Letting Go of Attachments and Working Well with the Local Falun Dafa Association

At the end of last year, when Teacher's article, "To the France Fa Conference" was published, our local practitioners were in a strong conflict with the local Falun Dafa Association (FXH). When I read Teacher's article, even though I understood that I needed to work with and accept the overall arrangements of our local FXH, I still felt that the conflict was not my fault and that the people in charge of the FXH were at fault. That being the case, I knew I had to bend to them, but I was still unwilling to do so.

The conflict involved quite a few practitioners, who were either coordinating or doing actual Dafa work. Because of human notions toward practitioners and other human attachments that had accumulated over the past years, practitioners who did not get directly involved in this conflict were also harbouring all kinds of attachments and eventually also got involved. As a result, this loophole in our overall coordination negatively affected our efforts at ticket sales for the 2008 Divine Performing Arts shows.

Afterwards, I started to look inward to find out where I fell short, because I felt that I had been wronged very badly in this conflict, and I also felt wronged in my heart. At the 2008 New York Conference, I was fortunate enough to see Teacher in person, and while listening to his lecture, I suddenly enlightened. This is the basic Fa principle; however, because on the surface I paid so much attention to who was right and who was wrong, I then felt wronged. In the past, during our Fa conferences, practitioners raised similar questions to Teacher. Teacher never taught us to try to judge who is right or wrong in any specific matter. Instead, he always talks about Fa principles, and talks about what kind of mindset a practitioner should have in a conflict.

I then continuously watched Teacher's "Fa-Teaching Given to the Australian Practitioners" on DVD, and I came to enlighten that the only reason for a conflict to arise among practitioners is that practitioners hold on to their own ideas too strongly, and treat fellow practitioners with their human attachments. Every practitioner has his or her different understanding of the Fa principles. When they do things, they also have different understandings of the situation. Everyone considers himself or herself to be right and feels that others are not right, and they force their opinions onto others. As a result, the more they look at the other practitioners from the viewpoint of their own notions and human attachments, the more they feel that others fall short, and thus they end up in a fight.

If both parties in a conflict were to put themselves in the shoes of the other person, and take a step back, it would create the optimal state for practitioners to work together. However, we can't reach an optimal state in our cultivation because we always cling to our human attachments. When both parties keep arguing with each other, it will affect the overall cultivation of the group at that particular time, and therefore, one side needs to give way to the other side. What happens is that practitioners always give way to the FXH. However, because they do it unwillingly, they hold resentment toward the FXH, and in that case, the FXH could see the problem held by practitioners. After a while, when conflicts still do not get resolved, it is always driven by the fact that the two sides are unable to let go of their attachments.

It has happened many times that when we were in the midst of a conflict, we said that the reason for the conflict was because we were trying to be responsible to the Fa. However, deep down inside, it was because we always thought we were right, and the other party was wrong, and we had a strong attachment of wanting to change others rather than change ourselves. If we indeed could let go of our attachments, the results might not necessarily be the same as we would expect when clinging to our human attachments and notions. Teacher is overseeing everything as long as every one of us can let go of our self and do the Three Things (study the Fa [the teachings of Falun Dafa], send forth righteous thoughts and clarify the truth about Falun Dafa and about the persecution to the world's people) in a solid way, as opposed to getting into conflicts of who is right and who is wrong. Only then can the overall situation take a right path. We have a long way in cultivation, and it's understandable that fellow practitioners have different understandings of the Fa principles. But if we continue to think that everything we do is right, and hold on to our own opinions, then the overall situation will not be good. Therefore, when there is a conflict, we must let go of our self, and follow the coordination and arrangements of the FXH.

During conflicts, I also came to understand that I should not pay too much attention to the misunderstanding of fellow practitioners. We should be tolerant towards fellow practitioners. The purpose of our cultivation is not for validating ourselves, arguing with others, nor for racking up "achievements." Rather, it is to let go of as many attachments as possible. A couple of days ago, I read the article "Realms" in Essentials for Further Advancement. Teacher says:

"A wicked person is born of jealousy. Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself. A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion. With no discontentment of hatred, he takes hardship as joy. An enlightened person has no attachments at all. He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions."

I suddenly came to enlighten that this article also depicts the cultivation process: Step out of the reversed principles of ordinary people, treat everything in cultivation according to Fa principles, take hardship as joy, and cultivate to the point of no longer having any attachments.

During my xinxing (character) tests, Teacher has been enlightening me step by step with the Fa principles. When I read Teacher's earlier lectures again, I also found similar Fa principles. Teacher has been repeating these principles so many times. In the Australian Lecture DVD, Teacher also revisits these Fa principles again. I can't express myself very well, but I deeply feel Teacher's immeasurable compassion, time after time trying to enlighten practitioners who lack enlightenment. Only by cultivating myself diligently will I feel no regrets and will I instead have gratitude and thanks to Teacher for his benevolent salvation.

The above is only my personal understanding;u please kindly point out anything inappropriate.