Date: July 20th, 2010 (Tuesday)
Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: A Milestone in Tzu Chi's International Relief Work 無私的人道救援
Da Ai’s Anchorperson reports news on July 20, 2010:
“Yesterday was a historical day for Tzu Chi volunteers around the world because at 11 a.m. New York time yesterday, the Economic and Social Council of the UN officially granted special consultative status to Tzu Chi.”
(In New York, USA on July 19, 2010)
Mr. Jhang Ji-Duo, the executor of Tzu Chi’s Northeast Region said:
" It is indeed a joyous occasion, but we also have greater responsibility now.
" There is still a long way for us to go, and hopefully, by having such a status in the UN, we will be able to contribute even more to the international community by carrying out our missions and spreading Tzu Chi’s spirit of Great Love around the world as Master hopes.”
Everyone, I have good news to share.
Yesterday, July 19, 2010 at 11 a.m. New York time, in a meeting at the UN Headquarters in New York. Tzu Chi was granted special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations.
For that, I am very grateful to Tzu Chi volunteers in the US.
Since 2008, they have been working hard to help Tzu Chi obtain consultative status with ECOSOC.
Now that we have this status, we will be able to apply for the protection of UN peacekeeping troops when carrying out certain relief missions.
This will help make our relief missions safer.
Moreover, we can even more precisely know how an area has been affected by a disaster and what aid people in the area need the most.
So, by having such special consultative status with ECOSOC, we can attend meetings of the Council and learn from the experiences and principles of many other NGOs.
This is how we can broaden our horizons and expand Tzu Chi’s work farther and wider to every corner of the world.
I’ve always hoped that the Buddha’s teachings can spread and be practiced in every part of the world so that people will understand that the Buddhist teachings guide people to care for others with compassion and to walk the correct path in life.
So that everyone can be free of ignorance, give rise to selfless Great Love, and further work to benefit humanity.
All this is what Tzu Chi volunteers have been doing all these years as an effort to work for Buddhism and for all living beings.
We have all made great resolutions to benefit all those in need.
Over 40 years ago, Tzu Chi began with a very small group of people.
As you just saw in the footage, we truly had very limited resources back then.
Indeed, to spread the Buddha’s teachings, the right time and place was needed so that more people would easily be inspired to follow this path.
So, having the right conditions is very important.
It was under the right conditions of time, place and people that Tzu Chi was founded.
For these conditions to arise and come together, it takes time and requires patience.
The birth of Tzu Chi started with a good thought to help others.
Despite having very scarce resources and all the manydifficulties we encountered, with patience and a mind to help the needy, we’ve been able to inspire more and more people to join us.
For over 40 years, Tzu Chi volunteers have been unwaveringly carrying out Tzu Chi’s mission of working for Buddhism and for all living beings by taking the Buddha’s heart and my missions as their own.
All this comes form a good thought, which is like a seed that resides in every one of us.
Everyone possesses the same Buddha-nature that is pure compassionate and wise.
Such pure, selfless Great Love and heart of compassion that we give rise to when we see others suffer, as well as the same wisdom as the Buddha’s is the seed of goodness that every one of us is born with.
As such a seed of goodness is already inherent in every person, it is just a matter of when, where and how such a seed can be sown and nurtured to grow.
All this requires the coming together of right conditions.
So, throughout these 40 plus years, we’ve witnessed much suffering and cared for countless people in need all around the world.
Each and every Tzu Chi volunteer has indeed taken on the responsibility to care for the suffering.
And, every task we have taken on has helped to bring stability to the suffering both physically and emotionally.
Seeing how Tzu Chi volunteers carried heavy supplies on their shoulders and handed them to people with respect, I am truly very moved.
The love Tzu Chi volunteers bear in their hearts is truly greater than a mountain that even Mt. Sumeru (the Himalayas) is no match.
That is why the Buddha said that the collective karma people create through their actions can be very great....
The bad collective karma can topple a mountain as tall and great as Mt. Sumeru, and the good collective karma we create.
When we act upon the good thoughts we give rise to can bring great blessings to people in the world.
All this depends on the thought we give rise to.
This is what we have come to witness and realize through the various work we have done over the years.
However, by being granted special consultative status with ECOSOC, we now shoulder an even greater responsibility as we’ll be able to carry out our missions as an NGO in consultative status with ECOSOC.
This way, more people will know that there is such a Buddhist organization whose members are giving of themselves with selfless Great Love and how we spend every penny of our donations to help disaster survivors, people in need, etc.
By serving others with such spirit and love, I am sure we’ll be able to inspire more aid groups to use their resources even more effectively to help more people in need.
This is how we can inspire others to serve the needy with selfless love together with us.I’m indeed very grateful.
This is truly a great achievement and also an important moment in Tzu Chi’s history.
My heart is filled up gratitude.
At a moment like this, we must shoulder more responsibility and work harder to carry out our four missions in more places around the world.
To do that, we must be stronger and braver and make even more effort to take on more work while also spreading our spirit and ideals farther and wider to more people around the world.
I’m truly very grateful.
Yesterday, I saw a news report about Mr. Gamzou, the representative from the Israel Economic and Cultural Office.
He was doing recycling last night and he said this might be the last time he does recycling in Taiwan as he is moving back to Israel soon.
He said he’ll bring the seed of Tzu Chi back home and serve as the first Tzu Chi volunteer in Israel.
See, as long as we are willing, we can create history by giving of ourselves to benefit humanity.
Thank you all bodhisattvas for giving of yourselves with love and mindfulness to help make all the work we do possible.
(Source: Da Ai TV 人間菩提)
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