Date: July 22th,2010 (Thursday)
Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: Working Together to Inspire and Nurture Seeds of Goodness in People 撒播善種．一生無量
Elder Habib of theIslamic boarding school (in Indonesia) said:
"I’ve been telling my students that Master Cheng Yen is our mother".
"Tzu Chi doesn’t discriminate between race, nationality, or religion".
"All that they do is to help others”.
Tzu Chi’s affinities with this Islamic boarding school in Indonesia began in August 2003.
At the time, the school had over 3,000 students and was having difficulty providing for them.
So, after Tzu Chi volunteers in Indonesia evaluated the school’s needs, they began providing the school with 50 tons of rice every month along with cooking oil and vegetables.
As some of the children were malnourished, we also provided them with milk powder and nutritional supplements.
Then, in May 2004, we began holding free clinics for the students.
As there was also a shortage of spaces, the students lived in very crowded conditions.
Not wanting the students to live like that, Tzu Chi volunteers constructed a new building so that the students could have more space.
We also taught them ways to support themselves.
In 2005, we taught the students at this school to do recycling.
With the money from selling the recyclables, they were able to pay for the teacher’s salaries.
Our volunteers also taught them to make bread.
See how they make their own bread and also learned to make soy milk.
We taught them these skills so that they can support themselves.
Our volunteers have now gone one step further.
Because the school has a large piece of land, starting from this April, Tzu Chi volunteers taught them to grow rice crops.
They planted the seedlings in April and harvested the rice in July.
In three month’s time, the seedlings have grown into rice plants full of grains.
Elder Habib of the school and many Tzu Chi volunteers also took part in harvesting rice and threshing the grains with a foot-operated machine.
Apart from being able to experience the joy of reaping a good harvest, what’s most important is the lessons learnt as Elder Habib hoped that the children could experience how hard it is to be a farmer.
Elder Habib of the school said:
" I hope the students can learn to reap and enjoy the fruits of their hard work.
I also hope they can learn to farm because nowadays not many people want to be farmers. All that people want is an easy life.
Now that Tzu Chi has taught them these skills, I hope they’ll be able to support themselves with the skills they’ve learned.
This is also my purpose when founding this school”.
Not only did the school reap a good harvest, but so did we as it’s truly rewarding to see their joy and how they are now able to be self-reliant and lead a stable life.
Since Tzu Chi began helping the school in 2003, the number of students has increased from 3,000 to over 15,000.
And see how these students have grown from having to be dependent on outside help to being able to support themselves.
The progress they’ve made thus far has indeed been very moving to see.
And see how they are still continuing to grow stronger.
Through all these years, Tzu Chi volunteers have been continually providing them with support and guidance.
The students of the school are now even serving as volunteers to benefit society.
Every time when we have volunteer work and need helping hands, many of the students from the school will come take part as volunteers.
So, regardless of religion and nationality, the charity mission we carry out has truly helped many people around the world.
For that, I am truly very grateful.
This young girl we see is Theresia in Indonesia.
She was born with teratoma, a rare congenital tumor growth.
But her family was too poor to afford the treatment she needed.
Her father goes from place to place selling Siomay (an Indonesian dish) on the back of his motorbike and can only earn about US$6 a day, which is just enough to sustain the family.
So, it’s not possible for him to afford the girl’s medical treatment.
It was only when a Tzu Chi volunteer came to know about this girl’s condition that we brought her to the hospital to receive the surgery she needed.
This girl has now recover and also gone back to school.
As this father is very grateful to Tzu Chi, beginning April 2009, he fastened a coin bank to a pole that he erected on his motorbike.
And on the coin bank, there is a Jing Si Aphorism that says:
“Even tiny donations can do great things”.
When people saw that and asked him about it, he’d share with them what he knows about Tzu Chi.
Hearing what he said, people would donate and put money in the coin bank.
A young girl, Theresia’s mother said:
“I’ve experience before what it’s like to need other’s help, so I can understand how those in
need feel.
They must also long for others’ help.
Having received Tzu Chi’s help, I now want to help others, too”
< The following conversations are between Da Ai TV’s reporter and a young girl, Theresia: >
“Now that your tumor has been removed, how do you feel?”
“Great”
“How so ?”
“It no longer hurts”
“Why do you put coins into the coin bank ?”
“Because I want to help others who are ill”.
“What do you want to be when you grow up ?”
“A doctor”.
“Why ?”
“If my dad and mom were to fall ill, I’d be able to treat them for free”.
A young girl, Theresia’s father said:
“Since I have received help from others, I hope I can also help those in need.
I solicit donations to help other patients who have more serious conditions than my daughter.
That’s why I bring a coin bank with me every day to solicit donations for other needy people”.
One time, he brought the coin bank to our local Tzu Chi office and there was a total of around US$60 in the coin bank.
See, this is how we can come to people’s aid while also inspiring love in them so that they can also become someone who can help others.
When it comes to inspiring people to walk on the path of goodness, no matter what religion or race people are and whether they are rich or poor, everyone can be inspired to do good as there is a seed of goodness in every one of us and we’re all capable of inspiring love in others after we ourselves are inspired.
That is why we must work hard to share the supreme teachings of the Buddha with people around the world.
When everyone can learn and practice the Buddha’s teachings, they will be able to work in unity for the well being of humanity without discriminating between races or religions.
(Source: Da Ai TV 人間菩提)
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