(Clearwisdom.net) At present all Dafa practitioners are following Teacher and doing the three things well and diligently. However, there are some phenomena which are out of accord with the Fa-rectification progress that exist in some areas of Gansu Province. In order to dissolve these bad elements, we expose these phenomena and hope that fellow practitioners can improve as a whole and take the last leg of the journey with righteous thoughts.
In some back country areas, the cultivation state of many Dafa practitioners is not very good, and they have failed to follow the progress of Fa-Rectification. Fellow practitioners nearby are trying to help these practitioners to improve as a whole and do the three things well. Although fellow practitioners organized Fa study and sending forth righteous thoughts together, the practitioners in the back country seem to find any excuse to avoid it. They would say that they have no time, have to live discreetly, it is too obvious and will be unsafe, etc.
Practitioners went to share experiences with fellow practitioner A, who dwells in the back country. His cat was lying prone on his lap when it was time to send forth righteous thoughts. When this practitioner erected his palm, the cat tore at his arms. The fellow practitioner chased it away, and it landed on the lap of another practitioner. The entire fifteen minutes, it jumped from one practitioner to another, thus interrupting them from being in the tranquil state and disrupting the group from sending righteous thoughts.
The cultivation state of one fellow practitioner in a city is good in some aspects, but recently she has been raising a dog. Fellow practitioners talked to her about this several times, but she said that the dog is being raised by her daughter. This shouldn't be used as an excuse. We know that things happen because of practitioners' own mindsets, and we should all seriously think about what we are doing, rather than blame it on non-practitioners.
Teacher said:
"Then why were the humans in this period made in the image of Gods? It was because Dafa was to be widely spread in this particular period of history, and the beings of this time would have to be worthy of listening to this Dafa. It would be absolutely prohibited if a bunch of animals were to listen to the Dafa here. That's why Gods created today's humans in their own image." ("Teaching the Fa at the Great Lakes Fa Conference in North America")
"They say that because animals aren’t allowed to cultivate, and they aren’t allowed to listen to the Law, and even if they do cultivate they can’t achieve a True Fruition. If their gong reaches a high level they’ll be slain by Heaven." (Zhuan Falun)
We as Dafa practitioners are able to let go of life and death, so why do we have so much trouble with such a seemingly small attachment? We have to remember that any attachment is a barrier that prevents us from reaching Consummation.
Some practitioners are not strict about the issue of killing. They do not kill anything, but they have their family members, who do not cultivate, kill livestock for them. Some practitioners raise pigs and then sell them. Some breeds of pigs can be ready for slaughter within 3 months. The more they raise, the more pigs they will kill. If fellow practitioners mention this, they will ask in return, "How can I earn my living if I do not raise pigs?"
Teacher has taught us in Zhuan Falun that,
"I’m not going to get into the specifics of that. I’m teaching the Law to practitioners—it’s not like I’m just randomly telling ordinary people how to live their lives. When it comes to specific things, just evaluate them based on the Great Law, and do what you think is best. Ordinary people can do whatever they want, that’s ordinary people’s business. There’s no way everybody can truly cultivate. But practitioners should set their sights on high standards, so these are requirements set for practitioners."
It brings to my mind what I had read in one article on the Clearwisdom website about people having caught fish in a river and drying them in the sun in a southern area. One practitioner was tempted and did the same thing. She did not follow the standards of the Fa and eventually died from cancer. Teacher said,
"Cultivation isn’t kid’s stuff, and it’s not some ordinary people’s skill. It’s really serious. Whether you want to cultivate, and whether you can cultivate, this all depends on how you are going to improve your character." (Zhuan Falun)
My own level is limited, so please point out anything improper.