Master's Teachings
After achieving full enlightenment some 2,500 years ago, Shakyamuni Buddha, whose teachings are at the root of the Tzu Chi Path, gave his first discourse in Deer Park – now known as Saranath, a place located near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, India. The sermon is called “Setting in Motion the Wheel of Truth,” also referred […]
Master's Teachings
Sticks and stones, move over: whether they come from a stern parent, an overbearing colleague, or a critical partner, words can hurt. We may replay the moment they were said, how they were said, and how they made us feel. They may be the kind that stay with us for the rest of the day, or […]
Master's Teachings
In Buddhism, a lineage prayer is a sacred text that pays homage to a particular tradition, and is recited or sung prior to meditation and other forms of spiritual practice. The Ode to the Jing Si Dharma Lineage is the prayer used in the Tzu Chi tradition. “Jing Si” means “still thought”, and the term […]
Master's Teachings
Notes from Master Cheng Yen’s teaching on the first day of Tzu Chi’s 51st year Throughout my life, I have always had three daily prayers. First, I pray not for a healthy body, but for a clear mind. Clarity of mind is more important than a healthy body. As the years pass, our bodies undergo […]
Master's Teachings
Tzu Chi’s Dharma path is based on the Lotus Sutra as well as the Sutra of Infinite Meanings. In many respects, the Sutra of Infinite Meanings sums up the essence of the Lotus Sutra, and also explains the Buddhist path in everyday life as one where we should strive to awaken our pure Buddha nature […]
Master's Teachings
Buddhists consider the 7th lunar month to be auspicious, and an occasion to offer thanks and rejoice. However, Chinese tradition dictates that people should appease the dead and hungry ghosts by burning “joss paper” (or “spirit money”) and offering animal sacrifices at this time. These “Ghost Festival” customs probably stem from early agrarian culture, when […]