20141210薰習智慧養慈悲 Working Together to Bring Harmony and Blessings to the World
The first Year-end Blessings Ceremony this year has been held for our recycling volunteers, members from our teachers’ assn. etc. this morning here in Zhanghua. I saw that our recycling volunteers also took part in the sutra adaption presented during the ceremony. I heard that some of them are in their eighties, but the strength they displayed in their movements was no less than that of young people. The entire presentation was very beautiful.
This is our Year-end Blessings Ceremony this year, which started here in Zhanghua. I was told that 61 volunteers from other countries also attended this afternoon’s ceremony for their certification. Originally, nearly 2,000 volunteers from overseas were coming to Taiwan to be certified by me. But due to the Ebola outbreak that started in Western Africa, we were worried and so, we asked everyone to cancel their trip to Taiwan and be certified in their countries.
Many of them had purchased their air tickets. Some refund their tickets, but those who didn’t want to do that still came to Taiwan as planned. So, I invited them to attend this afternoon’s ceremony here. I am grateful to everyone’s generosity for having them. With their presence, we’re like a mini U.N. here.
The theme of our Year-end Blessings Ceremony this year is “Foster sincerity among people to bring auspiciousness and harmony to the world. Inspire an earnest, honest, true heart in people to create blessings in life.” Indeed, this year, we need to work harder to encourage people to interact with one another with earnest sincerity. Living in this world if we can treat one another with sincere love wouldn’t our world be auspicious and harmonious?
For our world to enjoy peace and harmony and every family to be safe and sound, it all depends on everyone’s hearts and minds. So, every one of us needs to harbor a heart of utmost sincerity. Haven’t I been telling Tzu Chi volunteers to be sincere, upright, trustworthy and honest?
If we can encourage everyone to harbor such a sincere heart, our society will be very auspicious and harmonious. We must also set an example for everyone in society. That is a form of education. Last month, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of Tzu Chi’s Mission of Education. Twenty-five years ago, our nursing school was inaugurated. To build the school, I travelled around Taiwan to solicit donations.
Many Tzu Chi volunteers also helped me to raise fund. Some even brought bricks, titles, etc. to us in Hualien. Thanks to their help we were able to build our first school. On the day of the anniversary celebration, I was very moved. When the program started, I heard children from our kindergarten in Hualien chanted so loudly and clearly that their voices had drowned those of adults.
Throughout the presentation, they chanted verses from the entire Sutra of Innumerable Meanings by heart. When they performed onstage, they moved as orderly as the professors and students from our university and our elementary and high school students. The Buddha said that the mind of the Buddha and living beings is one and the same. From these children, we’ve witnessed what the Buddha had said about how everyone shares the same nature and wisdom as the Buddha’s.
Apart from the education at school, our society and every family also need education as it’s important to purify people’s minds. When I entered our Jing Si Hall in Zhanghua, I saw many notebooks arranged neatly on the table. They contained notes that our volunteers took when they listened to my Dharma talk. Every notebook was neatly written. I read some of them, and I can truly see that everyone has been listening to my Dharma talk diligently.
Since you’re learning so diligently, I hope you can take the Dharma to heart and practice it in our daily living. Only then can we set a good example. This I show we can educate people by example and inspire an earnest, honest, true heart in them. We shall be sincere, upright, trustworthy and honest ourselves so we can set an example for others to follow.
Only then will they enjoy blessings in life. This is how we’ve been conducting ourselves in order to purify people’s minds. There are many loving and kind-hearted people in Taiwan but that’s not enough. We need to work harder to purify people’s hearts and minds. This is very important. Everyone, we need to give with love whenever we can. Taiwan is the birthplace of Tzu Chi.
So, I hope you can serve as a role model for our volunteers in other parts of the world. Okay? Okay. Those who are certified today wear a ribbon that says: “With Buddha’s heart and Master’s convictions. “ So, starting today you should emulate the Buddha’s heart and take my missions as your own. The Buddha said that everyone shares the same nature as him.
So, to learn the Buddha’s way, we should take the Buddha’s heart as our own and emulate his great compassion. By taking my missions as your own, you need to serve as living bodhisattvas to help the suffering. This is my conviction. I hope you can work together with me to benefit people in the world. Can you do that? Yes.
Starting today, and throughout your lives you need to emulate the Buddha’s heart and carry out my missions. Please also well abide by Tzu Chi’s Ten Precepts, learn the Dharma diligently and serve as bodhisattvas in this world.
首頁 