Transformations in Tzu
Chi - Rebirth
Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation
Beautiful Money
By Chien Shih-Chun
Translated by Wang Tien-Ti
Before he was thirty-six
years old, he didn’t respect his parents. He squandered his parent’s
money on food, alcohol, prostitutes and gambling. Then in April 1990, he
listened to the radio and heard about the Tzu Chi world…
Master Cheng Yen once said, “Educate your children with
Buddha’s wisdom.” But most mothers, k=like mine, spoil their children.
She gave me whatever I wanted. For instance, when I was a student, I
once asked my mother to give a hundred dollars [US$4] as pocket money.
She refused and said, “I gave you a hundred yesterday – today I can only
give you eighty.” I retorted coldly, “I won’t take it unless you give a
hundred,” and I turned away abruptly to leave. My mother then chased me
and begged me to take the hundred dollars. I wasn’t the least ashamed of
myself back then. I took it for granted that it was my parent’s duty to
support me.
In high school, I started hanging out with a group of bad
friends. My parents were extremely upset by my behavior, but they
couldn’t do anything about it. I took my book bag with me to school and
carried it home at night without even opening it during the day. At that
time, I felt content wasting my days away. Not until I graduated from
high school and tried to find a job did I realize that I had studied too
little.
I finally found a job after some painful searching. But my
job, which involved lots of paperwork, gave me a headache because I
didn’t know how to write. Fortunately, my supervisor and colleagues took
good care of me and tried to teach me about my work duties. So I
gradually got on track.
“Beautiful Money”
My parents thought that once I started working, my lifestyle
would get back to normal. But on the contrary, I went from bad to worse.
I first learned to smoke out of curiosity in junior high school. It felt
good, so I kept on smoking. After a long time, I developed a habit of
smoking two packs a day. Everyone know that drinking often follows
smoking, so I began to drink as enthusiastically as I smoked. I also
loved to drink in the company of bar girls. I was generous with money in
that kind of place, never hesitating to give big tips. All the bar girls
had nicknames, like “Jen-jen” or “Nana.” They liked to see me because I
visited frequently and spent so much money. They nicknamed me “Beautiful
Money.”
I did a lot of silly things when I was drunk. One time, I went
home in a taxi, but in my drunken stupor I mistook a 500-dollar bill for
a 50-dollar bill and gave it to the driver. After a night carousing, I
woke up on morning to find myself lying in our front yard. Another time,
I woke up in the hospital with my parents weeping beside me.
Every day I ate, drank and caroused with prostitutes. And, of
course, I would forget gambling.
I loved all kinds of gambling games – poker, dice, and many
others. If I won, I wasted the money on fancy food and alcohol. If I
lost, I told lies to borrow more money. Whenever my colleagues heard
that I wanted to borrow money, they know that I had lost money at
gambling at again. Sometimes I threw temper tantrums after I lost. I
yelled at my mother, as if she were the one to blame.
A Black Sheep
I led a life of debauchery. My evening usually started at two
or three in the morning. On the average, I didn’t go home twenty out of
thirty days each month. My father wasn’t happy. “You really enjoy your
life, don’t you? Our home is like a hotel to you. You not only live here
for free, but you also collect rent.”
I was puzzled. “When have I ever collected rent?”
My father said, “Your income is never enough to pay for your
expenditures, so you take money from us. Isn’t this collecting rent?”
Rather than accepting this criticism, I angrily shouted back
at my father. “The little bit I took from you wasn’t enough. Beginning
next month, the rent will be raised.” From then on I began taking even
more money from my parents, and I spent all of it like dirt.
One day, my father became seriously ill and was sent to the
hospital emergency room. At that time, I was drinking and singing with
bar girls in a karaoke bar. Another time, a thief broke into our house.
I busy at an all-night mahjong game and didn’t find out about the
robbery until the people in my office told me the next day. Because I
was the oldest son, my parents expected a great deal from me. Instead, I
grew up to be a black sheep. My parents frequently blamed each other for
my failures. My attitude was that no matter much they quarreled, I would
still stay the way I was. I never thought of repenting.
Mending Bad Habits
I frequently went on business trips all over Taiwan. About
four or five years ago, I heard that there was a Buddhist nun who had
founded a hospital in Hualien. I wanted to find out more about it, but
each time I went to Hualien I got drunk and lost the opportunity to
visit that nun.
Then, one day in April 1990, I was listening to a radio
program called “Tzu Chi World.” A member was narrating her beautiful,
fulfilling personal experience in the Tzu Chi Foundation. Because I had
already wanted to go to Hualien, I was drawn by her story and kept
listening. I used to be busy eating and drinking and didn’t even have
time to watch TV. I don’t know what prompted me to listen to the radio.
Perhaps it was just my good fortune.
I was touched by the radio program and thought it might be a
good idea to donate some money. After all, I didn’t care much about
spending money.
I called the Tzu Chi Taipei branch office to find out how to
send donations. The office introduced Sister Shih Su-yin, a Tzu Chi
commissioner. Sister Shih first asked me why I wanted to donate money.
“To do a good deed, I guess,” I said.
“How wonderful it is to have such a kind heart! Do you know
anything about Tzu Chi?”
“Not much.”
Then she told me about the history of the Tzu Chi Foundation
and Master Cheng Yen’s mission to deliver people from suffering. That
was when I found out the Master in Hualien had done so many things.
Sister Shih told me more about Tzu Chi whenever she came to collect my
monthly donations. She showed genuine concern for me by frequently
stopping by on her way to other businesses to encourage to participate
in Tzu chi activities. So I started identifying myself with Tzu Chi
missions and activities. One day, Sister Shih asked me if I wanted to go
to Hualien to have a look at the headquarters and listen to the Master
teach. I accepted the offer.
In Hualien, I saw that the nun in the Abode of Still Thoughts
led an austere lifestyle, living on their own income. To avoid waste
(“to appreciate one’s blessings: in Buddhist terminology), they even ate
leftovers in the kitchen after visitors finished their meals. I was
quite ashamed of myself. Compared to the nuns, I had done nothing
worthwhile.
Eventually I had the opportunity to meet Master Cheng Yen
herself. She was a tiny person with straight shoulders, a thin face that
reflected strength, and clear, gentle, but radiant eyes. Although it was
the first time I’d ever seen her in person, I felt as close to her as to
my own family. At that moment I couldn’t hold back my tears. I don’t
know why. Perhaps I was really moved by something for the first time in
my life.
The Master once said, “Your ability is as strong as your
will.” Although I was only a small potato, I became committed to doing
my best to share the Master’s heavy responsibility and to regard Tzu
Chi’s charity work as my own. Later, I joined Sister Shih’s group and
the Tzu Cheng Faith Corps. At that point, I officially entered the Tzu
Chi world.
