Sharing on How to Look Within

[PureInsight.org] Master said in Fa Teaching at the 2009 Washington DC International Fa Conference, "For a cultivator, looking within is a magical tool." How to use this magic tool to look inward and cultivate ourselves? Every Dafa disciple has one’s own experience.

1. Looking Inward Does not Mean Giving up Righteous Thoughts

Looking within is not just a simple sentence, it is the fundamental way for Dafa disciples to cultivate diligently. It is not just to simply look at the right and wrong of what you do, but to find out the problems in your xinxing and let go of that attachment. Only by assisting Master in Fa-rectification can we strengthen our firm belief in Master and the Fa, and walk uprightly on our own path of Fa-rectification and cultivation.

In 2002, when I was detained in the labor camp, there were two groups of practitioners who have taken a deviant path to "transform" me, some were members of the 610 "Teaching Gang". At that time, when I sent out a thought that after going out, I must wake up these practitioners who have taken a deviant path. After I got out of the labor camp, I persuaded some fellow practitioners to talk with me about those practitioners who have taken a deviant path. Soon it was spread among fellow practitioners that I was a traitor, and some said I was overbearing not to let others speak and so on hearsay.

After hearing these rumors at that time, I was really unhappy, and I began to think it was interference. Then I thought about it again: When a practitioner encounters a problem, he/she has to look inward. Why are there these rumors? Master said in Teachings at the Conference in Los Angeles, “Cultivation is about looking inside yourself. Whether you are right or wrong, you should examine yourself. Cultivation is about getting rid of human attachments." and “Try harder to look inside yourself, and just look for your own attachments." My purpose of arousing veteran fellow practitioners back was not wrong. Trying not to let them talk or talk less during the conversation, this is a principle I put forward when I started to do the work. Because what they talk about are all fallacies and heresies of a wrong path, we need to tell them more about the righteous principles of Dafa, and there is nothing wrong with letting more righteous things fill their minds. This is also my experience with them.

Not long after the persecution started, a fellow practitioner who we used to make Dafa truth-clarification materials was persecuted because she went to Beijing to appeal. When my wife and I ran away from home and were wanted by the police, we took the risk of being kidnapped to find her when we heard the news of her transformation. We talked to her all night and advised her to cherish Dafa, not to give up easily, and to the consequences of transformation... The next day, she talked to the practitioners who have taken a deviant path and shared what we said to her. She said, “What so-and-so said made sense, but our transformation might have been wrong.” But when the person who has taken a deviant path accused her of being confused and poured a set of wicked theories into her mind, she believed in the wicked theories again, and almost betrayed us, saying that it was for our good. Because of Master's enlightenment, we left her home the next day. Because what they said to each other were fallacies and heresies that deviated from Dafa, and they reinforced each other, so it was really for their own benefit not to allow them to speak or to speak less, and there was nothing wrong with that.

So what is my attachment from this? Judging from my thoughts and actions, I did not seem to be doing much wrong, but judging from my xinxing in cultivation, I have exposed my desire to be competitive, show off, and want to change others. These are human concepts and attachments. While talking with them, I did not treat them with great compassion and kindness, and I still harbored latent resentment toward them for scolding Master and Dafa.

After I found the problem, I corrected my thinking, changed the tone of my speech, and frankly explained why I didn't let them talk more. In the beginning we talked together, but when it was time to send forth righteous thoughts, they walked away or watched us send forth righteous thoughts. Some of them even made sarcastic remarks, but we were not affected inside and we did not ask them to follow along. We also sent forth a thought to remove the evil factors behind them. As we kept getting along and talking with each other, they gradually accepted it easily. Some began to read Zhuan Falun, and they were able to understand the Fa from the perspective of the Fa, and some also started to send forth righteous thoughts with us. Some even took the initiative to come to their homes and ask to communicate with us. At this time, my wife and I would cooperate with each other. Regarding the questions they raised, we would seek Master's Fa, and we would get to know each other from the Fa.

After a period of sharing, except for a few of them who insisted on an evil path, the vast majority of practitioners returned to Dafa cultivation one by one. Once when they had a meeting with members of the 610 Office, when everyone publicly expressed their intention to practice Falun Dafa again, the face of the director of the 610 Office changed, and he was unable to utter a word. Since then, the "Teaching Gang" of the 610 Office has been completely disbanded.

