UNITED STATES｜Free Medical Services for Underprivileged Families

By Chen Xiao-ying
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos by Jiang Guo-an

Tzu Chi volunteers in Northern California, in the United States, have dedicated over a decade to promoting the Happy Campus program, providing supplemental tutoring, bolstering student attendance, and more. They maintain a long-standing partnership with Rosemary Elementary School in Campbell, Santa Clara County. Through this collaboration, volunteers have come to recognize the issues faced by many members of the local Hispanic community, such as undocumented immigration status, precarious or insufficient incomes, and an inability to cover insurance or medical costs. Beyond economic constraints, language barriers pose additional obstacles to accessing healthcare.

To help address these medical needs, Tzu Chi held its first community free clinic event at the school in October 2023, followed by another in March 2024. These clinics offered services such as traditional Chinese medicine, dental care, spinal health care, and dental hygiene education. Separate areas were set up for consultations, using privacy cubicles designed and produced by Tzu Chi. Spanish-speaking volunteers were on hand to provide translation services. The clinic plans to continue on a biannual schedule, held every six months.

By Chen Xiao-ying
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos by Jiang Guo-an

Tzu Chi volunteers in Northern California, in the United States, have dedicated over a decade to promoting the Happy Campus program, providing supplemental tutoring, bolstering student attendance, and more. They maintain a long-standing partnership with Rosemary Elementary School in Campbell, Santa Clara County. Through this collaboration, volunteers have come to recognize the issues faced by many members of the local Hispanic community, such as undocumented immigration status, precarious or insufficient incomes, and an inability to cover insurance or medical costs. Beyond economic constraints, language barriers pose additional obstacles to accessing healthcare.

To help address these medical needs, Tzu Chi held its first community free clinic event at the school in October 2023, followed by another in March 2024. These clinics offered services such as traditional Chinese medicine, dental care, spinal health care, and dental hygiene education. Separate areas were set up for consultations, using privacy cubicles designed and produced by Tzu Chi. Spanish-speaking volunteers were on hand to provide translation services. The clinic plans to continue on a biannual schedule, held every six months.

關鍵字

ZIMBABWE｜Clean Water Is Hard to Come By

By Wu Xiu-ling and Biggie Samson
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos courtesy of Tino Chu

Children scooping water directly from mud puddles and ponds to drink is a common sight in Zimbabwe, a landlocked country in southern Africa. However, the practice poses health risks. For instance, contaminated drinking water has been identified as the primary route of transmission behind a cholera outbreak that began in the country last year and has resulted in tens of thousands of reported cases. “In cholera hotspots, posters reminding people to wash their hands are everywhere,” said Tino Chu (朱金財), head of Tzu Chi Zimbabwe. “But how can people in communities suffering from severe water shortages wash their hands?” His comment reflects frustration with this harsh reality.

To help contain the outbreak, local Tzu Chi volunteers have worked on two fronts: distributing water purification tablets and organizing three teams to repair wells in cholera hotspots. Expert volunteers extract metal pipes from wells to determine whether they are damaged, replace faulty parts, and add water purification agents to ensure water safety. Between the onset of the outbreak last year and the end of February this year, the teams repaired over 620 wells, each capable of serving approximately 600 households. Over the past decade, Tzu Chi has also drilled a total of 236 new wells in the country to provide water for local communities facing water scarcity.

By Wu Xiu-ling and Biggie Samson
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos courtesy of Tino Chu

Children scooping water directly from mud puddles and ponds to drink is a common sight in Zimbabwe, a landlocked country in southern Africa. However, the practice poses health risks. For instance, contaminated drinking water has been identified as the primary route of transmission behind a cholera outbreak that began in the country last year and has resulted in tens of thousands of reported cases. “In cholera hotspots, posters reminding people to wash their hands are everywhere,” said Tino Chu (朱金財), head of Tzu Chi Zimbabwe. “But how can people in communities suffering from severe water shortages wash their hands?” His comment reflects frustration with this harsh reality.

To help contain the outbreak, local Tzu Chi volunteers have worked on two fronts: distributing water purification tablets and organizing three teams to repair wells in cholera hotspots. Expert volunteers extract metal pipes from wells to determine whether they are damaged, replace faulty parts, and add water purification agents to ensure water safety. Between the onset of the outbreak last year and the end of February this year, the teams repaired over 620 wells, each capable of serving approximately 600 households. Over the past decade, Tzu Chi has also drilled a total of 236 new wells in the country to provide water for local communities facing water scarcity.
關鍵字

Innovative Solutions to Real-World Challenges

By Yeh Tzu-hao
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting

One team invented earthquake-resistant furniture, while another created a solar-powered drying system to extend the shelf life of agricultural products. They both identified unsolved problems and devised innovative solutions in their work.

Earthquakes are common in our hometown of Yuli, so we designed this product to increase the chances of rescue,” explained Ye Zhen, an 11th-grader at Yuli High School in Hualien, eastern Taiwan.

Ye Zhen and her fellow schoolmates, 12th-grader Zhang Zhi-yan and 11th-grader Wu Bo-yi, along with their mentor Xu Qi-rong, formed a team to devise an earthquake-resistant modular furniture set. Their furniture is engineered to withstand the impact of falling objects and building collapse during tremors. The desk and wheeled drawer unit in the set are sturdy, providing space for survival when other indoor furniture would fail. They are also equipped with a built-in LED light, buzzer, and rechargeable battery, which would facilitate rescue operations. Furthermore, the desk and two accompanying chairs offer extra storage space for essential survival supplies.

The team won first place for their design in the high school category at the seventh annual Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition in 2023. One year earlier, the People’s Choice Award went to a solar-powered automatic drying system designed to preserve agricultural products in Indonesia. The Best Application Award that year was won by a team from Keelung Commercial and Industrial Vocational High School in rainy Keelung for their shoe drying machine. These products were created to meet local needs, concretely demonstrating empathy.

Thinking ahead to save lives

Seismic activity is common in Taiwan’s eastern Hualien and Taitung areas, so residents there are familiar with earthquakes. However, many locals, including the Yuli High School team that invented the earthquake-resistant furniture, still harbor lingering fears from the tremor on Sunday, September 18, 2022. When Ye Zhen returned to her school dormitory after the quake, she found herself and her roommates among the victims, with furniture fallen and items scattered everywhere. Zhang Zhi-yan, who was on the second floor of her home during the tremor, quickly rushed downstairs to check on her grandfather’s safety.

The earthquake left such a profound impact that it motivated Ye, Zhang, and their schoolmate Wu Bo-yi to start a project focusing on earthquake response, aimed particularly at aiding the elderly and those with limited mobility. They undertook the project as part of a school course on innovation in practice. Xu Qi-rong, who works in the computer design department of an international corporation in Taipei, became their mentor for the project. The team decided to center their project around earthquake-resistant furniture. They discussed ideas through videoconferences and attended a relevant workshop at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology in Hualien on Saturdays and Sundays. Under Xu Qi-rong’s guidance, the three high school students began by sketching and creating paper models, gradually refining their concept step by step. Eventually, they had a professional model maker create a detailed and realistic display model.

Their modular furniture set includes a desk, two chairs, and a wheeled drawer unit. “Our desktop is crafted from an aluminum honeycomb panel made of recycled aluminum, with a weight-bearing capacity four to six times that of a regular desktop,” explained Ye Zhen. Aluminum honeycomb panels are known for their strength and lightness, commonly used in aircraft construction. Ye highlighted other design features of their furniture set: the desktop is not only lightweight and robust but also includes a handle and an LED light on the side facing the floor. One can use the handle for stability when taking shelter under the desk and the LED light automatically illuminates during an earthquake. In ordinary times, the light can serve as a night light.

To bolster resistance, the team used two oval cabinets to support the desk instead of regular desk legs. A built-in electronic timer, set to emit alerts every three or six months, reminds users to check and update the disaster relief supplies stored within the furniture set.

The wheeled drawer unit consists of three tiers. The top two tiers are designed for storing food, medicine, and other emergency supplies. There are small doors on the sides, allowing access to items when necessary without the need to pull out the drawers. The bottom tier is equipped with a buzzer and charging device. In the event of being trapped during a quake, the buzzer provides an alternative to shouting or knocking, helping to conserve energy.

Xu Qi-rong said that they had planned for the worst-case scenario during their design process. In the case of a collapsing roof, their furniture set had to have a certain degree of rigidity to resist being crushed easily and be able to provide a survival space. “Our drawer unit was not originally designed to bear weight,” he explained, “but we deliberately designed it to be close in height to the desktop and capable of bearing weight. If the desktop is deformed under pressure, the drawer unit can be used as support.” The mentor also asserted, “And with supplies around you, the chances of survival will be higher.”

Chen Yan-xing (陳彥杏), Yuli High School’s director of academic affairs, said, “The Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology was wonderful. They provided our students with transportation expenses and equipment to help with their project.” He added that due to their school workload, the three students could often only work on the project during weekends. “Still, they overcame whatever difficulties they encountered and achieved what they set out to do. Both their mentor and I are very impressed!” Chen was happier than the students themselves to see them win first place and two special awards at the Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition.

Xu Qi-rong expressed his pride for the students. He noted that the resources available to them, living in a rural area, were not as abundant as those for students living in cities, and yet the three managed to achieve their “mission impossible” through their own passion for meaningful innovation and their teachers’ enthusiasm for education.

Photos by Liu Wei-xing

Earthquake-Resistant Modular Furniture Set

● Invention Team
Students from Yuli High School

● Design
The desk and drawer unit in the set are sturdy, capable of providing a survival space during a strong earthquake. They are also outfitted with an LED light, buzzer, and rechargeable battery to increase the chances of rescue in the event of building collapse. The set also includes two chairs with extra storage space for essential survival supplies.

Addressing the issue of surplus produce

While the earthquake-resistant furniture was designed by Taiwanese students, another award-winning invention—the solar-powered automatic drying system—was the brainchild of a group of Indonesian students. These students were from a special class at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology. They received scholarships from Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group to study agricultural production and marketing in Taiwan, aiming to find innovative solutions to challenges facing Indonesia’s agriculture sector.

Bagas Pramana Putra Fadhila, a graduate from this special class, is fluent in Chinese. He explained the reason behind their invention with the help of images on his cell phone. He said that while the quality of the dragon fruit harvested in Indonesia is good, the excessive yield saturates the market, leading to the disposal of the surplus as waste. Chili peppers, essential in Indonesian cuisine, face a similar issue. Bagas hails from the ancient city of Yogyakarta, where his parents run a grocery store. He is most keenly aware of the fluctuating prices of chili peppers in his hometown. “Yogyakarta has many chili pepper farmers,” he said. “Usually, a kilogram of this produce sells for 100,000 rupiah [US$6.37], but during low price periods, it’s only one-tenth of that price.”

Why haven’t Indonesian farmers learned from Taiwan’s farmers’ associations and set up drying centers to address the surplus production issue? It seems simple, but the situation in Indonesia makes such a solution more challenging.

Although Indonesia’s electricity prices are 40 percent less than those in Taiwan, and diesel prices are just half, the income of an average citizen in Indonesia is less than one-sixth that in Taiwan. From this perspective, energy costs in Indonesia are relatively high, making it unviable to dry surplus produce. This explains why, despite being a major chili pepper producer, Indonesia must import large quantities of dried chili peppers from China.

The Indonesian students came up with the idea of using free solar energy to dry excess vegetables and fruits in Indonesia. They created the Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System as their graduation project before returning to their home country for their senior year internship. Student Zhang Mei-hua (張美花) noted: “Using solar thermal energy to dry agricultural products can help farmers increase their income.”

The students sought advice from solar energy expert Dr. Zhang Wen-qu (張文曲) for their project. They first designed a patented solar energy collector using vacuum tubes compatible with solar water heaters. A solar power generator and a recycled dishwasher completed the main structure of the dryer. (The dishwasher served as a drying box.)

The operational principle of this system is simple. A blower propels cold air from the outside into the vacuum tubes, where it absorbs thermal energy from the sun and warms. The resulting hot air rises naturally into the collection tank above before flowing into the drying box through a pipe to dry the vegetables and fruits. The blower and control system are powered entirely by solar energy.

Compared with sun-drying for long-term preservation, drying in sealed equipment ensures better hygiene and is more efficient. The students carefully moved all the components of their system to the top floor of a school building, assembled them there, and then conducted experiments in the drying box with sliced pineapples, bananas, apples, and other fruit.

“The control system was not optimal at first,” said Bagas, “and sometimes the temperature would be too high or too low. But it was a good learning process for us.” He was responsible for writing the drying system’s AIoT, the remote control program combining artificial intelligence (AI) with the Internet of Things (IoT). He found that when the hot air temperature was too high, the sliced vegetables and fruits would dehydrate quickly and become too hard; if the temperature was too low, they would not dry sufficiently and easily become moldy. Gathering solar energy data presented its own set of challenges: “We recorded every hour of the day, but when it suddenly rained, the data could not be used.”

The team disposed of unsuccessfully-dried vegetables and fruits in the kitchen waste recycling bin. Then they used fresh produce to try again, making necessary corrections and adjustments. After numerous rounds of this process, they finally succeeded. Zhang Mei-hua happily shared, “I recently made dried dragon fruit with our invention. I think it’s quite delicious. What’s best, the nutrition is still there!”

Photos by Cai Yuan-yuan

Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System

● Invention Team
Indonesian students from the Department of Business Management at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology

● Design
The system consists of three main components: a solar power generator, vacuum tubes, and a drying box. It uses solar thermal energy to heat the air for drying, addressing challenges of produce perishability, limited storage space, and high transportation costs faced by farmers. The dryer’s data is linked to a mobile app for real-time monitoring. This system enhances the value of agricultural products.

Capturing attention

The solar thermal drying system was officially unveiled before summer vacation in 2022, sparking great excitement within the team. The students were based in Hualien when they developed the system, an area with relatively weak sunlight compared to other areas in Taiwan. If the dryer could be effective in Hualien, it would perform even better in Indonesia, with its lower latitudes and stronger sunlight.

According to the data collected by the team, up to 1.9 million tons of chili peppers are discarded annually in Indonesia due to overproduction, which is equivalent to half of its annual production. Processing even one-tenth of the discarded chili peppers into dried peppers could generate a value of 99 million U.S. dollars, comparable to the annual income of 23,000 Indonesian households. Compared to conventional drying processes, this system could save 99 million kilowatt-hours of electricity consumption and reduce carbon emissions by 59,000 tons.

The student team’s innovative creation secured a national patent in Taiwan and won the gold medal in the college green energy innovation category at the 2022 Taiwan Sustainable Energy Creative Implementation Competition. It also garnered the People’s Choice Award and the Special Enterprise Award at the sixth annual Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition held the same year. In October 2023, it won the Silver Award in the Invention Competition at the Taiwan Innotech Expo. The dryer attracted considerable attention from industry professionals during the four-day exposition at the Taipei World Trade Center.

