Taiwan Trip - 花莲慈济精舍

This is the first blog I update on my trip to Taiwan, in fact Hua Lian is the last destination of our Taiwan Island tour. Our visit to 花莲慈济精舍 is not on the original plan. When we realize that there was no itinerary on the afternoon after we landed from Kao Shyong, my wife immediately suggested that we pay a visit to 慈济. Since my wife was the member of this charity organization in Penang and being an active member, it is her wish to pay a visit to 慈济 operating center in Hua Lian especially to 慈济精舍 where their spiritual leader is located.

By the way, 慈济 charity organization is one of the few biggest charity organization in the world and their reknown for their effective and efficient of organize charity activities thru out the world.

They have many sub branches globally and Malaysia have their main center in Penang and operate across all other state.

There is once saying that if there any disaster happened in any corner of the world, the first charity organization that reach the spot will be 慈济 not the Red Cross organization, WHY? because 慈济 are given free hand to their member to act immediately on charity or disaster relief activities without going thru many red tape as compare with the Red Cross organization. They have very efficient resources mobilization mechanism that can reach any part of the world in the shortest time. I have seem how they mobilize the resource during the tsunami few year back and 慈济 restoration work for Sri Lanka tsunami victim still continuous till today.

If you want to know more about the organization, you can visit Malaysia 慈济 web site as follow : www.tzuchi.org.my/my or http://www.daai.com.my/

This is the original place where the 慈济 charity orgnaization was started and it symbolic the spiritual place for the 慈济人.

The standing person was the Master 上人, the founder of the 慈济 charity organization.

花莲慈济精舍 have a lot of Japanese style building structure, as you can view from the photo I took above, this hall is used as a meeting hall for visitor with the Master.

We are cordially invited to the tea session with the Master.

The group of volunteers from the 慈济 hospital pay their respect to the Buddha statute locate inside the building before end of their day session. Some of this volunteers come to Hua Lian to work for the 慈济 hospital for few months in a year and they all will stay in the hostel local around the 慈济精舍 building.

This is another Japanese style hut where the visitor can have some tea or water for refreshment.

This vegetable farm field is operate by the慈济精舍 Master and all the vegetable is use for own consumption. I and my family were invited to have dinner in their canteen and I can tell you the food in the canteen is very delicious even though there all vegetarion dishes.

静思堂 is the place where 慈济 exhibit their teaching and activities to the public and it is interesting to know that all 静思堂 located thru out the world have a very similar building structure to the one shown above. I recall the Penang 静思堂 look similar to this building.

The 慈济 hospital building in Hua Lian

The Volunteers working in the Hua Lian 慈济 hospital.

This have been a very interesting experience for me and my family especially my wife because she got to visit 慈济精舍 on her birthday and to a 慈济人 it was a blessing in deed.