About Tzu Chi
Just before her monastic ordination, Master Cheng Yen received a simple message from her teacher, Master Yin Shun: “to always work for the Buddhism and for all sentient beings”. Since then, Master Cheng Yen has faithfully dedicated her life to living this vocation. This is how the world of Tzu Chi we know today came to be.
Master Cheng Yen founded Tzu Chi on May 14, 1966, in the east coast city of Hualien in Taiwan. With the belief that the Dharma can be applied in daily life, Master Cheng Yen hopes to nurture the spirit of sincerity, integrity, faith, and steadfastness, as well as the Buddhist values of love, compassion, joy, and giving to those in need. Under her compassionate guidance, Tzu Chi now has many volunteers around the world who are actively contributing to serve those in need, turning the power of compassion into action.
From the Lotus Sutra, Master Cheng Yen discovered that there is a lot of suffering in the Saha World (the
temporary world we live in). People’s suffering can be physical, mental/emotional, or a combination of
both. The Lotus Sutra also discusses the Buddha who guides relentlessly to purify the minds of living beings,
which is the source of all misery and suffering. Therefore, Master Cheng Yen believes that the only way to
eliminate suffering in the world is to guide people and direct their minds towards goodness.
In the early days of Tzu Chi, Master Cheng Yen and her disciples lived the life of a strict Buddhist nun, faithfully practicing the traditional values of self-discipline, thrift, perseverance, and hard work. Despite living in hardship, Master Cheng Yen and her disciples are determined to raise funds for their charity work. So, each nun made an extra pair of baby shoes every day, and Master Cheng Yen invited 30 housewives (her disciples) to save 50 NT cents into their bamboo piggy bank every day, to start their contribution to alleviating suffering and poverty. Today, the “Age of the Bamboo Bank” has spread throughout the world which is the beginning of Tzu Chi’s human spirit.
Starting from humble steps on Taiwan’s rural east coast, Tzu Chi’s traces of love have spread to more than 90 countries around the world, and have now become an international Social Society Organization (NGO) with Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). ). The Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation focuses its activities on the Four Missions: Charity, Health, Education, and Humanist Culture, which has expanded to include Bone Marrow Donation, International Aid, Environmental Conservation, and Community Volunteering.
Volunteer-based and funded by contributions from volunteers, donors, and the general public, Tzu Chi is committed to the advancement of humanity in a spirit of sincere, broad, and universal love. Its network of volunteers in various countries around the world works directly to help people in need, providing care and assistance with unconditional love that transcends racial, ethnic, national, linguistic and religious differences. This has brought a positive cycle of love and kindness around the world.
In the current era of climate change, with the increasing frequency of natural disasters, Master Cheng Yen believes that the causes of disasters are rooted in people’s hearts and minds. Therefore, she hopes that more people in the world can uncover and utilize the clear spring in their own hearts. Because the more sources of water, the more water will flow. With so much water flowing out it can become a clear stream that cleanses the hearts of people all over the world.
For More Information: https://www.tzuchi.or.id/eng/tentang-kami/about-tzu-chi/1
About Tzu Chi Indonesia
The seeds of Tzu Chi’s Great Love from Taiwan were planted in Indonesia in 1993. Liang Cheung, a Taiwanese Tzu Chi volunteer, came to Indonesia to accompany her husband. She then got acquinted with some wives of Taiwanese businessmen. Later, Liang Cheung managed to encourage them to participate as Tzu Chi donators. Over time, after observing and realizing the hardships of many people around them, these housewives came across an idea “why don`t we do charity work here in Indonesia?”
In 1994, they visited Hualien, Taiwan to meet Master Cheng Yen. Using this opportunity, they sought for Master`s blessing to officially establish Tzu Chi in Indonesia. Responding to the request, Master Cheng Yen said, “Those who make a living in another country, must make good use of local potentials, and contribute to the local people.” Since then, the wives of Taiwanese started to cultivate the field of Great Love in Indonesia. Until now, even though carrying the label as a Buddhist foundation, Tzu Chi comprises of donators and volunteers coming from various religions and backgrounds. It goes the same in running its activities, Tzu Chi always trancends beyond various boundaries: different ethnicity, religions, races, and classes.
After Tzu Chi missions had been carried out in Indonesia for more than three years, in September 28, 1997, Master Cheng Yen presented a statue of Buddha Avalokitesvara as a symbol of recognition of Tzu Chi in Indonesia. The date was later designated as Indonesian Tzu Chi Day. Initiated from Jakarta, the seeds of Tzu Chi have continued to grow. Until today, Tzu Chi Indonesia has managed to expand its branch/liaison offices throughout 18 cities in Indonesia.
Compassion in Action
Since 1993, Tzu Chi volunteers have started to contribute to the communities around them. In April 1994, Tzu Chi Indonesia began to visit nursing homes regularly. In July 1994, Tzu Chi Indonesia delivered disaster relief aid to the southern part of East Java hit by tsunami. Petromax lamps were distributed to the survivors there. In December 1994, when Mount Merapi in Central Java erupted, Tzu Chi Indonesia distributed daily basic needs and built houses for the eruption victims.
