heaven and Earth would not allow you to fail.

I will do what Master requires of us to cultivate as I did in the beginning. I also thank my fellow practitioners for enabling me to look within to identify my own attachments.