Professor Su Mei-hui (蘇美惠), from the Department of Business Management at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology, supervised the drying system project. She said that they had run simulations and found that if they were to dry one ton of produce at a time with their system, they would need to expand it to the size of a shipping container with the vacuum tubes placed on top. Preliminary estimates put the cost of equipment at such a scale at about 750,000 Taiwanese dollars (US$23,600). “According to calculations based on Indonesia’s sunlight conditions, excluding the rainy season, it would take only about 1.7 years to recover the cost,” remarked the professor. She mentioned that during the Taiwan Innotech Expo, a ranch owner from China’s Gansu Province who raised horses suggested that if their equipment could be scaled up to dry a large amount of grass at once, it would more efficiently help people like him store the hay needed for their horses to survive the winter.

Dr. Zhang Wen-qu, the solar energy expert, said that he had learned from people in the petrochemical industry that the toxic sludge produced during oil production is typically dried using electric heating. If solar thermal energy could be used for drying instead, it could save hundreds of millions of dollars in energy costs. “There are many industrial processes that require heat energy. The students’ design could be adapted for more applications by manufacturers,” Zhang said optimistically.

Professor Su further analyzed: “In the past, manufacturers used the most easily accessible and low-cost fuel, coal. However, there is now pressure to reduce carbon emissions, and carbon will be priced in the future. Therefore, they must find clean energy sources to replace it.” In this context, the Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System has a promising future.

The research and development process of the drying system was a valuable experience for the student team. Bagas, for example, demonstrated his strength by designing the AIoT remote control program for the system, which played a significant role in his admission to the prestigious Tsing Hua University in Taiwan for graduate school.

Having gone through the arduous journey of research and development, the young students featured in this article have not only increased their aptitude for problem-solving but also demonstrated creativity in protecting the Earth and practicing environmental sustainability.

By Yeh Tzu-hao
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting

One team invented earthquake-resistant furniture, while another created a solar-powered drying system to extend the shelf life of agricultural products. They both identified unsolved problems and devised innovative solutions in their work.

Earthquakes are common in our hometown of Yuli, so we designed this product to increase the chances of rescue,” explained Ye Zhen, an 11th-grader at Yuli High School in Hualien, eastern Taiwan.

Ye Zhen and her fellow schoolmates, 12th-grader Zhang Zhi-yan and 11th-grader Wu Bo-yi, along with their mentor Xu Qi-rong, formed a team to devise an earthquake-resistant modular furniture set. Their furniture is engineered to withstand the impact of falling objects and building collapse during tremors. The desk and wheeled drawer unit in the set are sturdy, providing space for survival when other indoor furniture would fail. They are also equipped with a built-in LED light, buzzer, and rechargeable battery, which would facilitate rescue operations. Furthermore, the desk and two accompanying chairs offer extra storage space for essential survival supplies.

The team won first place for their design in the high school category at the seventh annual Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition in 2023. One year earlier, the People’s Choice Award went to a solar-powered automatic drying system designed to preserve agricultural products in Indonesia. The Best Application Award that year was won by a team from Keelung Commercial and Industrial Vocational High School in rainy Keelung for their shoe drying machine. These products were created to meet local needs, concretely demonstrating empathy.

Thinking ahead to save lives

Seismic activity is common in Taiwan’s eastern Hualien and Taitung areas, so residents there are familiar with earthquakes. However, many locals, including the Yuli High School team that invented the earthquake-resistant furniture, still harbor lingering fears from the tremor on Sunday, September 18, 2022. When Ye Zhen returned to her school dormitory after the quake, she found herself and her roommates among the victims, with furniture fallen and items scattered everywhere. Zhang Zhi-yan, who was on the second floor of her home during the tremor, quickly rushed downstairs to check on her grandfather’s safety.

The earthquake left such a profound impact that it motivated Ye, Zhang, and their schoolmate Wu Bo-yi to start a project focusing on earthquake response, aimed particularly at aiding the elderly and those with limited mobility. They undertook the project as part of a school course on innovation in practice. Xu Qi-rong, who works in the computer design department of an international corporation in Taipei, became their mentor for the project. The team decided to center their project around earthquake-resistant furniture. They discussed ideas through videoconferences and attended a relevant workshop at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology in Hualien on Saturdays and Sundays. Under Xu Qi-rong’s guidance, the three high school students began by sketching and creating paper models, gradually refining their concept step by step. Eventually, they had a professional model maker create a detailed and realistic display model.

Their modular furniture set includes a desk, two chairs, and a wheeled drawer unit. “Our desktop is crafted from an aluminum honeycomb panel made of recycled aluminum, with a weight-bearing capacity four to six times that of a regular desktop,” explained Ye Zhen. Aluminum honeycomb panels are known for their strength and lightness, commonly used in aircraft construction. Ye highlighted other design features of their furniture set: the desktop is not only lightweight and robust but also includes a handle and an LED light on the side facing the floor. One can use the handle for stability when taking shelter under the desk and the LED light automatically illuminates during an earthquake. In ordinary times, the light can serve as a night light.

To bolster resistance, the team used two oval cabinets to support the desk instead of regular desk legs. A built-in electronic timer, set to emit alerts every three or six months, reminds users to check and update the disaster relief supplies stored within the furniture set.

The wheeled drawer unit consists of three tiers. The top two tiers are designed for storing food, medicine, and other emergency supplies. There are small doors on the sides, allowing access to items when necessary without the need to pull out the drawers. The bottom tier is equipped with a buzzer and charging device. In the event of being trapped during a quake, the buzzer provides an alternative to shouting or knocking, helping to conserve energy.

Xu Qi-rong said that they had planned for the worst-case scenario during their design process. In the case of a collapsing roof, their furniture set had to have a certain degree of rigidity to resist being crushed easily and be able to provide a survival space. “Our drawer unit was not originally designed to bear weight,” he explained, “but we deliberately designed it to be close in height to the desktop and capable of bearing weight. If the desktop is deformed under pressure, the drawer unit can be used as support.” The mentor also asserted, “And with supplies around you, the chances of survival will be higher.”

Chen Yan-xing (陳彥杏), Yuli High School’s director of academic affairs, said, “The Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology was wonderful. They provided our students with transportation expenses and equipment to help with their project.” He added that due to their school workload, the three students could often only work on the project during weekends. “Still, they overcame whatever difficulties they encountered and achieved what they set out to do. Both their mentor and I are very impressed!” Chen was happier than the students themselves to see them win first place and two special awards at the Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition.

Xu Qi-rong expressed his pride for the students. He noted that the resources available to them, living in a rural area, were not as abundant as those for students living in cities, and yet the three managed to achieve their “mission impossible” through their own passion for meaningful innovation and their teachers’ enthusiasm for education.

Photos by Liu Wei-xing

Earthquake-Resistant Modular Furniture Set

● Invention Team
Students from Yuli High School

● Design
The desk and drawer unit in the set are sturdy, capable of providing a survival space during a strong earthquake. They are also outfitted with an LED light, buzzer, and rechargeable battery to increase the chances of rescue in the event of building collapse. The set also includes two chairs with extra storage space for essential survival supplies.

Addressing the issue of surplus produce

While the earthquake-resistant furniture was designed by Taiwanese students, another award-winning invention—the solar-powered automatic drying system—was the brainchild of a group of Indonesian students. These students were from a special class at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology. They received scholarships from Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group to study agricultural production and marketing in Taiwan, aiming to find innovative solutions to challenges facing Indonesia’s agriculture sector.

Bagas Pramana Putra Fadhila, a graduate from this special class, is fluent in Chinese. He explained the reason behind their invention with the help of images on his cell phone. He said that while the quality of the dragon fruit harvested in Indonesia is good, the excessive yield saturates the market, leading to the disposal of the surplus as waste. Chili peppers, essential in Indonesian cuisine, face a similar issue. Bagas hails from the ancient city of Yogyakarta, where his parents run a grocery store. He is most keenly aware of the fluctuating prices of chili peppers in his hometown. “Yogyakarta has many chili pepper farmers,” he said. “Usually, a kilogram of this produce sells for 100,000 rupiah [US$6.37], but during low price periods, it’s only one-tenth of that price.”

Why haven’t Indonesian farmers learned from Taiwan’s farmers’ associations and set up drying centers to address the surplus production issue? It seems simple, but the situation in Indonesia makes such a solution more challenging.

Although Indonesia’s electricity prices are 40 percent less than those in Taiwan, and diesel prices are just half, the income of an average citizen in Indonesia is less than one-sixth that in Taiwan. From this perspective, energy costs in Indonesia are relatively high, making it unviable to dry surplus produce. This explains why, despite being a major chili pepper producer, Indonesia must import large quantities of dried chili peppers from China.

The Indonesian students came up with the idea of using free solar energy to dry excess vegetables and fruits in Indonesia. They created the Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System as their graduation project before returning to their home country for their senior year internship. Student Zhang Mei-hua (張美花) noted: “Using solar thermal energy to dry agricultural products can help farmers increase their income.”

The students sought advice from solar energy expert Dr. Zhang Wen-qu (張文曲) for their project. They first designed a patented solar energy collector using vacuum tubes compatible with solar water heaters. A solar power generator and a recycled dishwasher completed the main structure of the dryer. (The dishwasher served as a drying box.)

The operational principle of this system is simple. A blower propels cold air from the outside into the vacuum tubes, where it absorbs thermal energy from the sun and warms. The resulting hot air rises naturally into the collection tank above before flowing into the drying box through a pipe to dry the vegetables and fruits. The blower and control system are powered entirely by solar energy.

Compared with sun-drying for long-term preservation, drying in sealed equipment ensures better hygiene and is more efficient. The students carefully moved all the components of their system to the top floor of a school building, assembled them there, and then conducted experiments in the drying box with sliced pineapples, bananas, apples, and other fruit.

“The control system was not optimal at first,” said Bagas, “and sometimes the temperature would be too high or too low. But it was a good learning process for us.” He was responsible for writing the drying system’s AIoT, the remote control program combining artificial intelligence (AI) with the Internet of Things (IoT). He found that when the hot air temperature was too high, the sliced vegetables and fruits would dehydrate quickly and become too hard; if the temperature was too low, they would not dry sufficiently and easily become moldy. Gathering solar energy data presented its own set of challenges: “We recorded every hour of the day, but when it suddenly rained, the data could not be used.”

The team disposed of unsuccessfully-dried vegetables and fruits in the kitchen waste recycling bin. Then they used fresh produce to try again, making necessary corrections and adjustments. After numerous rounds of this process, they finally succeeded. Zhang Mei-hua happily shared, “I recently made dried dragon fruit with our invention. I think it’s quite delicious. What’s best, the nutrition is still there!”

Photos by Cai Yuan-yuan

Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System

● Invention Team
Indonesian students from the Department of Business Management at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology

● Design
The system consists of three main components: a solar power generator, vacuum tubes, and a drying box. It uses solar thermal energy to heat the air for drying, addressing challenges of produce perishability, limited storage space, and high transportation costs faced by farmers. The dryer’s data is linked to a mobile app for real-time monitoring. This system enhances the value of agricultural products.

Capturing attention

The solar thermal drying system was officially unveiled before summer vacation in 2022, sparking great excitement within the team. The students were based in Hualien when they developed the system, an area with relatively weak sunlight compared to other areas in Taiwan. If the dryer could be effective in Hualien, it would perform even better in Indonesia, with its lower latitudes and stronger sunlight.

According to the data collected by the team, up to 1.9 million tons of chili peppers are discarded annually in Indonesia due to overproduction, which is equivalent to half of its annual production. Processing even one-tenth of the discarded chili peppers into dried peppers could generate a value of 99 million U.S. dollars, comparable to the annual income of 23,000 Indonesian households. Compared to conventional drying processes, this system could save 99 million kilowatt-hours of electricity consumption and reduce carbon emissions by 59,000 tons.

The student team’s innovative creation secured a national patent in Taiwan and won the gold medal in the college green energy innovation category at the 2022 Taiwan Sustainable Energy Creative Implementation Competition. It also garnered the People’s Choice Award and the Special Enterprise Award at the sixth annual Compassionate Technology Innovation Competition held the same year. In October 2023, it won the Silver Award in the Invention Competition at the Taiwan Innotech Expo. The dryer attracted considerable attention from industry professionals during the four-day exposition at the Taipei World Trade Center.

Professor Su Mei-hui (蘇美惠), from the Department of Business Management at the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology, supervised the drying system project. She said that they had run simulations and found that if they were to dry one ton of produce at a time with their system, they would need to expand it to the size of a shipping container with the vacuum tubes placed on top. Preliminary estimates put the cost of equipment at such a scale at about 750,000 Taiwanese dollars (US$23,600). “According to calculations based on Indonesia’s sunlight conditions, excluding the rainy season, it would take only about 1.7 years to recover the cost,” remarked the professor. She mentioned that during the Taiwan Innotech Expo, a ranch owner from China’s Gansu Province who raised horses suggested that if their equipment could be scaled up to dry a large amount of grass at once, it would more efficiently help people like him store the hay needed for their horses to survive the winter.

Dr. Zhang Wen-qu, the solar energy expert, said that he had learned from people in the petrochemical industry that the toxic sludge produced during oil production is typically dried using electric heating. If solar thermal energy could be used for drying instead, it could save hundreds of millions of dollars in energy costs. “There are many industrial processes that require heat energy. The students’ design could be adapted for more applications by manufacturers,” Zhang said optimistically.

Professor Su further analyzed: “In the past, manufacturers used the most easily accessible and low-cost fuel, coal. However, there is now pressure to reduce carbon emissions, and carbon will be priced in the future. Therefore, they must find clean energy sources to replace it.” In this context, the Solar Thermal Energy Automatic Drying System has a promising future.

The research and development process of the drying system was a valuable experience for the student team. Bagas, for example, demonstrated his strength by designing the AIoT remote control program for the system, which played a significant role in his admission to the prestigious Tsing Hua University in Taiwan for graduate school.

Having gone through the arduous journey of research and development, the young students featured in this article have not only increased their aptitude for problem-solving but also demonstrated creativity in protecting the Earth and practicing environmental sustainability.

關鍵字

Transforming the Lives of Young Tibetans With Scoliosis

Compiled by Li Wei-huang
Information provided by Bian Jing
Translated by Siri Su

Tzu Chi collaborates with Yushuzhou Hope Charity to help young Tibetan patients afflicted with scoliosis obtain medical treatment.

Leaving his hometown in Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, China, Nima embarked on an 800-kilometer (497-mile) journey to Chengdu, the provincial capital. After getting off the train, he headed straight to 416 Hospital. Although he was 20 years old, he stood only 145 centimeters (4’9’’) tall due to severe scoliosis.

Scoliosis is a condition in which a person’s spine has an abnormal curve, sometimes resembling an S shape. It occurs in about three percent of the population, but the cause of scoliosis has been elusive. Surgery is required in extreme cases. After corrective surgery, a metal ring is surgically fastened around both the patient’s head and waist, connected by four supporting rods. Traction applied through the head ring gradually reduces the spinal curvature, allowing patients to stand taller.

Nima underwent three corrective operations, gradually gaining the ability to stand straight within nine months of hospitalization, increasing his height to 165 centimeters (5’5”). Afterward, he was only required to wear orthoses for rehabilitation, which are devices designed to support or modify an injured or malformed part of the body. His greatest relief came in the form of improved breathing: “Breathing is no longer a struggle,” he said.

Nima’s father, Tapo, recalled his child being born with a noticeable spinal curve, which worsened with age. He feared his son might pass away at any moment. But if Tapo was so concerned, why did he wait until Nima was 20 years old to seek treatment?