Those who join the Faith Corps are required to observe Tzu
Chi’s ten precepts, which include five Buddhist precepts and another
five instituted by the Master: 1) no smoking or chewing betel nuts, 2)
no gambling or speculation, 3) obey traffic laws, 4) respect your
parents and be moderate in speech and attitude, and 5) no participation
in politics or demonstrations. We all know that it is difficult to quit
smoking and drinking, but I was determined to join the Faith Corps and
get rid of my bad habits. Tzu Chi was a charity organization and nobody
forced me to join, so I certainly needed to follow its rules if I wanted
to be a member. Besides, quitting smoking and drinking would be good for
my health. The Master said: “In doing things, we need to take action
right away. We must not give ourselves excuses to postpone till tomorrow
what we should correct today. If we find excuses for ourselves, we will
never change our bad habits.” This rule applies to quitting smoking or
drinking.
Smoking, drinking and gambling. These bad habits made up past
life of indulgence, and it wasn’t easy for me to switch to a normal life
immediately. I went through an inner war, and it was hard to fight on.
Whenever my friends invited me to go out, I would agonize over the
dilemma of “to go or not to go.” Fortunately I was determined not to go.
I refused my friends each time they invited me. After a while they
stopped asking.
After I joined the Tzu Chi Foundation, I started recruiting
new members and collection donations. I began with my colleagues and
friends, telling them everything about Tzu Chi. In my office, my
colleagues perception of me hadn’t changed. When I asked them to donate
money, they said, “This guy is really tricky – now he’s found a new way
to get money!” In the beginning, few people wanted to donate money to
the foundation through me. But slowly I managed to touch others by first
redeeming myself. My colleagues began to realize that I’d really mended
my old habits because I had become a real Tzu Chi member. They also
recognized that the foundation had made many contributions to society.
So more and more people accepted my invitations and became Tzu
Chi members.
I feel content because I’ve learned a great deal by visiting
the poor. Without these visits, I wouldn’t have realized that there are
so many people suffering in our society and that I am very fortunate to
be blessed with what I have. Without personally witnessing the suffering
of the poor, a person can easily ignore the stories that he hears.
In one poor family, the father was only thirty-some years old.
He had been paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident and had been
bedridden for a long time. Two big bedsores had developed on his back.
His wife had to work day and night to support the family. They had a
ten-year-old daughter. While most children her age enjoy a fun
childhood, this little girl had to cook and do all the chores in the
morning, go to school, and then hurry back from school at noon to feed
her father and change his diaper. I saw no childlike innocence or
light-heartedness on her face. There was only despondency.
In contrast, I’ve never lived in hardship, and I’ve never
cooked, washed clothes or served my parents. I once shamelessly told my
friends that I was a good son because I let my parents serve me. I had
heard much talk about filial piety, but before I was thirty-six years
old, I didn’t understand what it meant. Not until I met the Master did I
realize that it means respecting and obeying one’s parents. The Master
also said, “Among one hundred good deeds, filial piety ranks number
one.” If you perform any good deeds but do not respect your parents, all
the other good deeds are for naught.
A Home Dialysis Ward
My mother began feeling sick after she retired from work in
August 1990. The doctor thought that she had a stomach virus and
prescribed medicine accordingly. She consulted four or five more
doctors, but the illness didn’t go away. When the true cause was finally
found, her kidneys had already wasted away badly. She had to undergo
dialysis.
We set up a dialysis ward at home. At first, my mother vomited
frequently because her body couldn’t adjust to the dialysis. She was
even hospitalized a few times after going into shock. Her spirits were
very low during that period. She complained that she wouldn’t have
retired if she’d known that she would get sick. She felt that she might
still be in good shape if she had a full-time job.
I tried to console her. “Since you’re sick already, why not
accept it peacefully? Compared to those who suffer from stroke or
paraplegia, you’re very lucky. They’re bedridden, while you can move
freely like a normal person when you’re not undergoing dialysis. Plus,
you should feel good that your son has changed so much since he joined
Tzu Chi. We all need to be grateful to Master Cheng Yen.”
I’m grateful to brother for dropping out of school in the
United Kingdom to return home and help take care of our mother. She has
been hospitalized five times since she fell ill. Although she has been
bedridden for the last few years, my brother and I have done our best to
care for her. She has felt very happy knowing she has good children.
Seeing that my brother and I were dedicated to caring for our
mother, the doctor offered us new equipment designed especially to
perform dialysis at night. The machine, after being set up, would
perform dialysis every two hours for five times to complete the whole
course.
However, my mother’s government health insurance didn’t
include coverage for the equipment. Also, because people who kidneys
don’t function properly have lower red blood cell and hemoglobin counts,
they need to receive injections to stimulate hemoglobin growth. They
must also eat highly nutritious food.
Consequently, my family’s expenditures increased. My mother
gave me her savings passbook and asked me to withdraw some money. I gave
the bankbook back to her and said, “What’s a son for?” Although this was
a common statement, it had a special meaning for my mother because I,
her son, never used to show much concern for her. But I’ve changed since
I joined Tzu Chi, and my mother and I now feel very close to each other.
“Don’t Work Too Hard.”
Mother used to do all the household chores. After she became
sick, I felt that, as her oldest son, I should bear the responsibility
of doing the chores. So I got up at 5:30 each morning to wash clothes,
shop for groceries and cook.
I used to think shopping was easy. You go to market, pay, and
bring the food home. However, I found out that it was much harder than
that. I often didn’t know how to cook the food I brought home. I once
peeled a squash before cooking it, and another time I cooked a melon
without peeling it.
I used to wonder how come my mother had so many chores to do.
Now, because I do the chores myself, I realize that there are always
more chores than one can handle. Now I understand what professional
women go through.
My mother’s illness had made me understand the meaning of the
phrase, “Those who can work are blessed.” This is how I cheer myself
myself on whenever I encounter obstacles in life. The Master once said:
“Our life is made significant by its ups and downs. When adversities
come, we should accept them willingly and struggle to overcome them. If
we have to finish a job whether we like it or not, why not finish it
happily?”
“Now you are the pillar of our family,” my father recently
told me. “Don’t work too hard, don’t exhaust yourself.”
I replied, “As long as I do everything cheerfully, I won’t
feel tired no matter how much work there is to do.”
I mean what I said. I don’t tired even though I get up early
every morning to do chores, hurry to work, collect Tzu Chi membership
fees during my lunch break, and hurry back to cook in the evening.
Instead, I feel content. This wasn’t possible during my previous life of
debauchery.
Every in this world had duties has duties to fulfill – to our
parents, superiors, spouse and children, siblings, society, etc. If we
ignore our duties, we’ll become a burden for others and a problem for
society. Then, what meaning will life have?
Awakening the Dreamer
By Fu Chuan-Chuan
Translated by Norman Yuan
As a flight attendant,
she flew distances all around the world. Many people admired her. But
her brother teased her as a woman with no skills at all.
Life is impermanent and the world is full of changes. My
family had been scholars for generations on the mainland. However, my
father lost everything in business after coming to Taiwan. When he
passed away, he left behind tremendous debts.
Right after graduation from junior college, I joined China
Airlines and became a flight attendant. Several years later, my family’s
financial situation improved. All my younger brothers and sisters got
bachelor’s degrees, and some even got doctorates.
A Squandered Youth
In 1976, I married a businessman in Hong Kong. He was a
furniture importer, and lived a luxurious life. Although we were married
for more than ten years, we had no children. I continued to work for the
airlines, flying to many places, eating, drinking, playing, and enjoying
life.
