Buddhist volunteer system

Master xingyun

The mass volunteers in modern society are different from volunteers, and so are volunteers and volunteers. Volunteers are heartfelt, affectionate and righteous, and serve people with the heart of benevolent people. Although volunteers are interested in doing it, I am willing to do it, but it is not necessarily good, and it is meaningless and valuable!

Most people are willing to help only when others ask for help. In fact, people who are truly compassionate and willing to give up will take the initiative to help others when they need something. As Vimalakīrti's classic said, they often become "uninvited friends", whether to relatives and friends, society or the country. This is the best spirit of volunteers.

"Volunteer" is affectionate and righteous, full of heartfelt joy, with a willingness, full of joy, no regrets, committed to voluntary work, with the purpose of serving the people and benefiting the society, so although there is no salary, the work it is engaged in is priceless; Although I work silently, the happiness I get is endless. Volunteers have nothing to do, which makes people feel infinite respect!

Buddhist volunteers, like bodhisattvas with thousands of hands and thousands of eyes, are all working for them, and their actions have touched many people. Being a volunteer is a dedication of soul and life, a contribution of strength and time, so volunteers are bodhisattvas who know and do as one.

Historical records of Buddhist volunteers

All religions and great sages are not selfish for fame and fortune, but serve the public and are volunteers of human society. For example, after becoming a monk, the Buddha has been a volunteer in India for 50 years, preaching life and improving people's spiritual world. The Buddha said, "I used the plough of compassion and wisdom to sow the seeds of Bodhi in the blessed fields." The Buddha asked every living being to harvest in Futian and be a volunteer of all living beings.

For example, the Buddha personally washed his body and clothes for the sick monk, cleaned up the ward, served his daily life, and made his body and mind clean; Needle the old monk and blind him.

Tuobiao, a disciple of Sakyamuni, worked hard every day when he was a guest teacher. Even in the middle of the night, someone knocked at the door to sign the bill, and he was happy to greet him with lanterns. After decades, he finally felt the blessing of his fingers shining naturally. This is his achievement as a volunteer.

From the Buddhist classics, we can know that although the Buddha body has disappeared, the Buddha body lives in Lingshan, guiding all beings with the Qi Xin of the gods, and is a volunteer in the goddess world; Amitabha is a solemn paradise in the west. Everything is made up of Qibao, Ba Ding Shui, smooth roads and listed trees. He is an environmental volunteer in Pure Land World. The pharmacist Tathagata is a volunteer in the Oriental Glass World, helping the world to suffer and solve real life problems. Guanyin Bodhisattva is a volunteer in the vast sea of suffering, asking for help and giving people fearlessness. "Hell is not empty, I will never become a Buddha." I am a volunteer in purgatory. Manjusri Bodhisattva inspires the hearts of all sentient beings with wisdom, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva practices Buddhism with ten wishes, Vimo's statement in pubs, and Mrs. Shenghao's commitment to children's education are all volunteers who bring light to all sentient beings and remove darkness from the world, which is worth emulating!

Gu Deyun: "To be a Buddhist dragon elephant, you must be a living thing first." He also said: "Before you become a Buddhist, you will be popular first." Throughout the ages, Buddhist monks have done good deeds and accumulated virtues, and made great contributions to social welfare undertakings, such as building bridges and paving roads, planting trees, digging righteous wells, setting up tea kiosks, protecting students' release, helping the poor and needy, building monasteries, running orphanages, building nursing homes, running sick workshops, donating charitable fields, running voluntary studies, educating people and so on. For example:

Master Hui Yuan.

In fact, the book Shaman disrespects the King is closely related to social charity. Under the feudal system of China at that time, this theory showed that the merit of becoming a monk was equal to that of an emperor. Although he is not a prince, he can help him become a king. Speaking of enlightenment, Buddhism's assistance to all beings is aimed at all mankind, regardless of national boundaries, race or the world. It has the function of imperceptibly influencing social structure, organization and system and building a pure land on earth.