Challenges hampering medical care

Yushuzhou Hope Charity (YHC), based in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, has long been helping young Tibetan patients with scoliosis receive medical care. According to Geding Pengcuo, head of YHC, such patients face challenges in accessing treatment due to their parents’ limited health awareness, inadequate access to related information, and physical distance from advanced medical resources.

Without proper treatment, a patient suffering from scoliosis may develop thoracic deformities, which can compress their nerves or impact the functions of their heart and lungs, potentially leading to respiratory failure. The average life expectancy for untreated patients is 45 years. Early diagnosis and treatment are crucial. Surgery offers the best outcomes, minimizes rehabilitation challenges, and significantly reduces medical expenses.

In Beijing and Chengdu, there are three hospitals that specialize in treating severe scoliosis patients. YHC combines medical and charitable resources, regularly inviting specialized doctors to travel to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau for scoliosis screenings and arranging medical treatment for patients. Dr. Zhou Lijin (周立金), an orthopedic surgeon at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, asserted, “Many Tibetans don’t know what scoliosis is or where to find medical treatment. To help them, we must reach out to the remote regions they live in, regardless of the distances.” Amidst their efforts, there have been instances where patients’ families had such limited understanding of the condition that doctors had to make multiple visits before convincing them to seek medical care.

In 2019, through YHC, Tzu Chi volunteers in Chengdu first came into contact with Tibetans afflicted by the condition in neighboring Qinghai Province. The volunteers witnessed firsthand the struggles of these young individuals, who lived at altitudes of 3,000 to 4,000 meters (9,840-13,125 feet). They observed the challenges they faced in accessing medical care due to limited resources, misconceptions, or economic difficulties, and clearly saw how this could profoundly impact their futures. A Tzu Chi care team was thus formed and joined YHC’s Caring for Tibetan Children project to support this group of children and adolescents through their demanding and costly medical journey.

The journey from Chengdu, about 500 meters above sea level, to Yushu Prefecture in Qinghai, with an average elevation of 4,200 meters, presents significant challenges for Tzu Chi volunteers. Every step or ascent requires caution to prevent altitude sickness. Sometimes, even the doctors themselves have to wear oxygen masks during screenings.

After screening, YHC arranges for scoliosis patients in need of surgery to go down the mountains for treatment. Generally, more severe cases of scoliosis require several corrective surgeries, with treatment spanning from six months to one year. The substantial medical expenses, exceeding 31,000 U.S. dollars, are partially covered by the government with additional support from Tzu Chi. Volunteers also assist with the patients’ daily needs during their hospitalization.

Health workers assess the condition of a young Tibetan suffering from scoliosis.

Courtesy of Tzu Chi Hualien headquarters

Care during hospitalization

On August 26, 2019, the first three patients receiving aid from Tzu Chi arrived in Chengdu for treatment, accompanied by their families; among them was Nima. The largest group in the following five years arrived on October 23, 2023: 39 people—consisting of 13 scoliosis patients, their family members, and YHC volunteers—endured a grueling 36-hour train journey from Tibet before reaching Chengdu.

Tzu Chi volunteers’ companionship typically begins with a warm welcome at the train station. Whether they are from western Sichuan, Qinghai, or Tibet, most patients and their families are visiting Chengdu for the first time. Volunteers hope to help them settle in as quickly as possible. They thoughtfully prepare Tibetan tea to accompany meals, assist with hospital admission procedures, and provide toiletries, buckets, and other daily necessities. They also supply suitable clothing according to the season. Due to differences in dietary habits between Tibetans and Han Chinese, the families of most patients choose to co-rent small kitchens to prepare their food. Volunteers ease their burdens by bringing them cooking and dining ware from their own homes.

Volunteer Ji Yahong (紀亞紅) mentioned that while a few school-going children can speak some Mandarin, their parents face language barriers. Such differences in language, culture, and living habits have proven to be significant obstacles in the process of seeking treatment. Since the families require assistance even in communicating with the medical staff, they need all the help they can get.

Tzu Chi volunteers visit patients every Tuesday throughout their extended hospital stays, helping them and their families cope with various challenges. Such visits continued uninterrupted even during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the children are emotionally affected due to pain from treatment, volunteers guide them to cultivate gratitude and actively cooperate with the treatment. Since they may encounter difficulties washing their hair after the head ring is installed, volunteers prepare toothbrushes, sponges, and face cloths and carefully clean their scalps. When parents worry about family members back home and feel down, volunteers listen to and comfort them, or prepare hot soup or dumplings for them to lift their spirits. Most of the young patients are unable to attend school due to their illnesses, so volunteers help them learn Mandarin.

A noticeable number of individuals among the patients are monastics. Geding Pengcuo explained to Tzu Chi volunteers that due to their religious beliefs, many Tibetans believe that serious illnesses are a result of karma from past lives. As a result, children born with congenital diseases or physical disabilities are often sent by their parents to monasteries for ordination, with the belief that doing so can resolve their karmic debts and alleviate their pain and suffering.

Bazang was one such monastic. He didn’t receive medical care until he was 30 years old. As a result, his medical journey was more challenging. Unlike others who left the hospital on foot after treatment, he required a year of rehabilitation after leaving the hospital before regaining mobility. Volunteer Wang Lin (王琳) confessed that it wasn’t until she helped Bazang change into surgical attire that she truly grasped the impact of scoliosis. “I was truly shocked to witness his deformed and twisted spine,” She remarked. “Treatment is absolutely essential for these patients.” Whenever volunteers see children discharged from the hospital after successful treatment, their joy matches that of parents.

Tzu Chi volunteers, in partnership with YHC, have provided support for more than 200 young Tibetans with scoliosis and their families over the past five years. In March of this year, 60 children were simultaneously undergoing treatment at two hospitals, marking the highest number to date. Tzu Chi and YHC also conduct screenings for Tibetan children and adolescents with congenital heart disease and congenital hip dislocation and help those severely in need of treatments receive care at hospitals in Chengdu, Xining, Beijing, and other locations. Wherever these individuals receive treatment, local Tzu Chi volunteers are there to provide support.

So, what’s Nima’s current situation? After recovering, he decided to stay and work in Chengdu. Now, when new patients arrive for treatment, he helps as an interpreter and assists volunteers with hospital admission procedures. Having gone through a similar journey, Nima’s presence offers encouragement to these young patients as they eagerly await their chance to recover.

A volunteer washes a scoliosis patient’s hair at 416 Hospital in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.

Bian Jing

Compiled by Li Wei-huang
Information provided by Bian Jing
Translated by Siri Su

Tzu Chi collaborates with Yushuzhou Hope Charity to help young Tibetan patients afflicted with scoliosis obtain medical treatment.

Leaving his hometown in Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, China, Nima embarked on an 800-kilometer (497-mile) journey to Chengdu, the provincial capital. After getting off the train, he headed straight to 416 Hospital. Although he was 20 years old, he stood only 145 centimeters (4’9’’) tall due to severe scoliosis.

Scoliosis is a condition in which a person’s spine has an abnormal curve, sometimes resembling an S shape. It occurs in about three percent of the population, but the cause of scoliosis has been elusive. Surgery is required in extreme cases. After corrective surgery, a metal ring is surgically fastened around both the patient’s head and waist, connected by four supporting rods. Traction applied through the head ring gradually reduces the spinal curvature, allowing patients to stand taller.

Nima underwent three corrective operations, gradually gaining the ability to stand straight within nine months of hospitalization, increasing his height to 165 centimeters (5’5”). Afterward, he was only required to wear orthoses for rehabilitation, which are devices designed to support or modify an injured or malformed part of the body. His greatest relief came in the form of improved breathing: “Breathing is no longer a struggle,” he said.

Nima’s father, Tapo, recalled his child being born with a noticeable spinal curve, which worsened with age. He feared his son might pass away at any moment. But if Tapo was so concerned, why did he wait until Nima was 20 years old to seek treatment?

Challenges hampering medical care

Yushuzhou Hope Charity (YHC), based in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, has long been helping young Tibetan patients with scoliosis receive medical care. According to Geding Pengcuo, head of YHC, such patients face challenges in accessing treatment due to their parents’ limited health awareness, inadequate access to related information, and physical distance from advanced medical resources.

Without proper treatment, a patient suffering from scoliosis may develop thoracic deformities, which can compress their nerves or impact the functions of their heart and lungs, potentially leading to respiratory failure. The average life expectancy for untreated patients is 45 years. Early diagnosis and treatment are crucial. Surgery offers the best outcomes, minimizes rehabilitation challenges, and significantly reduces medical expenses.

In Beijing and Chengdu, there are three hospitals that specialize in treating severe scoliosis patients. YHC combines medical and charitable resources, regularly inviting specialized doctors to travel to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau for scoliosis screenings and arranging medical treatment for patients. Dr. Zhou Lijin (周立金), an orthopedic surgeon at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, asserted, “Many Tibetans don’t know what scoliosis is or where to find medical treatment. To help them, we must reach out to the remote regions they live in, regardless of the distances.” Amidst their efforts, there have been instances where patients’ families had such limited understanding of the condition that doctors had to make multiple visits before convincing them to seek medical care.

In 2019, through YHC, Tzu Chi volunteers in Chengdu first came into contact with Tibetans afflicted by the condition in neighboring Qinghai Province. The volunteers witnessed firsthand the struggles of these young individuals, who lived at altitudes of 3,000 to 4,000 meters (9,840-13,125 feet). They observed the challenges they faced in accessing medical care due to limited resources, misconceptions, or economic difficulties, and clearly saw how this could profoundly impact their futures. A Tzu Chi care team was thus formed and joined YHC’s Caring for Tibetan Children project to support this group of children and adolescents through their demanding and costly medical journey.

The journey from Chengdu, about 500 meters above sea level, to Yushu Prefecture in Qinghai, with an average elevation of 4,200 meters, presents significant challenges for Tzu Chi volunteers. Every step or ascent requires caution to prevent altitude sickness. Sometimes, even the doctors themselves have to wear oxygen masks during screenings.

After screening, YHC arranges for scoliosis patients in need of surgery to go down the mountains for treatment. Generally, more severe cases of scoliosis require several corrective surgeries, with treatment spanning from six months to one year. The substantial medical expenses, exceeding 31,000 U.S. dollars, are partially covered by the government with additional support from Tzu Chi. Volunteers also assist with the patients’ daily needs during their hospitalization.

Health workers assess the condition of a young Tibetan suffering from scoliosis.

Courtesy of Tzu Chi Hualien headquarters

Care during hospitalization

On August 26, 2019, the first three patients receiving aid from Tzu Chi arrived in Chengdu for treatment, accompanied by their families; among them was Nima. The largest group in the following five years arrived on October 23, 2023: 39 people—consisting of 13 scoliosis patients, their family members, and YHC volunteers—endured a grueling 36-hour train journey from Tibet before reaching Chengdu.

Tzu Chi volunteers’ companionship typically begins with a warm welcome at the train station. Whether they are from western Sichuan, Qinghai, or Tibet, most patients and their families are visiting Chengdu for the first time. Volunteers hope to help them settle in as quickly as possible. They thoughtfully prepare Tibetan tea to accompany meals, assist with hospital admission procedures, and provide toiletries, buckets, and other daily necessities. They also supply suitable clothing according to the season. Due to differences in dietary habits between Tibetans and Han Chinese, the families of most patients choose to co-rent small kitchens to prepare their food. Volunteers ease their burdens by bringing them cooking and dining ware from their own homes.

Volunteer Ji Yahong (紀亞紅) mentioned that while a few school-going children can speak some Mandarin, their parents face language barriers. Such differences in language, culture, and living habits have proven to be significant obstacles in the process of seeking treatment. Since the families require assistance even in communicating with the medical staff, they need all the help they can get.

Tzu Chi volunteers visit patients every Tuesday throughout their extended hospital stays, helping them and their families cope with various challenges. Such visits continued uninterrupted even during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the children are emotionally affected due to pain from treatment, volunteers guide them to cultivate gratitude and actively cooperate with the treatment. Since they may encounter difficulties washing their hair after the head ring is installed, volunteers prepare toothbrushes, sponges, and face cloths and carefully clean their scalps. When parents worry about family members back home and feel down, volunteers listen to and comfort them, or prepare hot soup or dumplings for them to lift their spirits. Most of the young patients are unable to attend school due to their illnesses, so volunteers help them learn Mandarin.

A noticeable number of individuals among the patients are monastics. Geding Pengcuo explained to Tzu Chi volunteers that due to their religious beliefs, many Tibetans believe that serious illnesses are a result of karma from past lives. As a result, children born with congenital diseases or physical disabilities are often sent by their parents to monasteries for ordination, with the belief that doing so can resolve their karmic debts and alleviate their pain and suffering.

Bazang was one such monastic. He didn’t receive medical care until he was 30 years old. As a result, his medical journey was more challenging. Unlike others who left the hospital on foot after treatment, he required a year of rehabilitation after leaving the hospital before regaining mobility. Volunteer Wang Lin (王琳) confessed that it wasn’t until she helped Bazang change into surgical attire that she truly grasped the impact of scoliosis. “I was truly shocked to witness his deformed and twisted spine,” She remarked. “Treatment is absolutely essential for these patients.” Whenever volunteers see children discharged from the hospital after successful treatment, their joy matches that of parents.

Tzu Chi volunteers, in partnership with YHC, have provided support for more than 200 young Tibetans with scoliosis and their families over the past five years. In March of this year, 60 children were simultaneously undergoing treatment at two hospitals, marking the highest number to date. Tzu Chi and YHC also conduct screenings for Tibetan children and adolescents with congenital heart disease and congenital hip dislocation and help those severely in need of treatments receive care at hospitals in Chengdu, Xining, Beijing, and other locations. Wherever these individuals receive treatment, local Tzu Chi volunteers are there to provide support.

So, what’s Nima’s current situation? After recovering, he decided to stay and work in Chengdu. Now, when new patients arrive for treatment, he helps as an interpreter and assists volunteers with hospital admission procedures. Having gone through a similar journey, Nima’s presence offers encouragement to these young patients as they eagerly await their chance to recover.

A volunteer washes a scoliosis patient’s hair at 416 Hospital in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.

Bian Jing

關鍵字

Words From Dharma Master Cheng Yen—Create Blessings, Mitigate Disasters

Translated by Teresa Chang

“The world is impermanent and the land is fragile.” The truth of this statement by the Buddha was borne out on the morning of April 3, when Taiwan was jolted by a sudden tremor—a massive earthquake measuring 7.2 in magnitude—leaving everyone deeply unsettled. As the tectonic plates shifted, the ground surged, mountains split, and rocks cascaded down. Nature demonstrated its formidable might, rendering the earth as fragile as tofu. In this world, no place is truly secure. Compared to the power of nature, humans are truly insignificant. Instead of thinking, “I’m strong and tough. I’m not afraid,” let us hold nature in reverence, stay vigilant, and pray devoutly for a safer world.

