Don’t Get Tied Down by Material Things

(Minghui.org) When summer vacation started, I thought that I would finally have time to read the Fa and go out and clarify the truth to people about Falun Dafa. I planned to help my child with her homework in the morning so I could read or hand-copy the Fa at the same time. In the afternoons, I planned to coordinate with other practitioners and go out and tell people about Falun Dafa and the persecution.

However, I ended up cleaning the house for several days and did not read a single lecture in Zhuan Falun, the main book of Falun Dafa. I usually did not have time to clean when I was working. Many people live in our house, so it was a mess. Now, summer is here, so my mother and nephew returned to the old house and I finally had time to clean thoroughly. Once I started, I found I could not stop.

On the first day, I cleaned and sorted the items on the coffee table, TV cabinet, dining table, and most of the large surfaces. The next day, I thought that I could finally sit down and peacefully read, but while I read I noticed that the kitchen walls and door were covered in grease and the bathroom was dirty. I cleaned, but then the dirty toilet caught my attention, and it took me half a day to scrub it. I was so busy that I could not calm down and read the Fa for a few days.

I began to realize that something was wrong—the cleaning affected my Fa study. I was tied down by material things. I took these things too seriously and spent too much time and energy on them. Things are supposed to serve people, but now people are controlled by things. If a practitioner pays too much attention to worldly things, how can he or she improve in cultivation?

I finally understood why monks only needed a table, chair, and a bed, and why they did not have money or things. They ask for alms. Without being disturbed by external objects, they can be pure-minded and have few desires. People who have no desires do not need money. Although the requirements for Falun Dafa practitioners are different from those of monks, we also cultivate to get rid of emotions, desires, and attachments. Therefore, we should remove the desire for material things and let go of attachments.

We are living and cultivating among ordinary people, but we should be reasonable, and keep our home environment clean and tidy. In fact, the cleanliness of the external environment reflects one’s inner dimensions. I decided to balance my time. I set aside one hour every day for cleaning without letting these things take up any more of my time to study and copy the Fa. I will continue cleaning tomorrow if I can’t finish it today. By doing so, I give priority to my most important work instead of spending time on less significant things.

I also thought about why I was disturbed by things enough to lose my concentration when I read the Fa. I thought that if people felt uncomfortable when seeing dirty things on the ground, or were even bothered by a strand of hair in the corner, they might have a fixation on cleaning. They feel happy and satisfied when they tidy up the environment. In a sense, they also obtained satisfaction and happiness from things. Some non-practitioners call themselves, “shopaholics”, “clean freaks”, or say they have “material addictions.” I feel that the fixation nature is the same, but the degree of obsession is different.

Master said:

“There is actually nothing wrong at all with dressing neatly, but nothing should become a fixation. Once something becomes a fixation, the human mind has deviated and that leads those human beings to go to extremes with it.” (Teachings at the 2004 International Conference in New York)

I am writing this sharing to remind myself and fellow practitioners that even though we should pay attention to cleanliness, we shouldn’t waste too much time on it.