20150318民心良善是國本 Love and Goodness--- the Cornerstone of a Peaceful Society
We see many disasters around the world. In Brazil, while its northern part is being affected by flooding, its southeast is grappling with its worst drought in over 80 years. In the U.S., as a massive wildfire is raging in Oklahoma, huge chunks of ice were pushed from a river in Ohio, damaging roads and other structures. Here in Taiwan, insufficient rainfall has caused water levels in reservoirs to drop significantly.
With so many natural disasters in the world, we really cannot afford to have spiritual disasters in our minds anymore. So, we need to work hard to tame our minds and constantly take in wholesome teachings to nourish our minds so we can grow in wisdom. Only when everyone gives rise to wisdom and tames their minds can there be peace and harmony in society. To tide over any difficulties we encounter, having a heart of sincere piety is very important.
When the world is filled with love, our hearts will always be calm and peaceful. Look at how our Tzu Chi volunteers in the Dominican Republic regularly visit those in need in an out-of-the-way area there. As many people there are poor, Tzu Chi volunteers often go to give out supplies to them. Such is the power of love. Our volunteers are not related to these people.
But with love in their hearts, they are not daunted by the arduous trips they have to take and still go to this remote area of their own accord to bring love and care to the people there. So, I hope that the people in Taiwan must have faith in Tzu Chi. Tzu Chi is not perfect in every way but we are doing our best and have been serving in Taiwan for almost 50 years.
I’m grateful at all times as gratitude is a key spirit of Buddhism. So, whenever our volunteers tell me about their family problems or other troubles they have, I always remind them to face everything with a grateful heart. Living in this world, we must from good affinities with more people instead of going against one another. We need to practice the Six Paramitas, the first of which is giving.
When giving, we must not ask anything in return, but should be grateful to those we help. I still remember that after a major earthquake hit Taiwan in 1999, Tzu Chi volunteers across Taiwan rushed to the disaster area to help. Looking back, I know that this was not something, we couldn’t achieved overnight; it was a result of our volunteers giving with love over a long period of time. That’s why they’re ready to mobilize anytime.
Thanks to everyone’s love and effort, we were able to rebuild 51 schools damaged by the quake in two years. For that, I must thank many people in Taiwan and abroad who had made donations to the project. I’m also very grateful to our volunteers for their hard work. With the help of our volunteers across Taiwan, the quake survivors were able to quickly settle down both physically and emotionally.
Apart from rebuilding schools we also borrowed land to build temporary housing for quake survivors. This is what we did to help them settle down and recover from the disasters soon. In less than three years, people living in the temporary housing moved in to their permanent homes. So, we took down the temporary housing and reused the building materials and interlocking blocks in other places.
See, when people are affected by disaster, we do everything we can think of to help them settle down and even start their own businesses. After they’ve rebuilt their homes, we reuse the building materials and return the clean land to its owners. That is what we had done after the 921 Earthquake.
But people have probably forgotten about it. After Typhoon Morakot brought severe devastation to southern Taiwan, Tzu Chi volunteers in many parts of Taiwan went to help clean up the disaster areas. In total, over 150,000 volunteers shifts were arranged to help with the cleanup. We even transported heavy machinery down south to speed up the cleanup work.
Moreover, to help relocate people in the mountains who had lost their homes to Morakot to safer places in the lowland, we built a housing complex in 88 days so they could move in before the Chinese New Year. There is trulytoo much to share. All this is what Tzu Chi what Tzu Chi volunteers have done for Taiwan alone. I hope everyone can calm down and reflect. For all the work we’ve done, it’s not enough to just mobilize our volunteers to help.
Many other people with love have also contributed their money and effort. Otherwise, how could we possibly have done so much? After last year’s plane crash in Penghu and the gas explosions in Kaohsiung, Tzu Chi volunteers had worked non-stop for over a month.
There was also the recent plane crash in Taipei--- In the midst of wintry weather, Tzu Chi volunteers went to provide aid to rescuers searching for missing passengers for nine consecutive days. Seeing how people worked together to give with love, I’m indeed very grateful. The goodness in people is the fundamental basis of a country, the cornerstone of a peaceful society, and the source of blessings for our world. I’m grateful to everyone for their advice to Tzu Chi.
There’s truly nothing I’m not grateful for. But we still need to take good care of our hearts and minds so misfortune won’t befall Taiwan. This is my earnest hope. My sincerest and best wished to everyone in Taiwan.
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