Recalling those days, I think I was really spoiled. I had
plenty of time to play mahjong and plenty of money to squander.
Actually, I wasted too much precious time by sleeping away my life. You
could say that I was a dreamer, since that’s what I did most of the
time.
My brother used to tease me: “As a flight attendant, all you
can say is ‘coffee or tea’? What else can you do?” He was right. In the
past I was like an embroidered pillowcase, with a good-looking exterior
but an empty brain. I spent my days maintaining my beauty, and I never
thought of learning anything.
One day, I heard some other attendants talking about Tzu Chi.
I started to donate some money now and then and became a member of the
foundation. In 1990, my whole life underwent a change, as Sister Li Chia-yin
taught me more about Tzu-Chi.
I remember once in the Tzu Chi Taipei branch office, Master
Cheng Yen gave a lecture to the Tzu Chi Cheng Faith Corps. She said that
a doctor’s wife came to see her one day, crying bitterly. The woman said
her husband had been a good doctor. Except for eating and sleeping, he
had served his patients all day, every day. Even if someone knocked on
their door in the middle of the night, he would get up to treat the
patient. His wife couldn’t accept the fact that such a kind doctor would
suddenly pass away in his early fifties. She wept bitterly every day.
The Master told her that since her husband had worked much
longer than other people did, he had actually lived longer than ordinary
people. The meaning of life doesn’t lie in how many years one has lived.
It lies in how much one has done. Whether or not one is alive depends on
whether one has exercised his abilities. One who has done all that he is
capable of doing will be a “dead living person” even after he has passed
away, because in people’s hearts he’s still alive. One who hasn’t made
good use of his life can only called a “living dead person” even though
he’s still alive. So the Master told the woman that her husband had
actually lived much longer than others, even though he’d lived only a
little more than fifty years, and that she should be happy for him.
What the Master said woke me up. Looking back on the past
forty years, what had I done? How much love had I given to others? I
felt ashamed to admit that in my forty years I’d been a “living dead
person.” I’d become old without having accomplished anything.
A Few Words
In September 1991, my mother had some misunderstanding with my
brother and angrily moved out of his house. We were all worried and
didn’t know what to do. As a Tzu Chi commissioner, Sister Chia-yin was
very enthusiastic about helping people. She went with my whole family to
Hualien to visit Master Cheng Yen.
The Master was very kind and compassionate. She listened
attentively while my brother dumped all the garbage in his heart. Then
she told him that among all good deeds, filial piety ranks number one.
If one cannot respect one’s parents, it’s useless to do any other good
deeds or worship Buddha. Parents are the living buddhas at home. If you
don’t respect them, who can you respect? You should not only cultivate
your mind through everyday experiences, but also set a good example for
your own children. If you don’t respect your parents now, how can you
expect your children to respect you in the future? Therefore, you must
chance your attitudes and behave properly.
The Master opened the hearts of my whole family with just a
few words. With pleasure, my brother promised to take our mother back
home and to look after her.
Back in Taipei, I became more active in Tzu Chi. I attended
tea parties, went to the hospital to do volunteer work, took part in
chanting “Amitabha” for the dying, and visited poor families. Through
these activities, I saw birth, aging, illness and death. Seeing the
impermanence and suffering of the world was like looking at myself in a
mirror, and this aroused awareness and gratitude in my heart.
The luxurious life I’d lived in the past made me insatiable. I
always wanted more than I’d been given. I frequently quarreled with
husband about money. I thought my life was always missing something, so
I was never happy. However, one visit to a poor family had a big impact
on me.
Cherish Your Blessings
We went to visit a woman who was receiving long-term care from
Tzu Chi. More than ten years before, she’d been afflicted with a strange
disease that made her bones ache with extreme pain and her four limbs
atrophy. She only lie in bed and rely on painkillers to reduce her
suffering. She had bedsores and her skin had cankered and stuck to the
bedsheet. Her husband had left her and her mother had to look after her.
Not long after, her mother had stroke. The woman was very lucky to have
a kind sister-law to take over her mother’s job of caring for her.
“The Master is very great,” she said to us. “I’ve always
wished I could follow her in doing charity work, but it’s too late now.
You are healthy and you have good hands and good feet. You should take
every opportunity to do good deeds.”
That woman was so miserable and helpless, unable to either die
or live well. What I saw made me realize the significance of
appreciating, cherishing and recreating my blessings. I decided to
change my bad habits. I gave up playing mahjong, and I found that there
were other things more meaningful than gambling.
My husband saw the change in me, and he was moved to join the
Tzu Cheng Faith Corps. Out friends around us also participate in doing
Tzu Chi work.
Actually it’s not difficult to change society. All you have to
do is to start from yourself. Now everybody says I have a much better
temperament than before. I am no longer an embroidered pillowcase.
I almost destroyed my child
By Tzu Lien
Translated by Stella Chiu
All parents have great
expectations of their children and always hope that they excel, but
misguided love from parents will do much harm to children. Be
understanding with your children and refrain from giving them too much
pressure.
I was a typical housewife who put all her energy into caring
for the family. When my children were young, I hoped they would grow up
healthy and strong. When they grew older, I wanted them to get good
grades in school. I believed that “Good grades lead to a good future.”
When my children came home from school, I would first ask,
“What grades did you get today?” A grade of one hundred would be
rewarded by good food at a joyous dinner. Anything else would result in
a dull, silent gathering. My husband knew what grades my children got as
soon as he sat down for dinner.
My daughter’s school lessons were easy and her grades were
satisfactory during the seventh and eighth grades. But in the ninth
grade, the number of tests and the pressure on students began to mount,
due to the approach of the senior high school entrance examinations. My
daughter didn’t handle the stress well and her grades started to slip. I
didn’t know how to help and encourage her, except by putting more
pressure on her.
When my daughter performed poorly on her second preparatory
test, I became furious and slapped her. She ran crying into her room.
Her smile disappeared from her face for a long time after that. However,
her grades began to improve. I thought the slap had done her good, and I
was optimistic that she would pass the entrance exam.
About a month before the exam, I got a notice from my
daughter’s teacher telling me that she had cheated her tests in order to
please me with high scores. The teacher was almost ready to give up on
her. How could I accept this just one month before the entrance exam?
All my efforts and expectations of the past fifteen years had been for
naught. Life meant nothing to me. I even thought of committing suicide.
Accept the Results Happily
Shortly after that incident, I met Sister Chi, Tzu Chi
commissioner. She brought me to the Tzu Chi family and guided me with
the teachings of the Master Cheng Yen. She changed my view of life and
made me understand the meaning of love.
My daughter eventually failed the entrance exam for public
high schools, but succeeded in the exam for private schools, as we had
expected. At this point, I remembered the Master once said that parents
have the responsibility and obligation to raise and educate their
children, but they have no right to ask the children to live their lives
according to the parent’s wishes. Taking this advice to heart, I calmly
accepted my daughter’s failure.
