PureInsight | April 26, 2007
[PureInsight.org] In "Disintegrate Completely All the Meddling Deities in the Three realms that Have a Hand in Interfering with Fa-Rectification," Master told us , "I hope that the Dafa disciples will, by way of godly righteous thoughts, walk the last leg of their journey well." I want to share some of my understanding of that.
Righteous thought is any notion that complies with the principles of Dafa. Dafa disciples can have righteous thoughts, and so can ordinary people. But there is a tremendous difference in the essence. For example, when ordinary people believe that "Falun Dafa is good" and "Truthfulness, compassion, forbearance is good," those are righteous thoughts. "Heaven wants to eliminate the Chinese Communist Party" and "Quit the party, league, and group" are also righteous thoughts. However, the righteous thoughts of ordinary people are self-serving and they receive blessings, whereas the righteous thoughts of Dafa disciples are selfless, and their thoughts are intended for eliminating evil, saving sentient beings, and elevating spiritually. The path of a Dafa disciple's cultivation is a path of a human toward godhood. During the cultivation, a Dafa disciple has a knowing side and a human side; thoughts from the knowing side are godly righteous thoughts. Therefore, only when our state of cultivation assimilates to that of gods can our knowing side spring forth and possess godly righteous thoughts.
What are godly righteous thoughts then? My understanding is that it is the state of being an enlightened being: compassionate, forbearing, and without intention.
Compassion and forbearance are a god's state of mind. That is also a state that we try to cultivate and gradually strengthen by following the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. From the start of our cultivation, Master set a good example by bestowing boundless compassion and tolerance on us. Meanwhile, Master has continued to teach us, enlighten us to the meanings of compassion and forbearance, and guide us to cultivate our heart natures and acquire a kind and tolerant mind to eliminate our attachments. Thus, we are very familiar with the teachings in "Compassion can harmonize Heaven and Earth, ushering in spring." "Spread the Fa and save people with mercy" and "maintain a heart of benevolence and a mind of kindness" have become our mottoes.
Master told us how to be tolerant and broad-minded. In "Teaching the Fa at the Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.," he said, "that enlightened beings in heavens also need to coordinate and discuss with each other" and "So what's their state of mind? It's tolerance, an extremely immense tolerance, being able to accept other beings, and being able to truly think from other beings' perspectives."
In The Great Way of Spiritual Perfection, Master uses a god's name to describe the first exercise: "Buddha Stretching Forth a Thousand Arms." In both the first and the fifth exercises, Master stresses that "Compassion should arise in the heart, and the expression should be peaceful." Thus, Master reminded us to acquire godly compassion and tolerance every day.
Without intention is the state of a god's behavior. Without intention does not mean doing nothing, but doing without any attachments. I believe that Master has given it the best explanation in "Abiding in the Dao":
Present, but the heart elsewhere -
Perfectly reconciled with the world.
Looking, but caring not to see -
Free of delusion and doubt.
Listening, but caring not to hear -
A mind so hard to disturb.
Eating, but caring not to taste -
The palate’s attachments severed.
Doing, but without pursuit -
So constant, abiding in the Dao.
Calm, but without strain of thought -
The truly wondrous can be seen.
(Hong Yin, The Grand Verses, English Version A)
These lines point to us how our state of mind manifests after we have gotten rid of all our seven emotions and six desires. Doing but without pursuit shows the principles of the Fa: paying attention to the process of our actions and gaining but without pursuit. That is an extraordinary state and far beyond that of human beings (Human beings stress results.)
"Calm, but without strain of thought" is the hardest godly state of mind to achieve. That is the state of "until no single omission is found." It is, however, an important godly state and cultivators must obtain it. In the fifth exercise, Master continues to reinforce our cultivation of "calm, but without strain of thought" by advising us, "Do not think about anything when performing this exercise, no thought is involved, and from a state of calm enter into deep stillness. But your main consciousness must be aware that you are the one who is doing the exercise." That's how godly righteous thoughts can spring forth from a godly state of mind. Only with the godly righteous thoughts, can we do well the three things, eliminate the evil and meddling deities and the evil specter of the Communist Party, and thus save sentient beings. Only with godly righteous thoughts can we have a correct attitude at work and at home, position ourselves properly, and get along well with our co-workers. Only with the godly righteous thoughts, can we examine ourselves according to the Fa when we encounter difficulties, insist on looking inwards, and walk the remaining path that Master has arranged for us.
How do we continue to strengthen our godly righteous thoughts then? The most important thing to do is to study the Fa well. By continuing to study the Fa, we will break loose from all attachments and let go of human notions. Then we can move forward to the godly state of mind. Besides, the Fa can solidify righteous thoughts. Thus, studying the Fa faithfully is the process for reinforcing our godly righteous thoughts. Let's follow Master's teachings at the Fa Conference in Philadelphia, "Your righteous thoughts and everything you accomplish come from the Fa, so no matter how busy you are, don't neglect Fa-study."
Translated from:
http://zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2007/4/22/43316.html