2. Find Our Own Problems When One Was Persecuted

When we face evil persecution, we often only think of the evil's abhorrence. We either compromise out of fear or use improper methods to deal with it and then the evil persecutes us even more. The purpose of this so-called test for Dafa disciples arranged by the old forces is to prevent Dafa disciples from cultivating to perfection. Master does not acknowledge this evil persecution, and even denies the persecution itself. Master is making use of the old forces and using this persecution to build up mighty virtue for Dafa disciples and place sentient beings in their positions. Therefore, when we face persecution, we should not only send forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil factors behind the persecutors, but also look inward to find out what loopholes and attachments we have, and the old forces took advantage of them. This is walking the path arranged by Master, and Master will resolve all tribulations for us.

In 2005, when I was kidnapped and sentenced to prison, one year the local police cooperated with the 610 Office to carry out an evil transformation in the prison. They threatened not to give up if they failed to achieve their goals, and I was also included in the transformation list. At first, I thought: The ‘610 Office’ is too evil. How can I ‘fight’ with them when they come to the prison for ‘transformation’? I told the ‘610’ people, "What kind of organization is '610'? What your behaviors are based on?” I then said to the people from my workplace, “It is fate that we got to know each other, I hope you do not tell me whether to transform or not, otherwise our fate will be broken, and it’s not good for you or your family." The people from my workplace really kept silent.

Later, a deputy director of the Municipal Public Security Bureau came. I said to him, "If you come to do the 'transformation', don't talk about it." He explained, "No, I want to have a heart-to-heart talk with you." I said, "It's okay to talk! But you are a deputy director of the Public Security Bureau, and your duty should be to keep communities safe. Why did you come to the prison to talk to me?" In the end, without saying a few words, he excused himself by saying that he had something to do and slipped away. On the first day, everyone who came to do 'transformation' work was rejected by me one by one. I felt very happy in my heart! When the inmates asked about the situation after I came back, I still told them vividly. After hearing this, the inmates’ leader praised and said, "You Falun Gong practitioners dare to talk to them like this." I felt happy when I heard it.

The evil factor was probably provoked. The next day, the prison guards in charge of Falun Gong took me to a ‘concentration training’ and tried to use corporal punishment to force me to ‘transform’. On the way to the training camp, I was thinking: why are they treating me like this? What are my problems? After thinking about it carefully, I understand: on the one hand, I hide my desire to show off how firm I am; on the other hand, I classify all the people who came to participate in the transformation as "evil" instead of distinguishing their human side and the evil factors behind it. I made a distinction and did not treat them with compassion, so the evil behind them took advantage of the loopholes to persecute me more. At the same time, I also thought: The so-called ‘transformation’ I was undergoing this time was not just to test my belief in the Fa, but to help me get rid of human attachments. Those who come for transformation also listen to the truth in this way. Think about these people who are also beings who came for Dafa, but now they ignorantly follow the evil party to do bad things. They are really pitiful. If Dafa disciples do not save them, they will have no hope at all. Thinking of this, a compassionate heart rose spontaneously, and I wanted to use this opportunity to clarify the truth to them and save those who could be saved.

When I found my attachments, the whole situation changed immediately. The inmates in charge of the training camp openly resisted the prison guards. At this time, the prison doctor also came to tell the prison guards that I had high blood pressure and could not do strenuous tasks. Doing so would cause accidents; the person in charge of the training camp also came together and said: He had fainted before (it was all made up). After hearing this, the prison guard was frightened. I took the opportunity to calmly clarify the truth to the prison guard and told him that it is not good to treat Dafa disciples like this. People should have kind thoughts, distinguish right from wrong, good from evil, and be responsible to themselves and their families. At the same time, I told the guard: from the work unit to the province, from the police station to the labor camp, all kinds of corporal punishment and persecution are useless to me. Unless you beat me to death. Otherwise, any 'political achievements' against me will be in vain. I also believe that it is not your intention to treat me like this. And said to him seriously, "You should give up the idea of 'transforming' me. You can't do this kind of thing, and you might have retribution to lose your police uniform (i.e. job)." Soon he stopped the so-called ‘concentration training’ for me.