Master Tan Yan.

During the reign of Emperor Wendi of Sui Dynasty, when the people were in great drought, the master set up an eight-official pavilion meeting to grant Emperor Wendi and his ministers a fast, so that the rain fell and the drought was eliminated.

Master Fazin

When the country was miserable during the famine, I made a determined effort to run around for disaster relief and advised me to release the grain from the national treasury. In the end, it is difficult to popularize because of the limited number. In order to save more sentient beings, I dedicated my life to the hungry refugees, showing the fearless spirit of saving the world with complete compassion.

Master wise man

Free ponds have been set up in various places to spare no effort to help the poor. The biography said: "All the 60 kinds of gifts received are given back to others with grief and respect for Ertian at one time, so as to turn them into blessings and pray for the prosperity of the country and family."

Master Fachun

Taste in famine season, change vulgar dress, work as a helper in the city and transfer the money earned to the poor; Often go everywhere to clean the toilet and sweep the feces; When roads collapse, they undertake the work of building roads, and often encourage residents to help each other and level dangerous roads for the convenience of pedestrians.

Master fo tu cheng

The cruel Schleswig-Holstein and Shi Hu, influenced by the Buddhist doctrine of mercy and prohibition of killing, advised the rulers not to be tyrannical and not to harm the innocent, so that many innocent people would be saved from death. Buddha Tucheng is also good at medical skills, healing suffering and saving crises. At that time, countless people recovered from illness and came back to life.

Master Narendra.

In Wen Xuandi during the Northern Qi Dynasty, as far away as Yedu, he was engaged in translating scriptures and devoted himself to social charity, collecting leprosy patients extensively, and giving them medical treatment and recuperation.

Tieyan Zen master

During the Japanese shogunate, because of the shortage of Buddhist scriptures, Buddhism could not be popularized, and Tieyan made a vow to engrave the scriptures. After years of begging and giving alms, I can almost ask someone to carve it. Unexpectedly, disaster is imminent and the people have no livelihood. Tieyan Zen master immediately donated all the money raised by the seal to the disaster relief, and tens of thousands of people were saved from starvation. Later, he embarked on the road of alms, prepared for hardship, and finally raised funds again. But when the flood flooded, many residents were homeless and sick, so he generously donated the money to help the poor. His firm belief drove him to continue to run around, trying to raise funds, and finally completed the engraving of the Tripitaka for the third time. The Japanese all think so: "Iron Eye actually carved three Tibetan scriptures. Although the first two are invisible, they have carved compassion into the hearts of the people of the whole country. "

Master Taixu

During War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, China and Japan, in order to unblock the Yunnan-Myanmar Railway, transport disaster relief resources, and take risks, the master led a Buddhist delegation to visit Myanmar, Thailand and other countries to publicize the cultural spirit of China, and finally won the support of international friends to relieve the predicament.

Optimistic mage

During War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression's period, monks were called to form rescue teams, to go in and out of bullets, to serve the wounded soldiers and civilians, and to serve the country.

In Buddhism, the emphasis is not on the wisdom of the world, but on the mind of Bodhi Tao. Looking through the Buddhist classics, we can find that Dade, the founder of Zen, served the people with great heart to expand himself and enhance the value of life. Most of them come from asceticism, like Master Ling You of Weishan who is willing to be an ox and horse for all beings. This spirit of "wishing all beings to get rid of suffering and not seek happiness for themselves" is the best portrayal of volunteers.

In the history of Buddhism, there are also many stories of volunteers who died for their country, such as praying for rain during drought and disaster relief during suffering.

In order to make Buddhism widely known to the world, King Ashoka III of the Peacock Dynasty of India set up a medicine storehouse at the gate of the quadrangle to distribute medicines to monks and people free of charge. Every day, 1000 yuan is used to support the tower statue, 1000 yuan is used to support the monks, and 10000 yuan is used to buy medicines. Trees are planted on both sides of the road, and wells are widely dug for pedestrians to enjoy the cool and rest. The head of a country is willing to volunteer for the whole people, so that the people can be happy and the national prestige can be far-reaching.