The anger I had felt in the past was an example of what
Buddhists call “suffering caused by not getting what one wants.” I kept
demanding a return for the work I had put into my children, and I
suffered when I couldn’t get what I wanted. When a child performs well,
the parents often expect him to excel in every course. If he excels in
every course, they then want him to get a scholarship to study at the
most prestigious university. It is often difficult to stop escalating
the demands.
Now, I have learned to let nature take its course. Children
have their own blessings, and I have changed my attitude towards my
children. The Master told us that we should use the wisdom of the Buddha
to educate our children and the love of a mother to serve society.
I have learned many things since I joined Tzu Chi. Whenever I
worked as a hospital volunteer or visited the homes of poor people, I
received large outpourings of gratitude just for uttering a few gentle,
comforting words or extending a helping hand to the sick and the needy.
I now realize that true happiness comes from unselfish giving without
asking for anything in return. I understand that the saying “Helping
others is a formula for happiness” rings very true in real life.
At the Taipei branch office, I met an old lady who was more
than seventy years old and had no children. She used to walk more than
ten hours each day to collect monthly donations from Tzu Chi members.
Once I was helping her to balance her accounts, I asked her why she had
chosen not to have children. She responded that she regarded all Tzu Chi
members as her own children. I was deeply moved by her answer. My love
was so limited that it covered only my two children and, worse yet, it
made both my children and me suffer. Now I have learned to extend my
motherly love to all needy people, and consequently I live happily every
day.
Educate Children with Buddha’s Wisdom
Three years from now, my daughter will take the college
entrance exams. What I expect from her now is just to be a happy person.
If my children are happy, I am happy. I used to demand that they get
good grades to please me. My daughter had to cheat to meet my
expectations. My happiness depended on my children’s suffering. I cannot
imagine what I would have done if my daughter had run away from home and
become a juvenile delinquent, or if she had been pushed to mental
insanity, all because of her uncaring mother.
One time, a member told the master that he hoped his son could
get into National Taiwan University, one of the top universities in
Taiwan. As it turned out, his son did get into that university – not as
a student, but as a patient in the mental ward of the National Taiwan
University Hospital.
I now fully understand that we have to educate our children
according to their individual qualities and talents. Each child
possesses different talents. Some children are very good at math, others
are not. Therefore, I tell my children to try their best, but not become
obsessed with achieving success. Many mothers would like their children
to become wealthy, powerful people. I’m happy to have my children become
ordinary, happy people.
In the past, I didn’t understand the true meaning of the
motto, “Educate children with Buddha’s wisdom and turn cleverness into
wisdom,” because I couldn’t differentiate between cleverness and wisdom.
After learning from the Master, I now understand that a clever person is
someone who might be tricky and only concerned about his own interests.
He sometimes performs good deeds, but is prone to selfish misdeeds as
well. On the other hand, a person with wisdom will always do the right
thing because he has good judgment.
I hope all parents will bless their children with loving care
but refrain from imposing undue pressure. Don’t be too concerned about
the prestige of the schools they attend. A renowned school may have bad
students while a third-tier school may have decent students. What
matters are the characters of the students, not the fame of the school.
Social problems will ease significantly if there are no delinquent
youths.
Tears of a Hoodlum
By Lin Sung-Tien,
translated by Lin Sen Shou
Because of a
fortune-teller’s nonsense, a twelve-year-old boy left his home and fell
into the underworld in Taipei. In prison, not only was he unrepentant,
but he even argued with the Goddess of Mercy!
When I was twelve, I left home and began wandering about. A
fortune-teller had told my mother that our horoscopes were incompatible
and there would be trouble between us. My mom didn’t know what to do, so
in order to reduce her worry, I decided to leave home. I didn’t know how
to support myself. When I was looking for a job, someone I knew said
that he needed a hand, so I went. The result was that I became a
bodyguard in Taipei. And I also became a gangster.
Stupid and Ridiculous
I did a lot of bad when I was involved with the gangs. Someone
in my village told my mother that her son was making trouble in Taipei.
My mom didn’t believe it, because she thought I was a good boy. How
could I be a bodyguard beating up other people?
Finally, she learned the whole truth.
When I turned eighteen, my mom wanted me to get married. She
thought that if I were married, I would become better, but actually I
became much worse and made my parents and my wife even more upset and
miserable. Then my parents hoped that after I finished my military
service, I would be a better person. That didn’t happen either.
Someone suggested to me that I should take refuge in the Three
Treasures, by which he meant Buddha, his teachings and the assembly of
monks and nuns. I laughed that I took refuge in tobacco, betel nuts and
alcohol.
Someone else told me that I should do good deeds. “What good
deeds?” I replied. “You’ll do a good deed if you buy me a drink.”
I used to drink four and a half packs of cigarettes a day.
I’ve stopped now. Now I know smoking is a slow way of suicide. In the
past, if I didn’t smoke for a day, I felt like I was going to die.
Whenever my mom told me to quit smoking, I always told her that I would
quit when I was dead.
On a train to Kaohsiung recently, someone was smoking next to
me. It smelled awful. When I was smoking, I never noticed the smell. If
someone waved his hand to fan the smoke away, I would tell him to get
lost. I was like that in the past. Now that I’ve quit, I realized that
sitting next to smokers is an unpleasant experience.
I used to chew betel nuts so much that I lost eight teeth. I
spent US$1000 to have dentures made. When I was a hooligan, I was good
at fighting, gambling, smoking, chewing betel nuts, drinking and
womanizing. The places I went to were filled with vicious-looking
people. People used to be afraid to look at me too, but now my
appearance is much more pleasant. Someone said that one’s thoughts can
transform one’s appearance, I fully agree with that.
The friends that I had in the past weren’t good ones. They
fought all the time and hung out in bad places. They were the garbage of
society, and they often ended up in jail. All the gangs hated me, and so
did my neighbors. Truthfully, I regret that I was the sort of person
that everyone despised. In the past, I would simply beat up or kill
anyone who didn’t like me. I didn’t care if I was thrown in jail. I
thought that if I died, I would be reincarnated as a human being again.
However, now I know that in the cycle of reincarnation, one may be
reborn as many other creatures before one is finally reborn as a human
being again. It isn’t easy to be born as a human being. Therefore, I
cherish the value of my human existence and do what I can to contribute
to society.
Once I had a fight with a gambling parlor and I was sent to
jail. There were twelve inmates in a cell, and we didn’t get along well.
It was a difficult time.
One day, my mom came from the south to see me, but she forgot
to bring any identification. Although the poor old woman was seventy
years old, the guards refused to let her in. She cried all the way back
home. When I heard about it, I cried too. I was such a bad son.
My wife often said to me that she was married to me, so no
matter what happened, she’d follow me to the end. She told me that it
was miserable for her to be married to a husband like me. Other women
had husbands who were kind and caring, but she was stuck with me. She
tried her best to endure it and constantly came to see me in jail. I was
touched, so I decided that after I was released, I would turn over a new
leaf. However, my personality couldn’t be changed so easily.
