Hongzhi Li
May 23, 1999 ~ Toronto, Canada
Greetings everyone! The break may have been a little too short. Some of you may have just finished lunch, and some have not yet returned to the conference hall. I heard that some students were leaving a little after 4 pm, so we resumed the conference a little bit early.
It seems as though we have formed a custom that prior to the close of each conference Master1 is asked to answer questions. Today I am reminding all of you that often there may be this kind of conference in different areas, yet it is not possible for me to attend each one of them. I am telling you this ahead of time. Sometimes you invite me, but I may not be able to attend. Since the Fa has already been taught to everyone, in reality as long as you practice cultivation, you will know the answers to all the questions that I answer. Often the majority of the questions are raised either by new students or by those who are “stuck” at a level while undergoing tribulations. In my view, as long as you make a concerted effort to cultivate, any problem can be resolved and you will eventually understand all those things that for a while you did not understand. The experience-sharing conference we are having here today was initiated and organized by students because cultivation is something you do yourselves—I have never been involved in any matters of form. Especially since many students are not able to see me and I have to be responsible for you, I am telling you all that you should take the Fa as the teacher. If you read the book more and study the Fa more, any problem can be resolved. (Applause) Since I am here today, though, I will answer your questions.
Let me make a request first. Some of you are new students attending an experience-sharing conference for the first time, so you may have many questions. In fact, the answers to your questions are all written in the book(s). It isn’t easy for students to hold a conference and have me see students at conferences. In addition, time is limited. The questions you [new students] raise are bound to be at the very beginning level. Some questions may be due to the fact that you haven’t yet understood Falun Dafa at all. Your questions will be answered if you read the book(s). Since time is precious I will address only the issues that you have encountered in cultivation. Additionally, some of you pay a lot of attention to ordinary human society and may want to raise questions about it or something else. I don’t think you should raise those because I don’t deal with the matters of ordinary human society whatsoever. You have seen clearly that right now I’m responsible only for cultivators. I’m not involved in anything other than cultivation and I won’t answer questions outside the scope of cultivation. All right, then, let me begin to answer your questions.
Student: A student has been undergoing tribulations for a long period of time and still can’t get over them. Should we point it out to him or should we let him understand it himself through studying the Fa?
Master: Since you have found the cause that prevented him from moving forward, why don’t you point it out to him? It shouldn’t be a problem if you tell him kindly. Is it because you are a little afraid of him getting upset with you? Yet, wouldn’t the bad attitude of that person be a perfect chance for you to cultivate yourself? It doesn’t matter even if he didn’t understand what you said—shouldn’t this emotion (qing) of an everyday person be given up? You should tell him if you see a problem. Some people just can’t move forward after being stuck at a certain level. The longer he lingers at that level, the less he reads the book, and the more he forgets to move upward diligently. Then the larger this test or tribulation grows, the more likely that he will waver to the point that he ultimately can’t cultivate anymore. This kind of problem will always be there from the beginning to the end. Cultivation is a very serious matter. It can’t be done carelessly in the slightest. You can never arrive at a level unless you meet the standard for that level. As an average, everyday person you want to reach Consummation and to be as holy as a great enlightened being, but how could that be possible if you don’t have a clear understanding of this matter and can’t even realize its importance?
Student: There are many beautiful illustrations in the book Hong Yin. According to Zhuan Falun the circle around a Buddha’s body represents that Buddha’s status. What then does a circle around a Buddha’s head represent? Why is there more than one circle around a Buddha’s head and body?
Master: The Buddha images you have seen in temples or on ancient murals often are the works of everyday people. Yet, some of the images are very close to reality, and they more or less portray the image of a Buddha or a God. Why is that so? You all know that in modern society the vast majority of people have been molded by modern ideology, and they don’t believe in anything that hasn’t been detected by the sciences. As such, they have trapped themselves in a sealed state, so they are less and less likely to see the real situations that science has not been able to discover. Yet those supernormal phenomena may very well reveal themselves. Whenever they appear or are shown to the public, often they are regarded as unknown phenomena or natural phenomena, or as inexplicable, and that’s the end of the story. They dare not touch them, let alone look into them. Should someone look into them, those who consider themselves a part of the established sciences will stand up and oppose it, which makes people more reluctant to believe in it.
As you know, whether it’s Catholicism, Christianity, or Buddhism, at its peak almost every member of society believed in it. When everyone believed in the existence of gods, one result was that the mentality of atheism was overcome, and it was easy for human beings to see the true appearance of the universe and the images of gods. This is a principle of the universe: Belief comes before seeing. The more you disbelieve, the less it will let you see. This in fact is caused by your own unrighteous mind. In some very old churches, and particularly in the palaces in Paris I saw some paintings with images of heavenly paradises and divine beings, which truly looked very close to reality, very much like the real thing. This is also true with the paintings of Buddha images in old Chinese temples. [You may be thinking,] “How could human beings paint something like that? How could human beings know that Buddhas looked like that?” In the era when everyone believed in divine beings, many people were able to see them. Those who could see were people of various professions, including artists.
Among the Dafa practitioners sitting here today there are painters, sculptors, and people with various specialties. As soon as an artist sees an image for a split second, he can draw what he sees. During the peak of religions, there were many devoted religious followers who were also artists, so they were able to capture these types of images. As to the paintings of Buddhas found in the Far East, how could people know that was what Buddhas looked like? How could they know that Buddhas wore a yellow kasaya2 and had blue hair? The answer is that some people were able to see that. Until you reach that level, you won’t be shown the true images. The images people saw were normally what they could see from each of their levels. Say, for example, one person saw heavenly paradises and deities. And another person saw deities and heavenly paradises. Yet the images they saw are very likely not the same. That is to say, none of you are at the same level. None of you sitting here are at the same realm of mind. The truth of the universe is very complicated. The different sizes of particles result in different dimensions; a small difference makes it another level of particle. The dividing lines between different realms and levels are also very complicated; a small breakthrough will push it to a different level. So when you see a Buddha before you reach the level of a Buddha, what he reveals to you are only images that you can see from your level.
What does the halo behind the body of a Buddha mean? A Buddha, in fact, has a huge energy field around his body. When I talked about the Placement of the Mysterious Pass (xuanguan shewei), I explained its origin and development. In the beginning it takes the form of a Mysterious Pass. Later on, upon returning to its position, the Mysterious Pass gradually expands itself inside the human body and grows along with the growth of the Indestructible Diamond Body. Finally, when that Buddha-body—meaning the divine body that he has cultivated—grows as big as his own physical body, the Mysterious Pass will have extended outside his body. At the same time, it covers an area slightly larger than his body. I call it the paradise of a Buddha, his own paradise, which is very rich, filled with everything, and is able to provide whatever he wants. Then think about it, everyone: If he gets whatever he wants, the scenes he manifests have to be grand, majestic, and magnificent beyond description. He has it all, from the microcosm to the macrocosm. So the images always look very resplendent, dazzling, and beautiful when you see them. Some of you have seen the drawing of something like a boat behind a Buddha statue (this type of image is shown behind the statue of a standing Buddha). In fact what you have seen is the image of a Buddha’s status. But if you don’t reach the level of Tathagata, you can’t completely see the true image of a Buddha. This will be all you can see.
The real form of existence of this field can’t be drawn by human beings using a paintbrush, as human beings don’t have such colors. All colors in this world are made of molecular particles. Everything of this human dimension is made of molecular particles, and so are the colors of the pigments of this world. Yet the colors of the pigments of the Buddhas’ dimensions are made of more microscopic particles. Without those colors it’s impossible to draw them. When human beings see it they think: “Wow, this is marvelous! This scene is so marvelous!” They usually feel that way. What then does the halo around a Buddha’s head represent? It actually symbolizes the wisdom of a Buddha or a God; it radiates from the wisdom in their minds. This mind I am talking about is a totally different concept from the brain that human beings talk about, because the mind I speak of is the mind of your true self. It constitutes the real source of your thoughts and intentions. A human brain, on the other hand, is nothing more than the physical part of your entire being at this human level. It’s most shallow and totally different from the human mind. Yet when a person is expressing something, his thoughts are transmitted through his human brain. Of course there are many other forms of manifestation of a Buddha; they are quite numerous.
Student: Upon seeing the attachments of other students, I often think that they will come to realize and correct them themselves after a while. Yet if the situation persists, can it create a negative impact on the improvement of practitioners as a whole?
Master: It has no negative impact on the cultivation of other people. This is only his personal situation. But let me give you an example: When Master sees the attachments of a person, he purposely exposes them to you and lets you see them so that you can point them out to that person. Will you then tell him about them? Since every one of you is cultivating Zhen, Shan, Ren, you should be a good person in every circumstance. If you see his shortcomings and see when he can’t move upward, why not point them out to him kindly? Of course, there are different states at different levels of cultivation. Students will all have different manifestations at different levels. Handle each specific situation as you see fit.
Student: I dream a lot, but I sometimes can’t determine whether my dreams are hints from Teacher, events from past lives, future events, or scenes from other dimensions.
Master: As to dreams, I have explained them very clearly. In the past, no one could clearly explain what dreams were, so I made a special effort to explain this subject to you. A human being has various souls, and his being itself also has various living entities of various forms. It’s extremely complicated, so no one talks about it. But when the following situation occurs it’s not a dream: When the superficial consciousness of your flesh body is unconscious, at rest, or in the state of tranquility in meditation, you see a scene from another dimension, or you are indeed in touch with lives from another dimension. This experience is extremely real. It is not a dream, but a real experience. The thought-karma in your mind or your various notions may also reflect different things into your mind while you are asleep. That isn’t something from your main consciousness (zhu yishi), so there is no need to deal with it.
Student: How can someone with no education understand Falun Dafa thoroughly? Can he cultivate to Consummation?
Master: People without any education can certainly understand Dafa. There are many examples of this in China. Many elderly Chinese experienced very poor living conditions during their childhood. They couldn’t afford schooling, so many are illiterate. I found that these people haven’t at all fallen behind during the cultivation process, and have even cultivated very well. Especially during the course of cultivation, their pure minds can do wonders when they read Dafa books. Their steadfast faith in the Fa even wins the admiration of the Buddhas, Daos, and Gods that are behind the content of Dafa. There have been many miracles of this kind.
Let’s say, for example, there is a person who can’t read, and yet he sees that all other practitioners are moving forward, reading the books, or even memorizing the Fa. He thinks, “I can’t even read a word. What can I do?” He’s deeply worried. His righteous thoughts are genuinely from his true heart. Many people in this situation study very hard and find that they are gradually able to read. There have been many examples of this. One student who was not able to read was very anxious. Over and over again, he wondered, “What should I do?” He fell asleep with his head on top of the book. While half asleep and half awake he found that all the characters in the book turned golden and each word flew into his brain. After he woke up, he could read the entire book, and yet he had never had any schooling. A person who didn’t even know how to write his name could now read every word in Zhuan Falun. This phenomenon is quite common, yet it can’t be obtained through pursuit. You cannot think that since this kind of thing has happened, you can also try it. In that case you will do this with intention or an attachment. In his case, he wasn’t thinking about gaining anything. He was just truly worried about not being able to obtain the Fa. His heart was different. That’s why I said that when you study the Fa with a genuine and righteous mind, your determination is remarkable. Even gods will think that your determination is really remarkable, and thus miracles can happen.
Of course, the English version of Zhuan Falun has the same effect [as the Chinese]. And this is true not only of the English translation; the same holds true for all the versions in other languages. It’s just that this Fa hasn’t been more widely recognized in other nations, so a cultivation environment hasn’t developed like the one now in China. People in China have a relatively deep understanding of Dafa, so a cultivation environment has formed in which they can be driven to move upward.
Student: Is it necessary for a person to give up his religion before he can practice Falun Dafa?
Master: As to religions, I have talked about this subject many times. I don’t object to your practicing any religion. Ours is not an institutional religion, so don’t regard us as such. But I’m also telling you a principle: Cultivation is a very serious matter. Practicing a religion is cultivation. It’s absolutely cultivation. If you want to cultivate this and cultivate that at the same time, then what exactly are you really cultivating? You can’t achieve Consummation in a cultivation way because you didn’t practice only one cultivation way. So, I am telling all of you that it’s up to you to choose what to cultivate. But, I’m also telling you that you must follow only one cultivation way. Only by following one cultivation way can you achieve Consummation; otherwise, you can never achieve Consummation. That’s all I will say on this.
Since the topic of religion has come up, I would like to say a few more words. There may be reporters here who have been interested in this topic. I have said that we aren’t an institutional religion. The conference we’re having here was solely initiated and organized voluntarily by the students. Since they have been doing the exercises together and are all local students here in Canada, they just wanted to share their experiences with each other. Practitioners in other places have done the same thing. All have volunteered to do what they could. Some went to rent a meeting hall; some were responsible for gathering [experience sharing] papers; some did this and others did that—that was how this conference was put together. Dafa does not resemble an institutional religion in form.
An institutional religion has a place of worship or, if it doesn’t have a place of worship, it has some kind of setting, locale, or office. We don’t have any of these. Every one of us is a member of society and has a job; we are doing what we are supposed to do. It’s just that we study, cultivate, and practice the exercises in our spare time. We are all like that, so it isn’t even close to being an institutional religion. We have neither worship services nor religious precepts, like those in Buddhism. In institutional religions, there are certain rules that you must follow, and if you don’t follow those rules, that is not acceptable. We have none of those things here. You may come and go as you wish, and no one manages you or restricts you. The responsibilities assumed toward students practicing cultivation are not reflected in this dimension of everyday people. So why bother being attached to the formalities of everyday people? Dafa has no formalities, so how can you call it an institutional religion? We don’t have a member register containing names and addresses. We don’t have that. Instead, some practitioners serve others voluntarily. For example, a student will introduce himself and say that whoever wants to learn the exercises may go to him. He wants to do something for others, and he does it all voluntarily. Still, some people may not understand and will call it religious. To those people, everything is heresy or a cult except for the religions widely acknowledged in the past. So, they say you’re part of a cult. What is a cult? Ours isn’t religious in form, let alone cultish. Everyone knows that a cult has the following traits: They accumulate wealth by unfair means, cheat people, or lead people to perform evil deeds. They aren’t righteous; these are evil. What we do, by contrast, is ask all of you to cultivate yourself and to be kind. You should be considerate of others when you do things and do your job well wherever you work. You should be a good person in the minds of others. When I ask you to do all these things, is that cultish? I haven’t asked you to do anything other than these things. I have only asked all of you to do better, to be a good person, or an even better person. I ask you to be even better than a good ordinary person. You will eventually become an extraordinary person, and will reach Consummation.
