20210310覺行圓滿生無量Paragons of Selfless Giving
"In the early day, there was no Jing Si Hall or Tzu Chi office here in Kaohsiung, so we held aid distributions for the elderly in need at Bodhi temple in the downtown area or at Bodhisattva Temple in Dalinpu.
In the beginning, there were only ten to twenty volunteers. When Master came to visit aid recipients, we'd take a leave. Once, we went with Mr. (Chen) Ye-Chun to visit an aid recipient, and during the visit, Master taught us how to help the needy."
The passing of Ms. Zhuang Zi-yao pains me deeply. She was one of our volunteers in Kaohsiung. Everyone loved her dearly. For decades, she walked the Bodhisattva Path, carried out Tzu Chi's work mindfully, and followed me closely. She was dedicated to community volunteer work. Everyone thought of her when they needed help and she could always make people feel reassured.
She not only did Tzu Chi's work but also inspired her family to do the same. Her husband, Mr.Lin (Zheng-zong,) was very supportive of her. After he retired, he began to focus on Tzu Chi's work and joined Zi-yao in working with the same heart. Zi-yao wished to donate her body for the medical education of our students. Her body has been brought back to our Tzu Chi University. The other day, when I learned of her passing, I was very sad.
I was in Taipei at the time and her brother said to me with tears in his eyes: "My sister has passed away." With great pain in my heart, I replied: "Let us give her our best wishes. Her illness had brought her great suffering. Dragging on would only mean more pain. Now, she rests in peace. We should let go of her so she can go to her next life without attachments or worries."
When I came back to our Abode in Hualien, her husband and son were waiting for me. I said to them: "She dedicated herself to Tzu Chi and served as a living bodhisattva throughout her life. She even donated her body to our university so our medical students can learn more about the human body and help a lot of patients in the future. Everything she did was meritorious. She has made great value of her body. I'm grateful to all of you for helping her fulfill her wish."
Yet, even though I could say all of this to her husband and son, her passing still pains me deeply. We humans are sentient beings. Yet, if we do not learn to let go, we will be entangled in afflictions. Thankfully, we Tzu Chi members all serve with enlightened love. We all know that our lives are limited, which is a law of Nature. So, we've come to terms withe it. We've also learned to let go, so we do not have conflicts with others, fight over matters, ar arouse disputes in the world.
As we do not do such things, we are at ease in this life. We must be grateful that over the past few decades, we've been able to use our body to go amongst people to serve and walk the Bodhisattva Path. When our time comes, it's not the end. we must start again after taking a rest. Take for example the Parable of the Magic City of the Lotus Sutra. The treasure is already near, so after taking a rest, we must let go of the Magic City and resume our journey for the treasure.
I have faith that after letting go of the Magic City, Zi-yao has set our for the storehouse of the treasure and has carried on the Bodhisattva Path again. Having served as a living bodhisattva in this life, she now has set out for the storehouse of the treasure.
Besides Zi-yao, Ms. Wei Man-zi has also passed away As a Tzu Chi commissioner, she purchased tickets and accompanied people to take trains on the way back to our Abode. She has inspired a lot of people to join our rank. Our volunteers all carry out Tzu Chi's work with all their hearts.
The construction of our Jing Si Hall in Keelung was made possible by Mr. Wen Song-zhen. Lving to nearly 100 years old, he has also passed away. As he donated to Tzu Chi a piece of land in Keelung, we could build a Jing Si Hall there. In this cultivation ground, many people have received training to serve as living bodhisattvas. With wisdom, Mr. Wen has sown many blessings for the future generations.
"I now see this magnificent Jing Si Hall built here, on this land. I hope that Tzu Chi volunteers will work harder, have more Dharma Joy, and be more united."
I'd like to give my best wishes to Tzu Chi members who have shared the same heart with me in walking the Bodhisattva Path. I hope they can continue to lay out and pave the path for me so I can follow them when my time comes. They will lead me forward and I will call on more people to walk the Bodhisattva Path in the right direction. We must always strive for our shared goals.
I'm very grateful that Tzu Chi members can let go of attachments, be at peace, head towards the right direction and lead people forward generation after generation.
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