Quarrelling with the Goddess of Mercy
It was through all this misfortune that I entered Tzu Chi. One
day in jail, I read a book, Realizing the Value of Life. I wanted
to change, but I didn’t know how. One night when I while I was sleeping
I dreamed that the Goddess of Mercy told me that my chance had arrived
and I should join Tzu Chi. I didn’t believe this, because I’d never
heard of the Goddess of Mercy and I never prayed to her. In that dream,
I quarreled with her. I argued out loud with her in my sleep, so
everyone in the cell knew about it the next morning. They told me that I
probably missed my wife too much.
When I dreamed of the Goddess of Mercy the second time, I
started to feel strange about it. There were twelve people in the cell,
so why was she talking to me? She said that my chance was here and that
I shouldn’t miss it. I still didn’t believe it. Then she came for the
third time, telling to grasp the chance to join Tzu Chi. I’d never heard
of Tzu Chi before, so I was quite curious.
After I was released from jail, I sold fruit for a living. One
day, a customer came to buy fruit, and I suddenly saw in her hands a
book titled Master Cheng Yen’s Tzu Chi. I got quite excited.
Although I didn’t know the customer, I asked if I could borrow that
book. She told me that if I liked it, I could have it.
I finished the book very quickly and was very moved. Then, I
pasted a notice on my fruit stand: “Master Cheng Yen of Tzu Chi is
building a hospital, nursing college and university, and she is helping
the poor. You are welcome to participate!” I bought a little notebook
and started soliciting funds.
The Difficult First Step
An old woman saw my notice, but said to me, “You haven’t done
one good thing since you were a child, so don’t try to trick me.” This
was like a slap in the face. Another old woman said, “I’ve known you for
a long time, and since when do you do good deeds?” I think you’ll spend
the money on yourself!”
When I was talking to one man about Tzu Chi, he didn’t
indicate whether or not he wanted to donate. I persistently pleaded for
his help, and I even opened his car door for him. He finally said,
“You’ve been talking for a long time, and I think you must be thirsty,
so I’ll donate ten dollars [US $0.35] for your effort.”
Wow, ten dollars! I was happier than if I’d gotten a thousand.
I asked that man to leave me his name and address, but he said that I
was too talkative.
Since then, I’ve tried my best to talk to others about Tzu
Chi. Whenever someone buys fruit, I offer them books and cassettes about
Tzu Chi. Sometimes I even forget about my own business. I’ve decided
that If I can’t succeed in helping Tzu Chi, I might as well die.
In the beginning, I didn’t understand Tzu Chi that well, so I
phoned a commissioner. My voice was coarse, but her voice was tender.
She explained everything slowly to me. Three days later, she took me to
visit Master Cheng Yen. Everyone who saw the Master would bow before
her. I didn’t know the proper etiquette, so I just said, “Amitabha.” The
Master said to me, “Try to understand.” I had no idea what that meant,
but later I thought that because I didn’t understand Tzu Chi, the Master
wanted me to learn more.
Transformation
I once joined a Tzu Chi group on a train to the Abode of Still
Thoughts. I brought nothing but three bottles of beer. I used to drink
eight bottles of beer a day. I could go without food, but not without
beer.
On the train the Tzu Chi members were dressed up very nicely,
but I dressed too casually. And I only thought about the beer. When we
arrived at the Hualien train station, Tzu Cheng Faith Corps members
quickly loaded us on buses, so I couldn’t drink even a mouthful. When we
arrived at the Abode of Still Thoughts, I was surprised, because I
thought that it was a place for us to drink, dance, gamble and have fun.
Why were there nuns giving sermons?
Master Cheng Yen spoke to our group very sincerely, but I only
thought about my beer, so I went to a washroom and drank it all. When
she finished her lecture and came out, I ran into her. She asked me why
my face was so red, and I answered that it was because of the sun.
During the second talk, I still couldn’t sit still and I constantly went
in and out. I had absolutely no idea what the Master was talking about.
During the third lecture, I was a little better. Master Cheng
Yen said that there was only one road through the mountains between
Hualien and Taipei. If a patient needed to be sent to Taipei but the
road was blocked by landslides, the patient would certainly die.
I listened carefully and noticed how skinny the Master was. I
wondered how she could shoulder the heavy load of building a hospital
and nursing school while I, a man, couldn’t accomplish anything. Tears
rolled down my cheeks and my handkerchief was soon soaked. My repentance
made me realize that I had wasted thirty years of life. My life would
have been much more wonderful if I had known how to repay society for my
wrongs.
When I went home, I told everything to my wife, and she was
really delighted. She said, “Following the Master in what she is doing
is the correct path.”
Because I still doubted that someone would dedicate herself
wholly to Buddhism and to helping people, I frequently went back to
Hualien. I was in awe at the enormity of the hospital and the small size
of the Abode, so I vowed, “The welfare of Tzu Chi is my responsibility;
my own life is of no concern.”
One’s strength depends on one’s commitment. One time after I
came back from a pilgrimage to the Abode, I told my wife that from then
on I would be a vegetarian. My wife didn’t believe me, because I used to
have meat at every meal. I needed to have meat every day. Whenever my
wife gave me vegetables, I would argue with her. But ever since my
decision, I’ve been a vegetarian.
Now I donate the money paid by the first customer every
morning to Tzu Chi. I often say to my friends that we must know how to
use money wisely. If you have ten dollars, then $2.50 is for your
parents, $5 is for your family, and $2.50 is for society.
I’m happy working for Tzu Chi’s mission. There is never enough
time. Tzu Chi doesn’t belong to a single person, but to all of us.
I used to be hooligan, but I was awakened by Master Cheng
Yen’s teaching. I always remember the Master saying, “I won’t turn you
into iron, but into steel.” I would rather say, “If a louse like me can
be a good person, then it can’t be hard for anyone to be good.”
The Tzu Chi Foundation
The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation is a non-profit
organization that was established in 1966 by Dharma Master Cheng Yen in
Hualien, Taiwan. For over thirty years, the organization has been
devoted to social work, medical construction, educational development
and cultural improvement in Taiwan.
The four Tzu Chi missions are charity,
medicine, education and culture. In recent years, Tzu Chi has expanded
its activities to include bone marrow donation, international relief,
environmental protection and community volunteerism. Tzu Chi volunteers
diligently carry out these activities, and together with the four
missions they are called the Eight Footprints.
Tzu Chi receives its funds solely from the
public, and its various charity works are all carried out by volunteers.
This structure has ensured that funds are properly used, which has won
the trust and support of people all over the world.
In 1985, overseas volunteers of Tzu Chi
began to extend their helping hands to their local communities.
Combining their efforts with local resources, they have helped bring
relief to the poor and provided emergency assistance. Today, Tzu Chi has
branches and liaison offices in 28 countries around the globe.
Emergency assistance to typhoon-stricken
Bangladesh in 1991 marked the beginning of the foundation's
international relief efforts. As of March 2000, over forty countries in
five continents have been helped.
Tzu Chi's disaster relief work is carried
out in the spirit of humanitarianism, based on respect for life and
belief in the innate goodness of humanity. Transcending political,
ethnical, religious and geographical boundaries, volunteers strive to
help victims wherever disasters arise with the objective of bringing
hope to all suffering people.