Student: I am Catholic and always feel that my prayers get a response. Can I cultivate Falun Dafa and at the same time continue to pray?
Master: I have the same comment: You must practice a single cultivation way. No matter what practice you choose to cultivate in, I won’t interfere; you may cultivate in whatever you want. But I advise you that if you want to cultivate, you have to choose a single cultivation way. You can’t follow one thing and another at the same time. I am telling you this to be responsible towards you. If you think that you can go to heaven by following the Roman Catholic Church, then go ahead. I have no objection. On the other hand, if you think you can reach Consummation by cultivating in Falun Dafa, then go ahead and cultivate. This is how I look at the matter. There isn’t any way to force someone to do this or that. It doesn’t work if in your mind you don’t want to do it, not even by physically locking you there and forcing you to do it. What’s the use if your mind isn’t there? So formalities, then, are not something I care about. It only works when you yourself want to do it.
By the way, a reporter once asked me a question, “Do you believe that what you are doing is the most virtuous thing in the world?” I said, “I do believe that what I am doing is the most virtuous thing!” (Applause) I don’t collect even a penny from you, but only give of myself for you. I’m certainly doing the most virtuous thing! And I do things for your benefit, so that you can truly achieve spiritual perfection. Without a doubt I’m doing the most virtuous thing. I would also like to take this opportunity to tell you that I don’t oppose any religion, and particularly those authentic and upright ones such as Catholicism, Christianity, and Judaism. I have never opposed such religions, including Buddhism. But consider this: Can people still achieve spiritual perfection through those religions? Who in those religions could enable you to achieve that? This is a real concern. I think it’s a good idea to reflect on this, for the sake of your eternal life. I’m not afraid to say that if you truly practice Falun Dafa, I can enable you to achieve spiritual perfection. If you are in a different circumstance or are part of some religion, you can ask the priest or the founder of that religion this question: Can you enable me to achieve spiritual perfection? And if they can answer in the affirmative, then feel free to do their practice if you choose. That’s all I would like to say on this.
Student: Is there a relationship between emotion and yuan3? It’s possible to rise above and beyond emotion, but is it possible to rise above and beyond yuan?
Master: Emotion and yuan are two different things, and are two completely different concepts. As to emotion, I’ve already made it very clear. What do human beings live for? They live only for emotion. No matter what you like and prefer today, your happiness, anger, grief, or joy, what you like doing or hate doing, how you want one job and don’t want this other job, how you like someone but dislike another, how you love someone but don’t love another, or how you want one thing but don’t want another—all of your wishes are from your emotion. So, human beings are living solely for the sake of emotion. If you want to cultivate, you have to rise above and beyond this emotion. If you can’t leave emotion behind, then you live within emotion. Emotion is presented in many ways in ordinary human beings. Whatever you are attached to, whatever you like are all attachments that you can’t give up.
Now let’s talk about “yuan.” Some people have walked in here today. I’ll treat you as a human being, regardless of the purpose that brought you here—reporting news, obtaining the Fa, getting some information, or fishing for news. Since you’ve walked in here, I’ll treat you as a human being. It’s only that there are different types of work. Even if you’re a spy, you still have a human heart, so I will treat you as an ordinary person. The type of work you do doesn’t matter. All of the work in human society is nothing more than the work of ordinary people. You were able to walk in here and listen to my teaching of the Fa, and you have specially heard the Buddha Fa. Isn’t this due to yuan? I hope you will value this. Of course, when speaking of yuan in actual detail, there are many different types and aspects, because yuan is one type of preformed relationship. For example, in a previous life, this person owed another person something, or committed a bad deed. In the next life the two must meet again; he has to pay back what he owes. This is a type of yuan of resentment. Yet if you treated him very well in the previous life, and he swore to do whatever it takes, even becoming your beast of burden, in order to repay you in the next life, he will then perhaps become your beast of burden in the next life. She might become your wife, or he might become your husband. Or perhaps he becomes the person who helps you greatly. This is another kind of relationship, called yuan of gratitude. The yuan connected with Dafa may very well be a nobler yuan. Perhaps we were at one time relatives or good friends among everyday people. Any of these may have brought about the predestined relationship so that we could fulfill this yuan in the future. This is the situation. Nonetheless, I hope you don’t harm Dafa. That can bring about the worst kind of yuan. You will never be able to pay it off, and yet you must pay for it forever.
Student: I’ve done pretty well when I have encountered bigger trials, but I’m scared of some small animals, such as cats and dogs, and even butterflies and mosquitoes.
Master: You are a little timid, then. Being timid is in fact a kind of attachment, which was created by your notions. For example, maybe you disliked bugs when you were little. You didn’t like them and even felt they were filthy when you saw them. This mentality formed gradually, until finally you didn’t want to touch them or go near them. You were afraid of bringing them close to you. Slowly, you may have become more and more afraid. This is brought about by a human, postnatally-formed mentality. In fact, it manifests as a type of attachment. Yet this kind of attachment differs from other kinds. When you have a clear idea of what you want and how you want to get it, it reflects a kind of postnatally-formed mentality.
Student: In my dreams, I am always saving people. My understanding is that I am to promote the Fa so as to have more people obtain the Fa.
Master: This is like what I just said about yuan. It may relate to yuan that your own life established in various dimensions. Yet, this is not directly related to your cultivation and improvement. Just hold on to Dafa firmly and cultivate. No matter what you encounter, what you see or what you dream about, just stand solidly on Dafa. All of the things you encountered, saw, or dreamed of are nothing more than manifestations of a state of your cultivation. For example, it is just like someone who has a lot of supernatural abilities, yet he doesn’t even want to try them or check them out. He doesn’t want to use them even once. He doesn’t feel that he has that desire.
Student: Is it true that Buddhas, Daos and Gods of various levels follow the cosmic changes when handling their affairs?
Master: The wishes of the great high-level gods are the cosmic climate. The actions of all the gods are the specific manifestations of that cosmic climate. Those gods are all upholding the will of heaven. Not a single thing that happens in ordinary human society is coincidental, so regardless of how strong human desire is, or what people want to do, or how well they have planned something, they just can’t achieve it. A nation, a country, or even its president may have planned things very well, but usually they find their capability falls short of fulfilling their wishes. As for a human being, regardless of what you have planned, what you want to do, or what you are afraid of, you will get what you are supposed to, and will not get what you are not supposed to. In my view, everything has been predetermined. Human beings are only carrying out their responsibilities according to what was predetermined. Then the next question is: Since it is preset, shouldn’t we just go with the flow then? A human being is still a human being. Because he’s within the maze, he doesn’t believe it. He will still vie and compete. He will do whatever he wishes, and he will incur karma from these things.
Who can guarantee that he will hold an official position for life, even in the netherworld? Many people use their authority to do numerous good deeds in their lifetimes. The existence of a life isn’t for the sake of being a human being, so your life won’t cease to exist just because your human flesh body has died. Thus, your life still continues. For that reason, those human beings who are relatively wise and truly intelligent will take advantage of their favorable opportunities to create even better conditions for their future lives. In other words, they will do many good deeds. On the other hand, there are still others who take advantage of the power they have to do bad deeds. This is the only thing a human being can do. That is, whenever something happens, what you do or whether you do the right or wrong thing is your own choice. So this kind of thing exists, and human beings behave differently on this matter.
Student: Amending means searching one’s inner self. Do formation, stasis, and degeneration mean automatic repair?
Master: The issue of formation, stasis, degeneration, and repair has nothing to do with your individual cultivation. To cultivate is to search your inner self and discover your shortcomings, attachments and bad thoughts, as well as find ways to cultivate better and to get rid of your bad thoughts. This is cultivation through searching inside yourself. Formation, stasis, and degeneration is a pattern that occurs in the universe, and when something that becomes no good needs to be fixed, that is a matter which concerns the Fa, rather than personal cultivation.
Student: Since we don’t know the principles of higher levels after reaching Consummation, can we drop down again by committing wrongdoing?
Master: Everyone is laughing. In other words, you are still imagining matters of enlightened beings with human thoughts. You will never be able to understand it that way, nor is it possible. After a person achieves Consummation, he has the mind of a god, not that of a human being. His way of thinking and starting point for thinking are completely different from those of a human being. Besides that, the environment and realm he is in are also different, completely not the same thing. The concept of not understanding the principles does not exist, because you can’t reach that level if you don’t understand the principles of that level. Why is that? Do you know why you are told to read the Fa more and to read the book more during your cultivation? When you reach a certain level, you have to know the principles of that level and the Fa of that level so that you can be at that level. Yet because your human body is still practicing cultivation you will certainly have human thoughts. It’s not permitted to let a human mind know so many principles of the Fa, so your human side is not allowed to know so much about your comprehension of the Fa during cultivation.
In Zhuan Falun, I am teaching the Fa to you in only a general sense in order to awaken your true consciousness. How could human beings be allowed to know the real Fa? So during your cultivation you can only feel that you suddenly understand a situation, or that you suddenly understand a principle, but you usually can’t explain it in human language. As soon as you say it, it’s not the same thing anymore. But whenever you understand that principle, you are indeed at that level. You are allowed to understand only generally about the principle, a simplified and concise tiny piece. If a person were allowed to know a specific, enormous principle in its entirety, wouldn’t the human side of that person be at the level of a Buddha? How could that be allowed?! It can’t be allowed. You are still cultivating and you have human attachments to get rid of, so it can’t be made known to you. There is only so much that you are allowed to know, but it’s also a manifestation of your improvement. So whichever level you have cultivated to, you will know the principles of that level. At the split second when the part of you that has completed cultivation is separated from you, it has already understood all the principles of that level.
Student: As the tides are sifting the sand and people are undergoing great tests and tribulations, some may drop away or give up. At those times, should we help them through or leave them to deal with it themselves?
Master: Cultivation is just like the tides sifting the sand from the gold. Those who can’t endure may be sifted out. What remains is the shining gold, the real gold that can truly achieve Consummation. It’s just that these are fewer. Cultivation is a serious matter, so while going through trials and tribulations a person absolutely can’t be careless at a critical moment. It’s most important to see what step he takes next and how he comprehends them. Since you have seen it, if you can help him, then help. It’s okay to tell him and wake him up. Of course, in cultivation, it’s preset as to how he should handle each trial, how he should deal with each tribulation, and how he should get rid of each attachment. If he misses that opportunity, it’s normally very difficult to get it back, especially at a critical juncture determining whether or not he can achieve Consummation. If someone doesn’t pass significant trials, he will then really lose this kind of good opportunity. Perhaps he will have another chance, but I can only say “perhaps.” Only by studying the Fa very thoroughly and building a very solid foundation can it help you pass that trial. It’s not something you can mentally prepare for, or something that will turn out well if you simply want it to.
Student: Whenever I see you or watch your lectures I become teary eyed. Some people find this strange. How should I explain it to them?
Master: You don’t need to explain because you don’t need to show your cultivation to others. In the state of cultivation, you cultivate yourself, and you yourself are improving. As for these kinds of tears, many of you have in fact gone through this stage. Most of you have gone through this, so you aren’t the only one who has experienced it. Some people have waited lifetime after lifetime to obtain this Fa. After suffering so much and experiencing all kinds of hardships, they have finally found this Fa. Think about it, everyone: What a feeling that is! A human being has a side that understands and also a side that does not. The most superficial side of a human being is lost and unenlightened, yet the side existing in another dimension is extremely aware. A human being has done things that are either good or bad. The assessment made of him and his karmic retribution is absolutely fair. You may say that you are unaware, but you are unaware of it only on the surface level, because you have dropped down into ignorance. That’s why you are unaware, but you also have the side that is aware.
Student: Some people are very enthusiastic about spreading the Fa, while others are not. Why the difference?
Master: Some people just don’t have the desire to do it. It’s not that they can’t cultivate; in fact, they may have cultivated very well. It’s just that they don’t have the enthusiasm to do it. There are many of these people.
On the other hand, there are people who have the desire and want to do good things for others. These people are not a minority. It has nothing to do with your ability to practice cultivation or to achieve Consummation. Yet I think that because practitioners must think about others, when you have received the greatest thing, you want to tell others so that more people can be saved. Often this is the case. In addition, sometimes it may be that you want to fulfill a promise or search for friends and relatives from a number of your previous lives so they can obtain the Fa.
Student: Will those who don’t believe in the Fa realize someday that they missed this opportunity?
Master: They may or may not have that opportunity, because historically no one has ever paid attention to those who have been eliminated. Yet those who didn’t cultivate well, or those who didn’t practice it diligently at first but later began to make progress diligently will feel sorry about that. They will have the opportunity to regret it.
Student: For many years I have been waiting for this Dafa. I can’t help but ask, “Why was it arranged for me to obtain the Fa so late?”
Master: It may be decided after completely evaluating a person, or it may be due to another reason. When the Fa was being transmitted, we didn’t use any media or publicity to advertise it. I haven’t taken that path. I didn’t do so because I have seen so many bogus and crooked things praising themselves in ads. As such, people won’t pay attention to the real thing, thinking that you, too, are swindling. Praising oneself as do those who appear in ads would be treating Dafa too casually, so we never took that path in order to maintain the seriousness of Dafa as much as possible. Some people may have obtained the Fa late because of that. No matter what, you have obtained the Fa, so you shouldn’t think much about that. Just set your mind at ease and cultivate.
