Tzu Chi Dharma Study Group

Sister Alice Jean shares her perspective as a resident physician and clinician and how past experiences have provided the wisdom to truly be in the present moment. She also shares how she has learned to best support her patients and others she works with. "The more we clear our minds, the brighter the light." In order to be our best selves, having a clear and open mind helps us better support and bring out the light in others.

"The mind is so powerful that just one thought determines one's journey." In this short sharing, Sister Chin Yen Foo describes how she embarked on the path of service during the challenges early on in the pandemic. Ultimately, by stepping out of her comfort zone and making the most of opportunities to serve, she was able to transcend fears and collaborate with others on the Boddhisatva path.

"How do we cultivate our light and make it shine bright like a diamond so all of us can see and benefit?" Brother Jack Fan delves into the topic of Blazing Wisdom, from The Ten Grounds of Bodhisattvas. By continuously cultivating our blessings by helping others and growing our wisdom through Dharma, we can grow our radiating light into a blazing wisdom.

Since 2010, Dr. Stephen Denq, CEO of Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, has been involved in numerous international relief efforts through TIMA (Tzu Chi International Medical Association). In his sharing, he relates the power of stories in gaining wisdom through experiences. "Through each experience, we can learn and create new ways of solving problems." By repeating experiences over time, we are able to progress on the path of wisdom.

Sister Rowena (BB) shared how a personal loss during Typhoon Haiyan embarked her on her Tzu Chi volunteering journey. She disclosed how her involvements in various Tzu Chi missions, such as the Eye Center in the Philippines, helped her recognized her blessings.

Sister Diana first joined Tzu Chi as a volunteer for an English teacher in Seattle Chinatown. Before joining Tzu Chi, Sister Diana felt that she didn't have much direction, and wasn't leading a healthy life. Sister Diana shared the story of her transformation in this podcast.

In this podcast, Brother Yang describes how we can practice the ground of radiating light. It is through purifying our minds, and illuminating ourselves and others. To do that, we want to cultivate patience for the sake of Dharma, and for sentient beings. We should try to endure hardship no matter how people treat us.

Sister Siew Ching joined Tzu Chi in 2007 through recycling, and started listening to the morning Wisdom at Dawn five years later, and also joining the water repentance sutra adaptation. The wisdom she learned helped her clarify the questions and doubts she had. Listen in to the podcast as Sister Siew Ching described her personal journey of faith, vow, and aspiration through the Tzu Chi Bodhisattva path.

What is freedom from defilement? Sister Irene shared that defilement is carrying discriminating mindset towards others, and noted the affliction that she went through before she joined Tzu Chi. Through the Dharma expounded by Master Cheng Yen, Sister Irene learned to constantly reflect to make sure that her actions pose no harm to others, her words are kind and her thoughts are pure.

To be free from defilement is to achieve a state of tranquility, and one way to achieve this is to not have discrimination towards others. Brother Pick-Wei cautioned our tendency to have pre-conceived notion towards others, pointing to an example he had in San Diego when hearing a sharing from a homeless person. He learned then that there were many conditions that led to a person being homeless, and it was not just due to a lack of motivation.

What is defilement? What is undefiled joy? How do we free ourselves from defilement and attain undefiled joy? Brother Yang summarized the second chapter of the Ten Grounds of Bodhisattvas on defilement. He used various lived examples to illustrate how our body and mind are a great liability for defilement, and what the differences between defiled and undefiled joy are. He closed by sharing how we can use a daily reflection journal to train ourselves and attain undefiled joy.

"The meaning of life is not about gaining, but it's about giving. If you know how to give, you will feel happy." A Tzu Chi volunteer of 25 years, Brother William Keh shared the transformational encounters he had in Tzu Chi that taught him the spirit of joy and giving, and the meaning of life. He shared that the meaning of giving is to give up negative energy and give others positive energy. Brother Keh also shared what he learned from volunteering in international disaster reliefs, as well as observing life and death in his work in hospitals.

Brother Jason had a surgery in 2015 to remove his right kidney. He asked his doctor how to take care of his left kidney. The doctor asked him to eat less animal protein, and when Brother Jason said he was a vegetarian, the doctor smiled with great relief. Brother Jason then told the story of how he started his vegetarian journey, and the challenges and joy he experienced.

After working with a stroke patient who suffered from facial paralysis and unable to smile, Sister Vera came to the realization that despite the impermanence of life, we should all stay in the moment and continue to cultivate love and compassion.

The book used for this study group series is the ‘Ten Grounds of Bodhisattvas’. Brother Yang started the series with an explanation of the first ground, which is the ground of joy. Whether it is the giving of our strength, of material goods, or transforming others, giving always begins with a joyful and loving heart. Brother Yang closed by urging all of us to seize the moment to do good, reflecting on his experience while testing positive for COVID.

