At the Jing Si Hall in Hualien, on July 16, 2022, more than 300 members of the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association celebrate their 30th Anniversary with happiness and gratitude. (Photo by Zhizhe Lin)

At the Jing Si Hall in Hualien on July 16, 2022, the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association celebrated its 30th Anniversary with happiness and gratitude. More than 300 teachers participated in the Forum of the Teachers’ Association and shared their educational philosophy.

The next day some of the teachers visited Master Cheng Yen, founder of Tzu Chi, at the Jing Si Abode. They shared their belief that, through teaching Jing Si Aphorisms, they had changed not only the system of education but also themselves.


Being Diligent

For a period, Tzu Chi held summer and winter camps for teachers. It organized several camps each year and many attended. In its most prosperous period, more than 20,000 teachers joined the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association in Taiwan.

All the members of some families were teachers, and all joined the Association. So they would call their family “classmates” of the Teachers’ Association. Whether it was a father or mother, they were all attendees of the camp. How interesting!

Now 30 years have passed, and time has taken everything away. Fortunately, members of the Teachers’ Association have all contributed to Tzu Chi’s work and formed good affinities with many people.

The Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association was founded on July 23, 1992. Over 1,400 teachers attended the founding ceremony. (Photo provided by Tzu Chi Foundation; 1992/7/23)

Teaching Jing Si Aphorisms

In their careers, teachers will inevitably encounter rebellious students. In the Teachers’ Association, they encourage one another and share the methods they use in dealing with mischievous students. They often share with each other how they use Jing Si Aphorisms in their teaching and help students change their attitudes.

The first teacher to teach Jing Si Aphorisms was Mr. Zhenqing You from Pingtung. He was famous for his strictness. After being inspired by Master Cheng Yen, he devised puppet shows to teach Jing Si Aphorisms -- they influenced countless students as well as himself.

Ms. Huiwen Zhang shared her ideas about teaching Jing Si Aphorisms: “I can share good values with students in class, and I can plant seeds of kindness in them, because my job is to safeguard the children’s wisdom of life.”

Zhenqin You presents how to use puppet shows to teach Jing Si Aphorisms. (Photo by Yuhui Shi; 2007/2/6; Jing Si Hall, Hualien)

Excellent Teacher Award

Teachers in the Association have received the Excellent Teacher Award over 50 times. They have accumulated many touching stories, such as those of retired teacher Meijin Li from Dunhua Elementary School in Taipei City. One of her students, Guosen Xu, has become a Chinese medicine doctor and another, Qiaoling Xu, is now principal of a junior high school. Both appeared at the ceremony to thank Ms. Li for her teaching.

Master Cheng Yen said: “I am grateful to the teachers. They devote themselves to education with love in their hearts, and nurture productive members of society.”

The 30th Anniversary Ceremony of Teachers’ Association was on July 16, 2022 at Jing Si Hall, Hualien. (Image from Da Ai TV)


Project Hope

The hope of society lies in education. The aftermath of the September 21st 1999 earthquake in Taiwan showed how much Master Cheng Yen cares about the education of children. She launched Project Hope and took on the reconstruction of over 50 school buildings in the disaster-stricken areas. From drawing up designs to completing the schools, Master Cheng Yen devoted herself to every aspect of the project.

Tzu Chi was creating blessings for the world -- that was the construction process. Yet the real Project Hope began afterwards. Teachers are the eternal engineers -- every student requires the guidance of teachers. The Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association coordinated teachers from all over Taiwan to go to the schools in the disaster-stricken areas and organized activities each month for students and teachers to comfort their minds until the schools’ reconstruction was completed.

After the inauguration ceremony of Ishioka Elementary School in Taichung County, members of the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association taught the students Jing Si Aphorisms.(Photo by MingJiang Xu; 2001/9/29)


Master’s Encouragement

Master Cheng Yen encouraged the teachers on the 30th Anniversary Ceremony: “Taking solid steps is to move forward inch by inch. This is why we can say, in our short lifetime, that we are able to rebuild so many schools.”

Master Cheng Yen also praised them: “Teachers, when your direction is right, and you stay on track as a role model for others, you will be a teacher for life. Hence, all of you are teachers, and what excellent teachers you are! When I think about this, I feel happy, because I have known so many good teachers who have taught by setting examples. I know them well and have worked closely with them.”

Education is the hope of the world. Thanks to the hard work of good teachers, the world will become better and better. The members of the Tzu Chi Teachers’ Association will continue to pass on the light of wisdom and bring kind hearts together.