From the icy Arctic Circle to the
sweltering tropics, Tzu Chi volunteers have left their footprints in
many faraway lands, risking their lives in epidemics or wars. Their
belief in "making the impossible possible" has supported them in
accomplishing many arduous tasks. In addition to material assistance,
the foundation has also encouraged mutual help among victims and helped
local people to become independent by involving them in rebuilding their
own communities. The ultimate goal is to inspire disaster victims to
contribute to others in turn when they have the ability to do so, thus
creating a global village of Great Love.
Shih Cheng Yen
Founder, Tzu Chi Foundation
The Cycle of Goodness
Since the establishment of Tzu Chi in 1966,
every road we have walked on has been paved with the love of all people
involved. Our mission is to shelter all the suffering beings under the
sky with a network of love that has spread worldwide.
Looking at the world, we see that natural and man-made disasters
occur frequently, putting countless lives in danger and causing souls to
lose direction. Since we all share the same earth and breathe the same
air, it is our inescapable responsibility to help and care for each
other.
The power of love can calm uneasy souls and dissolve all the
disasters in the world. It is this conviction that leads Tzu Chi
volunteers, undaunted by difficulties and hard work, to every
disaster-stricken or warring corner of the world to soothe pain and
alleviate suffering.
The hope of mankind comes from mutual help. Tzu Chi gives help not
only to relieve the destitution of the poor and the disaster-stricken,
but more importantly to spread the seeds of love. Suffering people,
touched by the unprejudiced and genuine concern shown by fellow human
beings, will open up their own hearts and find love within. Thus, they
may eventually move from being helped to helping others. Come that day,
the cycle of goodness will have come full circle.
We firmly believe that force is not the solution to the turmoil on
earth. If everyone has love and gratitude in their hearts, ethnic hatred
can be dissolved, political strife can be resolved, and suffering people
everywhere will finally have a chance to breathe. When the goodness in
every human being is awakened, world peace will become possible.
Shih Cheng Yen
Founder, Tzu Chi Foundation
Witness Great Love,
Believe in Compassion
It is hard to imagine what the world would be like without love.
A philosopher said that love is the power that brings all things
together, and hate has the effect of making the world crumble.
The history of mankind over thousands of years is a record of love,
hate, passion and conflict. In times of increased love and mutual
concern, blessings always outnumber disasters and people live in
prosperity and light. On the contrary, when the power of hate grows and
contentiousness intensifies, the world is plagued with war and disasters
and people suffer in pain and darkness on the verge of death and hunger.
We do not purport to elaborate on the nature of our time, but
remembering the famous words from Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, "It was
the best of times, it was the worst of times," we will say that whether
the times are best or worst depends on whether we choose to love or
hate.
Mankind ushered in the twenty-first century with great expectations
and joy. Looking back on the last century, it was no doubt a time of
rapid scientific progress, but it was also a period of frequent natural
and man-made disasters. The pain, death, hunger and despair suffered by
human beings in the twentieth century alone are perhaps more than in all
the previous nineteen centuries combined. Although the material aspect
of civilization has advanced, its spiritual aspect has remained quite
stagnant. The prevalence of the theory of natural selection and
sociopolitical philosophies that encourage power struggles have caused
human beings to distrust the concepts that great love is eternal and
that caring for others makes one immortal.
By their actions Tzu Chi people carry out their belief in compassion,
and with unselfish giving they testify to the power of great love.
Master Cheng Yen's commitment to Buddhism and to all living beings has
been realized through actions that aim to "relieve suffering and give
joy." Starting from 1991, Tzu Chi became actively involved in
international humanitarian relief work. We have learned much in the nine
years since, and we have grown from newcomers groping our way into
experienced workers. We do not presume that we have any achievements
worth mention in the field, but this much we can say: we have done our
best.
We have seen much during our humanitarian relief missions: nature's
powerful counter-attack, mankind's horrible killing. The ethnic
cleansing in Rwanda sent shudders up our spines. The civil wars and
strife in Ethiopia, Cambodia, Chechnya, Azerbaijan, Senegal,
Afghanistan, East Timor and Kosovo made our hearts sink. Equally
saddening were the consecutive years of floods in Bangladesh, the great
snowstorm in Outer Mongolia, the famine in North Korea, and the
hurricanes and floods in the Central American countries of the Dominican
Republic, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti and Mexico.
The massive earthquake in Turkey, the tsunamis in Papua New Guinea, and
the poverty and starvation in African countries brought out our deepest
sympathies.
Where frightened refugees fled from raging war, we were there. Where
natural disaster relentlessly struck, where poverty grew on barren land,
where lives hung on the faintest breath, where there was dire need of
help, we were there. As witnesses of so much pain and suffering, our
belief in compassion and great love is all the stronger.
In the nine years of our involvement in humanitarian aid, we have
come in touch with people in over forty countries. They may remember us,
or they may not. Still we thank them for letting us help and give them
our blessings for a better future.
The great Chinese poet Tao Yuan-ming wrote, "Once born into this
world we are all brothers; we need not share the same parents." This is
the spirit of Tzu Chi. We are not so optimistic as to hope to relieve
the suffering of all the people in the world, but we promise our utmost
efforts to steadfastly carry out humanitarian aid. This book on Tzu
Chi's international humanitarian relief work is only a brief prologue to
many more to come. "Attain nirvana only after all living beings have
been enlightened and saved from the misery of the world." In this
spirit, Tzu Chi will never cease its efforts to help people so long as
there is still suffering in the world. Thus, records of humane help and
great love will be written and passed on from one generation to the
next.
Wang Tuan-cheng
Vice President, Tzu Chi Foundation
Principles of Tzu
Chi's
International Relief Work
Directness
The Tzu Chi fact-finding team and
volunteers travel to the disaster area to study the situation before
they arrange for relief supplies according to the needs of the victims.
The team draws up name lists of the households who truly need help.
Volunteers then personally distribute relief supplies to the hands of
the victims, at the same time giving them their care and blessings.
Priority
When the disaster areas are too
widespread, Tzu Chi centers relief work on the most affected area or
where outside aid is most scarce. In this way, limited resources are put
to the most effective use where help is most needed.
Respect
Wherever Tzu Chi relief workers go to
help, they must respect the local customs, lifestyle, religion and
cultural traditions. They should help the victims as friends and avoid
being condescending. The quality of the relief supplies such as
clothing, food, medicine or shelters should be of good quality, as if
they were for the volunteers' own use. Finally, the relief supplies
should be handed to the victims with both hands and with gratitude
toward them for letting the volunteers help.
Timeliness
Whenever a disaster arises, quick actions
are taken to study the actual situation and collect the necessary
information. After evaluation and preparation, relief supplies are
distributed to the victims in the shortest time possible.
Practicality
Tzu Chi relief workers always study the
situation of the disaster area beforehand, so that they can provide the
help most needed. The relief actions should be practicable, prompt and
effective, if not multipurpose. No relief effort should be wasted.
Master Cheng Yen
Boundless Love: A Brief Story of Dharma Master Shih Cheng Yen
Leader of the
Taiwan Buddhist Tzu-Chi Foundation
a Love and Mercy transcend races, nationalities and geographic
distance.
