20141112 Relieving Suffering with Love
The Syrian Civil War is now in its fourth year and around 3.2 million Syrians have flied to other countries as refugees. See how they were forced to move from place to place with nowhere to call home. Where is their home? Their families have been shattered and they have to flee for lives. They’ve really suffered greatly. It is winter now. Winter is another challenge for refugees. The Syrian refugees are scattered in several countries. Some of Syrian’s neighboring countries are so kind as to set up refugee camps along the border areas for Syrian refugees to stay in tents.
But think about it--- Tents are set up on the ground. When it rains, it gets muddy everywhere, even in the tents where refugees live. And when there is a snowstorm, how is a weak tent to withstand snow? It can’t even withstand wind and rain. How are the refugees going to live like that? For nearly four years, Tzu Chi volunteers have been bringing care to the Syrian refugees. This is all we can do to help them. The land of Syria is strewn with blood and gore. These refugees used to lead a peaceful life. But when a few people’s minds went astray, conflicts and unrest ensued, leading to such tragedy for the Syrian people.
Their suffering is truly unspeakable. But we also see something that fills our hearts with joy--- Tzu Chi USA is 25 years old. To celebrate, on Nov. 8, our volunteers held a charity concert at a church in New York. They presented several performances and shared with the audience the work they’ve done over the past 25 years. Our Tzu Cheng members also presented an enactment on Ven. Jian Zhen’s voyage to Japan.
See how orderly their formations were. It was very moving to see. Time really flies. Twenty years ago today, we gave out aid to the people of Cambodia. At the time, due to years of conflicts and frequent natural disasters, the people there lived in impoverishment. When our volunteers were there, they saw that the locals lived in houses built on stilts and the areas under the houses were used as shelters for animals or livestock. Going into the house, our volunteers saw that the floor was paved with bamboo sticks and there were gaps between them.
So, through the gaps, one could see the area under the house. And the ceiling was so low that even a child’s head could touch the roof when standing up. That was their living condition and every family was the same. This morning, one of my monastic disciples asked: “How is that little girl in Cambodia?” She was asking about a girl from a family of 14 people. As the family was too poor to feed itself, one day, the mother poisoned the meal she prepared for everyone. It just so happened that this little girl I mentioned above was out playing. So, she survived. The other 13 members of the family all died. See how the family was so poor that they could not carry on with their lives.
Cambodia is infamous for three things landmines, dangerous insects, and venomous snakes and landmines are the worst. Why are there so many landmines? During the years when Cambodia was in war, a type of landmines called “Dragontooth,” which were small and shaped like butterflies, were air-dropped and spread across many areas in Cambodia. Sometimes when farmers work in the fields, they accidently step on landmines. That’s why there are many amputees in Cambodia. So, going to Cambodia to give aid truly takes great courage. Where di dour courage come from? From the fact that we couldn’t bear to see people suffered so much. Our volunteers went there several times.
After they first set foot in Cambodia in 1994, for the next three years, they had gone back and forth to help the people of Cambodia. Every time they went, because of the landmines, they needed a tank to guide them in front so their car could follow the tracks left by the tank to avoid landmines. A few days ago, a local school principal from Cambodia came to the Abode. She used to interpret for our volunteers when they went to Cambodia 20 years ago. She recounted many stories and said that she always remembers our blue-and-white uniform. In recent years, when our volunteers went again, they saw that Cambodia is very different now. Time really flies by very quickly.
Over the last four or five years, we see that Cambodia has developed and thrived. Now, many foreigners have gone there to invest or set up factories. High rises have also sprung up in cities. Cambodia has started to prosper. For the recent camp we help for businesspeople, many from Cambodia also attended. They all vowed to promote Tzu Chi in Cambodia and they hoped I could give them my blessings. They are determined to share Tzu Chi’s values with the local people and let more Chinese people there learn about the Buddha’s teachings and Tzu Chi’s spirit. They’ve indeed made a great vow.
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