Shoto Kutaishi, the father of Japanese Buddhism, strongly advocated the rule of the French king and taught people to believe in the Three Treasures. He built four hospitals in Osaka, including Sata Hospital, Jing Tian Hospital, Treatment Hospital, Seyakuin and so on. To provide free consultation, shelter and assistance to the poor, the lonely and the sick.

Liang Wudi is a staunch Buddhist believer, who often looks for Buddhist scriptures, arranges them and is keen on Buddhist practice. He is regarded as "the emperor and the bodhisattva". During his forty-eight years in office, it can be said that he ruled the country with Buddha, made Buddha statues of gold, silver and bronze, and built temples of love, wisdom, new forest, king of France, fairy cave, light hall, liberation and goodness. Hold a public meeting to support the letter of the four monks; He laid down his life in Tongtai Temple several times, and willingly pretended to be a "Buddha slave"-a Buddhist volunteer, serving the Three Treasures, and personally undertaking the work of sweeping the floor and walking the stage in the main hall. His passion for Buddhism was handed down as a historical story.

At present, Buddhist believers are very enthusiastic about volunteering in various temples. They know the importance of "winning the hearts of the people first, then winning the Buddha". Establishing a good relationship is the only way to communicate and be friendly between people. There is a party organized by the United Nations in Los Angeles. The organizer asked the members of the Los Angeles Association of the International Buddha Light Association to volunteer as traffic controllers. There are also many volunteers who are recommended to work in Xilai Temple through courts, schools and police stations, such as speeding and taking things away from the store without paying the bill. The service time ranges from 70 days to 20 days, and from 42 hours to 20 hours. Most volunteers clean the environment, clean the windows, take food in the kitchen, give directions and walk around the hall. They go to Xilai Temple for three or four hours every day. The grading standard of college admission not only refers to academic performance, but also pays attention to the hours of public service. Public services are used as the evaluation results of students' behavior in schools. Some of these young friends who have volunteered believe in Buddhism and stick to it. Some people come with their parents and friends.

For thousands of years, countless volunteers have been cleaning, cleaning, planting flowers and fertilizing in the Dojo, serving and dedicating silently with their labor. Some help build temples and mountains, and some help plant trees to raise money. Now, Buddhist volunteers are more United and cooperative than in the past. They know how to organize and plan, such as responding to environmental protection campaigns, participating in caring and donating blood, and joining the ranks of protecting the law. Everyone does his best, works hard, makes love with a happy heart, preaches Dharma and protects education with a sincere heart, and exerts the strength of the group.

Benefits of volunteering

Volunteers are affectionate, serving people with benevolence and righteousness is priceless, not for money, but purely for dedication. Why are so many people willing to join the ranks of volunteers? The nature of volunteer work is different from general work. You have to pay for ordinary jobs. The focus of volunteers' work is happiness and affinity, and their motives are different. I have been a monk for 60 years. There are no Sundays, no Chinese New Year and no holidays to promote Buddhism and benefit students. I have been a volunteer for 60 years, and the interest and happiness I get from my work are really incomparable with money. If a person has a period of time, he can do some willing service work-volunteer, which is of great help to his spiritual field. Volunteers are an important part of civic life. It is a moral obligation to engage in voluntary work without financial reward. It not only benefits the public in the world, but also carries forward the concept of "being born with the same body". Through individual's voluntary efforts, everyone's sympathy can be brought into play, social justice can be stimulated, good atmosphere can be promoted, and considerable contributions can be made to the government's public welfare undertakings, welfare plans, charitable assistance and social education. If everyone is a volunteer, society will naturally be peaceful. Being a volunteer is not famous, because "Buddha will know" and "cause and effect will not disappoint". In addition to serving the public, I also cultivate happiness for myself. The widely planted Fude can be passed down from generation to generation, and the peace, compassion, wisdom and morality left to the younger generation are precious assets that cannot be taken away. If you feel unwilling to do something, it will be very bitter, so the value of "willing" service is intangible. The most important thing for volunteering is to learn compassion, smile, always be kind, give people joy, and let the seeds of merit spread, which will be very popular in the future. Therefore, the so-called volunteers, seemingly people, actually benefit most from themselves. To sum up, volunteers have eight advantages:

Increase self-confidence and grow rapidly

Make friends, make good friends.

