人間菩提—20150422以方便法度人間 Spreading Wholesome Teachings to Benefit Others
Over the last few days, our overseas Tzu Chi volunteers gathered at the Abode for a meeting. It was truly a gathering of living bodhisattvas. When they reported, our mood fluctuated along with the stories they shared. Some of them serve in wealthy countries while others live in impoverished areas. Rich or poor, these countries all have Tzu Chi volunteers serving locally. It is difficult for people in well-to-do countries to walk the path of cultivation.
But Tzu chi volunteers in those countries still work hard to share wholesome teachings with the rich to help them further be uplifted spiritually and become wealthy both materially and spiritually. Of course, even in rich countries, there are people in need. So, our volunteers will also go to their aid. Apart from helping them, our volunteers will inspire them to give what they can and share life’s principles with them so they can be awakened and become spiritually rich.
This I show our volunteers in well-to-do countries share wholesome teachings with the rich and help the needy. They even reach out to prison inmates who have committed wrongdoings. They share Tzu chi’s publications with them and even go to prisons to interact with them in person. In every country, rich or poor, this is how Tzu Chi volunteers work to open people’s hearts to true principles so they can live in line with them in life.
Our volunteers practice the Dharma they’ve learned and walk the Bodhisattva Path steadfastly. But in fact, every step they take on the path is very difficult and arduous. From our volunteers’ reports, we’ve learned that every country has different conditions, so the work our volunteers do is also different. No matter what, they’ll all share wholesome teachings with the locals because only true principles can really help people.
As a saying goes, it takes people to spread wholesome teachings. See how our volunteers overseas share Jing Si Aphorisms with others. No matter where they’ve from, we’ve heard them say how useful Jing Si Aphorisms are to people of all ages, be they young children or the elderly and be they in poor or wealthy countries. Even prison inmates have benefited.
But it takes people to promote Jing Si Aphorisms if our volunteers didn’t read them and spread them by word of mouth and if no one translated them into English and many other languages, the copies of Jing Si Aphorisms would still sit in warehouses instead of being wisely used by hotels in several countries like now. All this is a result of our volunteers’ effort. We see our volunteers in Africa.
Tzu Chi started in Africa when a group of Taiwanese businesspeople there began to carry out Tzu Chi’s work locally. Thanks to them, the Buddha’s teachings were also brought there, inspiring many locals to give of themselves and become spiritually wealthy. Every time I speak of Africa, my heart goes out to our volunteers there. See how they have to hold gatherings outdoors and sit on the ground. Some have to endure the heating sun and those who are lucky get to sit under the shade of a tree.
They seize every chance to share Tzu Chi with whomever they meet. This is what they shared with us yesterday. Even when they have a place to hold a gathering, it is usually too small to accommodate everyone and some will have to stand outside. When it rains, they use umbrellas, when the sun beats down, they still stand there just to learn more about Tzu Chi. This is how scarce their resources are.
They’re just like monastic spiritual cultivators who practice austerity to train themselves. They work is very difficult, but they’re full of joy. Seeing how some of the suffering in Africa don’t even have beds to sleep on, we feel deeply for them. So, we really need to make great vows to serve. In this lifetime, we should give of ourselves so that in our future lives, we won’t be reborn in poor areas due to the negative karma we’ve created.
This is not impossible. It is also very important to tame our minds. Look at the riots in South Africa. There are many African immigrants in South Africa, and the local residents have accused them of taking their jobs triggering a series of riots in some cities in South Africa. The government in Johannesburg has asked Tzu Chi volunteers to provide blankets to the immigrants taking shelter set up by the government. So, a few days ago, our volunteers brought thermal blankets to the immigrants at a shelter in Johannesburg.
See, many people in South Africa live a hard life, and now they attack immigrants like this. Do immigrants want to leave their countries? They must have difficulty making a living in their home countries, so they moved to South Africa. Life is filled with suffering to begin with. If our minds are not tamed and we give rise to ignorance, what we do will lead to frightening consequences. All in all, in this world, there are many manmade and natural disasters.
How can we have a peaceful world free of disasters? If our minds are not peaceful, this world can never have one day in peace. There’s too much to share. I’d like to thank every volunteer for spreading wholesome teachings to relieve people of their physical and spiritual suffering. Thank you.
首頁 