Greetings, Master! Greetings fellow practitioners!
I obtained the Fa in October 1997 and two years later, I was chosen to be the coordinator in our local area. Looking back, I can remember every test and tribulation I had experienced. I would like to share some of my cultivation experiences with you today.
Cultivate every thought and notion we have
Last month, the Australian national Fahui coordinator called me and asked if I would like to write an experience sharing. I said, “It’s easy for me to share orally, but when it comes to writing, my brain goes blank and I can hardly write anything. Besides, I’m a bit scared of speaking on stage…” So, I declined her suggestion.
Later, I thought that what I said exposed an attachment I had. I didn’t want to write because I wanted to avoid trouble and I was being lazy. I also had an attachment to fear when I said I was scared of speaking on stage.
As long as we have attachments, we must let go of them. I realised that in cultivation, we should also bring our abilities into full play, abilities that were tied up by our own notions, so that we can demonstrate more wisdom as Dafa practitioners.
I thought I must put my understanding into action, so I started writing this cultivation experience sharing.
Always remember to look within amidst conflicts
Once, practitioner A on the Gold Coast put forward a suggestion to me, which I thought was impossible to act on. I rejected her suggestion impatiently and as a result, conflicts began to build up between us. I didn’t realise that I should cultivate myself at that time and the situation became worse. Later, a group of practitioners developed a strong feeling of antagonism towards me and the local association.
One day, a veteran practitioner said to me, “The state of practitioner A is having a very negative effect on us as one body, but she is our fellow practitioner, a Dafa disciple.” When I heard this, I thought: “Why is it that he can view practitioners so kindly, but I can’t? I even hold so many grievances against practitioner A.” I realised that the reason is I had failed to cultivate myself, and I was doing Dafa work with a human mentality, let alone looked within to see my own problem. The situation then was pretty serious and was having a very negative impact on our cultivation state as one body.
I began to look for my own problems. I realised that when I rejected practitioner A’s suggestion, I was very impatient and my words were harsh, and this was what that had led to the current situation. I also saw my attachment to my ego and my combative mentality, and with these attachments I have done things that hurt others.
One day, practitioner B, an association member, suggested that we invite practitioner A to our meeting so that we could share with her and see if we could sort out the problems. I didn’t think it was a good idea and asked if practitioner B could find a place on the Gold Coast or at her place so that I could talk with practitioner A. Practitioner B asked me what I wanted to say to practitioner B. I said, “First, I would like to apologise to her; secondly, I would like to discuss with her how we can solve the problem about our one body not being harmonious.” Practitioner B said, “It would be very good if you could do that.” So she agreed to help me arrange a meeting with practitioner A.
That evening, I drove to the Gold Coast as arranged. They had not arrived when I got there, so I started reading Master’s teaching. Master said in the Fa teaching at the 2009 Washington, DC International Fa Conference:
“…when problems arise, give no thought to their own cultivation state and focus solely on how bad this or that person is and who he or she might be. But in those instances, have you considered this: why does someone like that exist among Dafa disciples, and why would such a thing come about? Isn’t that person’s presence meant to target certain people, or certain human attachments? For sure. Nothing happens in cultivation without a reason. When incorrect states and bad human conduct surface among us, those things have come to target human attachments.”
Master’s words helped me see the light. Nothing is accidental. What had happened was not because Practitioner A had problems, but because of my attachment to combative mentality. I cleared out the remaining bit of resentment towards her in my heart and felt very confident about the test facing me.
Not long after, they came. I apologised to practitioner A for my unkindness and the hurtful feeling I caused her. I said I hoped she could forgive me.
Then I shared about my cultivation process by looking within on the issues we had. She listened and said afterwards, “You have been sharing about how you looked within since you walked in the room, but I’ve not yet done so. When I get back home tonight, I will certainly search inward…”
I was really surprised by what she said. Her attitude was so kind and I admired her from my heart for her demeanour as a Dafa disciple. At the same time, I felt very grateful for the opportunity she had given me to improve my xinxing. The gap and the feeling of antagonism between us were eliminated at once.
The next day, some practitioners told me that practitioner A told them I went to the Gold Coast to apologise to her. A few practitioners said that I was only pretending. Practitioner A insisted that I meant what I said and I was very sincere.
When I heard those negative remarks, I felt a bit upset at the beginning, but soon calmed down and thought: Practitioners hold such a view because I haven’t cultivated well. I must not blame others. I also realised that Master had arranged another test for me, which was actually quite hurtful, but I reminded myself that I must not be moved and just take it as a test. I did not take those remarks to heart.