According to news reports, furniture in many homes was displaced or fell over as a result of the tremor. Tzu Chi volunteers likely experienced the same impacts as others in their own homes, but they put the welfare of others before themselves, swiftly mobilizing to provide relief and organize distributions. I’ve always been deeply grateful to this group of real-life bodhisattvas. I cherish and hold them in high regard. I hope everyone in Tzu Chi does the same, valuing and supporting one another, particularly as some Tzu Chi volunteers are older and might be living alone or have only their elderly spouses to depend on. Those living nearby should visit their homes to assess post-earthquake conditions and offer assistance if needed. At the same time, don’t forget the disadvantaged families in your community. Visit them more frequently in the aftermath of the quake to provide support and help ensure their peace of mind.

This earthquake is a lesson from heaven and earth, educating us about suffering, emptiness, and impermanence. If we came through it safely, we should feel grateful—not just for our own safety, but also for the opportunity to continue making a difference in the world. At the same time, take to heart the reality of life’s impermanence. Birth, aging, illness, and death are all inevitable parts of life. No matter how close we are to our family or friends, the time will come when we have to part ways. So, let’s cherish every moment we have together and every instance of feeling loved and cared for. Let’s allow gratitude to fill our hearts.

Continuous aftershocks have been felt since the strong earthquake struck. Experts attribute this to the ongoing adjustment of the earth, indicating instability. While we keep a close watch on these aftershocks, it’s crucial to maintain inner calm. Now that this major event has occurred, the priority is to solicit aid and inspire love to help those impacted. It’s not merely about raising funds; it’s about seizing the opportunity to cultivate and ignite compassion. When we all come together in love, we can provide timely assistance to those in need during times of suffering.

We all live together in this world, our thoughts and actions accumulating to shape our collective karma. When negative deeds or thoughts outweigh the positive, goodness weakens. The opposite is also true. Through increased engagement in benevolent acts, the power of goodness will strengthen, creating harmony in the world. Fostering kindness and actively contributing to the world’s well-being is essential. By sowing blessings in this way, we can help turn misfortune around and ensure that peace prevails at all times.

I’ve often talked lately about “learning” and “awakening” (to life’s truths). I encourage everyone to cultivate a heart of purity and learn through the act of giving, thereby deepening their understanding of life’s true principles as taught by the Buddha and helping themselves grow. Have faith in the Buddha’s teachings. The Enlightened One taught us to never do evil and to always do good. When you practice virtue and give with sincerity, you’ll have the power to inspire and change lives.

Tzu Chi will soon enter its sixth decade. From the early days of 30 housewives each saving 50 NT cents (about 1 U.S. cent) daily to help those in need to the present, every step of our journey has been solid and unwavering. This has brought me immense comfort. When I look at the world map, I see Tzu Chi volunteers spread across various countries, always ready to lend a helping hand where it’s needed. Working alongside so many real-life bodhisattvas in serving the needy is the most precious aspect of my life. Natural disasters, conflicts, poverty, and illness—there are countless souls suffering worldwide in need of assistance. One person alone cannot alleviate all suffering, and a few individuals lack the strength. It requires everyone coming together and joining forces. Let’s endeavor to give our best.

Impermanence is a fundamental truth of our world. Master Cheng Yen teaches us to hold this truth in our hearts, cherish those around us, and commit to doing good, offering a pathway to transcend life’s uncertainties.

Huang Xiao-zhe

Translated by Teresa Chang

“The world is impermanent and the land is fragile.” The truth of this statement by the Buddha was borne out on the morning of April 3, when Taiwan was jolted by a sudden tremor—a massive earthquake measuring 7.2 in magnitude—leaving everyone deeply unsettled. As the tectonic plates shifted, the ground surged, mountains split, and rocks cascaded down. Nature demonstrated its formidable might, rendering the earth as fragile as tofu. In this world, no place is truly secure. Compared to the power of nature, humans are truly insignificant. Instead of thinking, “I’m strong and tough. I’m not afraid,” let us hold nature in reverence, stay vigilant, and pray devoutly for a safer world.

According to news reports, furniture in many homes was displaced or fell over as a result of the tremor. Tzu Chi volunteers likely experienced the same impacts as others in their own homes, but they put the welfare of others before themselves, swiftly mobilizing to provide relief and organize distributions. I’ve always been deeply grateful to this group of real-life bodhisattvas. I cherish and hold them in high regard. I hope everyone in Tzu Chi does the same, valuing and supporting one another, particularly as some Tzu Chi volunteers are older and might be living alone or have only their elderly spouses to depend on. Those living nearby should visit their homes to assess post-earthquake conditions and offer assistance if needed. At the same time, don’t forget the disadvantaged families in your community. Visit them more frequently in the aftermath of the quake to provide support and help ensure their peace of mind.

This earthquake is a lesson from heaven and earth, educating us about suffering, emptiness, and impermanence. If we came through it safely, we should feel grateful—not just for our own safety, but also for the opportunity to continue making a difference in the world. At the same time, take to heart the reality of life’s impermanence. Birth, aging, illness, and death are all inevitable parts of life. No matter how close we are to our family or friends, the time will come when we have to part ways. So, let’s cherish every moment we have together and every instance of feeling loved and cared for. Let’s allow gratitude to fill our hearts.

Continuous aftershocks have been felt since the strong earthquake struck. Experts attribute this to the ongoing adjustment of the earth, indicating instability. While we keep a close watch on these aftershocks, it’s crucial to maintain inner calm. Now that this major event has occurred, the priority is to solicit aid and inspire love to help those impacted. It’s not merely about raising funds; it’s about seizing the opportunity to cultivate and ignite compassion. When we all come together in love, we can provide timely assistance to those in need during times of suffering.

We all live together in this world, our thoughts and actions accumulating to shape our collective karma. When negative deeds or thoughts outweigh the positive, goodness weakens. The opposite is also true. Through increased engagement in benevolent acts, the power of goodness will strengthen, creating harmony in the world. Fostering kindness and actively contributing to the world’s well-being is essential. By sowing blessings in this way, we can help turn misfortune around and ensure that peace prevails at all times.

I’ve often talked lately about “learning” and “awakening” (to life’s truths). I encourage everyone to cultivate a heart of purity and learn through the act of giving, thereby deepening their understanding of life’s true principles as taught by the Buddha and helping themselves grow. Have faith in the Buddha’s teachings. The Enlightened One taught us to never do evil and to always do good. When you practice virtue and give with sincerity, you’ll have the power to inspire and change lives.

Tzu Chi will soon enter its sixth decade. From the early days of 30 housewives each saving 50 NT cents (about 1 U.S. cent) daily to help those in need to the present, every step of our journey has been solid and unwavering. This has brought me immense comfort. When I look at the world map, I see Tzu Chi volunteers spread across various countries, always ready to lend a helping hand where it’s needed. Working alongside so many real-life bodhisattvas in serving the needy is the most precious aspect of my life. Natural disasters, conflicts, poverty, and illness—there are countless souls suffering worldwide in need of assistance. One person alone cannot alleviate all suffering, and a few individuals lack the strength. It requires everyone coming together and joining forces. Let’s endeavor to give our best.

Impermanence is a fundamental truth of our world. Master Cheng Yen teaches us to hold this truth in our hearts, cherish those around us, and commit to doing good, offering a pathway to transcend life’s uncertainties.

Huang Xiao-zhe

關鍵字

A Volunteer’s Visual Journey With Tzu Chi

Narrated by Chen Rong-feng
Interviewed and written by Lin Mei-hong
Abridged and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos by Chen Rong-feng

I’ve loved taking photos since my teenage years. After joining Tzu Chi, I kept growing my photography and videography skills, eventually venturing into aerial imagery. My goal is simple—I want to use my skills to capture the beauty and goodness of the world.

—Chen Rong-feng

Photo by Lin Mei-hong

I have been curious about “new” things since childhood, especially when it comes to electronic products and devices. In elementary school, I even dismantled a radio my dad bought to study its inner workings. During high school, I developed a fascination with cameras. I recall waking up one morning at two to capture the school gate, using a B shutter speed for 20 seconds. In the interplay of moonlight and car lights, the majestic school gate showcased the beauty of a dignified academic institution. I submitted the work to an intramural competition and won first place.

Time flew quickly after high school. My eldest son was born in 1991, when I was 28. While on a business trip to Japan, I purchased a mini digital video camera, marking the beginning of my journey into videography. In 2006, I attended a Tzu Chi year-end blessing ceremony for the first time. At the volunteer recruitment area, I enthusiastically noted my expertise in photography and videography on a form. Soon thereafter, I received an invitation to join Tzu Chi as a documenting volunteer. I began training in 2008 to become a certified volunteer.

I always followed my own approach through my years of taking photos, doing things as I liked. When I first joined the foundation, I was uncertain about which aspects of a Tzu Chi event to capture. I vividly recall my dissatisfaction with my work at my first Tzu Chi camp. However, when I submitted the photos I had taken to Jian Hong-zheng (簡宏正), the coordinator for the Image Team, I was pleasantly surprised. Looking at my photos, Brother Jian exclaimed, “Everything I needed is right here!” This affirmation greatly cheered me and set me on my determined journey as a documenting volunteer, motivating me to continuously refine my skills.

In early 2010, I joined fellow Tzu Chi volunteers from Taiwan on a mission to Guizhou Province, China, to distribute aid to the needy. When we arrived at the distribution venue in Pingyan Township, Luodian County, we were greeted by the heartwarming sight of hundreds of villagers and children forming two rows, applauding and warmly welcoming us. The sight moved me deeply. I found myself wondering, “What have I done to deserve such warmth from people I have never met?” I followed the other volunteers without saying a word, afraid that if I spoke, tears of emotion would spill from my eyes.

During home visits, we were welcomed into their households as if we were part of their family. This heartfelt reception stemmed from the love nurtured by my fellow volunteers during their ten years of work in Guizhou. I felt deeply grateful that my role as a documenting volunteer brought me to Guizhou, allowing me to be showered in such warmth while I captured one poignant scene after another through my lens.

The rural homes we visited were typically basic, crude structures that provided minimal shelter from wind and rain. I vividly remember a home visit to the Li family. Mr. Li had suffered a bone fracture, and lacking the financial means for medical treatment, his arm had become deformed. His wife, experiencing back pain, struggled to carry water for the family. The family had no source of income at all. We checked their pot and saw some poor-looking corn porridge inside. When we learned that such meager fare was their main food for three daily meals, I couldn’t contain my emotions. I rushed outside and began crying uncontrollably.

I used to think that crying was embarrassing for a man, but I couldn’t hold back my tears that day. They just couldn’t stop flowing. It was the first time I had shed tears in 40 years, and I must have cried without stopping for a good half hour.

After this trip to Guizhou, I set aside my love for the pursuit of enjoyment and pleasure. Before, I used to travel abroad for sightseeing once or twice a year. Although such travels brought me happiness, the joy was short-lived. The charitable mission to Guizhou, however, left an indelible mark on me. After that trip, almost every time I traveled abroad, it was for Tzu Chi.

Innovative solutions

I faced several challenges after taking on the role of coordinator for a community documentation team. At the time, our documenting volunteers lacked a dedicated database for their work, making it difficult for some of them to find photos to complement their articles. To address this issue, I collaborated with other volunteers to establish a dedicated File Transfer Protocol platform. This platform allowed our volunteers to easily upload and share data. Additionally, I worked with computer engineers to develop an online event schedule, which helped us post information about our community’s Tzu Chi activities. This saved us a lot of time and money. It reduced the need for phone calls to disseminate event information and encouraged greater participation from those interested in the events.

The challenge of not having a storage system for articles and photos extended beyond our specific community. I recognized that our volunteers’ hard work was not adequately preserved and that a considerable amount of time and manpower was spent gathering relevant data, so I began contemplating cross-district data integration. I started collaborating with Zhang Ting-xu (張廷旭), a volunteer from Tzu Chi’s central Taiwan Information Technology Team. We developed a dedicated software system for data integration. After we were successful, Zhang remarked in friendly banter, “This software was created at your request; you’re responsible for promoting it!”

In response, I reached out every day to the coordinators for documenting teams in different districts in central Taiwan, providing explanations and tutorials on archiving using our software system. After a year of efforts, relevant records from across the central Taiwan district began to be uploaded to the system, easily accessible through a simple search. Eventually, this system expanded to include other areas in Taiwan.

Later, I became the coordinator for Tzu Chi’s central Taiwan Image Team. I pondered: “How can I attract new volunteers? More importantly, how can I rekindle the initial enthusiasm of our senior volunteers?” I decided to introduce courses in 2018 to tackle these questions. The course design was diverse, allowing instructors to use personal photos for storytelling or inviting professional photographers to engage with our volunteers. Photos can speak volumes; for instance, instructor Chen Jian-hua (陳建華) used pictures of his mother to reflect on accompanying her through the last leg of her life, while Li Ying-qing (李盈青) shared the challenges she had experienced in her life through photos documenting her growth and development. Everyone got to know the instructors better through their photos, but also gained insight into the art of storytelling through photography.

I also collaborated with bakeries and dessert shops, requesting their products for volunteers to photograph. The resulting photos became promotional materials for the businesses. I invited commercial photographer and Tzu Chi volunteer Ye Tang-ming (葉唐銘) to share insights on composition and the use of light and shadow in pastry photography. During class, everyone arranged and presented the pastries provided by our collaborating businesses. Ye reminded everyone that the direction of light sources would change at different times, resulting in various effects, and that photography is subjective, with no definitive right or wrong. Following the instructor’s guidance, participants took their photos and then uploaded their work to a messaging app group chat for immediate sharing and discussion. Afterwards, the participants were able to eat the pastries, bringing sweetness to palates and hearts alike.

At the end of the course, I used the Kahoot! app as a fun, interactive way for participants to review what they had learned. I gave prizes to the top three scorers in the review game. It was a lot of fun to see participants navigate through a series of tense and joyful moments during the activity. Creating classes that were eagerly anticipated by our volunteers became what I considered my greatest achievement.

Chen Rong-feng developed a passion for photography during high school and often went outdoors for photoshoots.

Courtesy of Chen Rong-feng

Tzu Chi volunteers went to Luodian, Guizhou, China, in 2010 to distribute aid to the needy. Here is a touching moment captured by Chen Rong-feng.

Aerial imagery

My foray into aerial imagery began in 2014. That year, Tzu Chi held a Buddha Day ceremony at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung, central Taiwan. While I was documenting the ceremony with a camera, a buzzing sound caught my attention. Following the sound, I looked up and saw a drone for the first time. Involuntarily, my gaze followed it as it soared into the sky, and I found myself drawn closer to the drone operator. I was completely mesmerized when I saw the spectacular aerial view captured by the drone.

I couldn’t get the image of a drone out of my mind after that and purchased a drone the following year. I practiced flying it whenever time allowed and shared the videos I took online. Some people left negative comments upon seeing my footage, saying things like: “It’s not just about flying high in aerial imagery.” Instead of becoming disheartened by such comments, I recognized my inadequacies from their perspectives and encouraged myself to keep improving my skills.

I established an aerial imagery team in 2018, with the goal of sharing my drone flying skills and learning from more enthusiasts. The next year, I joined the Taichung City Fire Department’s aerial imagery unit to contribute to disaster relief efforts. This involved surveying the origins of fires, assisting on-site commanders in making accurate decisions for firefighting, participating in search and rescue missions for missing mountain climbers, and deploying lifebuoys for drowning victims. The aerial imagery team I established also collaborates with the Coast Guard Administration to fly over the sea and document the ecology of white dolphins.

