(Clearwisdom.net) This year I found a new job. Two fellow Falun Gong practitioners and I work together. In such an environment with only us practitioners, I felt so good. We could share cultivation experiences with each other at any time, help each other, and improve together.
At the very beginning, we shared with each other to improve ourselves by following the Fa. We tried to study the Fa and practice every day, clarify the truth, distribute truth-clarification materials, and help other practitioners who didn't how to use the computer, browse the Internet or print truth- clarification materials. We cooperated with each other very well.
But over time, our attachments started surfacing. Then conflicts and problems followed. We had more and more arguments and all of us felt our fields conflicting. Later, I would not even express my view to others. Neither would I argue with them because I'm a very shy person. I felt my mind was suppressed. I didn't try to find the reason for the conflicts based on the Fa. Instead, I felt their behavior contradicted my thoughts, so I didn't want to say anything to them. I judged them using human notions. I thought, "You are a good talker, but have done a poor job. Although I'm not good at talking, I'm not necessarily doing poorly." Or, I might think, "Why would you always think others are wrong for whatever they said? Why should I have the same understanding as yours?" During the conflicts, I didn't look inward, but tried to find the part in Teacher's lectures which I felt proved I was right.
We all were very worried about this situation. But every time we shared together, we had different understandings about our problems. Another problem with me was that I had a very hard time memorizing the work I did. One of my fellow practitioners believed I was mentally challenged. I was hurt so much after I heard his comments. I tried to share this problem with another practitioner. That practitioner pointed out that I should look inward under any circumstance and that I might have some strong attachments I haven't rooted out, so my wisdom was blocked.
That woke me up. After getting back home, I immediately cleared my own field, calmed down, and started studying the Fa. After studying the Fa, I realized that the one who conflicted with other practitioners was not my true self, but the one that the old forces arranged for me. I should totally deny the bad thoughts that the old forces arranged for me and keep each and every one of my thoughts on the Fa.
Teacher taught us:
"You have to let go of all bad, human thoughts and every type of attachment you have. Isn't not wanting to hear criticism an attachment? You want to hear only pleasant things, but how could that be? [Arrangements are made] exactly to have others say unpleasant things and see if you are moved. A god wouldn't pay any heed to what a human being said about him--you can't affect him." ("Teaching the Fa in Canada, 2006")
Surely, whenever practitioners have a conflict, we need look inward and find our own attachments. The next morning, I read Teacher's lecture again. I understood clearly that the old forces tried to trap us in trivial matters to only think about others' problems and to be in conflict with others, thus wasting our energy. We have to look inward and check ourselves based on the Fa and find our attachments. Teacher asked us to cooperate with each other so that we can save more sentient beings.
After understanding Teacher's lectures more deeply, we were able to, based on the Fa, deny the arrangements by the old forces. We now follow Teacher's requirements for us and diligently cultivate our attachments away. We now encourage each other and do the three things well everyday to form one body. When bad thoughts appear, we eliminate them right away.
