Teacher said,
"We negate even the very emergence of the old forces and everything that they've arranged; we don't even acknowledge their existence. We're fundamentally negating all of their things, and all of, and only, the things you do while negating and getting rid of them is mighty-virtue." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference")
I had been pondering this specific part of a recent Fa lecture by Teacher. Exactly what should we do to negate their existence?
I shared my thoughts with another practitioner while in New York last September, yet my question remained unresolved. All I could remember was Teacher's words in "Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference":
"When you're able to walk a righteous path, that means your righteous thoughts are strong, you're doing things according to Dafa's requirements, and you're doing things according to Master's requirements, then you are negating the old forces, and you are walking your path in a righteous way."
Teacher asked us to do "the three things," yet why are many Falun Dafa practitioners still unable to eliminate the interference after doing these three things?
Once we organised an "anti-torture exhibit." There were construction workers doing excavation work nearby. Their activities generated very loud noises that drowned out our exercise music and overwhelmed the narrating voices from our loudspeakers. We could not hear clearly the questions raised by people viewing the exhibit, and they could not hear our replies, either. I tried to talk to people as loud as I could, but to no avail. At that moment I felt really annoyed. I knew this was interference and that it must be eliminated by sending forth righteous thoughts. However, I also immediately saw my own frustration and irritation. I adjusted my state of mind and made myself settle down and not pay attention to it. Right away I noticed that things changed for the better and my interaction with people improved significantly. Other practitioners continued their activities according to the original plan while sending forth righteous thoughts. They just carried on as usual and unperturbed and the interference factor self-eradicated. Soon the noise disappeared all together.
Before I practised Falun Gong, I suffered from hemorrhoids. When I went to New York, these symptoms recurred. I knew that it only appeared to be hemorrhoids and was just an illusion. To make me believe it was hemorrhoids there was bleeding, yet I was not fazed by the apparent symptoms and went on doing the three things required of us by Teacher. Soon the symptoms disappeared.
In the "Fa Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference," Teacher said,
"But you should always remember one thing: no matter who is interfering, it's all temporary, all illusions, not the main body, and it's all just like air flowing through."
Through earlier experiences, I recognised that we must first maintain an unshakable calm and remain unperturbed. I recalled Teacher's words in Zhuan Falun,
"I am a person who dislikes fighting with others, and neither was it worth a fight with him. Whenever he brought some bad things upon me, I would just clear them up. Afterwards, I would resume my lecturing."... "Because he always committed bad deeds and interfered with my teaching of Dafa, I then eliminated him completely."
Teacher eliminated it because it interfered with his teaching the Fa, but Teacher was never perturbed. We send forth righteous thoughts to eradicate the evil because it interfered with Fa rectification and salvation of sentient beings, not because they caused our discomfort (whether physically or mentally). Teacher said,
"Regardless of whether it's the old forces' arrangements or karma, we should first of all examine ourselves. I ask you to cleanse yourselves first even when you send righteous thoughts. Look at yourself first, and if you discover that you have a problem, take care of it. With that the old forces won't be able to do anything; when they can't find anything to hold against you they will back off. Of course, at the current time even if the old forces want to back off that doesn't cut it--clear them away entirely. After you cleanse yourself when you sit to send righteous thoughts, clear them away." ("Teaching the Fa at the Meeting with Asia-Pacific Students." )
Furthermore, in "Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York" someone asked,
Disciple: In Russia there have recently been several incidents of terrorist attacks on tourists, so a lot of people don't want to hear about the terrorist-style persecution happening in Mainland China.
Teacher: That, too, is a form of interference. It doesn't matter--clarify the truth as you would normally. [The evil] is intent on trying to interfere with you. Don't let it interfere with you, though, and just go on doing what you would normally do. It's hard for the time being, but it won't be hard for long.
Whenever we encounter ordeals or interference, we must first remain mentally unruffled and composed, maintain an unshakable calm, settle down and examine where we had any omissions and eliminate them.
Teacher asked us to ponder soberly. Only after we maintain our calm with a sober mind can we better identify our attachments, and then truly accomplish the three things requested by Teacher. It is my understanding that we should study the Fa calmly, send forth righteous thoughts with pure and focused attention, and clarify the truth intelligently and rationally.
As long as we maintain strong righteous thoughts, follow the requirement of Dafa and Teacher, remember that each one of us is a Dafa practitioner on the path to godhood and ascend from the notions of man, then the "... righteous thoughts display the might of Gods" (1) and the wisdom and divine power endowed us by Dafa will be more than sufficient to dispel any interference.
January 22, 2005
Note:
1. From a poem in "New Year's Greeting from Master," December 31st, 2002
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