Date: August 21th,2010 (Saturday)
Lecturer: Master Zheng-Yan
Subject: The Culmination of Nearly 20 Years of Aid Work in China 見證大陸慈善二十年
It’s been close to 20 years since Tzu Chi began humanitarian work in China.
I remember the devastating flood that hit China in 1991.
It affected the eastern region of China, covering 19 provinces. It was very devastating.
At that time, I remember I was touring around Taiwan and I saw on the front page of the newspaper news of the flooding in the eastern region of China. The image of the destruction was very shocking.
China also appealed for international aid for the disaster. At that time, a though arose in my mind.
I asked our Tzu Chi magazine publication to take out some of the articles to be published and replace them with an article on the flooding disaster in China and urged people to help the flood survivors. That was our first response.
From that day on, I was very worried about the China flooding disaster.
At our monthly aid distribution, I brought up in my speech the devastating disaster in China and asked people to help those affected by
the flooding in China.
On that day, though I was speaking to our Tzu Chi volunteers and our donating members, our care recipients were also there listening to me.
I had thought our donating members would be the first to respond and our volunteers could launch an aid campaign, yet it was the care recipients who first responded to my call.
I was very shocked and deeply touched. Their response gave me hope.
Since even the care recipients who reply on aid were willing to help the flood survivors, donating members and others in society undoubtedly could be as well.
They could also be moved to help and so, we began our efforts.
I really have to thank our care recipients at that time.
Their generosity in donating money gave me a lot of courage and willpower.
So, I started a fundraising campaign to aid the flood survivors in China.
Our aid effort in China was very difficult. Our volunteers continually raised funds for our aid effort.
I am very grateful to our Tzu Chi volunteers for supporting me on this cause so that I had the support to proceed and make plans for how to give aid and the type of relief supplies to provide.
Moreover, when I first expressed my wish to build houses for the flood survivors, Tzu Chi volunteers were all shocked.
While we were still trying to procure enough clothing, blankets and rice, I brought up the daunting idea of building durable houses for the people that can last tens and hundreds of years. At that time, Tzu Chi volunteers were all shocked.
They were all worried about the feasibility of this, yet they didn’t dare to say it.
They just supported me in whatever I wished to do. I am truly very grateful for this.
Now that I think back on this, I am deeply humbled by Tzu Chi volunteers’ willingness to support me in carrying out whatever project
I am committed to doing.
They are not afraid of the hard work and are always trying hard to carry out Tzu Chi’s work.
I must also thank the officials in China for their care and concern toward their local citizens at that time.
So, when we proposed to build a housing community for the survivors, the officials were very supportive and cooperative.
They said we could choose any available land.
I said the land for the housing community had to be in a location with easy access to transportation. It couldn’t be too remote and isolated.
Why?
Because besides giving them a home and a place to settle down in, we needed to think of their livelihood.
Only with favorable conditions for livelihood could they build a stable and prosperous life.
So, the local authorities were very cooperative in the construction of this housing community.
While it was a very difficult endeavor for us to raise funds for the project, the officials in China were compassionately concerned for people displaced by the disaster, so they accepted Tzu Chi’s proposal to build permanent housing for the survivors and cooperated to see it successfully fulfilled.
The construction of the Tzu Chi village was completed in around 60 days so that the survivors could move in before Chinese New Year.
It was truly a history-making project.
In the ensuing years, we did much work in China motivated by the compassionate wish to relieve people of suffering.
All there actions throughout time have left their mark.
It’s been almost twenty years that we have been doing humanitarian work in China and it culminated in the milestone yesterday of the
official inauguration of the Tzu Chi China chapter.
“And now, the unveiling….”
Mr. Chien Yunlin, chairman of ARATS said:
“I want to thank Tzu Chi members for all your humanitarian work throughout China during these many years.”
“Bust most importantly, I want to thank Tzu Chi members because at a time when Cross Strait relations re very sensitive and strained, you have been the first to create a spiritual bridge for communication across the Taiwan Straits."
I am very grateful to Mr. Chen Yunlin, chairman of ARATS (the Assn for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits). Mr. Ma, Deputy Secretary-General of ARATS, Mr. Qi, Deputy Director-General of the State Administration for Religious Affairs of P.R.C. and many other officials who traveled from Beijing expressly for the inauguration.
I would also like to thank the officials of Jiangsu Province and the city of Suzhou for attending the ceremony for attending the ceremony.
Such recognition and affirmation of Tzu Chi means that we now carry an even greater responsibility.
I must also thank Tzu Chi volunteers in China.
I can imagine how busy and how hard our local volunteers have been working these many days for the sake of this inauguration.
I’d also like to thank the heads of Tzu Chi’s institutions in Taiwan who were also in attendance.
Indeed, yesterday must have been a very joyous occasion for all.
But, as the Buddha teaches us, a bodhisattva’s mission is to relieve the suffering of living beings.
So, with this official opening of our chapter, which signifies trust and affirmation of Tzu Chi, we must work with even more care and mindfulness and take to heart the responsibility of relieving the suffering of all living beings.
(Source:Da Ai TV 人間菩提)
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