(Minghui.org) Teacher said:
“I’ve always said that this entire society is in fact a setting for our Dafa disciples to cultivate in. You are cultivating out in the world, and not off in a religious setting, so whatever job or trade you are in serves as a setting for your cultivation, doesn’t it?” (2018 Fa Teaching Given in Washington, D.C. Team Yellow Translation)
“Dafa disciples' cultivating in the diverse occupations is acknowledging the beings in those systems, and it is saving all those lives.” (Teaching the Fa in the City of Los Angeles)
I felt horrible when I thought about my cultivation state over the past few years, using the Fa to measure myself. I have unknowingly deviated from the Fa. I was slowly and gradually tricked and trapped by the old forces. Fortunately Teacher continually gave me hints that encouraged me to step out of my poor cultivation state. My intensive Fa study also eventually helped to strengthen my righteous thoughts, and I was able to start regarding everything at work as a part of my cultivation, using the standard of Dafa to measure myself. As a result, things became harmonized and people I encountered at work presented opportunities to clarify the truth.
The managerial level at work was reorganized several years ago, and I was being demoted. At the time, I thought I was able to let it go. But in fact, this was only on the surface, as many of my human notions were still buried. When I saw that the current manager was doing well, I thought it was because I had laid a good foundation for him to succeed. When he made a mistake, I thought that he lacked experience and his skills were inadequate. These thoughts showed that I was extremely jealous. I therefore tried to avoid attending meetings called by the manager. I did only my own work and seldom took the initiative to participate in managerial work. I used all of my spare time to copy the Fa and study the Fa. I thought I was diligent.
Cultivation is serious, and practitioners shouldn’t approach cultivation with the cunning mentality developed in everyday life. Many of my human attachments surfaced as time went by, and I became complacent. I did the three things regularly so I thought I could relax a bit. As I could determine my work schedule, arriving late and leaving early eventually became a habit for me. I took a driving course during my working hours, and also indulged myself in hobbies. I even did some retirement planning.
I gradually and unknowingly became an ordinary person even though I continued to study the Fa and do the exercises. I had no breakthroughs in clarifying the truth. I thought such behaviors showed that I could truly let go of fame and wealth. In fact, I had already deviated from the Fa. I occupied myself with making phone calls to tell people the facts about Dafa after work, but as it was difficult to purchase phone cards, I eventually stopped making the calls.
There was then a period of time I encountered sickness karma, which consisted of old ailments that I had before I started practicing, but I was able to get rid of them after studying the Fa and doing the exercises. The sickness karma came and went for a long period of time. On the surface, I was looking inside, but I didn't truly find my attachments by using my understanding of the Fa. As a result, last year, some parts of my body felt uncomfortable. I became suspicious and then got scared. I was afraid to hear things, think about things, or look at anything that was negative.
Teacher gave me many hints in my dreams that helped me realize that these were only false images. I also saw my root problems and felt that Teacher was helping me to remove them. I read many experience sharing articles on the Minghui website that showed how practitioners firmed up their faith in the Fa. Practitioners also shared with me and pointed out the problems they saw in me. They said that I shouldn't have given up the great opportunities to clarify the truth at work and that when I emphasized myself too much, I was tricked by the old forces. They suggested that I recite the Fa.
I began to study the Fa intensively. Lectures that talked about the relationship between cultivation and work became evident to me. I came to better understand our responsibilities as Dafa disciples and what Teacher meant by validating Dafa and fulfilling our vows. I could feel a drastic difference in myself when I thought of my cultivation state from before. I saw that my mind wasn't pure. When I encountered tribulations, so many human mindsets surfaced. This was precisely because I hadn't been studying the Fa well. I recognized that behind my “letting go” behaviors, there were many selfish and human mindsets. My intensive Fa study and efforts to memorize the Fa helped to correct things. I re-embraced my efforts and looked for colleagues that I hadn't clarified the truth to.
I gradually reconnected with colleagues. When opportunities arose, I clarified the truth and got people to quit the Party, among them, the secretary of our unit. After our conversation, she clearly understood the evilness of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chose not to participate in its events.
I took the initiative at work to give feedback to my manager and always thought of ideas from a management perspective. Together, we solved issues that affected many employees. I no longer avoided meetings and participated actively by sharing my thoughts and strategies on how to solve problems. Sometimes when I made mistakes, I looked inside, corrected them, and shared them openly at the meetings. My sincerity and compassion helped to improve my rapport with the staff. I eventually reached the state that I was at before. Dealing with staff members went well, and we were like a big family. It was in this kind of peaceful atmosphere that I could chat with everyone, and when the chance arose, clarify the truth and help people to withdraw from the CCP. The process helped me see that sentient beings are eagerly waiting to be saved.
I helped more than one hundred employees at my work unit to do the three withdrawals last year. Teacher encouraged me in my dreams to keep up the efforts. I saw that his Law Body was in the sky directly above the office.
As the internal work environment improved, business relationships with the outside world also increased. More and more people heard me explain the facts about Dafa, and many quit the Party. One customer came all the way from Shandong Province to collect funds but ended up going home empty-handed. Yet he was happy and said thank you. I felt that his happiness was due to the fact that his knowing side learned the truth.
When I took a taxi or went shopping, I often chatted with people about money bills that had little phrases written on them such as “Falun Dafa Is Good” and “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is Good.” After I talked to a driver who practiced Buddhism, he happily quit the CCP, and when we arrived at the destination, he insisted on only collecting the initial fees.
I now understand that when we are able to let go of ourselves, everything around us will become harmonized, and our cultivation environment will improve. I also learned that when we encounter issues, having a firm belief in the Fa and in Teacher is the key to resolving the problem. We should study the Fa well first, as this is the base of everything. When we then measure every one of our thoughts with the standard of the Fa, we can solve all problems. Reading experience sharing articles frequently on Minghui also enables us to have more righteous thoughts.