There was a saying in ancient China that one who learns the Dao at sunrise can die at sunset. Since you have now obtained the Fa, what are you afraid of? The only thing left is to see how you will cultivate. In fact, there are many predestined people who haven’t yet obtained the Fa. When those irresponsible people in the media who didn’t really understand us proceeded to slander us, those people may have very well lost their chance. It’s a real pity. The current human society has declined to such an extent that some reporters don’t try to truly understand you, instead they casually make comments or elaborate their points based on their own ideas and imagination. They think that what they have learned postnatally, or come to see, is the truth; so they have the audacity to do it that way. Right now there are many people who are predestined, and some who are even very much predestined, but haven’t yet obtained the Fa.
Student: Prior to studying Dafa I was gay. I haven’t truly understood the issue of the demon of lust. I’m not sure how to resolve this.
Master: This is how I view it: If you study Dafa for the sake of resolving this issue, you may not resolve it in the end. This is because the Fa is very serious; it is for human beings to achieve Consummation. It’s not taught casually, to have everyday people solve their problems. On the other hand, if you are truly determined to cultivate in Dafa and are able to discipline yourself with the standards of a true cultivator and practitioner in whatever you do, and if you cultivate yourself with openness and dignity, I think you will pass this trial immediately. (Applause) In fact, when many of you can’t pass the trials that you encounter, it’s all because you drag along and can’t give up the petty things of human beings. The trials will be prolonged as a result. If you can truly sever the attachment and take the path that you want to take, everything will change. This is especially true with the things that interfere with you while you study the Fa. It can be changed swiftly.
Student: Disciples seem to demonstrate their respect for the teacher in a way that has slightly too much formality and human emotion.
Master: I have noticed this, too. Yet, you asked me about this kind of issue previously and I already responded. I don’t care what form things take, but without the forms that are experience-sharing conferences or group exercises, such as those that you are holding today, the peaceful and harmonious field formed when cultivators are together wouldn’t exist. You wouldn’t have the environment where the topics of discussion amongst cultivators are based on noble understandings. The subjects discussed among people in ordinary society are all about personal gain. Human beings have continued to talk about the same things for thousands of years; the only difference is that today more modern terms are used. Not having an environment provided by cultivators will pose severe difficulties for your cultivation, your Consummation, and your diligence. It’s just like what a student today said in his speech: He felt that he had done very well after two months of self study at home because he thought that he was pretty smart. But he felt a difference when he stepped into this environment. Because of this environment, everyone can help each other move forward and make improvements, which is great! In the human world you can’t find a single piece of pure land. If you walked into a religious place, [you would find that] what they talk about nowadays is money and politics. Even sexual things have gotten into religions. Our Falun Dafa is the only piece of absolutely pure land. (Applause)
Some reporters don’t quite understand why there are over 100 million people studying this practice. What I said just now was in answer to their question. This is the only remaining piece of pure land in the human world. This kind of environment can truly raise the morality of human beings and make it noble. It can turn them into good people, and it can also change very bad people and return them to their best state. Now, can you tell me what else can achieve all of this besides Dafa? We can achieve this, and that’s why so many people have come.
Student: Is it necessary for me to have a piece of artificial blood vessel removed that was implanted in me previously during chemotherapy?
Master: Don’t worry about operations you have had or whatever was done to you before. As long as you are a true cultivator, anything can happen. We had a cultivator a while ago who had steel pins and plates in his leg. He also had bones and even some other parts replaced. Later, he found that they had all disappeared without a trace, but his body was in perfect shape. (Applause) However, on the other hand, I’m not here to do all these things for everyday people. I’m doing this for cultivators so that they can achieve Consummation. One could never get this with any attachment of pursuit.
Student: Ever since I began studying Falun Dafa, I have found that the energy current inside my body has become stronger and stronger. Now I can attract objects with my magnetic field, but at the same time, I often need to stay in sunlight in order to get energy.
Master: Let me tell you that this was a good thing in the beginning. Later, however, you became attached to it, and formed this attachment. You thought it was great that you had this supernormal ability, and you were attached to it. Yet, the purpose of cultivation and achieving Consummation has become less important to you than having this ability. Thus it will lose its power, and you will then even lose the ability itself. You think that you appear to be able to absorb sunlight or some other energy to replenish it, yet you will find it becomes weaker and weaker. That kind of replenishment is so insignificant that it is close to nothing.
I have told everyone clearly in Zhuan Falun and Hong Yin that, “Supernatural abilities are nothing but petty means.” They are byproducts formed during cultivation. You should never treat them as your goal for practicing cultivation. If you do, you will never ever achieve Consummation. Developing the attachment builds a wall blocking your road toward Consummation, and you won’t be able to climb over it. Only by giving up all attachments of an everyday person can you climb over it and move towards Consummation. For many of you sitting here, the minute I did a small thing to help you, you would demonstrate great divine powers. But I can’t, because I have to let you achieve Consummation. Throughout your cultivation, some supernormal capabilities may naturally develop, so it is best not to regard them as something important. Don’t care too much about them, and don’t keep them on your mind. If you have them, you have them; it doesn’t matter. What sorts of things are they when compared to Buddhas and Gods? Supernormal capabilities are not the goal you are seeking. What you are seeking is much higher and bigger, until you reach Consummation. Then, you will have great divine powers, and there is nothing those cannot do. If you can be firm and determined and do just as I said earlier, your supernatural capabilities may become stronger and stronger. This is because all supernatural capabilities will be gradually strengthened by energy during cultivation. I think you have understood the relationship between how it could be a good thing or a bad thing.
Student: In the course of our cultivation process, can the original matter be changed prior to reaching as high a realm as the origin?
Master: Actually, you didn’t study the Fa carefully. This is what I said: We begin the transformation with the most microscopic substance of your life and the most microscopic substance that has created your life. Where then is the most microscopic substance of your life? I didn’t tell you. It may be extremely microscopic, or not. This is the original meaning of my words. The most superficial part of you hasn’t reached as high a realm as the origin. I’m not saying that none of you has reached that realm, it’s just that I made you cultivate in the reverse way.
You know, in the past in China, whenever people spoke of cultivation, people of many regions could understand it. During the process of cultivation, the changes often began at the surface level. The physical body made of molecular particles began to change, followed by the second layer of molecular particles. The changes continuously spread to more microscopic particles and then continued in this way. This was the path they took with their cultivation ways. Consequently, very shortly after they started practicing cultivation, they would be able to demonstrate great divine powers. Their exteriors had completely changed into something else. But think about it, everyone: Currently, I am teaching this Fa in ordinary human society, and so I can’t let practitioners interfere with ordinary human society while they are a part of it. At the same time, ordinary human society can provide an environment for your cultivation, so we can’t disrupt such an environment. That’s why you appear to be the same as an everyday person. You need to have a job and things to accomplish in society. People will provide you with opportunities to cultivate in ordinary human society. They will make trouble and create pain for you, through which you can improve yourself and eliminate karma. By passing every trial well you will raise yourself. Hence, this environment can’t be disrupted.
Only by not disrupting this environment can we cultivate here. Then, there has to be a cultivation method that is suitable for this kind of environment. It has to make you have fewer changes on the surface than at the microscopic levels. In the past, people were transformed starting from the surface level, but I’m now transforming your being starting from the most microscopic level. Nevertheless, I’m telling you that nobody did it in this way in the past. It’s because some human beings of today have come from very high levels. Even those who intended to save you were not from as high a level as yours, so how could they transform your origin? You may have understood what I just said. That is to say that nobody in the past has done such a thing, but I’m doing it now. Your origin is your true self. It’s the source of your mind and your thoughts; it’s where the motive for whatever you want to do originates. That is your true self. The words and the mode of thinking that you demonstrate among everyday people are only something conveyed to the surface level by level. As it passes through different levels, the notions of various levels and realms are added onto it. When it reaches the human level, it manifests in the form of words, thoughts, and behaviors.
Your most microscopic part is your true self, and I begin to transform you from the most microscopic level. Yet it isn’t to say that your surface level doesn’t change at all. You are a cultivator after all, and are different from an everyday person. So I have to get rid of those things that can affect your cultivation and eliminate the vast majority of that bad stuff. I have to even get rid of illnesses that can affect your cultivation. Some people say that Falun Gong is magic; the minute you practice it your illnesses and ailments are gone. Yes indeed, a genuine cultivator will change right away. His illnesses and ailments will be removed right away. If you come here for the purpose of getting rid of that, though, you will never achieve it, because I’m not here to do that for an everyday person. I’m doing this to enable my cultivators to achieve Consummation.
Student: Can the energy from sexual love be turned into a spiritual energy?
Master: I’ll tell all of you that it doesn’t have any energy. It’s nothing more than emotion and human body heat. It’s a kind of excitement generated from the strong attachment to your emotion plus the instincts of your human body. As to this kind of excitement, people in the medical field know that a substance called a calorie is required when you want to reach that excitement. You will calm down and feel exhausted once it’s used up. You may have noticed how some young people feel so vigorous that they always need to do something, and so they even bounce around when they walk. They just have too much body heat. So, it isn’t a form of energy and don’t ever treat it as a form of energy.
Student: When we are in sync with the truth of the universe, what will be the form in which we exist?
Master: I’ve never said anything like that to you before. You may have learned certain things from other qigong practices, such as the qigong of the Daoist school. When everything a person does and every thought he has complies with the requirements of the Fa, that is a life that has achieved Consummation. Many people say that a Buddha doesn’t have an image. This is the theory of Chinese Zen Buddhism—no Buddha and no image. So Patriarch Boddhidarma said himself that his Dharma could be passed down to only six generations, for after that there would no longer be anything left to teach. From ancient China until prior to the Cultural Revolution, Zen Buddhism had been regarded in Buddhism as “burrowing into a horn’s point.” In those days, there were always debates between Zen Buddhism and other schools of religion. In fact, Zen Buddhism ceased to exist after the Song Dynasty [960–1279 ad], which is to say that it ceased to exist more than a thousand years ago in China. Yet people of later generations always felt that the principles taught by Patriarch Boddhidarma were close to the philosophy of everyday people, so some people have regarded them as a philosophy and have treated it as the highest level of philosophy. Some people act irrationally and absurdly, as though they are enlightened to the fundamentals of its philosophy. As a matter of fact, it’s a very low level of understanding. Because it is low, it’s easy for an everyday person to accept it.
A Buddha has an image, yet his body is made up of more microscopic particles, which are also made of matter, so human beings can’t see it with their eyes. Nonetheless, just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. In the complete electromagnetic spectrum, humans can see only visible light, which is almost nothing. Everything you see is reflected from the visible light. What cannot be reflected from visible light cannot be seen. Can you deny its existence? Nowadays there are many powerful astronomic telescopes in the U.S. Many celestial bodies that have been found can be seen only with light that is beyond visible light, such as X-rays, gamma rays, infrared rays, and ultraviolet rays. Only under those circumstances can you observe them. Can you say that they don’t exist? If prior to the invention of these astronomic telescopes you had claimed that these celestial bodies existed, wouldn’t stubborn people have accused you of believing in them blindly and without proof? It’s just like what we are talking about today; when you say that you have seen the paradises of Buddhas and Buddhas themselves, some people just don’t believe that it’s possible. Since your eyes are made of molecules, not atoms, you can’t see anything that is made of the layer of atomic particles. The body of a Buddha is made of atoms, so how could you see it? That is to say, they are not within the range of visible light.
Student: Will all lives on earth come to an end? Or will there be a change at a suitable time?
Master: This is a topic that I don’t talk about. I don’t talk about it here. Whether it’s true or not, in my opinion, you shouldn’t worry about it. And why is that? Think about it, everyone: Nothing exists in the universe by chance. It’s just that human beings don’t believe in the existence of gods, and yet they do exist everywhere, across the entire universe. Human beings dare to do anything; their morality has declined to the extreme. Think about it everyone. Nowadays human beings do whatever they want to do. They casually kill others. When they have guns, they dare to kill people. Their thoughts and notions are unrestrained. The decline in human morality has made people dare to do anything. Many people say that because human beings have declined to such an extent, there are numerous disasters in different parts of the world. The worse human beings are, the more disasters there are.
On the other hand, there are 100 million people studying Dafa today. Regardless of how many people can achieve Consummation, these people at least have become good people. If everything came to an end, what would happen to these good people? Especially today, everyone here is able to practice cultivation and is determined to cultivate in Dafa. What would happen to these good and noble people? So I’m telling all of you that as long as you practice cultivation, you shouldn’t need to worry about other things at all. Don’t worry about any disasters. Should there be a disaster, it will have nothing to do with you. (Applause) Yet bad people wouldn’t be able to escape it.
Student: Master has said that there is a kind of person whose inborn substances and endurance are fixed, so they can’t cultivate to high levels.
Master: People in human society, people of today are from all different levels. Some are from low levels, so they might not be able to cultivate very high. Yet they shouldn’t have any problems going beyond the Three Realms and achieving Consummation. But they can’t reach higher levels even if they want to. It’s no small matter for someone to cultivate in the Fa and obtain the Fa. This time around it is repositioning the existence of beings, and if a person was not born with much, that can be supplemented. But, there are some people who don’t even deserve to obtain the Fa. And there are others who absolutely can’t obtain the Fa.
Student: I think that the mighty power of Dafa can change everything. Why can’t Dafa change those types of people?