Sister Debra joined Tzu Chi in 1993, and she learned a lot from many Tzu Chi volunteers in her 31 years in Tzu Chi, participating in one capacity or another in Tzu Chi’s four missions. In her sharing, Sister Debra talked about her journey in Tzu Chi, and her vision for Tzu Chi as she is taking on the CEO role for the Tzu Chi USA this year. Through her talk, she highlighted the joy that we can celebrate from faith based innovation, and progress in women empowerment.

Why do we as a society struggle with slowing down climate change? Sister Yee Siang shared her observations from the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26). Beyond common understanding and consensus, she emphasized how Tzu Chi's action-oriented approach to environmentalism can help the world to implement effective efforts to protect our mother earth.

"If we know how to be content with what we have, then we can understand gratitude." Sister Linda discussed how Tzu Chi's four-ingredient spiritual soup prepared her to continue spreading kindness and compassion around the world.

What have we learned from the Path to Awakening throughout 2021? Brother Yang summarized how various Tzu Chi volunteers apply the dharma from the Path to Awakening into practice. Dharma discussed included: the Fourfold Mindfulness, Four Right Efforts, Four Bases of Fulfilling Power, Five Spiritual Roots and Five Powers, Seven Branches of Enlightenment, and Eightfold Noble Path (Precept, Samadhi and Wisdom).

"I am strangely comforted by the concept that we cannot know our past karma, but we can still repent and purify ourselves of whatever we might have done." Brother Johan recounted his Tzu Chi journey since 2010. He shared how experiencing and witnessing sufferings, volunteering with various Tzu Chi chapters, and learning Master Cheng Yen's dharma changed his life. His aspiration to spread the Dharma and Tzu Chi’s spirit with people around the world will continue with his new role in the Global Partnerships Affairs Department at the CEO Office at the Abode.

Sister Tung-Chia is a certified Tzu Chi commissioner since 2000, and has participated in nursing home visits and individual case visits, and volunteered at correctional institutes. One lesson Sister Tung-Chia learned after joining Tzu Chi is that the body is so fragile and impermanent. She cherished every moment and expected nothing in return.

What does it mean to see things the way they are? Brother Jimmy Yang delved into the science of seeing, and noted that the way we see others is a reflection of ourselves. He urged us to be mindful of the illusions that make up our reality.

How do we practice Right View and Right Thinking? Brother Andrew suggested that we can watch Master Cheng Yen's teaching for guidance. He illustrated how to apply these principles to change his habit of speeding and cutting lane while driving. 

"We don’t know if impermanence or tomorrow comes first. Whatever you need to do, do it right now." This is the wisdom that Brother Freeman shared in light of his mother's passing due to an accident. He learned that seeing things the way they are does not mean seeing things on the surface. We need to see further to the principles behind, like the Four Noble Truth or karma. When we do this, we don’t get emotional and become very calm.

Sister Sabrina Ho shared with us how meditation has helped her be more mindful of feelings and pain that may trigger other emotions like irritation, impatience and anger. This mindfulness helped her in her Tzu Chi work, allowing her to see herself from a third person point of view.

Sister Ai-Chu has learned how to focus since young. Guests visiting her house were amazed at her ability to focus on her work no matter how loud they were. In this podcast, Sister Ai-Chu shared with us how she focuses her mind at her work at Hewlett-Packard and when carrying out Tzu Chi’s missions.

“Rather than externalizing our problems, the Buddha pointed out that our suffering comes from our own untrained mind.” Sister Valerie shared this thought provoking idea in this podcast, and provided examples of how Tzu Chi volunteers and Dharma Masters at the Jingsi abode apply right diligence, right mindfulness and right samadhi in their everyday lives.

Master De Yuan started her spiritual cultivation in the Jingsi abode in 2006. Through her experience as a Dharma Master, she shared her insights while working in the abode kitchen, preparing for disaster relief, leading chants, and other activities at the abode.

Sister Angeline relates her decision to donate to Tzu Chi in Japan while working in the hotel industry in Japan. She follows Master Cheng Yen's advice to give back to the community that one is living in.

Words and actions can be used for good or harm. Brother Roger contemplates on the power of words and actions, and concludes that both must be engaged simultaneously, guided by the teaching from Master Cheng Yen.

How do we carry ourselves with right speech, right action and right livelihood? Brother Austin gives us some insight on how they can be applied in our everyday conduct, and close with a guidance from Master Cheng Yen that 'The value of life is in the way we benefit others'.

To Sister Michelle, volunteering has been a family tradition, and one she is constantly exposed to since young and in college. In her sharing, Sister Michelle brings us along on her journey volunteering with Tzu Chi. Sister Michelle finds that there is common thread in all the activities she participated in Tzu Chi, which is a deep and abiding love from Master Cheng Yen.

How do we turn bad affinities into good one? In her sharing, Sister Lina Lin talked about her relationship with her family member, who did not share the same belief as her when it comes to COVID-19. Listen on to find out how she chose loving-kindness rather than resentment to turn things around.