In order to resist the evil's persecution, I started a hunger strike. Before the hunger strike, with a kind heart, I went to the instructor of the prison area and two correctional team leaders to explain the reason why I went on the hunger strike. I hope they understand and don't stop me, the trainer shed tears, and one of the correctional captains said to me, “I respect your choice, if you think it’s not good, you can eat something, we won’t report it.” I said, “Dafa disciples cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, how can I deceive myself!” Then I wrote a letter to the warden, exposing that the so-called "transformation" in prisons by the 610 Office was illegal. My hunger strike was not aimed at the prison, but at the persecution of Falun Gong. Without legal assistance, I could only use my precious life to defend Falun Gong. At the same time, I also wrote a letter to the 610 Office, exposing their illegal and criminal acts of depriving citizens of their right to believe in violation of the Constitution and the Prison Law. After I went on a hunger strike for three days, the so-called 'transformation' persecution was lifted.

3. Looking Inward Is Letting Go of the Selfishness

When I discuss with fellow practitioners, the fellow practitioners would say enviously, it’s great that all of your family are practicing Dafa, and there won't be any conflicts. I said: Everyone has different attachments, the tests they pass are different, and the performance is also different. When you encounter conflicts outside, if someone kicks you or scolds you, you will just laugh it off, because you will think that you are a cultivator and will not care about ordinary people. But it’s different when facing fellow practitioners and family members. At that time, you won’t think like this at all. You will think of her as your relative and practitioner, and when you encounter conflicts, you will find the law that suits your attachments to protect yourself. Accusing the other party of doing things not complying with Dafa, I only thought about myself at that time, and I would not think about other people's feelings. If you can let go of your ego and look inward at yourself, the conflict may be resolved.

I have been very stubborn since I was a child, and I am obsessed with what I believe in, and I have strong self-esteem. But I used to be busy with my work and career, and my wife was in charge of everything. She had the final say, and I was very happy. After practicing Dafa, it was the other way around. I thought I had learned more about the Fa than her, had a better understanding than her, and was quicker in doing things than her, so I had to make decisions about Dafa matters. Although I have changed a lot after practicing Dafa, I always remind myself when facing outsiders, so I seldom have conflicts with others. But at home, my wife and I often argue over a trivial matter. At first, I didn't take it seriously, thinking that the quarrel between the husband and wife was nothing, but after looking inward, I realized that it was actually an attachment to my self-esteem, which was the human attachment that I wanted to get rid of.

Once, my wife and I went to the outskirts of the city to visit a fellow practitioner who was in sickness karma. We had an argument over taking the bus. When changing buses, she said she would take this bus, and she would take this bus every time she went to fellow practitioners. But I insisted that taking this bus is for going to the suburbs, and there is less traffic, so it is faster to take another bus to transfer to a certain bus. During the dispute, she said angrily, “Then each of us will go our own way.” Suddenly Master's words in Hong Yin III "Who Is right, Who Is Wrong", "He is right and I am wrong. What is to dispute?" entered my mind. I said, “I was wrong, just do as you said.” As a result, it took us nearly two hours to reach the fellow practitioner's home. When I came back and waited for the bus, I waited for a long time but did not see the bus she said she wanted to take. Seeing that she was in a hurry, I said, “Can we take a certain bus for one-stop, then transfer to a certain bus to a certain station, and then if we transfer to a certain bus, they all go to the urban area, so it will be faster.” She said okay! As a result, the time to come back was half an hour less than the time to go. After this incident, my wife and I both looked inward and let go of our self-notions. In the future, we will cooperate more tacitly in doing Dafa matters. When there is a problem, we all talk about our own problems, instead of blaming each other, we only encourage each other.

One day, a few fellow practitioners came to my house suddenly and said, “A practitioner hit another practitioner (some said that they only pretend to do it but have not done it)”. I said, “Good fight.” The fellow practitioners said together, “How can you say this? How can a practitioner beat someone?” I said that because we are all practitioners, seeing something that should not have happened, shouldn't we look for our own problems? After the discussions, everyone agreed that we should look inward at our own problems.