Master: Let me tell you the following. A regular Buddha, let’s take a Tathagata for example: All would change in human society with a wave of the hand by Buddha Amitabha, Buddha Shakyamuni, Jesus, or Saint Mary. How can they not have the power to change it?? Why don’t they do it, then? It’s because human beings have done bad deeds, and they did them on their own. They did them because they wanted to. If I eliminated your karma with a wave of the hand and your bad things disappeared, then you would turn around and continue to do bad things and accumulate karma. Why should I do that, then? If one wants to save human beings, that isn’t the way. One has to let human beings understand the principles and have their own hearts change them. This is truly saving people. Even a Tathagata has such mighty power, so for this Dafa of the universe to change a person is so very easy. I gave you an example the other day, a simple one: It is just like a furnace of molten steel. If a grain of sawdust falls in, it vanishes in a twinkling. You can’t even find a trace of it. Within this Dafa, human beings are just like that grain of sawdust. Why do I ask you to cultivate yourself? If I truly re-created you with Dafa and didn’t allow you to cultivate yourself, your life from the microscopic level to the superficial level would never be you again. Your every memory, thought and form of existence would be changed. You wouldn’t know who you were. This is called re-creation. It is something very frightening. It isn’t saving people. Why should there be salvation of people? It isn’t that the Fa doesn’t have such power; it is that the Fa has provided people with such an opportunity.
Student: How does one deal with tribulations during cultivation? Have you experienced the same kind of tribulations that we experience during our cultivation?
Master: This is a question raised by a new student. I have never wanted to talk about my personal matters. Yet there is one thing I will point out to you: You are cultivators, but I’m not. Every one of you has to comply with the standards of a cultivator without exception. You must all reach the realm and standards of Consummation. Yet, I am not the same as you. I’m here to teach you this Fa. The tribulations I endure are the tribulations of the living beings from all realms. I can’t share with anyone what I have experienced; you wouldn’t be able to understand it. You think that cultivation is easy. All I have told you is that I eliminated half of your karma so that you could cultivate. But in reality, just think about it: In this universe, will the bad things that you have done in the past be settled simply because you have cultivated? I have said the following. I have said that I knew why Jesus had to be crucified. Couldn’t his father Yahweh release him? Couldn’t he use his own power to free himself? Did he have to be nailed to a cross? These things aren’t what you can imagine. Saving people is an extraordinarily difficult thing. Some people owe others due to the bad things they have done as everyday people life after life, and thus have generated karma. These debts remain forever attached to them and life after life can’t be broken away from. Some people, however, incurred debts at various levels when they dropped from those levels, and these were debts owed to Gods. How could they pay those back? So saving human beings isn’t a simple thing. People in some religions say that once they complete cultivation they will save people. I say that is an attachment. How could they untangle the crisscrossed webs of karma that have bound human beings? Those webs of karma go well above and beyond the levels of the saviors. Is saving human beings such a simple thing?! That’s all I would like to say about this.
Student: Teacher, please tell us what we can do to keep from idolizing you.
Master: I fully understand your feelings. You are that way because you know what I have given to you and what I have gotten rid of for you in order to turn you from everyday people full of karma into cultivators; I fully understand your feelings of gratitude. Some people want to engage in some ritual to show their respect to Teacher. I can’t say that you should not respect me, because I’m your master, after all. You should respect me. Yet, I don’t emphasize form. Some students don’t have as high a level of understanding as many other students and they feel indebted if they don’t do something to show their respect to Master. And actually, they haven’t done anything wrong. But I have talked about a principle: Some people feel that they will be able to become Buddhas as long as they worship Buddhas and build many temples. I’d say that’s a joke. Buddha Shakyamuni said that a Fa with intention is as transient as soap bubbles. Those are intention-filled activities, and are nothing. It can only allow people to accumulate some virtue of everyday people. Do you think that the temple you have built is for Buddhas? Now that you have built the temple, do Buddhas have to come? You may say that since you have built the temple Buddhas have to come. Do Buddhas have to follow your orders and come? It doesn’t work that way. Some people have kowtowed and think, “Since I have kowtowed to you, you have to bless and protect me and have me achieve Consummation.” You think Buddhas have ordinary human minds—you think that I must be happy since you show respect to me and say nice things to me! Do you think that I would behave like someone in power in the ordinary world, where if you hovered around me and flattered me day in and day out, I would be obliged to make you into a cadre and give you a raise? Human beings have humanized and emotionalized Buddhas. They are not that way at all. I therefore haven’t asked you to treat me in a certain way. But in some places, for example, some students are accustomed to their local customs. They think that those are good practices. I can’t say that they are wrong, but our Dafa doesn’t emphasize form.
I have talked about this matter many times. How should you handle this, then? Follow your heart. On the other hand, it doesn’t work if we don’t have the form of this experience-sharing conference as we are having here today. You are cultivating together, and upon entering this field you feel that it is serene and harmonious. No one has any bad thoughts. What are emitted are compassionate and very good energies. All the topics that everybody talks about are related to cultivation, and about how they can do better. This environment is an integral part of what we do. Through sharing experiences, everyone finds his or her own shortcomings, and others can be inspired to be diligent. This is a very good form. In addition, this is organized voluntarily: Some practitioners pay for the rental of the conference hall; some pay to have materials printed; while others pay to have some other things done. All of you do it this way. An assistance center doesn’t accumulate any money at all. After something is done, the practitioner who has done it hands it over, and it is finished. This is how it usually works.
I remember a newspaper once wrote a story about me. It said that Li Hongzhi didn’t ask for money, but that one of his disciples paid $35,000 to rent a conference hall to hold an experience-sharing conference in New York City. That practitioner’s heart was in the right place; he did that for the mighty Fa and the sacred experience sharing conference, and in his mind, Dafa deserved only the best location. Human beings spend astronomical amounts of money on all kinds of wild and illegal activities, so why couldn’t he rent a good location for such a sacred and magnificent experience sharing conference? But still, you all should be careful in the future and try your best not to rent expensive conference halls. We need to be more careful about this matter in the future. Thirty-five thousand dollars might not seem like very much in the U.S., yet it’s a few hundred thousand Yuan RMB4 in China. But whatever the case, I didn’t see a cent of the money, not even a trace of it. The student just wrote a check for $35,000 and rented that conference hall. After he completed the transaction, he told the assistance center that the place had been rented and that it cost $35,000, for use on such and such date. That was all. He did actually spend $35,000, and it represented all his heart, his sincerity towards Dafa!
Let me take this opportunity to say a little more because there are some reporters here. Some people wonder, “Is Li Hongzhi a millionaire?” You can regard me as a millionaire, a billionaire, or a trillionaire. That is fine, because what I have is worth more than all the money and wealth in the world. (Long applause)
In fact, if you look at that from another angle, does it matter whether I have money? Even if I had money, I wouldn’t care about it. For example, there are 100 million students studying the Fa, and if I asked all of you now to give me a dollar—think about it—if all of you gave me a dollar, then I would be a hundred-millionaire. Moreover, since all of you are willing to give it to me at any time, you can just regard me as a hundred-millionaire! Some people have gone everywhere to probe me and to investigate how much I have made from selling the books. I can tell all of you that the royalties were a few thousand Yuan each time my books were published by the official publishers in China. The entire total was just over 20 thousand Yuan, which is about a few thousand U.S. dollars. That’s all. Since the publishers are state-owned, they don’t offer royalties like the publishers in other countries. That’s all they pay you. For books published in other places, they pay the author a royalty of 5%, 6%, 7% or at most 8% once the contract is signed. What I got was very little, but I basically live on the royalty money. I’d like to tell you: Don’t be attached to this matter. It’s useless for you to investigate it. Why would I put forth so much effort just to make money? All I would need would be to tell all of you to give me ten dollars, then I would be a billionaire. What a fast and easy way that would be! You all would be happy to give it to me and I could receive it openly. Why would I resort to putting forth so much effort? I think that sometimes people have impure intentions. They take things in a very narrow-minded and stupid way.
Student: Where does the karma go after you remove it from us?
Master: I eliminate it for you. (Applause) It’s very hard to save human beings. I remember once telling you at a Fa conference that there was someone who was destined to have a stroke at some point in his life. It was retribution due to his karma, so he was bound to have it, yet after he studied Dafa (it’s not that you don’t have to pay for any karma after you have studied Dafa; it doesn’t work that way), I eliminated quite a lot of that stuff for him, so that he could easily endure it. But the condition would have to appear. One day he suddenly fell to the ground and appeared to have the symptoms of a stroke, but he didn’t regard himself as a practitioner. Despite that, his karma was eliminated, so it wasn’t that serious. If he had regarded himself as a practitioner and stood up despite everything, he would have been fine right away. That is how the test was, yet he didn’t pass it. Even though it was not as hard as it could have been, he didn’t pass it. Still, the test was in fact not as hard, so he was able to get out of bed three days later and was able to walk a week later. One month later, it was as if nothing had happened to him. Everyone knows that no one can recover from a stroke so quickly even if they receive treatment in a hospital. And yet, he asked, “Now that I’ve learned Falun Gong, why did I still have a stroke?” That was when I had just started teaching the Fa. I thought then that to save human beings was indeed very hard. He didn’t know that when I endured the tribulation for him I was made to drink a bowl of poison. (Applause)
Student: Emotion takes effect through notions. The distorted notions of the modern distorted human beings are abusing emotion.
Master: It isn’t that the distorted notions are abusing emotion; it’s that human beings no longer believe in anything and are no longer restrained by any morality. Everyone in the past knew that there was religion. Human beings at least knew that they would be punished if they did something bad. However, modern human beings, especially young people, think that it’s funny. What punishment? Where is God? They don’t believe it. They don’t believe that gods exist. Think about it everyone: They don’t know that gods are watching when they do bad things. They don’t know that they will be punished if they do bad things. Without these restraints, don’t they dare to do anything—committing murder, arson and every crime imaginable?
Why did the ancient human beings, the people in the past, have higher moral values? Human beings are actually very inept, so it isn’t that they actually had very high moral values; it’s just that they believed and knew that there would be punishment for doing bad things and rewards for doing good things. [They knew that] human beings should be kindhearted in life. Not having these constraints in their minds, human beings nowadays consider going to church as just something that cultured people do. They regard going to temples as a means of seeking wealth, baby sons, and protection, as well as a means of getting rid of and dissolving tribulations. They don’t truly have faith. Think about it, since today’s society is totally out of control in terms of moral restraint, won’t human beings then dare to do anything? They put all their emphasis on individuality: “I’ll do whatever I want.” You’ll do whatever you want; you think that is great, but gods don’t think that’s good. Don’t forget that you were created by gods. When gods don’t think you are good, they will cut you loose and destroy you!
Student: In the past the living beings in the universe did not know about the Law of the Universe. Will the living beings in the universe of the future, including the disciples who will have achieved Consummation, be able to know all the Fa principles of the levels at which each of them resides?
Master: What you know and what you understand, I can tell you, are the same as what you yourselves have understood on the basis of the Fa through reading the books. What you understand is just the part that the Great Law of the Universe has allowed you to enlighten to. You are not allowed to know the real Fa. It’s true not only for human beings, but all lives in the universe aren’t allowed to know the specific form of existence of this Fa. What I have done is just to tell you this Truth in general using everyday people’s language and ways of thinking. But you aren’t allowed to know the real form of its existence. You may have a certain idea in your consciousness, and in the future you will know there is a Fa in the universe. But you will have no way of knowing what it is specifically. Since lives at different levels and in various realms are in the different states of those realms, one may be a god at his level, yet simultaneously an everyday person in the eyes of a god who is much higher than he is. The higher the level, the higher the standard.
Student: If I read Zhuan Falun with a pure mind, search my inner self when encountering problems, and cultivate myself openly and righteously, does this qualify as being diligent?
Master: This sure is an indication of being diligent. If you can do that, it’s a sign of being diligent. If you want to achieve Consummation, there may be tribulations to overcome. I know that you students do have a very deep understanding of the Fa. I was listening to your speeches through the TV monitor, and I’d say that the students have all matured. This is the case. The students in China are very mature, because they started to be diligent a few years ago. Today, a large number of students outside China have also become increasingly mature. You are able to talk about the Fa on the basis of the Fa. This is very good.
Student: “We are not a religion but the human race may regard us as a religion in the future.” What shall we do to try not to give people this impression in the course of spreading the Fa?
Master: Circumstances vary depending on areas. You should be aware of this while spreading the Fa. You want to have others obtain the Fa—you want those who are predestined but have not yet obtained the Fa to obtain the Fa. You have to pay special attention to this in society. Don’t give people an impression that this seems to be a religion. On the other hand, I have also noticed that to the modern Westerners, they say something is a religion if people seem to practice or do something together. They don’t have any standard concept of religion.
Student: Is the level of Consummation achieved through cultivation directly related to the trial of life and death that a practitioner passes?
Master: I talked about this subject at the Fa conference in Australia. In fact, in your cultivation, whether or not you can achieve Consummation is not determined at the last minute, but is determined during the course of your cultivation. When the person is close to being able to do it, the tests to determine if he will achieve Consummation will begin. So these are very critical. As long as you are a cultivator, you will encounter this for sure. For a human being, this trial is precisely a life and death test. Of course, not everyone will run into a situation where someone will try to kill you or do something to that effect. It won’t necessarily be that way. It’s just like what I described in an example. I said that at critical moments, some people are able to give up their futures, jobs, and careers. If that’s the case, didn’t these people pass this trial? What do human beings live for? Don’t they live for the possibility of having a good future among everyday people and having satisfactory careers so as to fulfill their dreams? They want to accomplish certain things. When these things are placed in front of them, can they step out of them when challenged? If they can walk away from them, haven’t they passed a life and death trial? Don’t human beings live for those things? When they can let go of these, aren’t they able to let go of the attachment to life?
At critical moments can a person give up the attachment to life, give up the fear of losing so-called “happiness” and take that step and give up the attachment? Isn’t that a trial set up for you? I have said time and again that nothing happens by chance. Why can some people take that step, while others can’t? They even think what they say is right and try to convince others of it.
Student: Is it all right to say that notions exist because of karma and that, without karma, there would be no notions?
Master: The relationship between the two is as follows: When a person is born, his mind is pure. He doesn’t have any of the typical ideas people have that are bound to form later. Human beings think that certain things are good and others are not, and that things should be done in certain ways. Gradually human beings form their own notions. Some people even teach their children how to look out for themselves and their interests, and how to get back at other people. They knowingly teach their children to become bad people and regard what they teach as good experience for the children to learn. If as a normal adult you don’t have these notions, then you are more rational, and you are clear about and aware of everything. You aren’t trapped in any notion while making judgments. You are clear at a glance about whatever you encounter and whatever you see. That is your true self and is wisdom.