Written By Andre Do
Early Spiritual
Awareness
Master Shih Cheng Yen
was born on May 14, 1937 to a couple with ten children, in the town of
Ching-shui, Tai-chung County, Taiwan. As a toddler, she was adopted and
cherished by her uncle’s family. Merely a little girl, she was able to
take up responsibilities: gathering firewood, cleaning, cooking and
caring for her younger siblings—“all tasks meticulously completed,
besides doing well at school”, in her mother’s words. Several events
early in her life led to her precocious spiritual awareness and shaped
the vision of the future world humanitarian leader.
During World War II,
the Allied bombarded her hometown and she witnessed the too-easy
destruction of lives, with frequent glimpses of dead and dying human
bodies. In spite of her tender age, the suffering of sentient beings and
the fragility of life deeply disturbed her sensible mind.
After the war, her
father’s movie theater business briskly took off, and the family
relocated to Fong-yuan, a thriving town near Tai-chung. As she blossomed
into a beautiful young lady, her family duties gradually progressed into
the management of seven theaters. Her complete devotion to her parents
won her the nickname “filial girl” in her hometown. However, stress from
the booming business eventually took heavy toll on her parents’ health.
The two ensuing crises were catalytic to her spiritual development.
In 1952, she was
fifteen when her mother fell critically ill of stomach ulcer, which
could only be cured with a risky operation. The filial girl prayed day
and night with utmost devotion, pledging to forfeit twelve years of her
own life in return for her mother’s healing. In addition, she would
observe a vegetarian diet for life. Then, Kuan-Yin—the Bodhisattva of
Great Mercy—appeared in her dreams three nights in a row and bestowed
upon her a remedy to cure her mother’s illness. In real life, her mother
soon miraculously recovered for good, without the due surgery.
In June 1960, she
just turned twenty-three when her father was suddenly struck by a heart
attack and passed away the next day. Blaming herself for not taking
proper care of him, she was totally devastated by the tragedy and sank
into a deep depression. She kept asking the questions “Where did my
father go?” and “Where is he now?” In quest for the truth, she visited
Buddhist temples, and an abbess directed her to find answers in Buddhist
scriptures. Gradually realizing the transience and futility of worldly
existence, she began searching for a more profound meaning of life.
The Quest for Wisdom
Her spiritual
reflections eventually led her to renounce worldly life for complete
devotion to all sentient beings. In the autumn of 1960, she ran away
from home to take refuge in a temple in the outskirts of Taipei.
However, her grieving mother found her three days later and escorted her
back. She only dutifully stayed home for another year.
In the autumn of
1961, as if answering to a higher call, she hastily left home for good.
In the company of a nun from Fong-yuan, faraway she traveled, in quest
for a spiritual mentor sharing her ideals of “socially engaged
Buddhism”—Buddhism practiced in everyday life.
The two young nuns
led a transient life, taking shelter in desolate temples in the
mountainous region of eastern Taiwan. In the meantime, they studied
Buddhist sutras and delivered sermons to local villagers—but refused all
offerings in return. Penniless, they barely survived on wild plants and
root vegetables abandoned in nearby fields after harvest. Clad in worn
out nun’s robes, they bravely endured cold and hunger in the wet and
chilly autumn weather.
Moving from temple to
temple, they finally arrived in Hua-lien, a harbor city in central
eastern Taiwan, in December 1961. There, they met Mr. Hsu, an elderly
devout Buddhist layman who offered them great help. One day in late
1962, Mr. Hsu took them to visit his then newly erected Pu-Ming Temple.
Once there, she vividly recognized it as the place where the Goddess
Kuan-Yin appeared in her dreams for three consecutive nights—when she
was fifteen and her mother critically ill. The discovery of that fateful
temple ended her search and she happily settled down in Hua-lien. As the
small temple did not have living quarters, she stayed at Mr. Hsu’s home
that winter.
A Karmic Encounter
In February 1963, she
traveled to Taipei to attend the month-long initiation for novice nuns.
Her admission was abruptly denied, because she had not met the
prerequisite of serving two years under the guidance of a senior monk or
nun. At that critical moment, karma intervened in her favor. During a
brief encounter with Venerable Master Yin Shun—an erudite Buddhist monk,
philosopher, writer, scholar and teacher—she dared to make the request,
and was unexpectedly accepted as his disciple, thus clearing the
obstacle for her ordination as bhiksuni (a Mahayana nun). Granting her
the dharma name Shih Cheng Yen, the Venerable charged her to “commit the
rest of her life to Buddhism and to all sentient beings.” Her new Mentor
is, above all, a long-time advocate of humanist Buddhism—a revolutionary
Buddhist movement dedicated to the performance of benevolent deeds in
worldly life. His inspiration and advocacy paved the way for the future
Master Cheng Yen’s noble mission: the salvation of all sentient beings
anytime and anywhere.
The Birth of a Great
Teacher
Returning to Hua-lien
an ordained nun, she lived an austere life of meditation and sutra
studies in a coarsely built shack behind the Pu-Ming Temple. Her
down-to-earth and strikingly enlightening sermons given in nearby
temples quickly attracted followers. By 1964, young Master Cheng Yen
already had five live-in disciples, crowding the 10’ by 12’ shack. Not
accepting alms of any kind, they lived up to the self-imposed code of
“earning the day’s meals with a full day’s work”. They supported their
meager existence by growing rice and producing handicrafts. Furthermore,
they struggled to save money as much as they could to help out the needy
in the community.
The Great Vow
Two incidents in 1966
hastened Master Cheng Yen’s resolution to actively engage in the relief
of human miseries. One day when she was visiting a follower in a
hospital near Hua-lien, a puddle of blood on the floor startled her. She
learned in horror that the blood was left by an aborigine woman who had
a miscarriage. Bleeding profusely, she had been carried by four
tribesmen walking eight hours down the hills—only to be carried back
because she did not have the means to pay for her treatment. Shocked by
the plight of the poor and sick, Master Cheng Yen realized sufficient
financial resources would be essential to carry out relief work. On the
spot, she silently made the great vow of providing decent healthcare for
the needy by first working extra hard to earn the cash.
Twenty years later,
her great vow was finally fulfilled. In April 1986, the new
state-of-the-art Tzu-Chi Buddhist General Hospital in Hua-lien opened
its doors for the poor and the rich alike—with no one denied treatment
and no advance payment required.
A Provoking Dialogue
A short time after
the hospital incident, three Roman Catholic nuns, who heard of the young
bhiksuni’s religious devotion, paid her a visit in her tiny shack.
Disturbed by her “taking the wrong path”, they attempted to convert her
to Christianity. In the course of a lengthy debate, the Catholic nuns
finally agreed on the profoundness of the Buddhist philosophy but
criticized the passive nature of the Eastern religion. “Christians have
built hospitals, orphanages, schools and churches for the populace, even
in the most desolate lands. What have you Buddhists accomplished for the
needy?”, they questioned. This provoking dialogue further strengthened
and hastened Master Cheng Yen’s resolution to promulgate Buddhist
teachings by actively engaging in humanitarian missions—rather than
merely self-cultivating in seclusion, delivering sermons or performing
religious rituals.
