20141103共造福業，醫王拔苦To Create Good Karma Collectively
So many regrettable things are happening in this world. When people’s hearts are not in harmony, they cause very regrettable situations for the world, cause people to suffer, and cause the climate to change. We’ve seen fires burning down vast tracts of forestland, followed by torrential rain, which led to mudslides.
As the lush forest had been burnt to a barren land, when heavy rain came down, the mountain could not absorb all the water, and its soil gave way causing mudslides. Such is the imbalance mother nature is undergoing: a fire disaster followed by the water disaster of torrential rain. Such is the impermanence we live with.
Yet, all these disasters result from the harm we have created and accumulated in our daily life. Our collective negative karma has turned our world into a dangerous place full of calamities and impurities. To mitigate natural disasters and make our land safe to live on again, people’s hearts need to be transformed.
When people’s hearts are in harmony, the land will be safe and well. When people’s hearts are full of conflicts, manmade and natural disasters will frequently occur.
We see the warmth and kindness of Tzu Chi volunteers, who are living bodhisattvas. We saw on Da Ai News a groundbreaking ceremony in Ya’an, China a few days ago. This goes back to the earthquake that struck Ya’an on April 20 last year, which destroyed many houses and schools. It was a devastating disaster.
Tzu Chi volunteers went to Ya’an to provide disaster relief and calmed the hearts of frightened survivors. We also helped children to recover from the trauma of the quake. After we helped their minds to heal, they could smile again. When the parents were busy working to save belongings from their damaged homes, they brought their children to Tzu Chi’s service center for us to take care of.
Under the volunteers’ care, the children became happier with each passing day. They also started to sing and learned to appreciate their parents for raising them. Our services in the disaster relief period resulted in many touching stories. Yet, the quake damaged many schools in the area.
Though government is doing a good job in disaster recovery, it will take time to rebuild all the damaged schools. So, Tzu Chi adopted the rebuilding project of three schools. We do it out of love. We help the people in need regardless of where they are. Therefore, we should go wherever there is a need and seize the opportunity to help.
Forming good affinities with people and creating good karma and how we create blessings for the world. Otherwise, if we go astray, we will create negative karma. Once we have created negative karma, we will end up in a vicious cycle of suffering. If everyone does good deeds and creates blessings collectively, we will bring peace to our world.
When we form good affinities with people, for the people we meet in our current and future lives, they will like us and we will like them. That would be the most wonderful life to have. All in all, this is what the power of love can bring.
We also see that Supt. Poon of Kuanshan Tzu Chi Hospital practices medicine with a mission---to benefit all patients. He practices medicine for the sake of patients. Supt. Poon serves whatever function is needed. He always leads by example. He walks the talk. He is very earnest to help, very considerate of patients, and not afraid of hard work. He tries his best to care for patients.
He said that many physicians stay in the cities. But small towns and villages need doctors, too, except that doctors do not prefer to stay there. Therefore, he has chosen to stay in remote areas to offer his service. We always face manpower shortage toward the end of the month.
Many shifts are open without a doctor on duty. When the Supt. Is available, he will put himself on duty. When we look at the calendar, he can be on duty up to ten days in a month. It must be very tiring for him to be on duty for 24 hours and then have clinic hours the next day. He has been stationed in Guanshan or 13 years, treating the small town of Guanshan just like his home.
He is caring and kind when treating patients. Of course, we have to thank his wife, his other half, for supporting him and willing staying in Guanshan to stand by him.
Stationed in this small town, his responsibilities extend beyond Guanshan to include surrounding mountain and coastal areas. Every week he leads a team to go into the mountains or to the coastal areas to visit the elderly living in remote areas. He cares for these elderly just as if they were his own family.
He goes often to provide services and brings physicians and nurses with him to clean their bodies, bring medicine to them, change the dressing on their wounds, replace their nasogastric tubes, and perform other services with love. It’s a bit uncomfortable, so you’ll have to bear with it. Swallow it like you’re swallowing noodles or saliva.
He also works closely with Catholic nuns to offer Tzu Chi’s medical services. He has forged a very close working relationship with the local churches and nuns. The nuns and their medical institutions need support from Kuanshan Tzu Chi Hospital. So, Supt. Poon gives great support to the nuns and their institutions the same as he would for Tzu Chi. He does this out of love.
His love for the people there has earned the trust and admiration of local residents and he has received the government’s medical dedication award for his service. Knowing that he safeguards patients in Guanshan gives me comfort and peace of mind.
Such dedication of love is evident in Supt. Poon and the entire Kuanshan Tzu Chi Hospital staff, including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, etc. They gladly give of themselves to help the local elderly and also the disadvantaged families. They give of themselves very willingly to help people. Such is the beauty of life, full of truth, goodness, and beauty.
Living such a life gives them joy, serenity, and peace of mind. There are always choices in life. When a team comes together with kindness, they will bring about the pure land, and let our society be filled with love and harmony. All it takes is a compassionate heart to achieve this.
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