(Clearwisdom.net)
Improving Myself in Cooperating with Fellow Practitioners
In 2009, I formed a small truth-clarification team with practitioner A. We cooperated with each other very well and most people we'd talked to agreed to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations. Later on, practitioner A invited practitioner B to join our group. Practitioner B is very talkative, and on our way to distribute some materials, she was chatting the whole time. However, when we were discussing our understanding of the Fa, she would become silent. Practitioner A pointed out this problem to B many times, but B's attitude was quite indifferent. Due to this conflict, A deliberately ignored B when we went out to explain the facts about Falun Dafa, which severely interfered with our efforts. Although I knew there was something wrong, I didn't pay much attention until the same problem happened to me. Only then did I start to take this problem seriously.
One day, practitioner A and I had totally different understandings of a Fa principle. I thought that although we had different understanding of the Fa, it shouldn't affect our cooperation. But the next day, A started to talk with practitioner B and ignored me when we went out to clarify the truth. They kept talking the whole time and didn't even discuss the facts about Falun Dafa to a single person after they finished walking one street. At one point, I talked to a person who was selling steamed buns, and just when I was about to start to explain the facts about Falun Dafa, they came over and continued talking in front of him. His attention was diverted to whether they were going to buy his steamed buns. I was very angry and worried. They were not focusing on saving people, and on top of that, they interfered with my efforts as well. I decided that I wouldn't come out with them, but do things by myself.
The next day, I tried to call practitioner A to tell her that I wanted to go out by myself. I called her twice. The first time, a message said that her phone couldn't be connected and the second time, her cell phone was off. I realized that Master was giving me a hint not to disband our group.
I then started to look inward, and I found that I had a lot of complaints, a strong mentality of showing off, and I wasn't very tolerant with fellow practitioners. Master told us that when we are cooperating with fellow practitioners, we should quietly complete and harmonize what we think we are lacking. I went to the place where we planned to meet, and both women were waiting for me. That day, our cooperation improved a little bit, but they still kept talking with each other. I said to A that we shouldn't talk about ordinary people's things, but should talk about our cultivation experiences or send forth righteous thoughts while we were walking. However, even before I finished, practitioner A became angry immediately and said: “Then I won't say anything!” And it turned out that she really didn't say anything, even when we were clarifying the truth. I felt wronged and I thought I wouldn't point out her problem anymore. “How well she cultivates has nothing to do with me,” I thought. Unfortunately, I knew that my heart was moved.
After I got back home, I studied the Fa and looked inward. While I was looking inward, I kept thinking about her problems. She wasted so much time and didn't save a single person, not to mention that she forgot about cooperation. She also couldn’t stand for anyone to be critical of her. Just one word made her explode. After thinking about her problems for a long time, I finally remembered that I should look inward to find my own problems. Recalling what had happened, it seemed on the surface that A was unfriendly due to our different understandings of the Fa. But actually this notion exposed my attachment to always thinking that I was right. Isn't that attitude the same as her intolerance of others being critical of her, so isn't she a mirror image of me? It's only that my attachment was hidden more deeply than hers. Although I talked to practitioner A in a very gentle and soft way, it wasn't the result of my inner peace and calm. I was afraid of having a conflict with her. The reason I didn't want to cooperate with her was because she ignored me, which made me very upset. After I looked inward even deeper, I found my long-held mentality of always hoping others would pay attention to or value me. Since I wasn't good at communicating with people when I was a child, I was longing to be valued or taken care of by others. When A treated me very well, I felt very happy about that because it satisfied my desire. On the other hand, when she started to ignore me, my attachment was finally brought to the surface. After I corrected my heart and improved my xinxing, she also changed.
Improving Through Helping Fellow Practitioners
In the Fa study group I went to, there was an elderly practitioner with whom I often discussed my cultivation experiences. Influenced by her, I changed my attitude of not caring about others.
Recently, she suffered from severe physical tribulations. After I heard about her situation, I went to her small store to visit. After I arrived, I found that she was preparing to close the store and stop doing business. Seeing her in low spirits, I knew she needed help and understanding from fellow practitioners. In the past few years, she persuaded nearly all of her customers to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations. I thought to myself: She is such a nice practitioner but has suffered persecution by evil elements, I must help her. At this time, she asked me: “Do you think I should close the store or not?” She seemed to be lost and didn't know what to do. Then the feeling of treasuring her and my compassion for her arose. Afraid of saying anything to hurt her, I spoke to her very kindly: “You've done so many things that a Dafa disciple should do in this store. You helped to transfer Falun Dafa informational materials and also provided fellow practitioners with a nice place to communicate with one other. Moreover, you've saved so many people. However, when you come back home at night, you are exhausted. When you wanted to study the Fa, even before you could pick up the book, you fell asleep. Now you are qualified to have a retirement pension, and if that's enough for you to make a living, then it doesn't matter so much if you close the store. Maybe this store has already finished its mission, and now it's time for you to study the Fa.” Upon hearing my words, she cried and said she felt that she was understood.
Several days later, I, along with a fellow practitioner, went to visit this woman at her home. She was sitting in bed and studying the Fa. She told me that many practitioners had come to visit her. However, among those practitioners who visited her, some of them said that she wasn't being responsible and some said she didn't truly cultivate herself. She told us: “After those practitioners left, my disease symptoms became even worse. In the past few days, I've had several dreams that the deceased patients who lived in the same room with me came back to look for me.” Then, my fellow practitioner calmly shared her understandings of the Fa. During the process, she became more and more spirited. Both of us felt very happy for her. Later on, she asked us: “Is it true that I didn't truly cultivate myself in recent years? Have I been irresponsible in closing the store? That day, one practitioner said closing the store was cooperating with the old forces.” Obviously what those practitioners said caused her great anguish.
We need to kindly understand fellow practitioners and learn what help they need, and clear up any misunderstands of the Fa. When we talked with the above practitioner, we cited some of Master's lectures and helped her unravel the knots in her heart. She understood she had been cultivating all the time, but just very slowly. And she also understood how to negate the persecution that the old forces imposed on her. Because she was operating the store all by herself and she didn't have time to study the Fa or do the exercises for a long time, the old forces took advantage of her loopholes to persecute her. If she insisted on striving to operate the store, there would be some safety risks for her and other practitioners who often went there. Actually, some practitioners spent more time there chatting instead of sharing their cultivation experiences.
She opened her heart and told us: “Actually, I have put so much time and energy into operating the store. If I just close it like this, I may lose tens of thousands of yuan every year. But I know, as a practitioner, if I don't study the Fa or do the exercises, how can I do the three things well? I asked myself, which do I want, Dafa or money? I said to Master, with tears in my eyes, I want Dafa and I want to study the Fa.”
We became tearful. Despite such a poor financial condition, she still chose Dafa. Only the great beings created by Dafa can do this.
Several days later, this practitioner sent me a message telling me that after we had talked with her, the physical tribulation that she was suffering completely disappeared. On the surface, it seemed like I helped her overcome the tribulation. But in reality, I have seen many of her shining points. All of them are guiding my own cultivation as well, reminding me to be compassionate to other people. It's not only beneficial to others, but also helps me to improve in cultivation.
Learning from this experience, I often remind myself to kindly understand other people, and the volume of my heart has also become larger and larger. I feel really grateful for Master's compassionate salvation. I will do the three things well and cultivate in Dafa more diligently.
I welcome practitioners to point out anything improper.