When a person knows how to use his brain and solve the problems that come up, that is what everyday people call smarts; it’s not wisdom. It is something slick and sly used to protect one’s interests and is formed by various notions acquired postnatally. It can do bad things on its own and lead you to generate karma. These notions are formed because you want to protect your interests. When these notions do bad things karma is generated. The notions prompt your actions. When you do something, karma is generated, yet karma is not a notion. Some people think that they live pretty well; others think of themselves as being very smart and capable. They compete very hard against others in order to gain a little. In fact, I think they live very miserably. They don’t know what they live for. They think that they’re smart. Sometimes when they do something, they think that their mind is doing it. As a matter of fact, their notions are dictating their actions and controlling them. Those people don’t have their true nature. The overwhelming majority of people in society are suspended in this state. Are they living as their true selves? Human beings are like that and they can’t free themselves from it. So, notions are bound to be formed, but the amount varies.
Student: Human beings, though all at the same level, are very different in their core nature and origin. Is it true that human beings who dropped down from lower levels do not have the original matter that beings from higher levels have?
Master: Humans are all in the realm of human beings, yet they have different origins. So, some people don’t have the more microscopic particles that constitute the origin of the lives from higher realms, which means that the most basic particles that form lives are different. Some beings are not of such a high realm and are not so microscopic; that’s the idea. There’s a difference here.
But those of you sitting here don’t need to think about this. You are concerned that your life isn’t as microscopic as others so you can’t cultivate to that high a level. In fact, you are thinking about this with a human mind. The most fundamental thing is whether you can return and achieve Consummation. When you achieve Consummation and you can truly return, you will find that you no longer have these kinds of thoughts. The universe is so immense and, as for reaching for what’s beyond your grasp, things are not how you think they are. They’re absolutely not that way. As an example: Some people always feel that their home is the best no matter where they go. They want to go back home. This metaphor isn’t that fitting, but the point here is, you won’t have human thoughts and you will feel that your place is the best. No other place could compare and no other place could be as good no matter how high up it is. This involves a totally different way of thinking.
Student: How do we distinguish between signs of returning to our original, true selves from those of doing something new just to be different due to our attachments?
Master: Use reason and view it in light of the Fa. Things not in line with the Fa, and ordinary people’s behavior shown while doing things for Dafa are both things to get rid of. While working on something specific, such as spreading the Fa, someone may have a good approach that can have more people obtain the Fa, and at the same time, not damage the image of Dafa nor force others to study the Fa. That is normal and proper. It has nothing to do with attachments and doing something new just to be different. Trying different ways to let other people obtain the Fa is genuinely offering salvation. This, along with the thought of wanting to return to the origin of your life upon achieving Consummation, isn’t categorized as an attachment. I can tell all of you that you are in the process of cultivating; every one of you is cultivating. That is to say that you all have ordinary human attachments. There might well be attachments involved when it comes to the questions you raise, the things you think about, how you talk about others, how you deal with each other and even with yourself, because each of you has the attachments of an everyday person. If someone does the work of Dafa in order to seek after fame and gain, I say that he can’t achieve Consummation without getting rid of that attachment. And if you sincerely want to do something for Dafa, you should put Dafa first and your own thoughts afterwards. If you always put the emphasis on yourself and ignore Dafa, I don’t think that’s right. Dafa should come first.
Student: Zhen, Shan, Ren remains constant. If the living beings become less and less pure, might Zhen, Shan, Ren also change?
Master: Regardless of whether living beings are pure, the Fa won’t change. Let me put it this way: The three words Zhen, Shan, Ren will always remain Zhen, Shan, Ren no matter what. You can’t call Zhen, Shan, Ren something else, can you? As to the distance that lives have drifted from the standards, that’s a problem of those lives. So we have been continuously rectifying—according to the Fa, the unchangeable Fa—those lives that have turned their backs on the Fa. This is called harmonization.
Student: My son is 15 years old. I have to keep him in the juvenile detention center because I can’t manage him. I love my son and am willing to do anything to help him. Is this an attachment?
Master: In the course of your cultivation, this kind of parental love can’t be called an attachment at the present time. Yet, I’m telling my disciples who are cultivating that every individual, in fact, has his or her own fate. You have performed your duty as a parent; your child has formed his own mindset or he has grown up; it would be very difficult to change him now. Of course, educating him is what you should do. If you can’t teach him anymore, and he insists on doing something, there is nothing you can do. As long as he doesn’t commit crimes, you really can’t do much—you can of course have the legal system restrict him if he has committed crimes. But if he hasn’t committed any crimes, but has done something bad and will not listen to you no matter what you tell him, there is nothing you can do, unless he studies Dafa.
Everyone has his own fate and no one can change the fate of others, even if those people are your children. You think you want him to have such-and-such future. I’m telling you that if you left him billions of dollars worth of inheritance, but that good fortune was not his to have, it would somehow be incinerated, or he would quickly and extravagantly spend it all. He has to have the good fortune to inherit the money. This is to say that the individual has to have the destiny. Some people may think that they wanted their son or daughter to go to such-and-such school, and that through their endeavors he or she made it to that school. The fact is, that thing exists in his or her life. The endeavor that you are attached to and won’t let go of becomes a kind of action that an everyday person has to perform, because human beings are absolutely not going to wait in bed for their daily bread to drop from the sky. If you tell them that certain things will happen at certain times, they won’t believe it. So, human beings rush around and do hard work either way. Human beings are human beings after all. In the end, their hard work is inevitable. If your child hasn’t come of age, you may continue to educate him. If he has grown up and it’s really hard to teach him, it’s not your fault.
Student: As for those people controlled by their assistant soul, is there any way to help them strengthen their main consciousness?
Master: I have told all of you that I’m responsible only for cultivators. If they are cultivators, there shouldn’t be this problem. It happened to them before because they didn’t practice cultivation then. Now, since they are cultivating, they should practice in a dignified and upright manner and let go of all of that. Just keep cultivating, and all problems will be resolved because you are a cultivator. If you do the exercises just for the sake of solving this problem, that won’t work, because then you aren’t completely a practitioner or cultivator. There would be a part in your practice that’s for resolving this problem and you would have a small attachment there, you still would not have totally regarded yourself as a cultivator.
You’re asking if there is any way to help them. All of you know that we have around 100 million students. Among them, who knows how many problems they had that were much more serious than this and yet were resolved. Moreover, what you talk about in your question may not necessarily be an issue of the assistant soul. You don’t truly know other people’s actual situations. So I said that if you want to truly cultivate, you have to truly forget about this and not worry about anything. Yet, it’s hard to do because all things have karmic reasons behind them; they are not by chance. Maybe he and others previously owed favors or enmity to each other. So, you have to truly regard yourselves as cultivators. You might still encounter these kinds of difficulties, and they might last for some time. I want to see how the person handles them and whether he is steadfast. If you aren’t worried about it anymore, if you have become firm and truly keep a cultivator’s state of mind, then it might disappear before you even realize it. It might have been adjusted for you. So cultivation is an extremely serious matter. It’s definitely not child’s play. It is nothing like in ordinary human society where you pay to have someone resolve something for you. These are not things money can buy.
Student: Do those who are lost among everyday people yet who have a good underlying base (genji) have the opportunity to start over as humans after the truth is revealed?
Master: You are overly worried about this. It’s a future matter. The Fa has been rectifying the universe, its sentient beings having deviated from the universe’s Fa. Beings not fit for a given level will fall from that level. And when they become unfit again, they will fall again—to even lower levels. They keep dropping and dropping. Some of them will fall to lower levels, while some will fall to the point where they become human beings. Some won’t even qualify to be human. That is to say, all living beings are placing themselves in different positions. This is determined by the true manifestation of their behavior and of their own realms. There is a standard measuring all behavior in today’s world, or in other words, human beings are determining their future positions. The world can’t go on declining like this forever. Some living beings may be eliminated; some will move back up via cultivation; and some may become human beings or something else. That is to say, the attitudes that lives show towards Dafa are determining their positions.
Student: A lot of times I feel that I understand what to do based on the principles. But because it doesn’t come from my true nature, it can’t move others’ hearts.
Master: During the course of cultivation, you sometimes show no interest in things important to an everyday person or the secular world. Yet our students, too, have ordinary thoughts, so sometimes you are bored by the things our students talk about. This kind of thing may happen. But if you found yourself disinterested in studying the Fa, then that would be a problem. If what you say in your Dafa work is consistent with the Fa, you will move others’ hearts; if what you say diverges from the Fa, you will not.
Student: A Western practitioner who wants to learn Dafa is now studying the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Cultivation of Chinese medicine, which is a part of his class. He wants to ask if that will affect him.
Master: It won’t have any effect. Why is that? Because in this or similar situations we regard it as his work, as an ordinary affair. Whatever he is learning is nothing more than the skills of an everyday person. We have ways to handle things like this. It shouldn’t affect him.
Student: Is it possible to open the greater cosmic orbit when I still have trouble doing the full-lotus position?
Master: You were asking if the greater cosmic orbit can be opened when you still feel lots of pain when doing the full-lotus position, right? Is that what you mean? There is no fixed, uniform arrangement for a person’s cultivation. When you cultivate, however you may suffer; you can’t look at it as something that happens in a vacuum. The pain you experience is evidence of dissolving karma, and your body is undergoing changes as you do the exercise. They go hand in hand. But you might ask, what if you stretch your legs or cross your legs even though you aren’t doing the exercise? Since you are a cultivator, all opportunities will be made available to you for your improvement.
Student: If I become a target for harm by others someday, how should I study the Fa?
Master: Just continue to firmly cultivate Dafa no matter the circumstances. Why would you think about being harmed by others? As a cultivator, if you carefully analyze whatever happens around you at the time it takes place or afterwards, you will find that there was a reason for it.
Student: What is the meaning of going beyond Triple-World-Law multiple times?
Master: You meant cultivating repeatedly, didn’t you? That does indeed happen. You have to cultivate all the way until you reach the realm where your Consummation ought to be. The gods in heavens won’t create difficulties for you, so you have to cultivate among human beings. If very high levels are to be reached, the person will immediately turn back, after completing a round of cultivation, and start over again, repeating the process until he reaches the standard that he is supposed to reach. Your gong up there is growing and breaking through levels, while you are cultivating among human beings. That’s what it means. There are cases like that, but not all of you are like that.
Student: Some students pay special attention to the circle growing on their foreheads. Does it have anything to do with going beyond In-Triple-World-Law multiple times?
Master: That isn’t the case. In fact, during the cultivation process the transformation of your body varies from level to level, and they are all different. If you could see the image of your own cultivation, you would be stunned at first, and then your mind couldn’t take it anymore. Human beings couldn’t bear to view the grand and splendid sight of Gods and Buddhas, the complicated state that can’t be described with human language, and the particular manifestation in the states of appearance at various levels. I’m telling you that each level has its own form of manifestation, and that changes take place all throughout you, from head to toe, including the field surrounding your body. So when some people make quick breakthroughs and quick improvement in levels, changes occur every day. You may have seen the image of a Buddha where he has four heads, and then there are three more heads on top of the four; furthermore, there are two heads on top of the three heads, followed by one more head on top. It’s like stacking Arhats. That is also a true image of Buddhas displayed at various levels. They are solemn and splendid, beyond the imagination of the human mind.
Student: I understand that I need to suffer more hardship in order to cultivate, yet I love life, look forward to good things, and want to do things well. Is this an attachment?
Master: These are not counted as attachments during the course of your cultivation. I didn’t say that you would have to give up your happy life and your aspirations and not perform well at work. On the contrary, I have asked you to do well at work. How could you be a good person without doing your job well? You are a true cultivator only if you are a good person wherever you are. So I’m merely telling you that during the course of cultivation you need to read the books more, to study the Fa more; you need to cultivate yourself and be strict with yourself when passing tests and running into problems. You should search your inner self when you encounter discord. As long as you take this approach, your realm will be gradually improved. As for the question you raised, you will have a new view and new understanding. But, it won’t come from your intentionally wishing to think differently. That kind of elevation and new understanding will occur naturally as you go about cultivating.
Student: I am a 10-year-old disciple of yours. While doing the exercises, my legs move constantly. The minute I control it, the movement stops.
Master: This situation is temporary. Since you are a child, you won’t experience the kind of excruciating pain in meditation that an adult does. But you will show a state of dissolving karma. It may not be as painful, yet it is the manifestation of a state. You should be all right later.
Student: While talking about the concept of super-matter, Teacher said that it is more material than this dimension of ours.
Master: You’re showing interest in those things again. Master isn’t giving a physics lecture. I mention the structure of the universe only when it has something to do with the current state that you have elevated into, so don’t get attached to it. Now is not the time to tell you all about the structure of the universe and pour it all out for you. Besides, the universe is very complicated and indescribable with human language. When I was teaching the Fa in Switzerland I described the universe. As I was talking about it, I found it hard to explain it clearly. When I worked on the book, I made careful revisions. If you read that book you may be clearer about it. In fact, that is how far I could go in talking about it, as there were no words to describe it more clearly. Also, the minute you describe it in the language of ordinary people, it doesn’t come out quite right.
Student: I can always hear the music of Falun Gong. Sometimes I can hear it in my sleep.
Master: This is a good thing. It is Dafa’s music, so in your cultivation it has shown you a side of the Fa, and the music has deeper meanings of the Fa, too.
Student: At the Fa conference in California at the beginning of the year, Master mentioned the “Big Four.” Could you elaborate on it?
