The Awakening of Spiritual Awareness (21)
Why does the spirit compel the body in this way? Does this spirit really compel the body? This person, who is a unity of body, mind, and spirit, is like a car. Each performance aspect is different. You are the driver. There is only you inside. Whether you go east or west, you are in control. However, sometimes you may lose focus and hit stones, trees, telephone poles, small potholes, or get stuck in mud. These factors can damage the car or injure you inside it. This represents the adversities encountered in life.
Unfortunate incidents can occur unexpectedly. More seriously, you might crash into someone else’s car or have someone else’s car hit a person. This reflects the friction between individuals. Is there right or wrong? It all stems from your own moment of distraction. Can you blame others? What are the performance “conditions” and essence of this car? You, as the driver, know best. Speeding up or slowing down is all under your control. The damage to the car or harm to others is an unavoidable responsibility for you as the driver. You should reflect on yourself with humility and caution. Do not misplace your anger; do not repeat mistakes; do not engage in activities beyond your capabilities (if you’re driving a car with a limit of 180 but want to push it to 250—how can that not lead to an accident?). If so, then this car can travel safely and smoothly along its path. As ancient wisdom says: act according to your position and fulfill your responsibilities diligently; all you need to do is drive well—that’s your duty as a driver.
This car travels along life’s road with starts and stops. One day suddenly there’s an extra passenger in the vehicle. They point out things beside you and tell you how to drive this car—what route to take to reach your destination—or if you’re tired, they take over the driver’s seat while performing stunts that make you feel amazed and enchanted by their skills—or they might push this 180-capacity car up to 250, leaving you astonished at how it exceeds its performance limits. You might fantasize about having such skills yourself; they will also guide you on how to practice them. At this moment, more passengers join in when you’re fatigued—the driving shifts again among them—each showcasing their talents and performing special skills that captivate you completely; all your thoughts become focused on learning these tricks while forgetting that it’s actually YOU who drives this vehicle—driving it is your responsibility! Furthermore, within the vehicle’s passengers: when one says they want to go east while another insists on going west but you’re driving north—they turn the vehicle westward while other passengers have their own directions too—turning back and forth until you’re left confused and disoriented about which way north truly is.
The heart governs the body; the heart embodies purpose; body serves as function—the essence of body and function are one and the same—the spirit resides within as its master. The spirit acts as the driver who skillfully maneuvers this body for ease of use—understanding what its performance conditions truly are—the spirit only utilizes about sixty percent of this body’s functions at most; there remains forty percent potential yet untapped! So why would it need to compel its own body? When it’s time for utilization, it will naturally manifest without needing forceful compulsion! Therefore, phenomena where spirits compel bodies stem from beings within Dharma realms attaching themselves—borrowing bodies for practice—using bodies for their purposes! Those awakening spiritual awareness often find themselves in unstable states filled with fear—a wide-open door allows beings from Dharma realms easy access back-and-forth—which leads to frequent occurrences of being “possessed.” Beings from Dharma realms engage in practices without physical forms hence borrow yours for their use—providing certain messages or miracles designed to attract and confuse you—to spur their actions! Compelling bodies teaches one tasks beyond their capabilities—exceeding what one can bear—in facing life’s challenges alongside disturbances from Dharma realm messages—a mutual pressure both internally and externally—which we refer to as spirits compelling bodies.
by – Teacher Liu Hongming