Identifying Shortcomings in my Cultivation from Watching the Shen Yun Performance

Master said:
"In China there are some people who suddenly stopped paying attention to their attire after they started practicing. It goes without saying that a person should dress presentably and groom himself neatly, like the way a human being should. But they became sloppy and unkempt, to the point of almost being shameless. That's unacceptable. [The way we cultivate] isn't the way Zhang Sanfeng cultivated the Dao years ago. You are cultivating in the society of ordinary people. At the very least you should look like a decent human being. Gods are higher than human beings and should act even better--they need to act better in every respect. Be sure not to ignore everything and become sloppy, unkempt, and grimy once you practice Falun Gong--that's unacceptable." ("Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Switzerland")

When I read that for the first time, I looked at myself and thought that I didn't have those problems. Although I didn't dress as nicely as some non-practitioners, I did not belong to the category of those who were sloppy and dirty.

These last few days, I have watched many audience interviews by NTDTV. The audience members commented highly on Shen Yun Performing Arts, from the bottom of their hearts. Their reactions to Shen Yun caused me to look inward. Through the perfect visual and acoustic presentation which provided the audience sensory enjoyment, the profound meaning of the performance was fully expressed by the perfect formality of Shen Yun. That is why Shen Yun can move the audience deeply and change people.

As for myself, my hair is not neat, nor do I care about it. My clothes don't fit very well, but I have set my own standard--that this is acceptable as long as my clothes are not too shabby and old. Sometimes, my pants are wrinkled, and I just put them on without ironing them. I only do laundry once every 10 or 15 days after the dirty clothes pile up. I never make my bed after getting up. I thought that I was on the Fa. I thought that it was meaningless to pay attention to appearance, because that is an attachment. Additionally, I thought it was a waste of time to do laundry and make the bed regularly. Now I realize that a human being should be neat and regulate his or her behaviour. Those are the basic requirements of the Fa on the surface human level. However, I did not protect the Fa by playing a leading role in this regard. In addition, I have been using "not being attached to appearance" as an excuse to cover up my sloth.

For a long time during my truth clarification activities, I've had a strong attachment of feeling unworthy of being called a Dafa practitioner. I only dared to distribute materials and mail letters. I did not have the courage to clarify the facts face to face, and I was afraid of others knowing that I am a practitioner. However, I was not able to realize what was wrong with me.

Now, I've come to realize deep in my heart, that the clear side of me actually knows that how I treat my appearance is not on the Fa. Being neat is different from being attached to one's appearance.

I also came to realize another issue. I used to feel disturbed when I saw that the house became messy again after I cleaned it the night before, or when my child's clothes became dirty right after I changed him in the morning. At the time, I thought that I was too attached to the comfort of everyday life, and I needed to work on it. Now, I realize that my behaviour in treating those aspects of daily life was not on the Fa. The environment around me was actually created by myself.

I know that I should behave better in the future. I should become a genuine practitioner who looks good in appearance, as well as being good in the heart.