As time goes by, the aids delivered have been more varied, ranging from scholarships to the students of SDN Jembatan Baru in North Jakarta, assistance to the first special treatment patient, medical care to Ferry suffering from rickets, to the TBC eradication program in Tangerang. Since 2000, the development of Tzu Chi Indonesia has become more concrete through the implementation of four main missions of Tzu Chi.
The Compassion Keeps Spreading
The great flood of Jakarta in early 2002, had served as the background for a series of large-scale long-term program. In March 2002, responding to the disastrous flood, Tzu Chi launhed the Jakarta Flood Relief program. One of the program was the cleaning of Angke river and Ciliwung river. Following the program, in July 2002, Tzu Chi started the construction of the Tzu Chi Great Love Village. The Great Love village was built to alleviate the suffering of the residents of Angke river bank who lived in a slum area dan had been severely affected by the flood.
The Great Love Village in Cengkareng, West Jakarta was then inaugurated by President Megawati Soekarno Putri in August 25, 2003. Completing the village, a polyclinic, school, community hall, prayer house, and recycling center were also built.
Throughout 2003, Tzu Chi Indonesia distributed 50,000 tons of rice to the needy ones in several cities and
villages in Indonesia. Along with the rice distribution, Tzu Chi spread the value of universal love. Inspired
by this program, more people in those areas decided to join as volunteers who later led the initiatives to
establish Tzu Chi liaison office in their respective cities.
Today, there are 18 Tzu Chi Liaison/Representative Offices in Indonesia. We can find them in Tangerang,
Bandung, Surabaya, Bali, Lampung, Palembang, Padang, Medan, Tebing Tinggi, Pekanbaru, Batam, Tanjung
Balai Karimun, Tanjung Pinang, Makassar, Manado, Singkawang, and Biak.
For More Information: https://www.tzuchi.or.id/eng/tentang-kami/about-tzu-chi-indonesia/3
Tzu Chi Hospital
Tzu Chi Hospital was founded by the Buddhist Tzu Chi Medika Indonesia Foundation to be an ideal referral hospital and an excellent medical example. Furthermore, Tzu Chi Hospital’s mission is to save lives and maintain health by upholding the spirit of compassion. Therefore, Tzu Chi Hospital contributed to taking care of Covid-19 patients. For this reason, service for Covid-19 patients began on June 14, 2021, at which time the Covid-19 pandemic was heading for the peak of its second wave, while services for general patients started on October 1, 2021.
Following the government’s program, the establishment of Tzu Chi Hospital was motivated by many Indonesian people seeking treatment abroad. Existing data shows that 2 million Indonesians go abroad for treatment and generate a foreign exchange of around 97 trillion rupiah annually. In addition, there are still many patients in the low-income category who have yet to receive optimal health services, which is also the reason for the establishment of Tzu Chi Hospital. These things have encouraged Tzu Chi Hospital to commit to providing health services that prioritize professionalism, and international quality, with a warm and friendly humanist touch.
Tzu Chi Hospital will become a strategic partner for the government in carrying out health transformation and increasing the capacity of health services in the country. It is hoped that this will support improving the quality of public health and encourage the reduction of Indonesians seeking treatment abroad to minimize the potential loss of foreign exchange.
Tzu Chi Hospital is located at Jalan Pantai Indah Kapuk Boulevard, Penjaringan, North Jakarta, standing on an area of 2.6 hectares with a building area of 136,640 square meters of 23 floors with a maximum capacity of 576 beds. The structure of the hospital building is designed to withstand earthquakes up to 9 on the Richter scale, with a modern design concept that maximizes the use of natural light, optimal air circulation, greenery, high technology, and patient-oriented services.
Tzu Chi Hospital will have a complete specialist/sub-specialist service with five excellent services, including Bone Marrow Transplantation, Palliative Care, Cancer Treatment, Neurosurgery, and Maternal and Child Care.
For outpatient services, to increase comfort for patients and their families, Tzu Chi Hospital provides a one-stop service concept where patients can be served as much as possible in one location (Cluster System), starting from registration, doctor consultation, blood sampling, payment up to medication pick up.
The existence of professional medical and non-medical personnel and supported by volunteer observers who adhere to the humanist culture of Tzu Chi and adhere to the values of Sincerity, Truth, Faith, and Sincerity are expected to create health services that are on par with health services abroad, namely oriented towards convenience, patient safety, and satisfaction.
Tzu Chi International Medical Association (TIMA)
Hoping to make medical care more accessible to the sick and in need, a group of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other hospitals and clinics in Taiwan stepped forward to establish the Tzu Chi Medical Association in 1996. This association was renamed Tzu Chi International Medical Association (TIMA).
TIMA aims to provide humane health services for patients in need. TIMA has established a presence in many countries worldwide, providing opportunities for medical professionals to serve the sick in medically deficient areas or those who cannot afford medical expenses. TIMA Indonesia was established on November 10, 2002. To date, TIMA Indonesia has 1,571 members, consisting of 892 general practitioners and specialists, 194 pharmacists, 367 nurses, and electromedics.
Based on universal love, regardless of differences in religion, ethnicity, and race, TIMA organizes health services in collaboration with various institutions from different backgrounds. Apart from private hospitals, TIMA also works with government and security agencies in holding health services. Until 2022, health services have been carried out 136 times from the west end in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam to the eastern tip of Indonesia in Papua.