The next day, the fellow practitioner suddenly asked my wife and me to go to her home. Along the way, I told my wife, “Today the fellow practitioner is going to help me get rid of my attachments.” Sure enough, as soon as we entered the house, fellow practitioners said in an admonishing tone, "You have cultivated in vain. You can't tell right from wrong. He doesn't behave like a cultivator. Why do you still want to protect him?" Seeing her on fire, my wife and I listened to her quietly without saying a word, and I didn't want to explain anything. We listened to her for nearly an hour before we stopped. Then I said, “What else?” She said, “That is all.” I said, “Thank you for your criticism.” So, my wife and I said goodbye and went home. On the way home, I told my wife that what she said today was very unpleasant, but I was not moved at all. I felt a big stone was removed from my body, and I felt very relaxed.

In practice, I realized that Master said in Hong Yin III "Who Is right, Who Is Wrong", "He is right and I am wrong. What is to dispute?" It is not a slogan, but a measure of the realm of a cultivator, and we must constantly practice it. If you can think that it is your fault when you encounter anything, and treat it with a peaceful mind, the conflict will be resolved in time, and you will really feel that "The shade of willows, the blooms of flowers, a place to rest my head".

4. Looking Inward to Form a Mechanism in Cultivation

Master said in Zhuan Falun, “I’ll tell you a truth: the whole process of cultivation is a process of constantly getting rid of human attachments.” I realized that to get rid of human attachments, it is like in Master's poem in Hong Yin III "Who Is right, Who Is Wrong", "He is right and I am wrong. What is to dispute?" Unreservedly looking inward to find attachments can form a mechanism in cultivation. That is to say, in life, when there are conflicts in getting along with others when encountering various tribulations, and encountering any big or small things, even if it is a fall, kicking a stone, seeing other people have conflicts, etc., Don't regard it as accidental, but look inside yourself, and let go of any attachments.

A fellow practitioner said, “I also want to look inward, but I cannot find attachments after searching!” I realized that whether we find something or not, we have to look inward. Looking inward does not mean we have to find an attachment. Master said in Zhuan Falun, “The cultivation is up to you, gong is up to the master." Without Master, it is difficult for us to move forward. What Master looks at is our upward heart. In the end, Master helped us get rid of the bad substance attached to us. Of course, if you cannot find it for a while, do not be attached to it. Just study the Fa and study more Fa. Sometimes Master will give hints in various ways, or the problems you encounter will be resolved quietly.

For a while, I had symptoms of nose bleeds, once a day at first, and then several times a day, such as when I was sleeping, meditating and doing exercises, walking, etc. When I blocked my nose, sometimes the blood flowed into my mouth. If I blocked one side of my nose, it flows to the other side. I kept sending forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil interference, studied the Fa, and kept looking inward for problems. The effect is very little, and actually flows more heavily. Then I thought, just let it flow! Master said in Lecture Given at the Conference in Sydney, “With Master and the Way by my side, what is there to fear?” I didn't care anymore, and I studied the Fa, practiced the exercises, sent forth righteous thoughts, and did what I should do as usual.

One day, I turned on the computer to watch NTDTV's "Forbidden News in China" program, and suddenly felt severe pain in the head. At this moment, I realized that the cause of the nose bleeds was that I was too obsessed with changes in the social situation of ordinary people. Since the persecution started, I almost stopped watching TV, and I became less and less interested in ordinary people's things. I was busy making truth-clarification materials all day long, so I basically just uploaded and downloaded materials on Minghui website. In recent years, we have stopped printing truth-clarification materials and instead made truth-clarifying U disks, searched and downloaded truth-clarification materials online, and gradually began to pay attention to changes in international and domestic situations, especially the U.S. election. It became increasingly difficult to control myself. It took up more and more of my time and became a powerful attachment. I also consoled myself: all I watched was the media run by Dafa disciples, and nothing is wrong! I did not think it was aimed at clarifying the truth to ordinary people and that it was talking about issues that ordinary people care about!

The headache also subsided when I thought that this might be the cause of my nose bleed. No more nosebleeds from the next day. In the future, apart from watching some necessary videos and some major news, I seldom watch other things, and my mind also calms down.

The purpose of looking inward is to constantly cultivate oneself, let go of selfishness, constantly assimilate to Dafa, and finally become an enlightened being who is selfless, others first, all for others, enlightened being.

Chinese version: https://www.zhengjian.org/node/279803