The story of Tzu Chi. Volume 2, Compassion in action : care for the suffering

With her concept of “Even fifty cents can save a life,” Dharma Master Cheng Yen began to challenge people’s conceptions of the impossible. A group of ordinary housewives were the first to believe in and follow her. The major organization that Tzu Chi is today began with this group of housewives.

While lodging at Puming Temple, despite having nothing to her name, she was driven by one simple but resolute belief: “If I eat until I am eighty percent full, I can save the remaining twenty percent to help those in need.” With this hardworking and frugal mindset, Master Cheng Yen and her disciples overcame countless hardships to expand their charity work. She explained, “I have faith in my own selflessness and faith in the love of others. I established the Tzu Chi Merit Association not for my own sake, but ‘for Buddha’s teachings and for sentient beings.’ I believe that everyone has an abundance of love in their hearts. As long as there is someone to guide them, they can exercise their power of kindness.”

Volume 2 (1966-1977): The beginnings of Tzu Chi’s charity mission.