(Minghui.org) After reading a practitioner's article, Pay Attention to Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts and Eliminate Old Force's Persecution, I was inspired to write about my recent cultivation experiences.

I went to a market to tell people the facts about Falun Dafa. Without realizing it, I clarified the truth to a plainclothes police officer. His wife said to him, “You want to arrest him? Go ahead.” He turned and swore at his wife.

I said to him, “I wish you only the best and that you are safe and sound” and walked away.

Later on I saw the man again, and he was looking all around. When he spotted me, I knew he was looking for me by his reaction. Once I realized that he was up to no good, I turned around and left. While walking away, I was glad to be leaving him behind, but I was arrested in the end.

After I was released, I searched inward and tried hard to find the cause of this incident. I was very frustrated and confused. I thought that I had done everything correctly. I had recently completed many projects to validate the Fa. I paid attention to studying the Fa and sending forth righteous thoughts every day. So what was the cause?

I sat cross legged and listened to Dafa music. As I looked within, my recent thoughts and behaviors manifested in three dimensional images that displayed vividly in front of me.

I found that I had the notion that fellow practitioners rely on me and look up to me. Looking deeper, I discovered the attachment of regarding myself as at a very high level. Sometimes I helped other practitioners when they did not need help. I often suggested that others study the Fa more, send forth righteous thoughts more, and rectify every thought in accordance with the Fa. However, I did not really do well in these matters myself. I did not cultivate myself that well, but was always trying to help others cultivate better.

Our Teacher is always by our side protecting us. Teacher had been giving me warnings before the arrest that I had shortcomings in cultivation. For example, my family member's car was broken into and then hit by another car. My motor scooter's belt broke for no apparent reason. These occurrences should have alerted me that the old forces were trying to persecute me, but I did not pay enough attention to them or send forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the interference.

Persecution will not happen to practitioners who truly do the three things well. In the book, Journey to the West, the Monkey King drew a circle on the ground and told Tang monk to stay inside it so that a demon could not reach him. The monk did not follow his advice and was caught by the demon. Teacher's Fa is our protection: a wall of defense. If we follow Master's requirements, the old forces will have no grounds to persecute us. The Fa has its standards. Do we study the Fa deeply? While doing the exercises, do we meet the requirement? While sending forth righteous thoughts, are our thoughts strong?

Teacher said:

Also, in some regions people have organized so-called 'Fa-preaching groups” without permission, acting pretentiously among students and swindling people everywhere. There are people who also invite individuals to give speeches, thereby undermining and interfering with students’ cultivation. On the surface these people appear to be spreading Dafa, but in reality they are promoting themselves. A student’s cultivation is arranged systematically by my Law Bodies. It is only that some students don’t know this or they remain unaware of it. So aren’t these people causing interference? It is especially difficult for those who have just started learning the Fa to make a clear distinction. There are also people delivering so-called “speeches” in conferences that are attended by thousands. What they say is all about themselves. They even define some sentences of Dafa or interpret Dafa, with their bodies emitting to the students black karma and attachment substances. (“A Heavy Blow” from Essentials for Further Advancement)

Every practitioner has his or her own path. Sometimes we think we are helping other practitioners but in reality, we may be interfering with them. Helping others is good, but if it becomes an attachment, it could result in a major problem.

While I was doing the exercises yesterday, I listened to Teacher saying, “gradual, slow and smooth” (The Great Way of Spiritual Perfection), I experienced the peaceful state of mind of a practitioner. A busy and hurried mindset can be the result of attachments. A peaceful mind and a strong will to save people is essential for practitioners and for the people we are to save.

This is what I learned about myself after painful experiences.