Buddhists in Action
Early in 1966, the
Venerable Master Yin Shun invited Master Cheng Yen to head his temple in
Chia-yi, a city in western Taiwan. Learning of the news, thirty
followers supplicated their beloved Master to stay. Seeing their
pleading eyes and beseeching hands, the image of Kuan-Yin, the
“one-thousand-eye and one-thousand-hand Goddess” suddenly flashed in her
mind. If she could only mobilize 500 people, she envisioned, she would
have 1,000 observing eyes to seek out the needy and 1,000 helping hands
to care for the sick, the poor and the distressed.
With that insight,
she asked her followers to help carry out a new ambitious charity
plan—in return for her staying in Hua-lien. They joyfully pledged full
support. The Master then gave a crude bamboo “piggy bank” to each of her
thirty housewife supporters, asking them to deposit NT$50 cents daily
for a relief fund. “If each of you just put aside 50 cents a day,” she
said, “we would have enough money in a year to save the life of the
aborigine woman.” She also asked her nun disciples to contribute to the
fund by working harder to earn extra money. The touching story quickly
spread throughout Hua-lien and beyond. The public’s response was
instantaneous and overwhelming.
On March 24, 1966,
the Buddhist Tzu-Chi Merits Society, forerunner of the Tzu-Chi
Foundation, was formally established in Hua-lien (Tzu means “merciful”,
and Chi means “relief”, that is, “to relieve distress with a merciful
heart.”) Her five nun disciples, along with the first thirty housewife
commissioners, formed the original members of the Society. Since day
one, all donations made to the Tzu-Chi funds have been meticulously
documented—with every penny scrupulously directed to charity missions.
For that reason, the financially independent monastery remains poor up
to this date, while the Tzu-Chi Foundation—well trusted for its
integrity—continues to thrive.
The Jing-Si Abode
(Abode of Still Thoughts)
In 1969, Master Cheng
Yen and her disciples moved into the original Jing-Si Abode, built on
land donated by the Master’s mother and adjacent to the legendary
Pu-Ming Temple. Jing-Si was the name the Master gave herself after she
left home, and before receiving her dharma name. Jing means “calm” and
Si means “meditate”, that is, “meditate with a calm mind”. In subsequent
years, more structures have been added to the Abode campus—all financed
by the earnings of the monastic community. Today, the Abode compound
serves as Master Cheng Yen’s monastery, the Tzu-Chi headquarters and the
spiritual home of the global Tzu-Chi family. This is also the place
where the monastery’s residents earn their livelihood—through crop
farming in surrounding fields, a sophisticated recycle program, and the
in-house production of handicrafts and food items.
The Eight Tzu-Chi
Missions
Well founded on the
four principles of sincerity, integrity, trust-worthiness, and honesty,
the unique Tzu-Chi spirit has attracted supporters from all walks of
life. As membership and funds grow, Tzu-Chi has extended its missions
into four major fields: charity, medicine, education, culture; and four
minor fields: bone marrow donation, international relief, environmental
protection and community service. As of 2007, Tzu-Chi facilities
supporting its missions in Taiwan include the Jing-Si Abode campus, a
network of six hospitals, a university, a college of technology, local
Jing-Si community halls, publishing service, radio broadcasting and TV
production.
The Global Tzu-Chi
Family
Presided by Master
Cheng Yen, the Tzu-Chi organization consists of the Honorary Board, the
Commissioners’ Association, the Tzu-Cheng Faith Corps, the Tzu-Ching
Collegiate Association, the Tzu-Shao Youth Group, the Writers’ Group,
the Foreign Language Team, the Teachers’ Association, the Yi-Te
Mothers-Sisters’Association, and the Tzu-Chi International Medical
Association (TIMA)—all supported by a worldwide grass-root volunteer
base.
The Seeds of Great Love
Planted and nurtured
overseas by relocated Taiwanese, Master Cheng Yen’s Seeds of Great Love
have blossomed and bore fruits locally. In 1985, the first Tzu-Chi
overseas chapter was established in the United States. Since then,
Tzu-Chi chapters, branches, or liaison offices have taken roots in 32
countries. In 2007, 41 years after the birth of the original Tzu-Chi
Merit Society, over 5 million Tzu-Chi members worldwide respectfully,
mindfully and joyfully carry on Master Cheng Yen’s missions—without
regard to racial, ethnic, religious, political and geographic
boundaries.
The World Appreciates
Under the leadership
of Master Cheng Yen, Tzu-Chi volunteers always stand ready to extend
their helping hands to the unfortunate—solely on the basis of
compassion, without fanfare and not seeking any kind of return. Yet, the
self-initiated, self-supported, large-scale domestic and overseas relief
missions—all carried out with remarkable efficiently—have won the
acclaims of international observers. In recognition to Master Cheng
Yen’s outstanding leadership and continued contribution to the
betterment of humankind, the world community has formally honored her in
numerous occasions with the awards and recognition listed below. In
2000, Master Cheng Yen’s portrait was displayed on the Wall of Honor at
the National Liberty Museum, Philadelphia, USA.
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1986: Huashia Medal of First Order, Taiwan
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1991: Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community
Leadership
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1992: Featured in “Shih Cheng Yen’s Power of
Love”. Readers’ Digest, November 1992
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1993: Nobel Peace Prize nomination
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1993: Honorary Doctorate Degree, Chinese
University of Hong Kong
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1994: Eisenhower Medallion Award, People to
People International, USA
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1995: Executive Yuan Cultural Award, Taiwan
-
1995: One of 20 “Distinguished Asian Women”, Asia
Week, Hong Kong
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1996: Foreign Affair Medal of First Order, Taiwan
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1996: “Honorary Citizen” and “Goodwill
Ambassador”, State of Texas, USA
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1998: International Human Rights Awards,
Unrepresented Nations and Peoples’ Organization (UNPO)
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2000: One of 26 “Heroes from Around the World”,
National Liberty Museum, USA
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2000: One of 50 “Stars of Asia”, Business Week,
USA
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2000: Life Award, Noel Foundation, USA
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2000: Featured in Global Connection, a Canadian
public high school geography textbook
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2001: National Medal of Second Order, El Salvador
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2001: Honorary Doctorate in Social Sciences,
University of Hong Kong
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2001: Sun Award, National Culture Renaissance
Committee, Taiwan
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2002: Outstanding Women in World Buddhism Award,
World Buddhist University
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2002: Honorary Doctorate in Socio-cultural
Studies, National Chiao-Tung University, Taiwan
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2003: Presidential Brilliant Star Award of Second
Order, Taiwan
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2004: Asian American Heritage Award for
Humanitarian Service, Asian American Foundation of California
(AAFC), USA
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2007: 24TH Niwano Peace Prize, Niwano Peace
Foundation, Japan
Further Reference
The Tzu-Chi
Foundation and Master Cheng Yen’s teachings online:
http://www.tzuchi.org/global Master of Love and Mercy: Cheng Yen, by
Yu-ing Ching. Blue Dolphin Publishing, 1995
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Typing: Jenny Quang Tue Thanh & Tinh Quang
Layout: Helen Quang Tue Nguyen
Update 01-3-2008
