(Minghui.org) One day a fellow practitioner asked me when the wicked Party will fall and when the Fa-rectification will end. Will it be spring, fall, or the coming year? I said to him with a smile: “Don't worry about when it will fall, it is determined by Master according to the disciples' cultivation needs, not by any prophets. Just keep moving forward and don't look to the side. The key is that we awaken the conscience of all sentient beings, fulfill our great prehistoric wishes, and assist Master in the Fa-rectification.”

So, what does it mean to keep moving forward and not look to the side? We should keep walking on the path of return arranged by Master, do the three things, and awaken the conscience of all sentient beings. On this path, despite the turbulent waves, tribulations, setbacks, and tough tests, we must never give up, never doubt, always be steadfast and persevere, and strive forward diligently to reach consummation. 

Looking Inward, Not Outward

What about not looking to the side? As practitioners, we should not look outward to see others' shortcomings and mistakes. We should always look inward to see our own shortcomings, gaps, and loopholes, and see if we have 100% faith in Master. That is how we can meet the standard and requirements of the Fa at different levels. 

Another aspect of not looking to the side involves not being distracted by social chaos and not putting our hopes in ordinary people or external factors. All social trends and celestial phenomena are here to highlight Dafa and Dafa disciples. We must know very clearly that we are the protagonists in this big drama, and all the others are supporting actors. To save more sentient beings and end the persecution as soon as possible, we must fully clarify the truth, let go of our attachments, and cultivate ourselves well. At the same time we must not be driven by chaos, confused by falsehoods, disturbed by emotions, stained by filth, or entangled by interests. 

Study the Fa Well

So how can this be done? The only way is to study the Fa well, understand the Fa in a solid way, and see things from a rational point of view. While learning the Fa, one must enlighten from the fundamentals. Master is the king of kings, the supreme ruler, and creator of the universe. Master's Fa is the crystallization of infinite wisdom, the source of all life, and the criterion and standard of all life. It is the foundation, the "root," and should be followed without compromise. Practitioners' articles are like the leaves of the tree and can only be used as references, not followed. In other words, the only way to learn and understand the law is to understand from Master's fundamental Dafa, which is the right way to understand, and that is our own true harvest. We can't take shortcuts, enlighten from others' understandings, and apply them casually. That will deviate from the main path and can easily fall. Among these pitfalls, bear in mind the following principles.

Follow the Fa 

Following others rather than following the Fa is very dangerous. Some tend to follow other practitioners' words, actions, ways of practice, and even mistakes. Cultivation has no role model or reference. Every one of us has a different cultivation path, amount of karma, endurance, and way of enlightenment and the principles to be enlightened to. 

Don't Pick and Choose

Studying the Fa can't be taken out of context, so we can't pick and choose what to read. From the beginning to the end, Master's Fa is is a huge system with each chapter interlinked and connected. It is like a high-rise building and a ladder to heaven. If you take away any layer of bricks or ladder, there will be a fault in your mind and it will be broken and you will be unable to climb it. Only if you go through all of them word by word and go through the whole process can you reach completion. Taking anything out of context is irrational, and the result will inevitably lead to one-sided incompleteness, and even to enlightenment along an evil path.

Be Sincere in Studying the Fa

Don't go to extremes when studying the Fa. Some people treat studying the Fa as a task and with a pursuit of improving their level, and therefore study very hard and do nothing else. Master said:

“As a Dafa disciple you should study the Fa when you have time, since you are a cultivator. What would you rather be doing instead of studying the Fa, anyway? And then with the time you have left it would be best to save more people!” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2016 New York Fa Conference”)

Master's Fa is our guidance, each word is a Falun and law body, shining with infinite golden light. If we do not study it sincerely, how can the Fa and its infinite connotation be revealed to us? If we don't check our own words and actions against the Fa, how can that be called studying the Fa? To learn without enlightening is called self-learning, to enlighten without learning is short-sighted, and to learn without doing is not cultivation. We must be sincere in studying the Fa, and not skim through or go to extremes. Any extreme practice misinterprets and slanders the Fa.

Don't Miss the Opportunity

Do not be attached to when cultivation ends. Every second now is precious. If not for the tremendous suffering of Master in exchange for time, the original plan would have ended. The attachment to time is a betrayal of the many beings in the universe and a betrayal of Master. Ask yourself, "If it ends now, would you attain consummation? Have you achieved no omissions and no attachments, and manifested great divine powers?" If you haven't reached it, that means you have a lot of regrets that you haven't made up for, right?

So no matter when the Fa-rectification ends, as long as it doesn't end, it's an opportunity. The opportunity is not to be missed. This time will never come again. An eternal opportunity, once missed, will be a great loss that will never be made up for and become an eternal regret.

In a word, on this path of cultivation, we just keep walking forward, not looking to the sides. No matter how much the situation changes, how troubled society is, how sinister people's hearts are, how vicious the evil is, no matter how much time there is, how long the road is, the road will go all the way to heaven, and we will not stop until we reach the goal. Only by striving forward diligently until completion can we carry out our responsibilities in the future universe.

I'd like to end my sharing by quoting Master's poem “Abiding in the Dao”:

Present, but the heart elsewhere—Perfectly reconciled with the world.Looking, but caring not to see—Free of delusion and doubt.Listening, but caring not to hear—A mind so hard to disturb.Eating, but caring not to taste—The palate’s attachments severed.Doing, but without pursuit—So constant, abiding in the Dao.Calm, but without strain of thought—The truly wondrous can be seen.(Hong Yin, Translation Version A)

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Category: Improving Oneself