Charity is about providing sincerely and without bias.
MALAYSIAN tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan is one of the country’s most generous philanthropists. He receives requests for financial assistance from organisations and individuals daily and a panel helps him vet these pleas.
Their task is to ensure that these applications are genuine and well-deserving. One thing that struck Tan was that the committee repeatedly recommended Tzu Chi, the Buddhist charity group.
The businessman then decided to find out more about Tzu Chi himself and it eventually included a meeting with the founder, Master Cheng Yen, a Buddhist nun.
That was eight years ago, and it has become a turning point for Tan. He has always been a practicing Buddhist, but he consequently decided to commit himself to becoming a vegetarian and an active Tzu Chi follower.
While many are aware of Tan’s philanthropic work, not many know that he has visited the homes of refugees in KL and even helped at a home for the disabled in Kuala Kubu Baru, sans fanfare, with other Tzu Chi followers.
It has also stunned Tan that Cheng Yen, who is now 86, runs a global organisation without having stepped out of her Taiwan base.
Today, Tzu Chi is an international humanitarian organisation that aspires to relieve the suffering of the needy with its presence in 63 countries and regions including the United States, Australia, Asean and various nations in Europe and even Africa.
This year, the organisation marked its 57th anniversary while Tzu Chi Malaysia will celebrate its (30th) year milestone in August.
But each year, on the second Sunday of May, Wesak Day, Mother’s Day and Tzu Chi Day are celebrated simultaneously.
Unlike other Buddhist groups, which focus more on spiritual concerns, Tzu Chi is known for its community service and outreach programmes including medical, educational and disaster relief for even non-Buddhists.
In fact, in Malaysia, a large part of its help is extended to non-Chinese as well as non-Malaysians, including refugees and stateless people.
In Indonesia, the Tzu Chi arm has even contributed generously to Islamic schools while in South America, the beneficiaries included Catholic organisations.
“Tzu Chi has helped to clean up mosque compounds in flood hit areas in Kelantan and has provided help for Muslims, and churches, too,” shared Tan.
During the floods at Taman Sri Muda, Selangor, on Dec 20, 2021, Tzu Chi deployed 3,000 volunteers each day for relief work daily until early 2022.
As of 2022, Tzu Chi Malaysia has about 1.23 donors, 20,000 volunteers and 8,000 commissioners.
Commissioners are those who have served Tzu Chi for at least two years in various responsibilities, attended training and have pledged to dedicate themselves to carrying out Tzu Chi missions with the right belief and mindfulness.
Archbishop Julian Leow Beng Kim, for example, linked up with Tzu Chi Foundation of Malaysia to deliver beds and trolleys for the Sungai Buloh Hospital at the height of the Covid-19 outbreak in 2021.
In fact, he showed up for the celebration of Tzu Chi Day last week. A section of the Tzu Chi Foundation building in Kepong, KL is adorned with pictures of leaders of other faiths with Tzu Chi representatives including the Pope.
The images also depict the work it has done in various parts of the world.
Tzu Chi Malaysia has certainly become a familiar name to many Malaysians for its consistent hard work.
It was brought to Malaysia by a Taiwanese, Ye Ci Jing, in (1988), when she was posted by her company to work in Penang. That’s when she took the opportunity to promote Tzu Chi to the local community.
At around the same time, Taiwanese couple David Liu and Echo Chien came to Melaka to set up a factory. They learned of Tzu Chi and began to promote its mission in Malaysia.
While personalities like Vincent Tan, Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh and Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai have elevated Tzu Chi Malaysia’s profile, the success of this organisation belongs to thousands of ordinary men and women who have quietly dedicated themselves to serving Malaysians, regardless of their faith and race.
As is Tzu Chi’s practice, the givers take a bow when they assist someone because they regard it as a privilege to serve.
Serving isn’t just about donations but involves hitting the dirt, literally, such as relief work in disaster areas and even bathing and cleaning up the disabled.
The lesson here is simple – our faith is irrelevant because, ultimately, it’ s about what we do during our time on Earth.
Have we done enough to help our fellow human beings, or do we just want to earn plaudits for purportedly being pious?
