(Clearwisdom.net) I am a new practitioner from Taiwan, and have been practicing Falun Dafa for over two years. I had a dream several days ago, which I would like to share with fellow practitioners.
I recently began media development work, and I enjoy it very much although it is very laborious. Several days ago, I returned to the dormitory after work, washed up and went straight to bed. I don't sleep very deeply and dream often; that night was no exception. I dreamed a lot in the beginning, but didn't remember anything when I woke up, except for one vivid dream.
In the dream, I arrived at a place that looked like a surreal mountain valley – it was vast, and there was a large concert-size performance going on, with a big stage in front. I flew in the sky above and looked downwards; I saw that the area was packed with people from the stage and extending out; the audience was seated. I then heard an announcement from the speakers: “The next program is by Falun Dafa...” (I couldn't remember exactly what they said after that). The moment this announcement was made, the entire audience stood up and applauded, just like the standing ovation at a Shen Yun Performing Arts' curtain call, but it wasn't just the people in the performance hall – there were people throughout the mountain and valley – it was magnificent. Then, I saw many young practitioners in yellow clothes running down from the stage to interact with the audience. Some gave high-fives, while others hugged people in the audience. Finally, everyone shouted together, “Falun Dafa is good! Falun Dafa is good!” over and over. The chanting started from the front of the stage, then swelled in a wave out to everyone else – the sound was really deafening, I could still hear it when I woke up, and felt my whole body vibrating with those words when I watched it from the sky in my dream; I was moved to tears.
I didn't know what the dream meant at first, but I thought about it later, and knew that Teacher was encouraging me. Then, I thought about Teacher's Fa:
“The Fa-rectification moves through the world, the grand manifestation of Gods and Buddhas unfolds, and all of the chaotic world’s unrighted wrongs and karmic relationships are settled with benevolent solutions. The ones who do evil against Dafa go down into the gate of no-life. As for all the others, people’s hearts return to righteousness and they cherish virtue and do good, all the myriad things are renewed, and every single sentient being reveres Dafa’s saving grace. All of the heavens and the earth celebrate together, congratulate each other, and exalt together. Dafa’s most glorious period in the human world begins at this moment.” (“Foretelling the Fa’s Rectification of the Human World” from Essentials for Further Advancement II)
Extending the meaning of this dream into daily practice, I think that Teacher recently published the article, “What is a Dafa Disciple” and pointed out practitioners' laxness in practice. For me, I really needed to address this with myself strictly, study the Falun Dafa teachings well, and look inwards on everything, especially since I just joined the media project. I'm faced with many conflicts in the project, and this represents a huge difference compared to my previous practice environment of student life. Honestly, I felt too comfortable before, although I worked hard on xinxing tests, diligently comparing myself to Teacher's Fa and putting the Fa into practice. I thought that I'd made speedy improvement and was moving forward, although sometimes I avoided confrontations, not wanting to face hardships; but I recalled Teacher's Fa:
“When cultivators do Dafa work, they don't seek ordinary blessings or a good life; the thing that is most important (to them) is raising their level.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York”)
I've seen many practitioners in the media project experiencing many conflicts – some are even very intense. I was really frightened in the beginning, thinking that there were complex relationships in the media team. I thought about what Teacher said:
“When you are working together and experience friction, it is because of human attachments. That is part of one’s cultivation state and process, and absolutely not because someone is truly no good. A person’s good side can’t be seen anymore, as it has been separated. What you see will always be the side that has not been cultivated yet. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a compassionate heart, or should look at people in rigid ways. I’ve said again and again that you cannot see a cultivator’s good side. That side is simply terrific, and has met the standard. And what does it mean to “meet the standard”? It is the standard of a god. Whereas the part of him that hasn’t been successfully cultivated yet, that part is going to seem worse as it works its way up and gets closer to the surface. But, maybe that person has cultivated very well. I hope that you all cherish yourselves, cherish others, and cherish this environment that you have. Cherishing the path that you travel is cherishing yourselves.” (“What is a Dafa Disciple” from Fa Teaching Given at the 2011 New York Fa Conference)
Therefore, I shouldn't look at people in a fixed way, regardless of how fellow practitioners act. Although a conflict may not be directed at me, if I've observed it I should look inward, instead of staring at others. When fellow practitioners improve, everyone treats each other well; although it seems comfortable for me, I realize that only by working through our conflicts can we raise our levels. There is less pressure when I think this way, and I feel that my capacity is slowly expanding, and that I won't worry so much about things like I did in the beginning.
However, I still want to remind fellow practitioners: I believe that we all know that time is urgent, and we can be more effective in saving people if we cooperate well. I remember a practitioner with the celestial eye open, who mentioned in a article that people we meet in this life indeed have very deep predestined relationships with us, even those just walking by. We are in the human world learning Dafa, so let's act like practitioners today, and validate Dafa within our projects – these are indeed great predestined relationships. I do not know what ordeals and hardships we've encountered in our entire life history, but we are able to validate the Fa together today. Once the Fa-rectification period ends, Dafa practitioners will all return to their true homes; it will then be difficult to see each other again, so why don't we cherish these relationships and be more considerate of others? We can treat the world's people with a Dafa practitioner's “compassion”, so why can't we do the same for fellow practitioners? When we're experiencing conflicts, think about Dafa, and you'll probably get over any emotions.
That's all my sharing; my level is limited; please correct anything inappropriate, thank you.
Category: Improving Oneself