Driven by a passion for aerial imagery, Chen Rong-feng organized a Tzu Chi drone team to enhance the perspective of documentary photography and filming.

Courtesy of Chen Rong-feng

In 2020, the Taiwanese government began regulating drones. To help fellow Tzu Chi volunteers pass licensing exams, I began designing mock test questions and organizing flying technique practice sessions in open areas. Everyone endured the scorching sun without shade during the practice sessions, so I offered cool refreshments and snacks for relief. We mutually encouraged and learned from each other. A total of 68 volunteers have successfully obtained certifications.

Organizing a flying practice session, whether for exam purposes or not, entails careful planning. It includes finding an appropriate outdoor space, providing diverse flight training, and prioritizing safety. Once an outdoor space is chosen, I conduct repeated site inspections. In addition to training in mountain and sea flying techniques, I incorporate rescue scenarios. As an example, I strategically place five mannequins in grassy areas or along riverbanks, turning the exercise into a friendly competition to see who can locate the most mannequins in the shortest time.

I’ve been with Tzu Chi for over 15 years. The number of volunteers participating in our photography classes or learning sessions has grown from dozens to over 200. The aerial imagery team has also welcomed many new members, with participants now spread across Taiwan. Our numbers are steadily increasing. While one person may move swiftly, a group can go much farther. Preserving Tzu Chi’s history is not a task achievable by one person alone; it requires the collective effort of many. That’s why we must encourage participation and new blood in our documenting work.

I’ve seen a constant evolution in photography and video equipment during my time with Tzu Chi. My viewfinder has expanded from ground-level to aerial perspectives. I enjoy learning and growing along my life’s journey. I’m not one with grand plans. My goal for life is simple—to use my skills and abilities for the common good. As I share on my Facebook page: “My love for photography dates back to my youth. Images and visuals drive me forward. From photography and videography to editing and aerial imagery, I’m on a continuous learning journey. I am genuinely passionate about my work. I’m Chen Rong-feng [陳榮豐].”

Chen Rong-feng used a drone to aid in aerial reconnaissance and investigate the point of ignition at a fire scene in Taichung, central Taiwan.

In 2021, Chen Rong-feng captured aerial footage of the Tzu Chi Dongda Campus in central Taiwan after the main construction was completed and landscaping was beginning.

Narrated by Chen Rong-feng
Interviewed and written by Lin Mei-hong
Abridged and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos by Chen Rong-feng

I’ve loved taking photos since my teenage years. After joining Tzu Chi, I kept growing my photography and videography skills, eventually venturing into aerial imagery. My goal is simple—I want to use my skills to capture the beauty and goodness of the world.

—Chen Rong-feng

Photo by Lin Mei-hong

I have been curious about “new” things since childhood, especially when it comes to electronic products and devices. In elementary school, I even dismantled a radio my dad bought to study its inner workings. During high school, I developed a fascination with cameras. I recall waking up one morning at two to capture the school gate, using a B shutter speed for 20 seconds. In the interplay of moonlight and car lights, the majestic school gate showcased the beauty of a dignified academic institution. I submitted the work to an intramural competition and won first place.

Time flew quickly after high school. My eldest son was born in 1991, when I was 28. While on a business trip to Japan, I purchased a mini digital video camera, marking the beginning of my journey into videography. In 2006, I attended a Tzu Chi year-end blessing ceremony for the first time. At the volunteer recruitment area, I enthusiastically noted my expertise in photography and videography on a form. Soon thereafter, I received an invitation to join Tzu Chi as a documenting volunteer. I began training in 2008 to become a certified volunteer.

I always followed my own approach through my years of taking photos, doing things as I liked. When I first joined the foundation, I was uncertain about which aspects of a Tzu Chi event to capture. I vividly recall my dissatisfaction with my work at my first Tzu Chi camp. However, when I submitted the photos I had taken to Jian Hong-zheng (簡宏正), the coordinator for the Image Team, I was pleasantly surprised. Looking at my photos, Brother Jian exclaimed, “Everything I needed is right here!” This affirmation greatly cheered me and set me on my determined journey as a documenting volunteer, motivating me to continuously refine my skills.

In early 2010, I joined fellow Tzu Chi volunteers from Taiwan on a mission to Guizhou Province, China, to distribute aid to the needy. When we arrived at the distribution venue in Pingyan Township, Luodian County, we were greeted by the heartwarming sight of hundreds of villagers and children forming two rows, applauding and warmly welcoming us. The sight moved me deeply. I found myself wondering, “What have I done to deserve such warmth from people I have never met?” I followed the other volunteers without saying a word, afraid that if I spoke, tears of emotion would spill from my eyes.

During home visits, we were welcomed into their households as if we were part of their family. This heartfelt reception stemmed from the love nurtured by my fellow volunteers during their ten years of work in Guizhou. I felt deeply grateful that my role as a documenting volunteer brought me to Guizhou, allowing me to be showered in such warmth while I captured one poignant scene after another through my lens.

The rural homes we visited were typically basic, crude structures that provided minimal shelter from wind and rain. I vividly remember a home visit to the Li family. Mr. Li had suffered a bone fracture, and lacking the financial means for medical treatment, his arm had become deformed. His wife, experiencing back pain, struggled to carry water for the family. The family had no source of income at all. We checked their pot and saw some poor-looking corn porridge inside. When we learned that such meager fare was their main food for three daily meals, I couldn’t contain my emotions. I rushed outside and began crying uncontrollably.

I used to think that crying was embarrassing for a man, but I couldn’t hold back my tears that day. They just couldn’t stop flowing. It was the first time I had shed tears in 40 years, and I must have cried without stopping for a good half hour.

After this trip to Guizhou, I set aside my love for the pursuit of enjoyment and pleasure. Before, I used to travel abroad for sightseeing once or twice a year. Although such travels brought me happiness, the joy was short-lived. The charitable mission to Guizhou, however, left an indelible mark on me. After that trip, almost every time I traveled abroad, it was for Tzu Chi.

Innovative solutions

I faced several challenges after taking on the role of coordinator for a community documentation team. At the time, our documenting volunteers lacked a dedicated database for their work, making it difficult for some of them to find photos to complement their articles. To address this issue, I collaborated with other volunteers to establish a dedicated File Transfer Protocol platform. This platform allowed our volunteers to easily upload and share data. Additionally, I worked with computer engineers to develop an online event schedule, which helped us post information about our community’s Tzu Chi activities. This saved us a lot of time and money. It reduced the need for phone calls to disseminate event information and encouraged greater participation from those interested in the events.

The challenge of not having a storage system for articles and photos extended beyond our specific community. I recognized that our volunteers’ hard work was not adequately preserved and that a considerable amount of time and manpower was spent gathering relevant data, so I began contemplating cross-district data integration. I started collaborating with Zhang Ting-xu (張廷旭), a volunteer from Tzu Chi’s central Taiwan Information Technology Team. We developed a dedicated software system for data integration. After we were successful, Zhang remarked in friendly banter, “This software was created at your request; you’re responsible for promoting it!”

In response, I reached out every day to the coordinators for documenting teams in different districts in central Taiwan, providing explanations and tutorials on archiving using our software system. After a year of efforts, relevant records from across the central Taiwan district began to be uploaded to the system, easily accessible through a simple search. Eventually, this system expanded to include other areas in Taiwan.

Later, I became the coordinator for Tzu Chi’s central Taiwan Image Team. I pondered: “How can I attract new volunteers? More importantly, how can I rekindle the initial enthusiasm of our senior volunteers?” I decided to introduce courses in 2018 to tackle these questions. The course design was diverse, allowing instructors to use personal photos for storytelling or inviting professional photographers to engage with our volunteers. Photos can speak volumes; for instance, instructor Chen Jian-hua (陳建華) used pictures of his mother to reflect on accompanying her through the last leg of her life, while Li Ying-qing (李盈青) shared the challenges she had experienced in her life through photos documenting her growth and development. Everyone got to know the instructors better through their photos, but also gained insight into the art of storytelling through photography.

I also collaborated with bakeries and dessert shops, requesting their products for volunteers to photograph. The resulting photos became promotional materials for the businesses. I invited commercial photographer and Tzu Chi volunteer Ye Tang-ming (葉唐銘) to share insights on composition and the use of light and shadow in pastry photography. During class, everyone arranged and presented the pastries provided by our collaborating businesses. Ye reminded everyone that the direction of light sources would change at different times, resulting in various effects, and that photography is subjective, with no definitive right or wrong. Following the instructor’s guidance, participants took their photos and then uploaded their work to a messaging app group chat for immediate sharing and discussion. Afterwards, the participants were able to eat the pastries, bringing sweetness to palates and hearts alike.

At the end of the course, I used the Kahoot! app as a fun, interactive way for participants to review what they had learned. I gave prizes to the top three scorers in the review game. It was a lot of fun to see participants navigate through a series of tense and joyful moments during the activity. Creating classes that were eagerly anticipated by our volunteers became what I considered my greatest achievement.

Chen Rong-feng developed a passion for photography during high school and often went outdoors for photoshoots.

Courtesy of Chen Rong-feng

Tzu Chi volunteers went to Luodian, Guizhou, China, in 2010 to distribute aid to the needy. Here is a touching moment captured by Chen Rong-feng.

Aerial imagery

My foray into aerial imagery began in 2014. That year, Tzu Chi held a Buddha Day ceremony at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung, central Taiwan. While I was documenting the ceremony with a camera, a buzzing sound caught my attention. Following the sound, I looked up and saw a drone for the first time. Involuntarily, my gaze followed it as it soared into the sky, and I found myself drawn closer to the drone operator. I was completely mesmerized when I saw the spectacular aerial view captured by the drone.

I couldn’t get the image of a drone out of my mind after that and purchased a drone the following year. I practiced flying it whenever time allowed and shared the videos I took online. Some people left negative comments upon seeing my footage, saying things like: “It’s not just about flying high in aerial imagery.” Instead of becoming disheartened by such comments, I recognized my inadequacies from their perspectives and encouraged myself to keep improving my skills.

I established an aerial imagery team in 2018, with the goal of sharing my drone flying skills and learning from more enthusiasts. The next year, I joined the Taichung City Fire Department’s aerial imagery unit to contribute to disaster relief efforts. This involved surveying the origins of fires, assisting on-site commanders in making accurate decisions for firefighting, participating in search and rescue missions for missing mountain climbers, and deploying lifebuoys for drowning victims. The aerial imagery team I established also collaborates with the Coast Guard Administration to fly over the sea and document the ecology of white dolphins.

Driven by a passion for aerial imagery, Chen Rong-feng organized a Tzu Chi drone team to enhance the perspective of documentary photography and filming.

Courtesy of Chen Rong-feng

In 2020, the Taiwanese government began regulating drones. To help fellow Tzu Chi volunteers pass licensing exams, I began designing mock test questions and organizing flying technique practice sessions in open areas. Everyone endured the scorching sun without shade during the practice sessions, so I offered cool refreshments and snacks for relief. We mutually encouraged and learned from each other. A total of 68 volunteers have successfully obtained certifications.

Organizing a flying practice session, whether for exam purposes or not, entails careful planning. It includes finding an appropriate outdoor space, providing diverse flight training, and prioritizing safety. Once an outdoor space is chosen, I conduct repeated site inspections. In addition to training in mountain and sea flying techniques, I incorporate rescue scenarios. As an example, I strategically place five mannequins in grassy areas or along riverbanks, turning the exercise into a friendly competition to see who can locate the most mannequins in the shortest time.

I’ve been with Tzu Chi for over 15 years. The number of volunteers participating in our photography classes or learning sessions has grown from dozens to over 200. The aerial imagery team has also welcomed many new members, with participants now spread across Taiwan. Our numbers are steadily increasing. While one person may move swiftly, a group can go much farther. Preserving Tzu Chi’s history is not a task achievable by one person alone; it requires the collective effort of many. That’s why we must encourage participation and new blood in our documenting work.

I’ve seen a constant evolution in photography and video equipment during my time with Tzu Chi. My viewfinder has expanded from ground-level to aerial perspectives. I enjoy learning and growing along my life’s journey. I’m not one with grand plans. My goal for life is simple—to use my skills and abilities for the common good. As I share on my Facebook page: “My love for photography dates back to my youth. Images and visuals drive me forward. From photography and videography to editing and aerial imagery, I’m on a continuous learning journey. I am genuinely passionate about my work. I’m Chen Rong-feng [陳榮豐].”

Chen Rong-feng used a drone to aid in aerial reconnaissance and investigate the point of ignition at a fire scene in Taichung, central Taiwan.

In 2021, Chen Rong-feng captured aerial footage of the Tzu Chi Dongda Campus in central Taiwan after the main construction was completed and landscaping was beginning.

關鍵字

The Power of Apology and Forgiveness

By Yi Yi
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photo by Yan Lin-zhao

Embracing the courage to apologize or forgive is not easy, but it is rewarding, leading to peace within yourself and others.

I was bullied at work many years ago. Back then, the term “bully” didn’t receive much notice in Taiwan, and I didn’t know how to protect myself. I tried to rationalize my mistreatment, comforting myself by thinking that perhaps I owed the colleague something from a past life. I believed that everything would be fine if I could quickly repay my karmic debt by enduring her actions with fortitude. My body, however, was not so willing to submit to that plan.

The prospect of going to work every morning was agonizing for me. I felt a suffocating weight on my chest whenever I reached the entrance to my company. One day, I happened to touch my scalp and felt a bald spot the size of a ten-dollar coin. I was shocked. I was diagnosed with alopecia areata, also known as spot baldness. This was the first time I had heard of this condition, and it was likely triggered by psychological stress.

Coincidentally, I discovered that I was pregnant. I used this as an opportunity to resign, citing the need to take better care of myself during my pregnancy. I thought that leaving that detrimental work environment would solve everything, but I didn’t realize that the emotional wounds I was carrying would be remembered subconsciously.

In the first five years after resigning, I often dreamed that I was arguing with that colleague, venting in my dreams the words I had suppressed in real life. I’d wake up with tears soaking my pillow. I told myself that she was the most terrifying nightmare in my life and that I never wanted to see her again.

For some reason, her attitude toward me changed significantly after I resigned. She would send me birthday wishes every year and greetings on holidays. Perhaps she began to empathize with me because she had to take over my work and finally understood what I had to face on my job. Through a former colleague, I heard that she had taken courses in personal growth and had changed a lot.

Regardless of whether she had changed or not, I still wasn’t ready to face her. Though former colleagues invited me to gatherings many times, I would politely decline if she was going to be there. One day a colleague said to me, “We’re all mothers now; our hearts have softened. We need to find a way to move past the past.” After that comment, I mustered the courage to agree to attend a gathering.

Though five years had elapsed, I was very nervous and uneasy when I met her at the gathering. My smile was polite but trembling slightly. However, the awkwardness between us gradually dissipated as we laughed and shared our experiences as mothers.

At the end of the occasion, she hugged me goodbye. At that moment, it felt like an electric current ran through my body. Not only had I seen someone I swore I would never see again, but I had even embraced her!

Shortly after returning home, I received a text message from her: “I was so happy to see you today! I’m sorry for being insensible when I was young and hurting the pure and kind you.”

