PureInsight | December 13, 2024
[PureInsight.org] Master said in On Dafa (Lunyu), "While people often claim that their scientific pursuits are to “improve quality of life,” it is technological competition that drives them. And in most cases they have come about only after people have pushed out the divine and abandoned moral codes meant to ensure self-restraint. It was for these reasons that civilizations of the past many times met with destruction."
At my current level of understanding, "restraint" and "indulgence" are two entirely different concepts. Life is created by Fa. Therefore, life must be restrained by Fa, meaning one should measure himself/herself against the standards of Fa. Since Fa exists at different levels; the standards of restraint that Fa imposes on each life are also different. If a person indulges himself/herself without principles, it means that this life is attempting to break free from Fa's restraint, seeking to "let go" of himself/herself.
People might feel the darkness by walking at night; they will lose their way without light. A life is the same—without the restraint of Fa; one will become lost among humans and ultimately be destroyed here. Restraining one’s words and actions is to suppress demonic nature, while indulging the self-attachment is to indulge demonic nature. These are two different paths. What kind of life can actively restrain himself/herself? A life that has obtained Fa and understands that one’s existence in this world is to return home. Such a life can proactively restrain himself/herself using Fa, measure himself/herself against Fa, and correct himself/herself.
God created humans, and everything about humans is in God’s hands. God knows perfectly well how pure or polluted a life is. Just as no parent wishes for their child to become corrupt and filthy, but hopes for their child to grow better and purer, so does the God who created us. He desires for life to become purer, worthy of returning to its innate, pure, and beautiful home.
Yet, lives lost in delusion are polluted by the secular world and hindered by their own notions, unable to remember their original home or find the way back. They are like abandoned children, unable to find their parents, unable to find home, wandering helplessly in the streets, lost and hopeless.
Reflecting on my cultivation status, I realize that I don't like being controlled by others. I don't want to listen to others' advice and don't want to do things I dislike. In my heart, I know that some of these behaviors don't align with Fa. But human notions stand in the way which makes me reluctant to change. I feel that restraining myself would be uncomfortable, restrictive, and uneasy. I enjoy relaxing and freeing myself because I feel more comfortable. Master said in Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference, "Dafa cultivation can change them, but that is done one layer at a time, and until that process reaches the surface, the person will still be that way. Only those who are diligent are able to keep their bad tendencies in check. ."
By reflecting on Master's lectures, I understand that the ability to actively restrain one's words and actions is to actively assimilate with Fa. Restraint is an external form; but the real transformation occurs in another dimension, where the cultivated side becomes increasingly aligned with the characteristics of the universe. Both the body and mind become purified. Indulging oneself, on the other hand, is a deviation from Fa. Driven by human notions, one breaks free from the boundaries set by the divine, much like the scene in Journey to the West, where Sun Wukong drew a protective circle and repeatedly warned Tang Sanzang, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing not to step out of it. Yet, they ignored Sun Wukong's warning. They were tempted and deceived by demons, and stepped out of the safe zone.
Humans are the same—once they lose the basic principles of being human, they don’t deserve to be human. If Dafa disciples indulge in the human preferences, magnifying their attachments and stubbornly holding on to them, that is not the behavior of true Dafa disciples. Gradually, like boiling frogs, they are abandoned by the divine by losing their opportunity to cultivate, and lose hope of returning home.
Chinese version: https://www.zhengjian.org/node/292367