Impermanence can bring about hopelessness and a broken heart. How then do we deal with impermanence? Sister Susan Wang told the story of her encounter with a victim of the Paradise wildfire, which led to her reflection on impermanence. Through teachings in Buddhism, she gained wisdom and decided to donate her body if any accident happens to her.

There are seven branches of enlightenment: discernment, diligence, joy, peace, renunciation, samadhi and mindfulness. They may feel hard to reach, but Brother Jack Fan suggests that we have been applying these seven branches of enlightenment in our every day lives. Follow his podcast to find how he applies these seven branches in his life.

A strong team is not based on the number of people. Small team can do big things when everyone is united and work without individual ego. These are some of the wisdom that Brother Steven Voon share in this podcast. Listen on to find out more about how Fresno Tzu Chi started with just 2 commissioners, and now have a very strong medical team that just celebrated their milestone of holding 1000 events.

"Our energy goes to whatever we manifest in our lives. Our mind and body are intimately connected. Looking at the fruit of the present moment, we can reflect on what went wrong in the past, resolve it, and transform it to something better." These are some of the lessons that Sister Eunice learned from roots, as she observed that roots system can travel towards water sources just like our awareness traveling to different areas of the mind.

When confronted with the question of why it appears that Tzu Chi is short of having self-cultivation practice, Brother Hank followed the middle path and explained that self-cultivation in Tzu Chi happened in every thought, word and action. Listen on as Brother Hank explained how compassion and wisdom can be cultivated hand-in-hand.

What happened if we take away faith, diligence, mindfulness, samadhi and wisdom from our day to day life, from something as mundane as learning how to swim? Brother Marco suggests that these five roots and powers are already present in us as we go about our everyday lives. He then explained how these five roots and powers help him to uphold the precepts of non-harming towards insects.

Giving up his opportunity to continue his PhD education or his family business, Brother Sean chose the path less traveled to be a pure practitioner. And he never looked back since. What inspired him? Listen on as Brother Sean advised that our lives might not be as smooth as we wish. It is just like a stock market, there are days when we are up, and days when we are down. But as Dharma practitioner, we should have a clear goal in our lives. And Dharma is like a map that can direct us to the right path.

"Even when you are speaking from reason, you should always remain harmonious and forgiving." This Jingsi aphorism helps Sister Jasmine navigate through challenges in her vegetarian journey, when she realizes that not everyone perceives vegetarianism the same way she does. With this reminder, she is able to cherish relationships, and cherish the people around her who have been supportive.

Moving is not easy. What makes it even harder is to let go of relationships, habits and things we have learned to live with for an extended period of time. In this podcast, Brother Allen shared about his move from Hawaii to Los Angeles, and the process of letting go that he went through.

On the topic of mindfulness, Sister Emily asked: "Are you aware of how you practice (mindfulness) through your hands?". In her sharing, Sister Emily recounted her experience receiving sleeve covers from the Dharma Master at the abode, and also in giving pizza to a family during an aid distribution. Through her experiences, she learns how to express love and care through her hands.

The true volunteer spirit is offering help to others, but not asking anything in return. When we apply this spirit sincerely, we can forge a long lasting bond with and inspire kindness from the community. This is one of the wisdom that Brother Victor shared in this podcast. Through his experience joining Tzu Chi Beijing when there were only 10 commissioners, to seeing the volunteer pool grow to more than 235 commissioners, Brother Victor learned a lot from his journey to serve the community.

"I knew from that moment on, I want to change others' lives just like my grandpa did." Sister Xing Tong reflects on her initial aspiration, which began when her grandpa served as a role model for selfless giving to those in need. Now on the Tzu Chi path, Sister Xing Tong is inspired to use her education to benefit others.

Sister Lily started her Tzu Chi path through Tzu Chi Collegiate Association. She thanked her mentors for encouraging her to stay on the Tzu Chi path, even though there were stressful times. In her sharing, she illustrated her experience through the story of a monkey and an elephant. The lesson she learned is not to be too hurried and ambitious, but keep a slow and steady pace.

How do we apply the four Right Efforts in our daily life and as we walked the Tzu Chi path? Brother Steve shared his take on the Right Effort, which gave a good guidance on how to eliminate any evil that has arisen, prevent evil that has not yet arisen, give rise to goodness that has not yet arisen and nurture goodness that has arisen.

"If we walk alone, we may walk very fast. But if we walk with a group of people, we may be able to walk longer." This is one of the teaching from Dharma Master Cheng Yen that Sister Huey Shann kept close to her heart. In this podcast, sister Huey Shann shared how her affinity with Tzu Chi started, and how Tzu Chi held a special place in her heart. Tzu Chi is not only as a place for her to volunteer, but also where she finds a long lost family.

Sharing a heartwarming story of his grandmother, Brother Allen relays what it means to be equanimous. This short sharing reveals how the simple act of harboring gratitude and respect toward others can shift our mindset and foster better affinities with others.

How do you remain calm when tension escalates? Sister Annie shared a story when she lost her temper when she was a member of the Tzu Chi Collegiate Association at UC Irvine, and the lessons she learned from it.