I began to cry when I read her message, unable to hold back. My tears were for the feeling of finally being understood. She had dug a big hole in my heart five years back, and now she was using sincerity, spoonful by spoonful, to fill it. That hug, that text message, helped fill the hole and heal the wounds. The tears were also for deep gratitude.

How many people hurt others without realizing it? How many people lick their wounds alone? I am so fortunate that the person who hurt me was self-aware and had the courage to face what she had done in the past and to sincerely apologize.

The knot in my heart that had always been there disappeared in an instant, replaced by relaxation and joy. In that moment, I knew that we had resolved our past animosity and turned it into good karma!

Recently, I heard Dharma Master Cheng Yen share these words with overseas volunteers: “If there was discord between you and others in the past, reach out to them to restore good affinities. You can call those you had friction with, explain any misunderstandings, and offer apologies. By resolving past grievances, your heart will be at ease, and you will also release yourself. When what needs to be repaid is repaid, all interpersonal entanglements will unravel.”

In life, we sometimes hurt others and sometimes are hurt by others. What we must avoid most of all is bad relationships with others. Think about the day when you are saying farewell to the world. Do you want others to remember you with warmth or with lingering hatred? This reminds me of these wise words: “You must first form good affinities with others before you can attain buddhahood.”

Both apologizing and forgiving require great courage. May we have the resolve to let go of our hatred or animosity, and allow our hearts to be filled only with love.

By Yi Yi
Translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photo by Yan Lin-zhao

Embracing the courage to apologize or forgive is not easy, but it is rewarding, leading to peace within yourself and others.

I was bullied at work many years ago. Back then, the term “bully” didn’t receive much notice in Taiwan, and I didn’t know how to protect myself. I tried to rationalize my mistreatment, comforting myself by thinking that perhaps I owed the colleague something from a past life. I believed that everything would be fine if I could quickly repay my karmic debt by enduring her actions with fortitude. My body, however, was not so willing to submit to that plan.

The prospect of going to work every morning was agonizing for me. I felt a suffocating weight on my chest whenever I reached the entrance to my company. One day, I happened to touch my scalp and felt a bald spot the size of a ten-dollar coin. I was shocked. I was diagnosed with alopecia areata, also known as spot baldness. This was the first time I had heard of this condition, and it was likely triggered by psychological stress.

Coincidentally, I discovered that I was pregnant. I used this as an opportunity to resign, citing the need to take better care of myself during my pregnancy. I thought that leaving that detrimental work environment would solve everything, but I didn’t realize that the emotional wounds I was carrying would be remembered subconsciously.

In the first five years after resigning, I often dreamed that I was arguing with that colleague, venting in my dreams the words I had suppressed in real life. I’d wake up with tears soaking my pillow. I told myself that she was the most terrifying nightmare in my life and that I never wanted to see her again.

For some reason, her attitude toward me changed significantly after I resigned. She would send me birthday wishes every year and greetings on holidays. Perhaps she began to empathize with me because she had to take over my work and finally understood what I had to face on my job. Through a former colleague, I heard that she had taken courses in personal growth and had changed a lot.

Regardless of whether she had changed or not, I still wasn’t ready to face her. Though former colleagues invited me to gatherings many times, I would politely decline if she was going to be there. One day a colleague said to me, “We’re all mothers now; our hearts have softened. We need to find a way to move past the past.” After that comment, I mustered the courage to agree to attend a gathering.

Though five years had elapsed, I was very nervous and uneasy when I met her at the gathering. My smile was polite but trembling slightly. However, the awkwardness between us gradually dissipated as we laughed and shared our experiences as mothers.

At the end of the occasion, she hugged me goodbye. At that moment, it felt like an electric current ran through my body. Not only had I seen someone I swore I would never see again, but I had even embraced her!

Shortly after returning home, I received a text message from her: “I was so happy to see you today! I’m sorry for being insensible when I was young and hurting the pure and kind you.”

I began to cry when I read her message, unable to hold back. My tears were for the feeling of finally being understood. She had dug a big hole in my heart five years back, and now she was using sincerity, spoonful by spoonful, to fill it. That hug, that text message, helped fill the hole and heal the wounds. The tears were also for deep gratitude.

How many people hurt others without realizing it? How many people lick their wounds alone? I am so fortunate that the person who hurt me was self-aware and had the courage to face what she had done in the past and to sincerely apologize.

The knot in my heart that had always been there disappeared in an instant, replaced by relaxation and joy. In that moment, I knew that we had resolved our past animosity and turned it into good karma!

Recently, I heard Dharma Master Cheng Yen share these words with overseas volunteers: “If there was discord between you and others in the past, reach out to them to restore good affinities. You can call those you had friction with, explain any misunderstandings, and offer apologies. By resolving past grievances, your heart will be at ease, and you will also release yourself. When what needs to be repaid is repaid, all interpersonal entanglements will unravel.”

In life, we sometimes hurt others and sometimes are hurt by others. What we must avoid most of all is bad relationships with others. Think about the day when you are saying farewell to the world. Do you want others to remember you with warmth or with lingering hatred? This reminds me of these wise words: “You must first form good affinities with others before you can attain buddhahood.”

Both apologizing and forgiving require great courage. May we have the resolve to let go of our hatred or animosity, and allow our hearts to be filled only with love.

關鍵字

Taiwan’s April 3 Hualien Earthquake—Tzu Chi’s Response

By Yeh Tzu-hao
Abridged and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting

As Taiwan grappled with the aftermath of the April 3 earthquake, Tzu Chi brought solace and aid to those reeling from the disaster’s impact.

The Uranus Building in Hualien City, Hualien County, partially collapsed during an earthquake that hit Taiwan on April 3, prompting the deployment of search and rescue workers.

Luo Ming-dao

On the morning of April 3, Taiwan was rocked by a formidable magnitude 7.2 earthquake. Eastern Hualien County, located near the epicenter, bore the brunt of the impact. Some buildings partially collapsed or were rendered uninhabitable. Taroko National Park, a popular tourist destination, suffered devastation from landslides and rockfalls. In response, the authorities acted swiftly, mobilizing search and rescue teams to aid affected areas.

In the immediate aftermath, the Tzu Chi Foundation set up operations at the Hualien County Government Disaster Response Center, the only civilian organization to do so. Deploying manpower and resources, Tzu Chi worked with the authorities and other NGOs, providing comprehensive support to affected residents and assisting in frontline rescue efforts.

（🔎 Zoom in picture）

Aiding in airlift operations

Household items in numerous buildings across northern Hualien were toppled or strewn about during the intense shaking of the earthquake. Residents also fell as they sought refuge. Over 1,100 injuries were recorded across Taiwan. Among the injured was Mayor Wei Jia-yan (魏嘉彥) of Hualien City, the county seat. “A wardrobe fell and hit my foot,” recounted the mayor, “luckily no bones were broken.” Using a crutch due to his injured left foot, he vividly showed the quake’s impact as he oversaw relief operations in the aftermath.

“Some quake victims required surgery or hospitalization,” said Tzu Chi volunteer Li Si-bei (李思蓓), who works at Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital. “I enlisted fellow volunteers to provide support for them, bringing the love of Master Cheng Yen and volunteers from around the world.” Li herself was affected by the temblor, but after instructing her two daughters to tidy up the fallen items at home, she quickly made her way to the hospital to assist injured patients.

Li vividly remembered the arrival of the first eight patients at the hospital, among them a woman named Chen. Ms. Chen had been preparing to deliver vegetables she had grown herself to a friend when the earthquake struck. She suffered a fractured hip bone when she was caught under a fallen cabinet at her front door. “Unable to wait for an ambulance,” Li said, “Ms. Chen hailed a taxi to the hospital. She was in such pain when she arrived that she couldn’t even put weight on her feet; an emergency room physician had to carry her in.”

Landslides in Taroko National Park blocked roads and left hundreds of people stranded in mountainous regions. With vehicles unable to navigate through the terrain, helicopters were used for transporting people and supplies. The Hualien County Police Department reached out to the Ministry of the Interior’s National Airborne Service Corps for assistance and also sought support from Tzu Chi to provide relief supplies.

“We have never been involved in helicopter airlifts before,” remarked Tzu Chi volunteer Xu Zhi-xian (許志賢), a retired police officer. “This is the first time we’ve encountered such a situation.” As a cadre member of the Hualien chapter of the Tzu Chi Association of Police, Firefighters, and Their Families, Xu maintains regular communication with local law enforcement and firefighters. He helped organize the response after Tzu Chi was requested to provide relief supplies. At 6 a.m. on April 5, equipped with essential supplies, a team of Tzu Chi representatives, led by Dharma Master De Mai (德勱) from the Jing Si Abode and accompanied by the police, set off in three police cars and one truck, heading towards the Taroko helicopter landing pad.

“The first helicopter mission transported nine stranded individuals from Tianxiang [in Taroko National Park],” said Xu, who was part of the Tzu Chi team. “Among them were tourists from Singapore and Hong Kong. They were deeply touched to see Master De Mai and our volunteers offering care on-site. Some were moved to tears.” Xu noted that over 600 people were trapped in the Taroko area after the earthquake, including tourists, hotel staff, and personnel from the Tianxiang Police Station and the Seventh Special Police Corps, all in need of food, water, and other supplies. The collaboration between Tzu Chi, the Hualien County Police Department, and the Airborne Service Corps facilitated two rounds of airlifts, providing crucial aid until roads were cleared.

On the afternoon of April 3, Dharma Master Cheng Yen arrived at the site of the collapsed Uranus Building, where she expressed care for the on-site volunteers and rescue workers.

Courtesy of Tzu Chi Hualien headquarters

Partnerships in action

According to data from the Hualien County Government, the earthquake caused 77 buildings in the county to collapse or become hazardous, affecting over 1,700 households. In response, the county government and township offices established temporary shelters at eight locations, including Huaren Junior High School and Zhonghua Elementary School. Tzu Chi also contributed to the relief efforts.

Lu Hsueh-cheng (呂學正), director of the Comprehensive Planning Office at Tzu Chi’s Department of Charity Mission Development, remarked, “Compared to the February 6 earthquake six years ago, the government’s response this time was so swift it was beyond my imagination. When I arrived at Huaren Junior High School around ten o’clock that morning, personnel from the Ji’an Township Office had already prepared the shelter equipment. The staff was also in place.” He noted that Tzu Chi had strengthened its collaboration with the public sector in this regard over the past two years. For example, they partnered with the Ji’an Township Office last year for disaster response and shelter exercises. Various signage prepared during those exercises proved useful during this crisis too.

Huaren Junior High School played a crucial role in Ji’an Township’s response to the earthquake. Red Cross-provided tents were erected across the playground, while the multifunctional gymnasium, constructed by Tzu Chi for the school seven years ago, offered shelter space equipped with privacy cubicles, folding beds, and blankets—all provided by Tzu Chi—ensuring the comfort and privacy of displaced residents.

To alleviate post-disaster inconveniences, government agencies and civil organizations dispatched personnel to aid displaced quake victims. At the shelter set up in Zhonghua Elementary School, for example, staff from the National Health Insurance Administration facilitated the reissuance of national health insurance cards for those who fled without them. A telecommunications company installed phones for evacuees to make free local calls, real estate agents coordinated rental matching services, and the military erected field shower tents in a corner of the playground. “Twelve people at most are allowed to shower at one time, with two daily time slots available—one for men and the other for women,” said the responsible officer.

With the generous support of people from all walks of life, the shelters established after the earthquake were well-stocked with essentials. However, despite this touching assistance and regardless of how well-equipped a shelter may be, nothing could replace the comfort of one’s own home. “There was an elderly man who said he had lost everything and felt utterly despondent,” Mayor Wei Jia-yan said. “Our social workers and other colleagues made continuous efforts to uplift his spirits.” Speaking of this, the mayor extended special thanks to Professor Gu from Dong Hwa University in Hualien for organizing transportation to take affected residents, including the elderly man, to the university campus in the hope that the beautiful surroundings would provide some comfort.

Empathizing with the plight of quake victims, Tzu Chi enlisted seasoned senior volunteers to work alongside professional social workers and contracted psychologists from health agencies to provide care in shelters. “Our senior volunteers have amassed a wealth of life experience. Drawing from their rich life experiences and guided by Master Cheng Yen’s teachings, they are able to provide meaningful emotional support to survivors of the earthquake,” remarked Huang Yu-qi (黃玉琪) from the Disaster Reduction and Prevention Section, Comprehensive Planning Office, the Tzu Chi Department of Charity Mission Development. Huang further explained that the volunteers who offered care in shelters had all undergone relevant training, and so they knew how to provide support without causing further harm. The professional psychologists were thus happy to work with them.

A helicopter (photo 1) collected relief supplies from Tzu Chi early on the morning of April 5; a volunteer (left in photo 2) offered care to a foreign tourist who had been stranded in Tianxiang, Taroko National Park, in the aftermath of the quake.

Huang Guang-hua

Emergency cash distribution

After the earthquake, Tzu Chi provided emergency cash to over 1,400 families in Hualien and northern Taiwan who were forced to evacuate due to damaged homes. Each household received 20,000 to 50,000 New Taiwan dollars (US$670 to 1,670), depending on family size and the severity of the damage to their homes.

The distribution of emergency cash was carefully planned. Volunteer Wang Xuan-fang (王宣方) from Taipei described the process: quake victims first received assistance with paperwork and received cash and gifts at a designated area staffed by volunteers and social workers. Then, they were directed to another area where additional volunteers and nuns from the Jing Si Abode provided comfort and listened to anyone willing to express their emotions.

Lai, one of the cash aid recipients, expressed her concerns. Her home suffered severe damage in the quake, and the shop where she worked closed due to slow business, leaving her temporarily unemployed yet obligated to continue making mortgage payments. She also worried about the difficulty of finding suitable rental housing, given the high demand from other quake victims seeking rentals. “For everyone, finding a place to settle down is the top priority; housing is the most urgent matter,” she said.

In contrast, another recipient, Hu, who secured housing early, appeared much calmer. Her apartment, located on the fifth floor of a building, sustained minimal damage, but the building itself was deemed unsafe for habitation. To ensure that her mother, who was battling cancer, and her school-going children could maintain a sense of normalcy, she and her husband promptly began searching for a new home. Fortunately, they found a compassionate landlord willing to provide a short-term lease for three months.

“I believed someone would come to help us,” Hu remarked, “and that we just needed to wait and take good care of ourselves first.” She works at a tutoring center, while her husband is a baker at a supermarket. Both continued working after the quake, with her husband even baking cookies to share with fellow victims. Hu expressed gratitude for the care provided by Tzu Chi and remained hopeful about their situation. “We’ll be back on our feet,” she affirmed. “We just need some time.”

The morning after the earthquake, volunteers conducted Tzu Chi’s first emergency cash distribution at Dongjing Temple, near the Uranus Building.

Liu Qiu-ling

Tzu Chi held five large-scale distributions of emergency cash after the temblor, with nuns from the Jing Si Abode and volunteers on-site listening to survivors’ accounts of their distress.

