won buddhism

6. The Founding Master said, "If you continue to progress in your practice just as you did when you first aroused the aspiration to follow me, no one will be unsuccessful. However, in cases where one is trying to rise from the lower spiritual level to middle spiritual level, or starts from the middle spiritual level but is unable to overcome the threshold, then one will be afflicted by different kinds of crises and one will most likely fail to reach a higher spiritual level.
Thus, you must work especially hard to get over this perilous hill of the middle level. The first symptom of the middle spiritual level starts, with becoming bored with spiritual practice. The symptom of this disease is finding all things to be troublesome and tedious so that one’s thoughts and words are sometimes inferior even to those of secular people, and sometimes one’s way of thinking and speaking will become inferior even to worldly people. Second, a person becomes neither thoroughly enlightened nor entirely unenlightened. As people compliment one’s occasional speeches and writings, one thinks of oneself as standing above other people, and believes only in oneself.
One forgives one’s own faults, criticizes one’s masters recklessly, casts skeptical doubts on the dharma and the truth, and becomes obstinate about one’s own views. If one is not careful, these symptoms may even destroy all the merits one has been accumulating and ultimately may readily destroy the great enterprise involving an eternity of kalpas. Therefore the Buddha and the enlightened masters of the past warned about these symptoms of skeptical doubt and a lack of faith.
However, there are quite a few among you who have caught this disease. Hence, it would be good if you would reflect on this occurrence yourselves and free yourselves from that state; but if you don’t, you will not only destroy yourselves in the future but it will also become a major problem for the order.
Hence, you must make every effort to overcome this barrier. In order to overcome this crisis in the middle level of fundamental spiritual ability, give your minds to your master, reflect upon your original vows frequently, and think about the dangerous consequences of the middle spiritual level. Once you overcome this situation, you will speed toward Buddhahood as if flying in an airplane."

from The Scripture of the Founding Master, Chapter 15, v. 6

2. The Founding Master said, "People practicing the Way have many different degrees of fundamental ability, but generally they may be classified into three levels: higher, middle, and lower. High spiritual capacity refers to that capacity in which judgment and belief are immediately established upon seeing and hearing the right dharma, so that one carries out all spiritual practices with self-confidence. Medium spiritual capacity refers to that capacity in which one neither comprehends with precision nor is totally ignorant and so, being unable to resolve one’s doubts, is always weighing the dharma and one’s teacher. Low spiritual capacity refers to that capacity in which one is unable to differentiate the perverse from the upright, and so, if well guided, conforms directly to that guidance without calculating or doubting. Of these three spiritual capacities, high is most valued and desired in religious orders. A person of high spiritual capacity will have no delays in his practice and will help expand daily the work of the religious order. The capacity that is second most worthwhile to guide is a person of low spiritual capacity who has a sincerely believing mind; for, although he may not have self-confidence, his dedicated effort to progress will not cease since he values the dharma and sincerely believes in the teacher; thus, he will ultimately be able to succeed. Those in the middle level, however, are the most difficult to guide because they lack faith and sincerity, often underestimate the Law and its masters, and are forever changing their beliefs. They seldom succeed in their study or work. Therefore, those at the middle level must work hard to transcend that level. Of those at the low level, some may jump straight to the high level; but for those who cannot and who instead advance by passing through the stage of middle capacity, that is a dangerous phase that they must be cautious about."

from The Scripture of the Founding Master, Chapter 10, v. 2