Even though I passed this tribulation, I realised that there was still a strong feeling of antagonism among certain practitioners towards me and the local association, and such emotions had created a negative impact on practitioners as one body. I knew I must keep looking within and cultivating myself and do my best to harmonise the body.
Once, during our big group Fa study on a weekend, there were a lot of disagreements among practitioners and people were not happy. By 5:00pm, some association members had to leave, and this made some practitioners feel even more annoyed, saying that we association members were not listening to practitioners’ opinions. Practitioner C, another association member, and I said that we would stay and continue to share with practitioners.
During our sharing, we tried our best to explain things and to answer their questions, but it didn’t go down very well. I thought: “I must let go of my ego and carefully listen to practitioners’ views with a calm mind.” So I said to practitioner C: “Let’s keep calm and listen to their views…”
Practitioners still argued emotionally until almost 8:00pm. Then we did FZN.
When I calmed down for FZN, suddenly I understood what the problem was. After FZN, I took the opportunity of everyone being quiet and said sincerely: “Can I share a few words from my heart? We have been in disagreement for a long time and there are a lot of conflicts between us. All this time, I thought you had no trust in the practitioner who is responsible for getting venues for Shen Yun and that you wanted to go your own way and set up another team to secure the venue. I would not accept this and have developed many negative feelings towards you. But from our sharing today, I’ve realised that we all share the same goal and there are no conflicts between us. I have also seen your efforts and your hearts in trying to get the venue for Shen Yun. Due to my own strong attachment to a combative mentality, I have failed to see your kind hearts and your kind actions, and my failure in this has hurt your hearts and your good intention to save sentient beings through the Shen Yun project. Please accept my sincere apologies!”
These few words from my heart resolved the conflicts and all of a sudden, we became a harmonious body again. It was time for dinner and practitioners invited me and practitioner C to join them for dinner. The atmosphere remained joyful and peaceful throughout the dinner.
I truly felt the wonderful feeling as Master said: “When you take a step back in a conflict, you will find the seas and the skies boundless” (Zhuan Falun)
When our cultivation state improved as one body, two days later we got the venue we wanted, which seemed almost impossible earlier. It was truly like what Master said: “Cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one’s master”.
Summary
From these two incidents, I realised that cultivating ourselves well is always the most important in coordination work and only by doing well in our own cultivation can we grasp the opportunities Master has arranged for us, and only then can we do well in our role as a coordinator.
Because I had not done very well in Fa study and did not pay much attention to looking within, I failed to look inward in the above-mentioned incidents. This created a big gap between me and fellow practitioners and as a result, there was a feeling of confrontation between the two groups of practitioners, which in turn caused much harm and loss to our local cultivation environment.
After I realised my own problems, I said to myself: “From now on, I will always look within first when problems occur.” I’ve realised that as a Dafa particle, I’m a member of the whole body. Whether I’m doing well or not in cultivation is not only a personal thing, but it is connected with the whole body, with the sentient beings we need to save.
Do well in coordination work as a Dafa disciple。
I made up my mind to try my best to look inward first when encountering tests and tribulations. However I found that when I try to help practitioners who are in conflict with one another, I still cannot think that I need to cultivate myself first. Very often, I go along with everyday people’s ways of thinking and their style of work. Of course, the results are not good.
Recently, I came across a few incidents where there were conflicts among some practitioners. Because I was not directly involved, I forgot Master’s Fa principle that not only the two parties need to look within, the third party should also look inward.
After I understood this Fa principle and found my own attachments and let go of them, and when I tried to help practitioners resolve their conflicts and kindly reminded them to look within amidst conflicts, the result was quite good.
Master said in the “2018 Fa Teaching Given in Washington, D.C.” when answering a disciple’s question,
“Dafa disciples are people who cultivate themselves. So if you don’t look at things in terms of cultivation, don’t try to resolve things in light of the Fa’s teachings, and use human thinking instead, then the old forces that lurk nearby will make trouble for you. You might get into a fight with someone after only a few words, since you aren’t on the Fa.”
Master’s words have helped me gain an even clearer understanding and I’m determined to follow Master’s teaching to always cultivate myself first and remember to “look at things in terms of cultivation” and do a good job in coordination work.
I realise that I still have many attachments yet to let go of. I will make more efforts in the remaining Fa-rectification cultivation. Let us keep encouraging each other and be diligent together. Let’s cultivate ourselves well, harmonise as one body and save more sentient beings.
Please kindly point out anything improper.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, fellow practitioners!