Qiu Jun-cheng

Young people contributing

Students and faculty from Tzu Chi University and the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology, both in Hualien, along with members of the Tzu Chi Collegiate Association in eastern Taiwan, came forward to help survivors in the aftermath of the earthquake too. For example, over 30 students from Tzu Chi University, guided by their teachers, volunteered at Zhonghua Elementary School, Huaren Junior High School, and Hualien Baseball Stadium.

“There was a lot of work to do,” noted Yang Jing-yong (楊景湧), a graduate student in the Physical Therapy Department at Tzu Chi University, “from erecting tents, to setting up beds, to preparing items for survivors. We came together and combined our strength to ensure everything ran smoothly.” Hailing from Indonesia, Yang felt significant fear during the earthquake, as such events are rare in his hometown. However, he enthusiastically volunteered in the aftermath, dedicating the four-day weekend following the quake (due to Tomb-Sweeping Festival and Children’s Day) to relief efforts.

On a rainy day, Yang escorted a quake victim to a parking lot, holding an umbrella. “The home we worked so hard to buy was gone in an instant,” lamented the victim, evoking deep empathy in Yang. “Without your help, we’d be lost. We’re so grateful to you all.” Yang was profoundly touched. “In that moment, I truly felt my value as a human being,” he said with emotion.

Lin Shi-feng (林世峰), a Traditional Chinese Medicine student at Tzu Chi University, also volunteered after the quake. Reflecting on his experience, he said: “When the quake struck in the morning, I was shocked and disoriented, but by afternoon, I was volunteering, offering comfort to others while finding solace in the process.” He appreciated the valuable experience of transitioning from a victim to a volunteer, overcoming shock by contributing to others’ well-being.

Disaster reduction

To minimize the impact of disasters, it’s crucial to conduct regular drills and training during normal times. For a place like Taiwan, prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, preparedness is paramount. After the 2018 Hualien earthquake, the Tzu Chi Foundation and the Hualien County Government signed a memorandum of cooperation to strengthen disaster reduction and relief capabilities. Similar agreements were made with Hualien City and the townships of Xincheng, Xiulin, and Ji’an. As a result, many civil servants in Hualien County responsible for related tasks have attended evacuation and shelter training courses organized by Tzu Chi. Some have even participated in a training program co-organized by the county fire department and Tzu Chi and earned disaster management certificates recognized by the Ministry of the Interior.

Xiao Zi-wei (蕭子蔚), head of the Social and Labor Division of Hualien City Government, said: “We’ve even conducted training for members of community development associations. Having gained hands-on experience, everyone was better prepared this time.”

Another noteworthy observation from the recent earthquake is the commendable performance of the six schools in northern Hualien that were part of Tzu Chi’s Project Disaster Reduction. This project was launched to construct new buildings to replace aged or damaged structures in schools in Taiwan. The robustness of the buildings constructed by Tzu Chi at the six schools underscores the foundation’s commitment to disaster reduction efforts.

Lin Min-chao (林敏朝), a consultant for Tzu Chi’s Construction Department, cited the multifunctional gymnasium built by Tzu Chi for Huaren Junior High School as an example. “In general, the safety factor for such buildings is 1.2 times that of other school buildings, but those constructed by Tzu Chi are even higher, reaching 1.7 times.” To enhance natural lighting, the gymnasium’s glass window area was increased. Nevertheless, due to the use of a steel frame structure and lightweight roofing and walls, the seismic resistance remains strong.

“Our goal with the school buildings we construct isn’t just to withstand strong earthquakes but also to serve as evacuation shelters for residents,” Lin asserted.

Nuns from the Jing Si Abode are pictured in the photo visiting evacuees at a shelter on the evening of the earthquake.

Chen Rong-qin

Tzu Chi volunteers work with personnel from a non-governmental organization to clear folding beds from a shelter about to close.

Huang Yu-qi

Distributing emergency cash to affected households, visiting hospitals to comfort the injured, chanting the Buddha’s name for the deceased at funeral homes, and providing relief supplies… After completing the initial phase of emergency relief efforts following the earthquake, which included the tasks mentioned above, Tzu Chi began another phase to aid in rebuilding. In mid-April, discussions were held with the Hualien County Government and the TSMC Charity Foundation to plan reconstruction efforts. Tzu Chi took on the responsibility of repairing homes in the townships of Xincheng, Xiulin, and Ji’an, prioritizing repairs for the homes of vulnerable residents. Expert volunteers from across Taiwan started surveys and repair work on April 18. Tzu Chi volunteers worldwide are also assisting by raising funds to help quake victims rebuild their lives.

（🔎 Zoom in picture）

By Yeh Tzu-hao
Abridged and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting

As Taiwan grappled with the aftermath of the April 3 earthquake, Tzu Chi brought solace and aid to those reeling from the disaster’s impact.

The Uranus Building in Hualien City, Hualien County, partially collapsed during an earthquake that hit Taiwan on April 3, prompting the deployment of search and rescue workers.

Luo Ming-dao

On the morning of April 3, Taiwan was rocked by a formidable magnitude 7.2 earthquake. Eastern Hualien County, located near the epicenter, bore the brunt of the impact. Some buildings partially collapsed or were rendered uninhabitable. Taroko National Park, a popular tourist destination, suffered devastation from landslides and rockfalls. In response, the authorities acted swiftly, mobilizing search and rescue teams to aid affected areas.

In the immediate aftermath, the Tzu Chi Foundation set up operations at the Hualien County Government Disaster Response Center, the only civilian organization to do so. Deploying manpower and resources, Tzu Chi worked with the authorities and other NGOs, providing comprehensive support to affected residents and assisting in frontline rescue efforts.

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Aiding in airlift operations

Household items in numerous buildings across northern Hualien were toppled or strewn about during the intense shaking of the earthquake. Residents also fell as they sought refuge. Over 1,100 injuries were recorded across Taiwan. Among the injured was Mayor Wei Jia-yan (魏嘉彥) of Hualien City, the county seat. “A wardrobe fell and hit my foot,” recounted the mayor, “luckily no bones were broken.” Using a crutch due to his injured left foot, he vividly showed the quake’s impact as he oversaw relief operations in the aftermath.

“Some quake victims required surgery or hospitalization,” said Tzu Chi volunteer Li Si-bei (李思蓓), who works at Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital. “I enlisted fellow volunteers to provide support for them, bringing the love of Master Cheng Yen and volunteers from around the world.” Li herself was affected by the temblor, but after instructing her two daughters to tidy up the fallen items at home, she quickly made her way to the hospital to assist injured patients.

Li vividly remembered the arrival of the first eight patients at the hospital, among them a woman named Chen. Ms. Chen had been preparing to deliver vegetables she had grown herself to a friend when the earthquake struck. She suffered a fractured hip bone when she was caught under a fallen cabinet at her front door. “Unable to wait for an ambulance,” Li said, “Ms. Chen hailed a taxi to the hospital. She was in such pain when she arrived that she couldn’t even put weight on her feet; an emergency room physician had to carry her in.”

Landslides in Taroko National Park blocked roads and left hundreds of people stranded in mountainous regions. With vehicles unable to navigate through the terrain, helicopters were used for transporting people and supplies. The Hualien County Police Department reached out to the Ministry of the Interior’s National Airborne Service Corps for assistance and also sought support from Tzu Chi to provide relief supplies.

“We have never been involved in helicopter airlifts before,” remarked Tzu Chi volunteer Xu Zhi-xian (許志賢), a retired police officer. “This is the first time we’ve encountered such a situation.” As a cadre member of the Hualien chapter of the Tzu Chi Association of Police, Firefighters, and Their Families, Xu maintains regular communication with local law enforcement and firefighters. He helped organize the response after Tzu Chi was requested to provide relief supplies. At 6 a.m. on April 5, equipped with essential supplies, a team of Tzu Chi representatives, led by Dharma Master De Mai (德勱) from the Jing Si Abode and accompanied by the police, set off in three police cars and one truck, heading towards the Taroko helicopter landing pad.

“The first helicopter mission transported nine stranded individuals from Tianxiang [in Taroko National Park],” said Xu, who was part of the Tzu Chi team. “Among them were tourists from Singapore and Hong Kong. They were deeply touched to see Master De Mai and our volunteers offering care on-site. Some were moved to tears.” Xu noted that over 600 people were trapped in the Taroko area after the earthquake, including tourists, hotel staff, and personnel from the Tianxiang Police Station and the Seventh Special Police Corps, all in need of food, water, and other supplies. The collaboration between Tzu Chi, the Hualien County Police Department, and the Airborne Service Corps facilitated two rounds of airlifts, providing crucial aid until roads were cleared.

On the afternoon of April 3, Dharma Master Cheng Yen arrived at the site of the collapsed Uranus Building, where she expressed care for the on-site volunteers and rescue workers.

Courtesy of Tzu Chi Hualien headquarters

Partnerships in action

According to data from the Hualien County Government, the earthquake caused 77 buildings in the county to collapse or become hazardous, affecting over 1,700 households. In response, the county government and township offices established temporary shelters at eight locations, including Huaren Junior High School and Zhonghua Elementary School. Tzu Chi also contributed to the relief efforts.

Lu Hsueh-cheng (呂學正), director of the Comprehensive Planning Office at Tzu Chi’s Department of Charity Mission Development, remarked, “Compared to the February 6 earthquake six years ago, the government’s response this time was so swift it was beyond my imagination. When I arrived at Huaren Junior High School around ten o’clock that morning, personnel from the Ji’an Township Office had already prepared the shelter equipment. The staff was also in place.” He noted that Tzu Chi had strengthened its collaboration with the public sector in this regard over the past two years. For example, they partnered with the Ji’an Township Office last year for disaster response and shelter exercises. Various signage prepared during those exercises proved useful during this crisis too.

Huaren Junior High School played a crucial role in Ji’an Township’s response to the earthquake. Red Cross-provided tents were erected across the playground, while the multifunctional gymnasium, constructed by Tzu Chi for the school seven years ago, offered shelter space equipped with privacy cubicles, folding beds, and blankets—all provided by Tzu Chi—ensuring the comfort and privacy of displaced residents.

To alleviate post-disaster inconveniences, government agencies and civil organizations dispatched personnel to aid displaced quake victims. At the shelter set up in Zhonghua Elementary School, for example, staff from the National Health Insurance Administration facilitated the reissuance of national health insurance cards for those who fled without them. A telecommunications company installed phones for evacuees to make free local calls, real estate agents coordinated rental matching services, and the military erected field shower tents in a corner of the playground. “Twelve people at most are allowed to shower at one time, with two daily time slots available—one for men and the other for women,” said the responsible officer.

With the generous support of people from all walks of life, the shelters established after the earthquake were well-stocked with essentials. However, despite this touching assistance and regardless of how well-equipped a shelter may be, nothing could replace the comfort of one’s own home. “There was an elderly man who said he had lost everything and felt utterly despondent,” Mayor Wei Jia-yan said. “Our social workers and other colleagues made continuous efforts to uplift his spirits.” Speaking of this, the mayor extended special thanks to Professor Gu from Dong Hwa University in Hualien for organizing transportation to take affected residents, including the elderly man, to the university campus in the hope that the beautiful surroundings would provide some comfort.

Empathizing with the plight of quake victims, Tzu Chi enlisted seasoned senior volunteers to work alongside professional social workers and contracted psychologists from health agencies to provide care in shelters. “Our senior volunteers have amassed a wealth of life experience. Drawing from their rich life experiences and guided by Master Cheng Yen’s teachings, they are able to provide meaningful emotional support to survivors of the earthquake,” remarked Huang Yu-qi (黃玉琪) from the Disaster Reduction and Prevention Section, Comprehensive Planning Office, the Tzu Chi Department of Charity Mission Development. Huang further explained that the volunteers who offered care in shelters had all undergone relevant training, and so they knew how to provide support without causing further harm. The professional psychologists were thus happy to work with them.

A helicopter (photo 1) collected relief supplies from Tzu Chi early on the morning of April 5; a volunteer (left in photo 2) offered care to a foreign tourist who had been stranded in Tianxiang, Taroko National Park, in the aftermath of the quake.

Huang Guang-hua

Emergency cash distribution

After the earthquake, Tzu Chi provided emergency cash to over 1,400 families in Hualien and northern Taiwan who were forced to evacuate due to damaged homes. Each household received 20,000 to 50,000 New Taiwan dollars (US$670 to 1,670), depending on family size and the severity of the damage to their homes.

The distribution of emergency cash was carefully planned. Volunteer Wang Xuan-fang (王宣方) from Taipei described the process: quake victims first received assistance with paperwork and received cash and gifts at a designated area staffed by volunteers and social workers. Then, they were directed to another area where additional volunteers and nuns from the Jing Si Abode provided comfort and listened to anyone willing to express their emotions.

Lai, one of the cash aid recipients, expressed her concerns. Her home suffered severe damage in the quake, and the shop where she worked closed due to slow business, leaving her temporarily unemployed yet obligated to continue making mortgage payments. She also worried about the difficulty of finding suitable rental housing, given the high demand from other quake victims seeking rentals. “For everyone, finding a place to settle down is the top priority; housing is the most urgent matter,” she said.

In contrast, another recipient, Hu, who secured housing early, appeared much calmer. Her apartment, located on the fifth floor of a building, sustained minimal damage, but the building itself was deemed unsafe for habitation. To ensure that her mother, who was battling cancer, and her school-going children could maintain a sense of normalcy, she and her husband promptly began searching for a new home. Fortunately, they found a compassionate landlord willing to provide a short-term lease for three months.

“I believed someone would come to help us,” Hu remarked, “and that we just needed to wait and take good care of ourselves first.” She works at a tutoring center, while her husband is a baker at a supermarket. Both continued working after the quake, with her husband even baking cookies to share with fellow victims. Hu expressed gratitude for the care provided by Tzu Chi and remained hopeful about their situation. “We’ll be back on our feet,” she affirmed. “We just need some time.”

The morning after the earthquake, volunteers conducted Tzu Chi’s first emergency cash distribution at Dongjing Temple, near the Uranus Building.

Liu Qiu-ling

Tzu Chi held five large-scale distributions of emergency cash after the temblor, with nuns from the Jing Si Abode and volunteers on-site listening to survivors’ accounts of their distress.

Qiu Jun-cheng

Young people contributing

Students and faculty from Tzu Chi University and the Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology, both in Hualien, along with members of the Tzu Chi Collegiate Association in eastern Taiwan, came forward to help survivors in the aftermath of the earthquake too. For example, over 30 students from Tzu Chi University, guided by their teachers, volunteered at Zhonghua Elementary School, Huaren Junior High School, and Hualien Baseball Stadium.

“There was a lot of work to do,” noted Yang Jing-yong (楊景湧), a graduate student in the Physical Therapy Department at Tzu Chi University, “from erecting tents, to setting up beds, to preparing items for survivors. We came together and combined our strength to ensure everything ran smoothly.” Hailing from Indonesia, Yang felt significant fear during the earthquake, as such events are rare in his hometown. However, he enthusiastically volunteered in the aftermath, dedicating the four-day weekend following the quake (due to Tomb-Sweeping Festival and Children’s Day) to relief efforts.

On a rainy day, Yang escorted a quake victim to a parking lot, holding an umbrella. “The home we worked so hard to buy was gone in an instant,” lamented the victim, evoking deep empathy in Yang. “Without your help, we’d be lost. We’re so grateful to you all.” Yang was profoundly touched. “In that moment, I truly felt my value as a human being,” he said with emotion.