Master: In fact, the “Big Four” was first discussed by Buddha Shakyamuni. They are earth, water, fire, and wind. It is a manifestation of the reason for the existence of the universe at that realm, yet it isn’t the ultimate reason. So for you, it is like a universe. You think it’s the universe when you see the complete universe, yet it is only the sphere of a small universe. There are countless universes similar to that one and they are all throughout a greater universe. It’s just like the molecules that spread all over this dimension and how everything here is made of molecules. It’s the same concept. It is a form of universe manifested in a particular realm. And in that realm there is Fa, which is the manifestation of the Great Fa in that realm. At that realm, if it isn’t up to the standard of the Fa, then the complete system below that realm will be no good. So, I found that the “Big Four” had decayed, and it looked as if they were going to crumble from having deviated from the Fa over the long course of time. However, that was the situation before everything was renewed.
Student: Lives do not increase or decrease in number. They exist at certain levels of the universal celestial body…?
Master: Lives do not increase nor decrease in number—that’s for sure. If a life is destroyed in a realm, there will be a new life created at a comparable level. In fact, in the history of the earth there has not been a single person less or a single person more. But talking about it today, no one will believe it. China is still promoting family planning; since it touches many policy issues in China, we won’t talk about these things. The population today in the West is small. Maybe they [who were once in the West] have reincarnated there [in China] to gain the Fa. (Applause)
In fact, nowadays no matter what you are—European, American, African, Australian, Asian—you might not in fact be truly yellow, white, etc. So there are many Caucasians in the United States who are reincarnated Black people or American Indians. Some Blacks are reincarnated Caucasians. That’s why there are Caucasians who uphold the interests of Black people.
Student: Teacher said that human notions could control one’s life. If he doesn’t change them, they will continue to dominate.
Master: That’s true. I once said the following: I said that when a Westerner gains the Fa, if you explain it to him based on the principles, he will see it: “Oh, I understand. This is the truth.” That is to say, the principles will break through the notions that he acquired postnatally. The outer shell that hides the truth and blocks him from seeing the truth is broken right open. Yet Chinese are different: They have ancient notions. They have a five- to six-thousand-year-old civilization, what with all the various schools of thought between Pre-Qin Dynasty [pre-221 bc] times and the early years of the Han Dynasty [206 bc–220 ad], and then from later years on until now. Prior to the Warring States era [fifth century bc–221 bc] there were all kinds of beliefs, so notions had been formed for various things. Those things, which formed lifetime after lifetime, are all stored in your entire being. Your being doesn’t die, whereas this flesh body of yours is like clothing: You change it one lifetime after another. The states of mind and impressions inherited from each of the previous rounds of life will manifest [in your present self]. These, of course, are not easily sensed by an everyday person.
Moreover, Chinese culture is profound; it contains things from many generations. That means the Chinese have experienced many things, and as such it’s hard to break through their notions. Once you tell them the truth, they understand it: “Oh, so that’s how it is. But why is that how it is?” You then tell them that it is how it is because of XYZ. “Oh, I understand,” they say. But before long they wonder again: “Then why is XYZ the cause of it being how it is?” You have to break through every single layer, all the way to the bottom before they understand it and have no further questions. So sometimes I find that people from the nations with deeper cultures are smart, having experienced so much. But if you want them to understand the truth, those things will play a negative role. Caucasians in Western society, for example, have simple minds since their culture doesn’t have such deep inner meanings, and so they don’t have that many obstacles. As soon as they realize that it’s the truth, they understand it.
Student: The Analects by Confucius often appears in my mind. I try to resist it. Am I doing the right thing?
Master: As you are a cultivator, you are doing the right thing. Confucius talked only about the principles of being a human being. In fact, Confucian teaching has a very strong influence on the minds of all Chinese. Perhaps everything is being renewed, though. Those are human things after all, so it’s good for your cultivation to eliminate them; what you will gain are the purest and higher principles. No matter how good that teaching is, it’s a human thing. That’s what I mean. If it interferes with your cultivation, if it constantly appears in your mind and affects your cultivation, then you should resist it and reject it. I’m not telling you to reject a certain school of thought: I am telling cultivators how to cultivate. Most of you sitting here are doing cultivation, so I am teaching the Fa to my disciples, not ordinary people. You should understand the difference.
Student: My husband is the qigong master of another school. Whenever I am eliminating karma he will do treatments on me with his methods.
Master: You all know that what I give weight to is your mind. Tell him: “I am firmly cultivating Dafa and don’t accept your things. We can be husband and wife, but cultivation is serious.” You can’t get away from what he forces on you, as his arms are strong and have more strength. So there’s no way for you to resist what he wants to do. But, if you are firm in your mind, I think things will change. Also, if he insists on doing treatments on you, it won’t have any effect. Master is looking after you. It’s very easy to block it, but he won’t see it.
Student: When the mind has distracting thoughts during the exercises, can this result in practicing in an evil way unknowingly?
Master: Having a mind filled with distracting thoughts is something that will happen to each of you as you cultivate. It won’t affect you, though. When I talked about things that might lead you to practice the bad and evil way, I was speaking about your intentionally adding, in your mind, the things of other cultivation ways as you practice; or when you are controlled by some other consciousness. Other than those, things that have nothing to do with your cultivation won’t form anything, but you should eliminate your distracting thoughts.
Student: While doing the meditation, does the feeling of sitting in an eggshell occur only after the legs are no longer painful?
Master: It’s not necessarily that way. If you can only meditate for half an hour and you don’t feel the pain within the half hour, then it might occur during that period. When someday your mind can reach that level of tranquility and you can relax to that extent, you might enter that state. It won’t necessarily last long. It may just last for a few seconds or a few minutes, and then you come out of tranquility. It may happen this way.
Student: On many occasions I deviated from Zhen-Shan-Ren unconsciously. Many of the attachments deep inside me are covered up by the ones on the surface.
Master: It doesn’t matter. Don’t worry. As long as you are persistent in cultivation, able to eliminate these things consciously, and able to realize the bad thoughts and eliminate them, you are in the process of cultivating yourself. The only problem might be that you hold on to attachments and won’t let go. Other than that, nothing else will really cause you this or that problem. That’s because you are still cultivating, and you are indeed refining yourself.
Student: Will all my attachments be exposed?
Master: Sure they will. I will certainly expose them all to you. The question is whether you will be able to overcome them when the time comes. When they are exposed and you find the attachments that shouldn’t be there, and you know clearly that they are attachments that shouldn’t be there, you should not cover them up and you must get rid of them. Whenever there is discord, I am trying to tell you that your attachment has been exposed. Yet often you don’t examine yourself for faults, and instead you look at how badly others have treated you, what wrong others have done, and how incompatible others are with your own opinions and thoughts. You will see your attachments if you can manage to search within yourself.
Student: Will the levels of lives be revealed again after human beings of the future restore the moral standard?
Master: The lives in celestial bodies of different levels have different abilities. The levels of human beings are determined by the degree of goodness vs. evilness as well as by the amount of virtue vs. karma that they possess. On earth, human lives are above all animals and plants. I’ve also noted a problem: There are many Chinese, and especially the Chinese living outside mainland China, who have very strong family and kin ties, stronger than those to the Fa. I think it’s definitely a big obstacle to their gaining the Fa. Yet during the actual cultivation process, many of them have overcome this obstacle. But I have found it to be a huge obstacle. Human beings aren’t regarded as human beings if they don’t follow the standards for human beings. Why don’t we regard monkeys as human beings? Because human beings have the standards for human beings, and the behavior, thinking, and moral values of human beings. That’s when they are considered human beings. Still, it doesn’t work if you go to extremes.
Student: Is it true that human history is just the 7 billion lives reincarnating among themselves?
Master: Maybe it is. You’re all interested in this topic… The fact is, in history there has never been a society like the one today. You may have read in the newspaper someone’s article about my addressing the issue of aliens, and he found it to be laughable. Think about it, everyone: There has never been a human race like this in history, yet there have been periods of time in history when the technology of the human race was more advanced—far, far, more advanced than it is today. Human beings nowadays can’t build a moon and place it in the sky, yet in the history of the human race, human beings were able to do so. However, the science developed by the human race of today and the current circumstances of today are not the only path in the entire process of the human race’s development. There are various paths of development. The science of today’s human race was, in fact, brought over by extraterrestrials. Some people are studying the extraterrestrials and collecting their so-called signals. As a matter of fact, they are precisely right around you, only they don’t communicate with you. Also, they are doing what they intend to do in a very systematic way.
Think about it, everyone: The other day, you all understood correctly when I mentioned that science is a religion. In religions, they have their founders and priests, while in the sciences there are also various titles: university president, doctor, master, bachelor, professor, assistant professor, and so on. And moreover, it’s a perfect form of religion, one that exists everywhere and that is highly systematic. Human beings believe in it more than they believe in any religion, and this belief has come about imperceptibly. If you don’t study it well, you will be cast out by this society: You won’t find a good job or have a good future. Everyone knows that a regular religion has you believe in it mentally, and then it has you see, hear, and feel the actual, real existence of gods. In contrast, the religion of science has you view things and move forward on a material basis so that you will then be mentally dependent on it. It takes the opposite approach.
But I’m not opposed to science, for it too is a product of the universe. I’m only telling you what science is. Science is not scientific, and it has brought many a disaster to the human race that will never be corrected. You all know about air pollution. The air that industries have polluted can never be restored to its purest state. Industries have also polluted water, and no matter how good your methods are, you can never restore it to its cleanest state. Human beings breathe this air and drink this water. If it goes on like this, the human race (not including Dafa disciples) will become deformed. The structure of their limbs will be deformed and it will get worse and worse. It’s a disaster brought about in the material realm. In the spiritual realm, before it progresses to that point, science will claim that you are superstitious and unscientific, and strike you with the club of science if you talk about anything that science has not yet recognized, or if you talk about the existence of gods or the fact that good is rewarded and evil punished. What does that kind of blow result in? It has destroyed man’s belief in the divine and the concepts that sustain the moral values of human beings. And when these are destroyed, the moral standards that sustain the human race are utterly destroyed. So nowadays there is no bad thing people fear doing. Wasn’t all this caused by a science that actually isn’t that advanced?
I’m only telling you the truth. I’m not saying I am against science. It’s only owing to human beings’ having excessive blind faith in it that it has imperiled the human race. And what’s more, this science was brought here by extraterrestrials. What is their goal, then? They systematically brought to the human race subjects such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Then in your body and mind, the frame of thinking that they wanted has formed. Nowadays, production and tools of labor, forms of work, daily necessities, as well as ways of life brought about by science have shaped man’s ways of thinking and all of his behavior. This has fully formed the mindset that makes up warped modern man. Nowadays, almost everyone is like that. They all have thoughts shaped by extraterrestrials, and no one is able to get away from it since everything you encounter was brought about by modern science. It seizes every opportunity, so every part of your life is inseparable from science.
Consequently, your mind has formed a way of thinking and mentality based on an understanding of the material world—an outward appearance that modern science has created. It’s also a layer of particles. Your behavior is dictated by your mind. Then, the things you operate, the vehicles you drive—all the things you do—were all brought about by science. Thus, a layer of particles was formed in both the human body and mind. The science that was brought to human beings by extraterrestrials has formed a layer of particles belonging to their science. This is exactly the systematic arrangement made by the extraterrestrials in order to acquire the bodies of human beings.
Thus, as you might know, science takes advantage of the desires people have, and human beings’ desires drive them to progress as they do. Whenever someone raises doubts about today’s science, it often brings opposition from scientists. Human beings don’t realize that this kind of intolerance towards questioning is itself the result of science. It should be clear that the intolerance of these “scientists” arises out of emotion on their part, not reason. I can say that after having reached this point, the things invented and created by scientists are in fact not the creations of human beings. Whose creation are they, then? They were created by the structure that is controlled by extraterrestrials and that has formed in man’s brain. And that structure is precisely something tightly controlled by the extraterrestrials. They will give you an inspiration and have you invent something. They have begun to replace the human race in a systematic manner.
Once that has happened, you know, people’s desires then drive human development. At first people wanted to manufacture robots, but now it’s not just robots. They want to make human beings—to clone human beings. If human beings are indeed created through cloning, think about it... Human beings are managed by gods. When a person is born, if he or she has no soul (yuanshen), then it is only a corpse. Why can a human being die when he has no problems with his physical body? How can he die suddenly? It’s that his soul has left. Without that soul, it is only a hunk of flesh. With his soul, he is alive. A human body is like a piece of clothing: When it is worn by a human being, it is alive; if it’s not worn, it is dead. Think about it, then: What will happen if gods don’t place a soul inside a cloned being on account of its having been created by human beings and gods surely not acknowledging it? An extraterrestrial will fill the vacuum by placing itself as the soul of that human. So then it will have a human body and will occupy a human being. There will be more and more of these types of beings. And owing to their desires, human beings will be ordered to continuously make them. More and more of them will be made. These beings will become the majority, and they will become members of the human race, and they will be smarter than man. The minds of human beings already have a layer of their particles in them and are being controlled by them. So they will formulate laws that won’t allow human beings to give birth from a certain point on. All [lives] will have to be cloned. And that is when they will invade the earth on a large scale. On the surface they would look like human beings, but would not be; they would be alien lives. Think about it, then: In no way am I spinning tall tales for people! (Applause)
Of course, human beings are completely helpless in the face of current circumstances. They can’t break away from all that has been given to human beings by science, for that science is controlled by the extraterrestrials, and you can’t even locate them. Human beings want to contact the extraterrestrials, but almost everything of human beings today was invented by them. Human beings think that they won’t contact you, but in fact you are connected to the extraterrestrial lives all the time. Is there really a need for you to look for them? So human beings are helpless in the face of all this. They can’t solve it. This is what I see as one of the biggest problems for the current human race. I have spoken out and told people now.
