(Clearwisdom.net) Some time ago, I read an article "Lock in the Heart," which gave me greater understanding of the Fa truths.
A great magician had learned some secret tricks that allowed him to open locks regardless of how elaborate or complicated they were. And the surprising thing was that it only took a very short time for him to open the lock and free himself. He never failed! Several citizens from a small English town decided to challenge him. They fashioned an iron cage and put a very complicated lock on it. The magician tried for two hours and failed to open up this lock. Once exhausted, he leaned on the door and it opened. Actually, the door was not locked. His failure was deeply rooted in his subconscious. His focus had changed from "wanting to escape" to "opening up the lock." His notion told him that as long as there was a lock, it had been locked.
Throughout one's lifetime, one deals with things in a similar manner and gradually forms many deeply-rooted notions. These notions not only may manipulate the person at all times, but also make one reject the truth, even if confronted with it. One sets up many obstacles throughout one's life.
In cultivation, many of one's so-called "correct" notions manifest. But when one uses the Fa principles to judge things, one's notions are exposed. Actually, though, some deeply-rooted notions are hard to identify before one cultivates to a certain realm. For example, the notion that one should wear more clothes in winter, otherwise one might catch a cold is deeply rooted in one's mind. Another notion is that one can't drink hot and cold water at the same time, otherwise it will trigger a stomachache. I was bitten by a dog some time ago. Every time I saw a dog, the memory of being bitten by one would surface. When this notion was strong, the dog would begin to bark wildly when it saw me. My notion of fear brought about unrighteous factors. When something is stolen, one will subconsciously cover one's personal belongings, such as purses and cell phones, in public. Some practitioners who were arrested by police officers, when they hear sound of police vehicles, they become nervous and alert. By and large, all these are good examples of our indulging ourselves and how we reinforce our existing human notions. Many notions may be good things for a non-cultivator. For a cultivator, however, they might turn into obstacles.
In an article "Cultivation Reflection No. 5 -- Witnessing the Crime in Secret Underground Criminal Punishment Rooms," it said that police officers arrested practitioners and took them to a secret underground room especially designed for torturing criminals. This practitioner did not wish to betray fellow practitioners. He wanted to leave there in an upright manner, so he said to the police officer, "I am a law-bidding citizen. I did not do anything against the law. Practicing Falun Gong is my personal belief, I will not get others involved." Later, evil police officers used cruel and inhuman methods to make this practitioner talk.
As they tortured him, they yelled, "Do you know Ms. Jiang, Xu Yunfeng, Liu Hulan? I am watching how you are not getting others involved!" On the surface, it was the police officer proving the practitioner wrong. However, I came to understand that this was the old forces in other dimensions taking advantage of this practitioner's loophole. Think about it. His thought was, "I will not involve others." Would a god think like that? No, he would not. He wouldn't have this kind of thought to begin with. "I will not affect others" is using humans thinking because it recognizes the persecution.
When holding very strong righteous thoughts, the evil should not be able to test nor persecute practitioners, let alone persecute other practitioners. Therefore, the old forces should be denied their existence from the very beginning. Evil forces were taking advantage of the practitioner's undiscovered human notions to persecute him. Cultivation means that one gets rid of human notions, detaches from humanness, uses divine thoughts to replace human notions, uses Dafa's Fa truths as measurements or standards, and assimilates into Dafa, so that one will not be constrained by worldly principles.
These are my personal understandings. Please point out anything inappropriate.
