PureInsight | December 31, 2006
[PureInsight.org] Writing supplemental sections for The EpochTimes and saving sentient beings
By way of contrast, The EpochTimes'
supplemental sections can enrich the paper's content and provide more
opportunities for sentient beings to be exposed to the content of
truth-clarification. On the other hand, in my humble understanding, it
also plays a role in validating Dafa and saving sentient beings.
Teacher taught in "Teaching the Fa at the Discussion on Creating Fine
Art," "You've followed me here to save sentient beings. And the meaning
of our saving sentient beings also includes how we save human morality,
how the people who are saved will be in the future, how they'll live,
and what kind of conditions they'll live in. In other words, Dafa
disciples are not only saving sentient beings, they're also blazing a
true path for the existence of human beings. These are all things that
Dafa disciples are doing in validating the Fa."
Therefore, in my understanding, the words expressed by fellow
practitioners' cultivated sides and god sides are also Fa-implements
that can save sentient beings. Because the articles in the supplemental
sections are telling future mankind "how will they be in the future,
how they'll live, and what kind of conditions they'll live in. ..."
through subjects that are closely related to people's lives in
literature, arts, food, clothes, living, traveling, education and
entertainment. The more we assimilate to Dafa, the better our writings
can direct future mankind in taking an upright path.
Cleaning out ill-conceived notions
I have also come to understand that writing articles for supplemental
sections is also cultivation practice, just like other projects that
validate Dafa.
"What I'm asking you to do is not only for the sake of others and for
leaving behind these things for the people of the future--it's also
helpful to your own cultivation. Because you're all living in this
society's environment, you all need to step out from this period of
time. In other words, this is how people's notions are now, people are
all in the big dye vat, and those of you who have these special skills
are bound to have been influenced in this regard more than others. Then
during your process of creating artworks and returning to the upright
path, aren't you cleansing yourselves? And aren't you re-elevating
yourselves artistically? Yes, you are fundamentally changing
yourselves, and changing yourselves in terms of your concepts. Aren't
you cultivating yourself?" ("Teaching the Fa at the Discussion on
Creating Fine Art")
In my humble understanding, just like one can measure oneself against
the Fa to see whether one is returning to the upright path, both
fundamentally and conceptually, in creating fine art, the same is with
music composition and writing articles. Even in photography, web page
design and paper media's design, in learning how to make them
beautiful, one is cleaning his or her notions and is practicing
cultivation.
I had learned cursive-style calligraphy for two years around the time I
started practicing Dafa and stopped it after practicing Dafa for some
time. I thought I had passed the test. However, one day in my dream, I
saw many worms inside my arm. Even today, from time to time my mind or
my finger would still write in that style unconsciously. Of course,
those are the kind of strokes that one uses when one indulges one's
human side. From this I have come to understand that, those not
upright things still exist, they are not completely removed, and I have
to constantly clean my human notions with the Fa.
In writing the supplemental sections, I often have to deal with these
questions: What are the beautiful things in our life? What do everyday
people like to read? What should we provide them? Violence, incitement,
or sexy stuff? Of course not. Then shall we provide them with modern
astrology, cursive-style calligraphy, jazz, or homosexual news? No to
those, too. Then gossip news, rock-n-roll, rap music, or reports about
unwed mothers? When I answer each question, I also ask myself how to
control this. How can we create balance, given the fact that we are
cultivators and we are clarifying the truth in the form of everyday
people's media, in which we cannot talk too high and have to conform to
everyday people's tastes so as to provide them with an upright path and
create an upright culture for them?
In my understanding, when we constantly search for answers for these
questions as a cultivator, especially when practitioners having
different opinions reach a common solution after sharing their
understandings, we are constantly removing our human notions, which is
genuine cultivation practice.
That's all I have to say about writing supplemental sections. In fact,
as long as we have started practicing Dafa and are in the Fa, then in
everything we do, writing supplemental sections, writing news exposing
the evil, clarifying the truth by making phone calls, mailing
truth-clarification materials, running NTDTV, Sound of Hope, The Epoch
Times, and so on, in every task of every project, aren't we practicing
cultivation and saving sentient beings?
Memorizing the Fa
In addition, I would like to share some of my experiences with
memorizing the Fa. Around the beginning of this year, a lot of articles
about memorizing the Fa were published on ClearWisdom.net. With
encouragement from local fellow practitioners, I started to memorize
the Fa, too. I memorized about an hour a day. In the beginning, I could
memorize 1-2 pages and, a few months later, I could memorize 2-3 pages.
When I ran into very difficult paragraphs, I would normally try to
memorize at least a small paragraph. When I still could not do it, I
would pass it by and come back the next day. There were a few times
that due to laziness or failing to maintain my xinxing, I become so angry at others that I did not memorize a single paragraph.
For almost a year, memorizing the Fa has become part of my life. But compared to the experience sharing articles published on Clearwisdom,
I am very slow, even till today. I know the reason is because I cannot
set my mind to it and I am easily distracted. Having practiced
cultivation for a while, I still have not made any breakthroughs in
emptying my mind, including in doing the exercises. I know I still have
a long way to go.
Even so, I can still feel a positive effect from memorizing the Fa.
In everyday life, while riding my bicycle I can immediately think of
whether I'm going too fast; if I have made a right turn on a red
light, or if I have entered the automobiles' lane. I have made big
progress in these aspects. In addition, I have become more conscious of
my posture in Fa-study on the sofa. Am I sitting too leisurely? Lying
down? How come I'm humming the folk songs again? Or thinking of
pleasant past memories? I can feel that the Fa is requiring me to
improve at every moment. But I am not doing well enough. I need to get
on with it.
I have also made improvements in treating conflicts between
practitioners. Lately I have developed some conflicts with practitioner
editors. After sharing experiences a few times, I feel much better. I
thank everyone for their tolerance. However, I have made almost no
improvement in a certain conflict and have failed several xinxing
tests with regard to it. I know there must be something I need to
improve. I should try harder to calm down even more. I'm sure things
will change.
What I'm trying to say is, memorizing the Fa makes me feel even more
that the Fa is reminding me every day to conduct myself like a
practitioner in my daily life. It helps me remember not to
develop negative thoughts when having conflicts with fellow
practitioners such as anger or feeling misunderstood, not to avoid
discussing things, not to develop resentments or hatred and thoughts of
giving up doing the project.
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2006/12/17/41390.html
