By Hsiu-Lien Chu, Sook Yin Ho | India
On June 24, 2024, after distributing school bags to students at Buddha Gyan Niketan Residential School, the Tzu Chi team, including Kean Yee Khoo, Kok Heong Lee, Sor Tho Ng, Chun How Beh, and Hui Lee Cheok, visited Niranjana Public Welfare School in Bakraur. Principal Rakesh Kumar had informed education volunteer Ah Moi Yaw about the intense heat affecting students’ learning and requested ten ceiling fans.
During their visit, the volunteers found that some classrooms had broken fans, while others had only one, which was inadequate. After assessing the situation and discussing it with the school, it was agreed that thirteen ceiling fans were needed, which the team would purchase and deliver.
Touching Moments of Parental Love
After the school went on summer break due to the heat, the volunteers returned to Niranjana Public Welfare School on July 1 to teach a lesson based on Jing Si Aphorisms.
The focus was on the aphorism, “Care for small animals; their pain is our pain too.” Using a video from Stories Told by Master Cheng Yen: The Hunter and the Monkeys, volunteers guided the students in understanding the importance of compassion for all living beings.
LEFT: With Hindi subtitles added to the video, the children were able to focus more intently on watching. RIGHT: On July 1, the humanities teacher used the video Stories Told by Master Cheng Yen: The Hunter and the Monkeys to guide students in developing compassion for all living beings. | Photos courtesy of Deepa Singh | India | 2024/07/01
The video told the story of a hunter who lacked compassion until he shot a mother monkey. As the mother fell from the tree, she clung to a branch with one hand and held her baby with the other, seemingly urging the baby to flee. The baby monkey, however, refused to leave its mother, clinging to her tightly. In the end, both fell to their deaths. This deeply affected the hunter, who buried them under a large tree and placed fresh flowers on their grave every day.
The students, watching the video with Hindi subtitles, were deeply engaged. Guided by their humanistic culture teacher, they shared their thoughts. Fifth-grader Afrin Praveen remarked that the mother monkey’s determination to hold on reflected her awareness that letting go would mean her baby’s death. She was moved by the profound bond between mother and child.
Mohit Kumar, a sixth-grader, reflected on how the once-cruel hunter learned compassion through this experience. He noted that the hunter’s daily act of placing flowers on the grave was a way of expressing gratitude for the lesson he had learned.
Abhishek Kumar Sinha, a seventh-grade teacher, expressed his gratitude to the Tzu Chi volunteers for introducing lesson plans that cultivate the students' empathy. He observed that, like today’s video, these activities help students learn proper behavior between animals and humans, and how to treat other species humanely. "We saw the story of the hunter and the monkeys. After killing the mother monkey and her baby, the hunter gave rise to compassion and learned to repent."
He added that both he and the students were eager to learn through this method and believed that these new educational activities would enhance the students' discipline, manners, and environmental awareness.
Official Handover: A Celebration Among “Family”
The volunteers brought the ceiling fans and, together with the teachers, went to the school’s rooftop. The handover ceremony, though simple, was held with great respect in the presence of ninety students from grades five to seven. Kean Yee Khoo, Deputy Executive Director of Tzu Chi’s Singapore branch, and Tzu Chi volunteer Raymond Kua from Malaysia represented Tzu Chi in handing over the thirteen ceiling fans to the school.
LEFT: Kean Yee Khoo, Deputy Executive Director of Tzu Chi’s Singapore branch (second from right), and Malaysian Tzu Chi volunteer Raymond Kua (third from right), represent Tzu Chi in handing over the thirteen ceiling fans to the school. | Photo courtesy of Jiaru Lin RIGHT: The Tzu Chi team leads the teachers and students in the sign language song “One Family,” encouraging the children to face their future with courage. | Photo courtesy of Jiaru Lin
The school’s chairman and principal accepted the fans with gratitude for Tzu Chi’s ongoing efforts to enrich the children’s education. Given the positive collaboration, the school will now offer its multimedia classroom for Tzu Chi to hold supplementary classes for the village children. This will be the second humanistic cultural enrichment program in Bodh Gaya, following the first that was set up at Ganga Bigha Colony.
LEFT: Construction team member Junhao Ma (second from left) leads local volunteers in installing ceiling fans at the Ganga Bigha Colony cultural enrichment class. RIGHT: Local volunteer Surendra Paswan climbs a ladder to install a ceiling fan on the classroom ceiling. | Photo courtesy of Jiaru Lin | India | 2024/06/30
With the installation of the fans, the air in the classrooms will circulate, providing much-needed relief to the children who attend classes in temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius. Similarly, just June 30, volunteers installed ceiling fans in the Ganga Bigha Colony’s supplementary class. Construction team member Chun How Beh, along with local volunteers Surendra Paswan and Amit Kumar, acted as electricians, laying the wiring and installing the fans to ensure a cooler learning environment for nearly thirty children.
“My happiness comes from your laughter, and if you shed tears, my heart will ache more than yours…” This sentiment, expressed through the sign language song “One Family” led by the volunteers, encapsulates the bond between Tzu Chi and the people of India. The love brought from over 3,000 kilometers (about 1864 mi) away is here to accompany these children as they grow in a better learning environment, giving them the courage and ability to face life’s challenges.
Click here to watch Stories Told by Master Cheng Yen: The Hunter and the Monkeys