Lin Shi-feng (林世峰), a Traditional Chinese Medicine student at Tzu Chi University, also volunteered after the quake. Reflecting on his experience, he said: “When the quake struck in the morning, I was shocked and disoriented, but by afternoon, I was volunteering, offering comfort to others while finding solace in the process.” He appreciated the valuable experience of transitioning from a victim to a volunteer, overcoming shock by contributing to others’ well-being.

Disaster reduction

To minimize the impact of disasters, it’s crucial to conduct regular drills and training during normal times. For a place like Taiwan, prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, preparedness is paramount. After the 2018 Hualien earthquake, the Tzu Chi Foundation and the Hualien County Government signed a memorandum of cooperation to strengthen disaster reduction and relief capabilities. Similar agreements were made with Hualien City and the townships of Xincheng, Xiulin, and Ji’an. As a result, many civil servants in Hualien County responsible for related tasks have attended evacuation and shelter training courses organized by Tzu Chi. Some have even participated in a training program co-organized by the county fire department and Tzu Chi and earned disaster management certificates recognized by the Ministry of the Interior.

Xiao Zi-wei (蕭子蔚), head of the Social and Labor Division of Hualien City Government, said: “We’ve even conducted training for members of community development associations. Having gained hands-on experience, everyone was better prepared this time.”

Another noteworthy observation from the recent earthquake is the commendable performance of the six schools in northern Hualien that were part of Tzu Chi’s Project Disaster Reduction. This project was launched to construct new buildings to replace aged or damaged structures in schools in Taiwan. The robustness of the buildings constructed by Tzu Chi at the six schools underscores the foundation’s commitment to disaster reduction efforts.

Lin Min-chao (林敏朝), a consultant for Tzu Chi’s Construction Department, cited the multifunctional gymnasium built by Tzu Chi for Huaren Junior High School as an example. “In general, the safety factor for such buildings is 1.2 times that of other school buildings, but those constructed by Tzu Chi are even higher, reaching 1.7 times.” To enhance natural lighting, the gymnasium’s glass window area was increased. Nevertheless, due to the use of a steel frame structure and lightweight roofing and walls, the seismic resistance remains strong.

“Our goal with the school buildings we construct isn’t just to withstand strong earthquakes but also to serve as evacuation shelters for residents,” Lin asserted.

Nuns from the Jing Si Abode are pictured in the photo visiting evacuees at a shelter on the evening of the earthquake.

Chen Rong-qin

Tzu Chi volunteers work with personnel from a non-governmental organization to clear folding beds from a shelter about to close.

Huang Yu-qi

Distributing emergency cash to affected households, visiting hospitals to comfort the injured, chanting the Buddha’s name for the deceased at funeral homes, and providing relief supplies… After completing the initial phase of emergency relief efforts following the earthquake, which included the tasks mentioned above, Tzu Chi began another phase to aid in rebuilding. In mid-April, discussions were held with the Hualien County Government and the TSMC Charity Foundation to plan reconstruction efforts. Tzu Chi took on the responsibility of repairing homes in the townships of Xincheng, Xiulin, and Ji’an, prioritizing repairs for the homes of vulnerable residents. Expert volunteers from across Taiwan started surveys and repair work on April 18. Tzu Chi volunteers worldwide are also assisting by raising funds to help quake victims rebuild their lives.

（🔎 Zoom in picture）

關鍵字

批判を警鐘と受け止める

文／ 釋德𠆩
訳／ 済運

人にはそれぞれの見方があり、批判を注意の喚起と受け止め、批判した人が教育してくれたのだ、と感謝しましょう。

完璧な人はいない　お互いに尊重し合おう

慈済学術諮問顧問委員会の昭慧法師と十数名の教授や準教授たちが、上人と座談しました。

上人はこう語りました。自分は元々とても内気で、人前で談話することは滅多にありませんでした。しかし、人間（じんかん）に苦難が多いため、何か人の役に立つことがしたいと常々思っていました。そのためには、より多くの同じ志を持った人の力を集めて、心を一つに事を成す必要があると考えました。そうすれば、事は順調に運び、より人間（じんかん）を利することができるのです。そして今、教育界にこれほど多くの心ある人や教育に熱意を持つ人がいて、慈済と交流しているのを見ると、大きく希望に満ちてくるのを感じます。皆さんが心して努力することで、仏法を人間（じんかん）に根付かせてくれることを期待しています。仏法を講釈したり、仏教の名を使ったりしなければならないわけではなく、人間（じんかん）を利して、人心の偏りを正しく導きさえすれば、心は広くなり、何事も人のためにと思うようになります。それは即ち、仏陀がこの世に来て衆生を悟りに導こうとした心願を達成することにほかなりません。

上人は言いました。「この世で何かをしようとして、自分と違った考え方とやり方を持った人に出会った時、批判されることがありますが、それを自分への注意の喚起と受け取り、間違いを犯してはならないと自分自身に警鐘を鳴らし、批判してくれた人が教育してくれたのだと思って感謝すべきです」。

北投区のリサイクルボランティアである陳政祥（ツン・ヅンシャン）師兄は、辰年を迎えるに当たって、回収したミルクボトルやペットボトル、プラスチック缶などを使って、器用に、今にも羽ばたきそうな龍を作成しました。上人はそれを例に挙げてこう言いました。「ゴミの分別と資源の回収には、大きな道理の教育の意義が含まれています。慈済のリサイクルセンターには多くの高齢ボランティアがいて、あらゆる種類のプラスチックを手で触るだけで、非常に細かく分類することができるだけでなく、参観者にも話しかけています。そして、回収物から人々が称賛するような美しい芸術品までも作り出しています。高学歴ではないかもしれませんが、智慧を持っており、人には無限の可能性が秘められていることを証明しています。

食事前の五観の偈（五つの心構え）

歳末祝福会で二〇二三年の「慈済大蔵経」(二〇二三年の回顧)のビデオが放映されましたが、世界で四大元素の不調和による数多くの災害と、人心の不調和による戦禍が起きていることが分かります。上人は感慨深げに言いました。この世は苦難ばかりですが、皆さんは平和な台湾で暮らせるということに、心から感謝しなければなりません。

古代の僧が私たちに、目の前にある食べ物は容易に得られたものでないのだから感謝しなければならない、と『五観の偈』を教えています。食事する時に持つべき五つの心構えとは：

  • 一つには功の多少を計り、彼の来処を量る。
  • 二つには己が徳行の全欠を忖って、供に応ず。
  • 三つには心を防ぎ、過を離るることは、貪等を宗とす。
  • 四つには正に良薬を事とするは、形枯を療ぜんがためなり。
  • 五つには成道のための故に、今この食を受く。

上人はこう解説しました。「一つ目の意味を考えてみてください。目の前にあるご飯は、種籾を撒き、苗になれば田に植え、成長すると稲穂が実り、それを収穫して脱穀し、包装を経て初めて流通販売され、それが家々に届くのです。その過程でどれだけの労力と時間を費やして、大変な農耕作業が行われてきたことでしょう。また、ガスや電気、そして調理器具もあってこそ、香ばしいご飯が炊き上がるのです。ですから食事する時、必ず感謝の気持ちと共に、自分は人間（じんかん）でどんな貢献をして徳を積んだか、このような美味しい食事をするに値するか、を考えてみるのです。精舎の常住尼僧たちが自力耕（更）生しているのは、こう考えているからなのです」。

また、警戒心を高め、自分の心が偏って徳が失われないよう、過ちから遠ざからなければなりません。「何故、徳が失われるのか？欲があるからです。自分は欲を起こしたのではないかと反省しましょう。この食事は、お腹を満たして栄養を補給するために頂くのであって、美味しいものを食べたいという欲望で選んだわけではありません。『健康を保つための良き薬と受け止める』のです。欲を起こさなければ、間違いを起こして業を造る事はありません」。

上人は言い聞かせました。お粥も食事も簡単に得られるものではないのだから、感謝の気持ちを持って頂くのです。姿勢を正して座り、「悟りを開くにはこの食事を受け取るべきである」と自分に言い聞かせましょう。修行をしていくためには健康でいなければならず、そうすれば十分に体力がついて心身が整えられます。やるべきことを成し遂げ、時間を無駄にせず、悟りに到達するのです。

足ることを知るようになれば、欲念を取り除くことができ、日々がとても満足したものであれば、自ずと、感謝と喜びの心を持つと共に、奉仕することに喜びを覚え、善行して人助けすることで徳行ができるようになります。

（慈済月刊六八八期より)

人にはそれぞれの見方があり、批判を注意の喚起と受け止め、批判した人が教育してくれたのだ、と感謝しましょう。

完璧な人はいない　お互いに尊重し合おう

慈済学術諮問顧問委員会の昭慧法師と十数名の教授や準教授たちが、上人と座談しました。

上人はこう語りました。自分は元々とても内気で、人前で談話することは滅多にありませんでした。しかし、人間（じんかん）に苦難が多いため、何か人の役に立つことがしたいと常々思っていました。そのためには、より多くの同じ志を持った人の力を集めて、心を一つに事を成す必要があると考えました。そうすれば、事は順調に運び、より人間（じんかん）を利することができるのです。そして今、教育界にこれほど多くの心ある人や教育に熱意を持つ人がいて、慈済と交流しているのを見ると、大きく希望に満ちてくるのを感じます。皆さんが心して努力することで、仏法を人間（じんかん）に根付かせてくれることを期待しています。仏法を講釈したり、仏教の名を使ったりしなければならないわけではなく、人間（じんかん）を利して、人心の偏りを正しく導きさえすれば、心は広くなり、何事も人のためにと思うようになります。それは即ち、仏陀がこの世に来て衆生を悟りに導こうとした心願を達成することにほかなりません。

上人は言いました。「この世で何かをしようとして、自分と違った考え方とやり方を持った人に出会った時、批判されることがありますが、それを自分への注意の喚起と受け取り、間違いを犯してはならないと自分自身に警鐘を鳴らし、批判してくれた人が教育してくれたのだと思って感謝すべきです」。

北投区のリサイクルボランティアである陳政祥（ツン・ヅンシャン）師兄は、辰年を迎えるに当たって、回収したミルクボトルやペットボトル、プラスチック缶などを使って、器用に、今にも羽ばたきそうな龍を作成しました。上人はそれを例に挙げてこう言いました。「ゴミの分別と資源の回収には、大きな道理の教育の意義が含まれています。慈済のリサイクルセンターには多くの高齢ボランティアがいて、あらゆる種類のプラスチックを手で触るだけで、非常に細かく分類することができるだけでなく、参観者にも話しかけています。そして、回収物から人々が称賛するような美しい芸術品までも作り出しています。高学歴ではないかもしれませんが、智慧を持っており、人には無限の可能性が秘められていることを証明しています。

食事前の五観の偈（五つの心構え）

歳末祝福会で二〇二三年の「慈済大蔵経」(二〇二三年の回顧)のビデオが放映されましたが、世界で四大元素の不調和による数多くの災害と、人心の不調和による戦禍が起きていることが分かります。上人は感慨深げに言いました。この世は苦難ばかりですが、皆さんは平和な台湾で暮らせるということに、心から感謝しなければなりません。

古代の僧が私たちに、目の前にある食べ物は容易に得られたものでないのだから感謝しなければならない、と『五観の偈』を教えています。食事する時に持つべき五つの心構えとは：

  • 一つには功の多少を計り、彼の来処を量る。
  • 二つには己が徳行の全欠を忖って、供に応ず。
  • 三つには心を防ぎ、過を離るることは、貪等を宗とす。
  • 四つには正に良薬を事とするは、形枯を療ぜんがためなり。
  • 五つには成道のための故に、今この食を受く。

上人はこう解説しました。「一つ目の意味を考えてみてください。目の前にあるご飯は、種籾を撒き、苗になれば田に植え、成長すると稲穂が実り、それを収穫して脱穀し、包装を経て初めて流通販売され、それが家々に届くのです。その過程でどれだけの労力と時間を費やして、大変な農耕作業が行われてきたことでしょう。また、ガスや電気、そして調理器具もあってこそ、香ばしいご飯が炊き上がるのです。ですから食事する時、必ず感謝の気持ちと共に、自分は人間（じんかん）でどんな貢献をして徳を積んだか、このような美味しい食事をするに値するか、を考えてみるのです。精舎の常住尼僧たちが自力耕（更）生しているのは、こう考えているからなのです」。

また、警戒心を高め、自分の心が偏って徳が失われないよう、過ちから遠ざからなければなりません。「何故、徳が失われるのか？欲があるからです。自分は欲を起こしたのではないかと反省しましょう。この食事は、お腹を満たして栄養を補給するために頂くのであって、美味しいものを食べたいという欲望で選んだわけではありません。『健康を保つための良き薬と受け止める』のです。欲を起こさなければ、間違いを起こして業を造る事はありません」。

上人は言い聞かせました。お粥も食事も簡単に得られるものではないのだから、感謝の気持ちを持って頂くのです。姿勢を正して座り、「悟りを開くにはこの食事を受け取るべきである」と自分に言い聞かせましょう。修行をしていくためには健康でいなければならず、そうすれば十分に体力がついて心身が整えられます。やるべきことを成し遂げ、時間を無駄にせず、悟りに到達するのです。

足ることを知るようになれば、欲念を取り除くことができ、日々がとても満足したものであれば、自ずと、感謝と喜びの心を持つと共に、奉仕することに喜びを覚え、善行して人助けすることで徳行ができるようになります。

（慈済月刊六八八期より)

關鍵字

The Illustrated Jing Si Aphorisms

The Buddha says:

My fellow monks!
Do not accept my teachings just because you respect me.
You should be like fire which tries pure gold.
You must personally test and prove the Dharma I teach.
Recognize the Dharma from the fruit it produces.

Buddhist disciples should not worship the Buddha as a god. We should think of the Buddha as a saint—a great educator who exceeds earthly intelligence and reveals true wisdom. He serves as a role model for us to follow.

This approach establishes a solid foundation for life and encompasses the rich educational essence of Buddhism.

Master Cheng Yen, people always want to get, but you teach people to give. Doesn’t this go against human nature?

Is it possible to always take without ever giving? It’s like always wanting to withdraw money from a bank account without ever making any deposits. It’s impossible.

Translated by E. E. Ho and W. L. Rathje; drawings by Tsai Chih-chung; coloring by May E. Gu

The Buddha says:

My fellow monks!
Do not accept my teachings just because you respect me.
You should be like fire which tries pure gold.
You must personally test and prove the Dharma I teach.
Recognize the Dharma from the fruit it produces.

Buddhist disciples should not worship the Buddha as a god. We should think of the Buddha as a saint—a great educator who exceeds earthly intelligence and reveals true wisdom. He serves as a role model for us to follow.

This approach establishes a solid foundation for life and encompasses the rich educational essence of Buddhism.

Master Cheng Yen, people always want to get, but you teach people to give. Doesn’t this go against human nature?

Is it possible to always take without ever giving? It’s like always wanting to withdraw money from a bank account without ever making any deposits. It’s impossible.

Translated by E. E. Ho and W. L. Rathje; drawings by Tsai Chih-chung; coloring by May E. Gu

關鍵字