(Minghui.org) The article “Avoid Admiration and Over-reliance on Fellow Practitioners” seems to speak to my experience as a coordinator and technical support for truth clarification projects. I used to have the same issue as the author, but it's finally behind me. I would like to share my experience and understanding.

I'm a coordinator in my area, and I also help solve technical problems. Because I'm a schoolteacher, I'm pretty articulate. Other practitioners enjoyed listening to my understandings of the Fa. They soon started to talk to me about their difficulties in cultivation.

I didn't think about it from the perspective of cultivation and shared my understanding without hesitation. One practitioner wrote a list of questions about her cultivation, and wanted me to tell her what to do. As soon as I entered the room for group Fa study, she said, “I've been looking forward to seeing you!” It was about minor things, but she didn't know what to do and simply waited for me to tell her.

I immediately realized that something was wrong. My fellow practitioners had started to admire and come to over-rely on me. I thought about how this had happened. Looking within, I found it was mainly my own fault.

I found my attachments to fame, showing off, eloquence, and the feeling of being superior. If I allowed these attachments to grow, I might damage the Fa. It was Master and Dafa who had blessed me with abilities that should be used to validate the Fa and help Master with Fa rectification. They were not for me to show off. The format of group Fa study and discussion should not turn into a one-person lecture.

I shared my understanding with the practitioner who had made up a list: “When a problem arises, it's an opportunity for you to cultivate yourself and improve. I think it would be better for you to try looking inward and improving based on your understanding. If you truly have trouble understanding, we can discuss it, but you will need to share your own understanding first. If you give up and ask me for the answer, it's like giving me the opportunity, and what I say is based on my cultivation level. It may not work for your situation, and it may not even be in line with the Fa.

“We have to treat the Fa as the Master, and never follow individuals. There are no examples in cultivation. Everyone has to walk his or her own path. If you rely on me too much it may harm both of us.”

I began encouraging others to talk more during group discussion and rarely made any comment. However, it wasn't easy to change my habits. Sometimes, an issue being discussed appeared to be very simple to me, but no one was able to explain it clearly. I was eager to open my mouth and share my understanding, but I had to control myself.

I thought about skipping some group study sessions, but I didn't, because I didn't think it was right to avoid facing problems. I can completely understand the dilemma the technical support fellow practitioner who wrote the article had, but he avoided group Fa study for too long.

The author of the article mainly talked about how his fellow practitioners relied on him and admired him, and he hoped they would stop doing that. Wasn't this looking outward? I would like to remind him to look within for the reason why others began relying on him and admiring him. It might help him dig out a problem in his own cultivation.

Master has told us, “For a cultivator, looking within is a magical tool.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2009 Washington DC International Fa Conference” from Teaching the Fa at the Conference IX)

I'm confident that the author can identify his own attachments, eliminate them, and solve the problem.

The above is my limited understanding. Please feel free to point out anything inappropriate.