I said that I don’t want to oppose so-called science, yet I have seen the true predicament of the human race. Since I am offering salvation to you in this setting, I have to live in this place, riding in cars and flying in airplanes. Science and the extraterrestrials are also products of the universe. However, the development of the human race will always have its beginning and will develop to its end. This is a law. All I have done is to tell you one of today’s phenomena in order for my students to understand the universe as they cultivate. If I go into the details many ordinary people won’t believe them, so I won’t talk about them. The development of the computer is in fact a terrifying thing for man. You might destroy yourselves without even knowing how you were destroyed. These days people store data and then analyze the results with computers. With further development, people might use computers to make decisions, and that would signal the beginning of human beings coming to obey computers. Computers would then begin to totally command people. Computers would become more and more intelligent, and human beings would rely on computers ever more, until ultimately they were totally controlled by computers. This is how man’s desires would be used to destroy the human race.
Student: The articles written by Master normally address specific circumstances. Does this affect the understanding of Fa that overseas disciples have?
Master: No, it won’t. It’s the same. My Essentials for Diligent Progress is mainly to continually rectify the problems that emerge as you cultivate. And as for how you cultivate, you can just stick to Zhuan Falun. There shouldn’t be any problem.
Student: During group study, it seemed like I was onto something at a certain point in our reading. When I fully understood it, a couple of paragraphs had been read.
Master: That doesn’t matter. The purpose of studying the Fa is to have you understand. Understanding the Fa is the most important. When reading the Fa, you should know the meaning of the words you are reading. At the very least, you should understand the surface meaning. If you say, “I forget what I just read,” don’t feel troubled. It’s not a problem. Just go ahead and read. But if you say, “I don’t even know the words I’m reading, and I just keep reading and reading, with my mouth murmuring and eyes looking, but my mind is elsewhere,” then that doesn’t work, and you won’t achieve the goal of cultivation.
Student: Why is the Buddhist school very particular about predestined relationships?
Master: In fact, everyone is particular about predestined relationship. There are many truths about the universe that I can’t tell you about, because they [involve] gods, and I don’t want you to think about gods with human thinking. Human beings think they can go to heavenly paradises as long as they cultivate themselves in religions. They think, “As long as I respect it and follow its teachings, it will look after me.” In fact, you don’t understand it at all. In the past it was extremely hard to cultivate upward. As long as you dropped down, they could not let you go back up whatsoever. You simply were not allowed to go back up, because they thought that you were not as clean as they, and that you would contaminate them regardless of how you cultivated yourself. But today it has changed. You all know that from the very origin we not only have become better, but will also surpass everything of the past, reaching a state that goes beyond the best historical period of the universe. (Applause)
Student: Many disciples haven’t had a sense of Beyond-Triple-World-Law. Do they have enough time to cultivate to Consummation?
Master: Since you have gained the Fa, all you need to do is to cultivate, worry-free. I wouldn’t offer salvation had there not been enough time. In fact, my biggest concern is not time, but whether you can cultivate in Dafa all the way to the end. As to that sense, some of you have reached a rather high level yet haven’t felt anything. You really can’t judge a person’s level by physical sensations. What is that sensation worth? Some people are purposely not allowed to sense things since they are from high levels. Sensing even a little bit would break somewhat the rule of illusion and enlightenment, and then they might never return to their original places. That’s because they have to be held to high standards. Others can see things and still return, while these people are allowed neither to see nor have physical sensations. Even a little bit would prevent them from returning to their original places. That’s the truth, is it not?
Student: Reading Master’s book Hong Yin, I was so moved by the heroic magnificence of Respected Master that tears flowed from my eyes. I strongly felt the enormous compassion that is indescribable in words. (Applause) It will be my eternal regret if I can’t repay Master.
Master: Actually, there is nothing to regret. It wasn’t easy for you to gain the Fa. All you know is, it seemed that by chance someone told you about the Fa, and so you’ve gained it. The fact is, that was something hidden deep in your heart, like an electrical plug. The minute it’s connected, you get galvanized. Yet for some people that plug doesn’t work anymore, since it’s covered by dust and dirt. Even though the plug is plugged in, there is no electricity. Many people lost their lives in the past so that they may gain the Fa. They have cultivated in the past and undergone many cultivation ordeals.
Student: If children don’t take up cultivation, what will happen to them when their parents achieve Consummation in cultivation?
Master: I can’t say that you are attached to this, given your current situation; this is your current realm. But if you think of it from a higher realm it is an attachment. You don’t even know if you can achieve Consummation—why do you have so many unnecessary worries?
Have you thought about it: How could it be that when you cultivate to Consummation you simply wash your hands clean and walk away from all the debts that you have owed life after life, and from all the favors that you have received and all the old scores that you have incurred? What you have paid back are only affective debts; you haven’t paid back the material part of the debts. How could you achieve Consummation then? I will settle them all and do many things for you. Just think about it: All the favors and old scores of yours need to be settled. But how? First of all, your paradise can’t be left empty if you are able to Consummate. Don’t Buddhas speak of saving all sentient beings? There will be sentient beings in your paradise. It’s very possible they will be lives you once took, or that you owed debts to, or with whom you were close friends. Both kinds of karmic bonds—the favors and old scores—have to be settled for you. So a lot of lives may become sentient beings in your paradise.
All the favors and old scores from the past have to be settled for you, so shouldn’t your present karmic bonds also be taken care of? The way many of you ladies treat your loved ones… it really affects your cultivation. Give up the attachment and go ahead with cultivation. In reality, no matter how hard it is for you to let go of your feelings for someone, you have to [achieve this] by the time you pass away. Some of you may not have that many years to live and may be gone some day soon. You have to give it up then anyway. If you can cultivate to Consummation, then your Master knows who you want to save. But you can’t take it as an attachment and become attached to it in a different way.
Student: Someone who did pretty well in cultivation once said the following: “Having intention is also part of being without intention.” I felt a little perplexed.
Master: Isn’t this interference? Don’t think about it if it isn’t something from the Fa that I have said. Even if it’s said by a disciple who cultivates in Dafa, it may be something he came to understand at his different states and at different realms. It may be right or wrong. Don’t worry about it, and do as I have taught. Focus your mind on the Fa and don’t be attached to what others say.
Everyone should be clear that teaching the Fa and offering salvation to human beings are not within the context of intention or non-intention. It can’t be understood by an ordinary being. Moreover, what has been done [for you] does not manifest here among human beings. I told you before that the paradises of Buddhas are extremely rich and diverse. They are even more magnificent, or else who would want to go there? It’s not what human beings have imagined. In the eyes of Buddhas, Daos, and Gods, many things that human beings do are obstacles that seriously prevent them from going to the paradises of Buddhas. So those are all attachments of intention. But offering salvation to human beings is a different matter. Also, I can tell you that saving human beings isn’t the only thing I am doing. It’s only part of what I want to do, so there are other reasons. I’ll illustrate the idea. Say this universe is bound to collapse. A god is capable of stopping it, yet he doesn’t do anything about it. Would you say that he “had intention” if he stepped in and that he was “free of intention” if he didn’t? I’m explaining the matters of a very high realm in human language, but it is different at such a high realm. The human concept of “with intention” can’t describe a higher realm or the realm of Buddhas.
Student: There is an indissoluble bond between Mt. Tai and me, and I have many questions about this. Can master help me solve a little of the mystery?
Master: No, I can only explain cultivation matters to cultivators. I’m responsible for your achieving Consummation. You can’t achieve it if you are attached to what you experienced over the course of your past lives. It would make you more attached if I explained them to you.
Student: I sometimes kind of wish to be an assistant or the head of an assistance center. Is it a strong attachment, and am I in the state of having intention?
Master: Actually, many of our assistants are not elected. What happened is, they gained the Fa and there were no others practicing in their areas, so they brought together a group of people to learn, and they naturally became the head of an assistance center or an assistant. The head of an assistance center is not something unique to our Dafa. It’s just a title of everyday people. In the past, a subsidiary of the Qigong Research Institute was called a center. They’re all called assistance centers.
It’s a good thing that you want to do something for others, yet it isn’t a good thing if you want to do it for the sake of becoming a head. There is no official position for a person, and neither is there pay. There is nothing at all. I know that you want to do something for others. You can do so whenever circumstances permit. Without a title, you can still do things for people out of your enthusiasm. There are now a lot of people studying Dafa in many areas. It is a result of the many Fa-spreading activities our students have done.
Student: While we are here listening to you teach the Fa, are our bodies in all other dimensions doing the same thing?
Master: Don’t I transform your body beginning from its ultimate origin? Why are you still worried about that? (Applause) In this dimension, you are only listening to the Fa and changes are minor. But the real changes are happening in other dimensions.
Student: Each time prior to attending a Fa Conference, I encounter obstacles and tribulations. Are they caused by my own karma or something that I did wrong?
Master: Search your inner self whenever you have problems. Tribulations don’t just happen by chance. They are definitely meant to get rid of certain attachments of yours so that you may improve yourself.
Student: Ever since I’ve been studying the Fa, I have felt that doing or not doing ordinary things is not an important question anymore. How can I tell if I still have an attachment to doing certain things?
Master: Let me explain it to you further. Cultivating among everyday people, you must try your best to cultivate while conforming to the way of everyday people. What I just said covers a large scope: your food, shelter and transportation, as well as your work and study—everything is included. You must cultivate while conforming yourself to everyday people to the greatest extent. Don’t follow the example of the cultivators of the past. As soon as they took up cultivation, they seemed to see through the human world: “I’ll leave the secular world.” I’m asking you to cultivate among everyday people. Also, I am telling you that with everything you do, you should do it even better than before. That’s because when the Fa was first spread, I had taken into consideration how today’s people, who have jobs and busy schedules, might do cultivation. So, you definitely won’t fall behind or miss out on anything when you use your spare time to cultivate and study the Fa. Your attachments are what I want to get rid of, not your material things. If the latter were the case, those who beg on the streets would have become cultivators of high levels. But that’s not the case. What needs to be removed is human thinking, the attachments that you don’t want to let go of.
I have said that your house may be built of gold bricks, but you don’t care about it, you don’t treat money as dearly as your life, and you don’t have strong greed. If you have something like that, let it be, as it’s there in your life and you don’t care. If you can do this—that is, if you can get rid of the attachment—then it doesn’t matter what you have. If you don’t have the attachment, but people treat you well and insist on offering you an executive position, then take it. It doesn’t matter. If your business expands and grows large and you make a lot of money, let it be. It doesn’t matter. You can cultivate no matter what social class you are in. You mustn’t go to extremes. In the past there were some people who stopped doing everything once they gained the real Fa and started to cultivate. That isn’t the right way to do things. What I have taught you is this type of cultivation method [that I’m describing]. People cultivating Dafa will certainly have the attachments of an everyday person before they achieve Consummation. And as such, they can perform the work of ordinary people, and they will have ordinary emotion to some extent.
Student: I’ve realized a possible attachment but I haven’t managed to get rid of it. Can it be brought to the surface by gong, like with the attachment to meat?
Master: Why don’t you get rid of it now that you have identified it? Of course, you can’t do so overnight, and that holds true for everyone. But if you regularly restrain yourself and require of yourself that you do even better, won’t you gradually achieve that? But if you say, “Teacher has said that we could do it gradually, so let’s do it little by little,” then you are not striding vigorously upward, and you are not being responsible to your cultivation. It’s all about how you conduct yourself as a practitioner as you cultivate. I think that if you can truly conduct yourself this way, everything else will become easy to understand.
Student: During this Fa conference, some students have talked about seeking physical hardship so as to eliminate karma.
Master: That is wrong, it’s incorrect. You can’t look for hardship and set up your own way of cultivating and eliminating karma. That doesn’t work. By doing that, you are disrupting the cultivation system that I set up for you. So, all you need to do is to read the book, to read the Fa, and cultivate yourself. Search your inner self whenever you encounter problems. Doing a better job at work and being a better student at school is enough. (Applause)
Student: The more I cultivate, the stronger my ordinary human notions seem to be—to the extent that I don’t even know if I am a cultivator.
Master: I’m telling you all that in cultivation, if you can sense your own attachments more and more clearly, that’s not a step backward. That is a step forward. An everyday person can’t identify such things, but you can have a clear sense of them. It can truly be said that you have cultivated pretty well, yet how come some of your attachments are so hard to eliminate for the time being? It’s because the cultivation method that I have laid out for you makes it impossible for you to do away with your attachments all at once. They are eliminated by layers—they are reduced one layer at a time. As such, you will have some ordinary attachments so that you can live among ordinary people, cultivating and progressing gradually. Otherwise, without those attachments, you could not make any further progress, and your cultivation would come to an end and you couldn’t remain among ordinary people. So this is the cultivation method of Dafa.
Student: While reading Zhuan Falun I go back to repeat a few sentences in order to memorize some of the contents after I finish reading a lecture. Is that okay to do?
Master: That’s okay, but I can tell you all that the best way is to read through it repeatedly.
Student: There is no sub-channel below the right eye. Is that related to the Fa?
Master: It’s the form of existence that the Fa created for the living beings at this level; it’s also a manifestation at one level. It will change at a very high level. At that high level, the eye can at once penetrate and perceive many levels of dimensions. It can see through things from the macroscopic to the microscopic. It can also see through the existence of the more sophisticated living beings as well as the form of existence of dimensions. Living beings of high-level dimensions don’t do bad things the way human beings do, so this form of eye at this level wouldn’t work there. So the eyes do change at each level. Didn’t I tell you just now that human physical bodies display different forms at each level? Changes can take place even in the superficial form of appearance. At a certain level, for example, the whole face may show an eye like that of a dragonfly—with countless eyes inside it. This may happen. During the cultivation process, the various manifestations at different levels are very complicated. I don’t want to tell you about these things; in other words, you shouldn’t get attached to them. Had you seen those things at each level, you would be attached to them for the rest of your life, and as a result, you couldn’t move upward again in your cultivation. You would be attached to them and think about them all the time—“They’re just great!” So that is not allowed. There is no sub-channel here at a very low level in cultivation because human beings tend to use this eye when they shoot others with a gun. It’s also the case with shooting arrows. In a word, this eye is always used to do bad things. There are other reasons too of course, so it can’t be developed into a True Eye with wisdom.
Student: Whenever I do the sitting exercise my head sways and nods.
