(Minghui.org) A notice was recently published on Minghui.org that points out the problem of practitioners getting involved in pyramid schemes. Most practitioners who were involved in it immediately corrected their mistakes. But some practitioners were offended and did not understand what they did wrong. They did not believe that the notice applied to them and even thought that the Dafa Association didn't investigate well enough before publishing the notice.
It seems that these practitioners do not have a good understanding of the principles of cultivation. I would like to briefly share my understanding in hopes of helping those struggling with this issue.
Meeting the Requirements for Cultivators
Master has said many times that cultivators need to look inward when conflicts arise. The issue mentioned in the notice is related to the principles of cultivation and saving people. These are serious issues. Dafa disciples have high xinxing standards, so the enterprises we run have higher standards than those run by everyday people. Practitioners need to follow the rules for an everyday person's business. In addition, we also need to meet the requirements for cultivators. As practitioners, when conflicts arise, we need to read the Fa calmly and look inward.
On the other hand, mistakes in cultivation are inevitable, because we are still humans. What's key is whether we can see our mistakes, analyze them based on the Fa, and improve our xinxing. We need to treat ourselves as cultivators and look inward according to the Fa, instead of looking outward, getting stuck in the problems and becoming defensive. This is how we improve and break through tribulations.
Avoid Arrogance
As Dafa disciples, our goal is to clarify the truth and save people, and we must walk our path righteously. If we do things casually we may cause serious damage, which we may not be able to fix.
For example, how and when do we clarify the truth to the higher echelons of society? This may have already been arranged and the circumstances may be different than we imagine. Starting an investment company is not an appropriate way to clarify the truth to mainstream society.
Some practitioners call themselves experts in China affairs, talk to people in the political and economic fields, and make analyses of political and economic trends. In the last few years, a few practitioners have been very much into analyzing social issues and political trends, hoping to attract people to support us. They never thought about whether they should do this or whether they can really make clear analyses.
As Dafa disciples, we all know if we do things with strong attachments and personal notions the effect may be negative, and we may cause everyday people to have a wrong impression of us. Isn't this the opposite of what we want?
The media's job is to report accurately, objectively, and impartially on the social issues that people are concerned about. But as cultivators, we should not get involved in politics, nor should we mislead people. In the last few years, quite a few practitioners passed away because they went awry. We should learn from this. We are responsible for saving everyday people.
Not Taking Money from Fellow Practitioners as Remuneration for Clarifying the Truth
The company mentioned in the notice paid its employees with money from fellow practitioners. This is not allowed and it's also dangerous. Similar things have happened before. For example, a practitioner took remuneration for clarifying the truth, but the money was from fellow practitioners, since the enterprise had not made a profit. This practitioner almost lost his life.
The company mentioned in the notice paid its members with fellow practitioners' money before it started making a profit. This is misusing Dafa's resources, and this is a serious problem.
Master has said several times how serious the consequence would be if one does not do well on the issue of money.
The Danger of Collaborating with Everyday People
The company mentioned in the notice wanted to collaborate with everyday people. Even if their goal was to clarify the truth, this collaboration is dangerous, because an everyday person can be easily interfered with. This has happened before. An everyday person pursues profits, and when they are interfered with, they may turn against us. If this happens, how can we save them?
We should calmly read Master's “Fa Teaching Given at the New York Fa Conference Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Dafa’s Spreading.” And think about whether we have followed Master's teaching. Master said:
“No, you can’t hire an ordinary company—be sure you don’t do that. It’s not because we have secrets to keep. Rather, it’s a unique situation we are in, as we are still being persecuted by the CCP. Ordinary companies might be bribed and could falter due to emotional whims, and the evil’s lies might confuse them. We have experienced such things quite a few times. Trouble often ensues as soon as ordinary people get involved in your initiatives, and they don’t come through. There have been many lessons in regards to this, so you need to bear this in mind.”
Remember to Walk Our Path Righteously
As Dafa disciples in the Fa-rectification period, what we do will be references for the future. We cannot go awry on our path of cultivation. The long-term persecution cannot damage Dafa, but if we don't do well ourselves the old forces will take advantage of our loopholes, and damage us and sentient beings.
There are no small issues in cultivation. Everything listed above is very serious. We have gone through a lot of tribulations, and we should cherish every practitioner. To protect fellow practitioners, we should quickly correct our wrongdoings and minimize the damage, addressing the mistakes that have been explicitly pointed out, instead of looking for excuses and defending ourselves.
Cultivating is looking inward and correcting our mistakes. That is how we take responsibility for our cultivation and the Fa. Based on the Fa, we can cultivate ourselves rationally, and this will ensure that we righteously walk the rest of our cultivation journey.
Category: Perspective