Master: That’s a perfectly natural phenomenon. Many of you know that when the Meridian Cosmic Orbit is about to open, regardless of whether it’s a small or great cosmic orbit, as long as the form of Meridian Cosmic Orbit is open, one’s head will nod. If the energy channel turns backward, one’s head will lean back. When the energy channel turns forward, one’s head nods. When it turns backward, the head leans back. The energy flow pushes the head to nod. If the Maoyou Cosmic Orbit is open, one’s head will sway. When the energy pushes to this side, one’s head will sway this way. When the energy pushes to that side, one’s head will sway that way. But you shouldn’t follow the energy and sway your head. That would be an attachment, a sense of excitement. So you should try your best to stay still. No Buddha or Dao nods his head, does he? I don’t think so. This kind of phenomenon will occur at the initial stage of your doing the exercise. You should try your best not to go along with its movement.
Student: I am thinking of recommending a brief biography of master to a newspaper. Is this appropriate?
Master: No, I don’t want to talk about my personal things, and you shouldn’t either. A very simple and brief biography of mine was added to Zhuan Falun because people wanted to know who I was. Even that I asked to have removed. What I have taught you is the Fa, and all of you should just study this Fa. Don’t be interested in my background. Just study this Fa, and it will enable you to Consummate. (Applause)
Student: A student works at a company. What if his boss asks him to lie for the company?
Master: I have talked about this specific issue. Whatever you may do, you are to cultivate yourself. It should be easy to handle. If you can’t avoid it altogether, then it won’t count as your fault. If you are a true cultivator, though, this kind of thing should gradually come to happen less. Also, you can exercise sound judgment when you carry out the specific work. You will have to handle the specific circumstances yourself. I can’t tell you what to do under those circumstances, or you would have nothing left to work out.
Student: In pirated copies of the book, the Falun emblem was placed ahead of your picture. Are there any problems with these books?
Master: Pirated books are widespread nowadays. It’s true that my Dafa books talk about higher principles, yet I tried my best to talk about them from a scholarly perspective. The dirty and filthy things, the pornographic stuff in society—things that couldn’t be any more pornographic and that teach people to do wrong—that chaotic stuff has everything in it, and yet those books are allowed to be published. Our book teaches people how to be good people, and yet it’s not allowed to be published. What’s odd about this? Think about it: With 100 million people studying Dafa, the government could have had sizable financial gains from the tax revenue. Since our book isn’t allowed to be printed, pirated copies are prevailing. Of course, there is no tax revenue from pirated books, and so the government gains no income from them. Something is wrong somewhere.
As to the pirated books, here’s what I think should be done. Since we can’t find their source, what are we to do? Don’t buy those books whose typesetting has been redone, because they are sure to have typos. Everyone knows that it’s very hard to proofread the book prior to printing; since it is the Fa, there is demonic interference. And there is also the thought-karma of human beings making trouble, so it’s extremely hard to do. The print shop staff are not Dafa students, so chances are they can’t do it well. When the book was at one time published by the official publishing house in China, the proofreading was done by our students. Thus, pirated books are bound to have errors, with missing words or even missing and mismatched pages. So don’t buy them. You can buy books only if they are printed from a laser plate that was photocopied from our original book, as in that case they didn’t change the content of Dafa.
Student: Scientists discovered that the expansion speed of the universe, which had been decreasing, has suddenly increased and is becoming ever faster. The scientists are pondering what force pushed it.
Master: This universe known to human beings through observation with telescopes is also something in the dimension that is made up of the superficial layer of particles, which is composed of molecules. So, it is still within the boundary of this dimension. As to the movement of this universe, of course, everyone knows that the earth is orbiting the sun, and electrons are orbiting nuclei; objects are moving. In reality, though, there are even greater forms of movement. Scientists discovered a few years ago that it was as if the earth was gasping for air—it was expanding and contracting. Our earth is made of molecules. Then, from the standpoint of the more microscopic and smaller composites of living beings, or from the composites of living beings existing inside the earth, isn’t the earth a universe? Aren’t the molecules that constitute the earth celestial bodies? They too are a layer of universe. Then think about it: What is their movement like? Isn’t it the same type of phenomenon that is observed in the universe by today’s scientists? As to the sudden increase or decrease in speed, there are other reasons for it. Of course, I have told you that the Fa-rectification has transcended all times as well as all dimensions; otherwise it could never succeed, even if a whole lifetime were used.
Student: Sometimes the thought that I had when I did something bad appears in my mind. I feel that I’m really not qualified to practice Dafa.
Master: Don’t give up. On the contrary, it’s a good thing that you can realize the interference from those things. That is, you can sense that those things are not you. As long as you restrain them and overcome them, you are actually eliminating them. If you weren’t thinking of anything and a bad thought came to mind, and it came about by itself, then it was thought-karma interfering with you. It was trying to prevent you from doing the practice by making you feel that you don’t deserve to practice; that happens because all objects are alive. Namely, the karma was formed in your mind, so it had a direct link with your mind and can project itself into your mind. It makes you think that those are your own thoughts, but they are not.
Student: We are practitioners from Australia. Is it wrong for us to come to this Fa Conference in Canada?
Master: Not at all. How could it be wrong for you to come to seek the Fa? Master only worries that you haven’t enough time to truly cultivate yourselves.
Student: Looking back at the tests that I have gone through, I have found that I had passed them only superficially and not truly deep down in my heart.
Master: That you can realize this and fundamentally change yourself, look back at the tribulations you have been through and find shortcomings, I’ll tell you, that is cultivation! Specifically, you have found that you haven’t cultivated well enough, and you are trying to be more diligent. That’s excellent.
Student: I saw various assistance centers offering Falun Gong pins to one another. Also, practitioners all wore the same yellow practice outfit. This reminds me of things that went on during the Cultural Revolution.
Master: It’s likely the Cultural Revolution left a deep impression on you. But [the difference is,] the Cultural Revolution advocated the right to rebel, whereas we don’t promote rebellion. We ask you to treat others with kindness and be a good person.
As to the practice outfits, well, I told them that when there is a group activity and it’s necessary to wear a common outfit, you can wear it if you wish to. I don’t really know where those outfits are made. It seems that different areas have made their own. When they felt like it they apparently had some uniforms made up and they wear them together, like sports uniforms. But I don’t think that you should wear them during your daily practice. Firstly, it looks religious to other people. And secondly, when you practice with the uniforms on, people who aren’t wearing them but who wish to learn the exercises will feel like outsiders. So don’t wear them during daily practice. It’s fine to wear them during group activities if necessary.
Student: Respected Master said that one cannot achieve Consummation if one doesn’t love one’s enemy. One year has gone by, and I still can’t meet Respected Master’s requirement and forgive the selfishness and hypocrisy of other people.
Master: You’re missing my point. Think about it, everyone: Human beings are destroying themselves with their selfishness and hypocrisy. Aren’t they pitiful? They are selfish and hypocritical. When they increasingly do wicked things, what they face is destruction. By contrast, what you gain [as you cultivate] are things increasingly better, and you are climbing higher. Don’t you feel pity for them? But selfishness and hypocrisy are not themselves something to pity. Human beings are different, so you should forgive them. Also, those that human beings consider “enemies” are nothing but enemies of human beings. Think about it: They are not the enemies of cultivators. You should transcend ordinary people. Can a god treat human beings as his enemies? A human being who is transcending everyday people cannot treat them as his enemies. So, I tell you that you cannot Consummate if you do not love your enemies. (Applause) The evil beings that damage Dafa are an exception.
Student: Dafa disciples from forty-eight areas of twenty-five provinces, cities, and regions in China are sending their best regards to Master on behalf of all the Dafa disciples from their own areas.
Master: Thank you all. (Applause)
Student: Dafa disciples from sixteen countries send their best regards to Master on behalf of Dafa disciples from those countries.
Master: I thank you all. (Applause)
Student: Would Master please do a set of great Buddha mudras after finishing?
Master: Do the great Buddha mudras? It’s not that I can’t do them for you. I definitely can. But from now on, please don’t submit a request like this on other occasions, for it is hard for many of our students to understand the real meaning of the great Buddha mudras. Don’t treat them as a performance that Master gives. If you do I will be saddened. I won’t do the mudras if human beings don’t understand their great meaning. Be sure to pay heed to this.
All right, let me do a set of the great Buddha mudras.
Our Fa Conference is about to adjourn, since my talk on Fa is the last part.
I know that our veteran students have grown ever more mature. Having seen this, I am really delighted. You can understand the Fa from the standpoint of the Fa and truly handle yourselves as cultivators. This fact alone has strongly and firmly stabilized the form of Dafa in the ordinary world. Nothing can destroy it. It is as solid as rock. (Applause)
What one wants to do in one’s mind cannot be interfered with by any outside forces. Of course, I’m asking people to do good things, and all of you are doing cultivation. I have seen the impact of the firm, rock-solid determination of practitioners. At the same time, there are also people sitting here who don’t know much about Dafa. There are still others who have come to this conference for other reasons. Regardless of whether you are a reporter, a detective, or whatever else you may be doing, I don’t think you have ever run into something like this in all your life. What I have taught is not something an ordinary person can speak about, not even the greatest professor or the top scientist, for none of it originates from human knowledge. You can’t find it by searching any books, be they foreign or domestic, ancient or modern. There are indeed some books about cultivation out there, yet none of them are explicit, and the real secrets aren’t disclosed, so they can’t be used as a guide to one’s cultivation. There have been extremely few persons during this period of human civilization who could reveal everything there is to know about real cultivation. I’m not comparing them with me—I don’t want to do that. But what I have told you is indeed something that you will never ever hear again. (Long applause)
Human life is not long, and people choose their own paths. People decide how they will take their own paths, and no one forces it upon another. People here feel [that this Fa is] good. They feel good about it, so they practice cultivation. So, all of you should put yourself in that position and think about what you are living for, and for whom you are living. You might let the opportunity slip by, and that would be an irretrievable loss, no matter how pained or regretful you feel forever after. No matter how and why you walked in here today, this may be something that leads you to the Fa. (Applause)
When I, Li Hongzhi, undertook this, I only did so after giving careful thought to being responsible to humankind and to society at large. If I had let down society and the people, I never would have done this, and there would have never been so many people learning the Fa. The facts show that I haven’t brought trouble to society. On the contrary, the crookedness of many crooked things was exposed before me and Dafa, so they came at me and at Dafa. That’s not my fault. I ask people to do good things. There is nothing wrong with that whatsoever. Nor is it wrong that I ask people to improve. Precisely because what the students and I have done is so righteous, all those who are crooked or not that righteous have felt off balance.
Yes, I have said that it’s hard to ask someone to be a good person. It isn’t about making superficial changes. A person won’t change himself unless his heart has truly been touched. And upon that, the changes he goes through can never be shattered by any force. (Applause) I have also seen that human beings have Buddha-nature. Regardless of how badly human society has declined, people still have kind hearts, and that is why I have been doing this.
The facts have proved that I am achieving the results I wished for. I have seen that Dafa disciples are able to be diligent in Dafa and constantly raise their levels. This is most gratifying for me. As to how society looks at us, I think that as long as Dafa and I take a righteous path and my students do the right thing, no matter how many biased opinions there are out there, they will come around. (Applause) All those who don’t understand us, and those who attack us, have the same comment: “You have done that well? It’s not possible.” That is to say, they don’t believe that there are still good people in this world. Well then, let’s show them with our actions! (Applause)
I think the main reason that those who don’t know the truth oppose us is that they don’t really understand us. So, we can help them to understand us and come to know us—using any method is fine. Whether it’s through a common channel or not, let’s keep the door wide open and let them know whatever they want to know and see whatever they want to see. If you want to find something out, as long as you don’t intend to make trouble for us, you can do as you please. If there were indeed problems, then we wouldn’t have the pure land that we do. I dare have all of you do this, I dare to let you do this, because we can achieve it: We truly have a pure land here! (Applause)
Our practice isn’t religious in form, let alone cultish. My students merely do cultivation. Those who can’t achieve Consummation will still manage to be good members of society. With so many of these people affecting society, they will benefit the world no matter what country they are in. Dafa can firmly stabilize a society and turn people’s hearts toward goodness, so I think that Dafa will be welcomed in any country. Dafa students and I definitely don’t intend to do something for ordinary society per se. I, Li Hongzhi, said a long time ago that I don’t intend to do something for ordinary society, but the things that I have been doing must benefit ordinary society. I don’t want to do anything for ordinary society; I just want to be responsible to our cultivators. Of course, there will be a lot more people who learn Dafa, and they are sure to positively impact society. They will form a tremendous field, and form a large group of people. They will bring about the restoration of morality as a whole. (Applause)
Many reporters and others are puzzled, wondering: Why are there so many people studying this Fa? The people sitting here today may have seen the answer. And what is it? Here we ask people to walk a righteous path and to be truly good persons. There is nothing filthy or dirty involved, like out in society. We will purify anything not righteous and become, right up until we meet the standard for Consummation, people who benefit others and society. We don’t charge fees, we don’t lead you to do bad things, and we aren’t involved in politics. That is why there are so many people learning. Those who don’t believe that there are still good people around have underestimated us!!! (Applause)
I don’t want to promote myself, so I try not to meet with the press. For those who don’t understand and who want to schedule interviews, we have many students, and they will explain it to you. If you don’t understand our Fa and want to ask me what Falun Gong is about, I won’t see you even if you insist on it. You should read my book first and try to understand this group of people. I’ll see you after that. (Applause)
You all know that it can’t be explained clearly in a few words, for Dafa is no ordinary thing. Thus, reporters who don’t understand us have quoted my words out of context, and they made comments on the basis of their own notions and imaginations. I don’t want to see that happen again. My students are all trying to be good people, yet they were labeled “evil.” That is so unfair, and it hurt their feelings. (Applause) Those news reports went too far astray. Here I don’t want to say much about it. I hope that all of my Dafa disciples will stay diligent and achieve Consummation as quickly as possible.
(Long applause)
Thank you all!
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