Discover talents and be brave in taking responsibility.

Pay equal attention to self-interest and altruism

Where do modern volunteers go?

What is the meaning of life? Although many people enjoy modern life, they feel empty inside. If you know how to make good use of your time and strength and try your best, not only will your mind not be lonely, but your life will also be happy. Buddhist monasteries provide many opportunities for volunteering, including culture and education, social education, knowing clients, legal affairs, administration, public relations, documents, temples, guild halls, tea delivery, transportation, water and electricity maintenance, various activities, charitable assistance, free clinic, dispute resolution, and teaching Buddhism. If you can spare a few hours a week to drive a car, talk about Buddhism or teach people skills, devote yourself to education and cultural undertakings, be enthusiastic about social charity, care for the disabled and the elderly, send suffering and warmth to the poor and sick, and maintain the ecological environment, you will surely meet fate everywhere.

I founded the International Buddha Light Society, imitating the tireless spirit of all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. In addition to serving the three treasures, it also goes deep into the society to serve the vast number of sentient beings. With the cooperation of Qi Xin and Qi Li, the chairmen and members of various associations and branches, they actively organized various activities beneficial to the people of the world and won unanimous recognition from the public. For example, the "loving mother" who escorted her children across the street near the school won the gratitude of many parents; Volunteers who help queue up for registration in hospitals have helped many elderly patients; The "Friendship Service Team" that went to remote areas for free clinics also solved the problem that many poor families could not afford medical treatment. The "reading club" set up in the world of mortals has driven many families to create a scholarly society; Other activities, such as tree planting and water saving, the Seven Commandments Campaign to purify people's hearts, recreational activities for special students, waste paper recycling and environmental protection activities, activities to help prisoners in drug rehabilitation villages in prisons, and the Buddhist examination for one million people organized by Foguangshan Cultural and Educational Foundation in 1996 1996, were carried out in full swing with the active promotion of member volunteers from all over the country, injecting a clean stream into the society with declining folk customs. The members of the International Buddha Light Society have always been committed to building a harmonious society. 1997, they launched a series of itinerant publicity activities in Taiwan Province province, such as "Compassionate Love Train", "Compassionate Love People" and "Compassionate Love", providing people with self-cultivation quotations, such as: Smile and say hello to people, and there is laughter everywhere in the world; Conceal evil and promote good, don't envy good, and understand that knowing the fruit does not deceive the heart; Filial piety to adoptive parents, diligence in managing the family and protecting everyone; Educating children not to be evil is that their goodness makes them virtuous; Speak well of others and be good at being a good person; Willing to do good, everyone is happy and kind; Compassion is not violent, happiness is not greedy; Everyone has love and the society is warm; Neighborhood harmony, pure land everywhere; Heart is more than heart, and everyone is closer; Be kind and willing to enter the society; You say yes, I say yes, and the atmosphere will be fine; You give in, I give in, all roads lead to Rome. Follow the example of fifty-three children who were good at money in those years, and use appropriate time to sow the seeds of compassion and love in the streets, lanes and roadside squares, so that everyone can purify their hearts, reorganize their morality, find their conscience and stabilize society. This spirit that everyone is a volunteer is the spirit of all buddhas and bodhisattvas. It can be seen that there is no distinction between high and low work, as long as the doer has the heart, he can be happy and comfortable; No matter how difficult and difficult things are, as long as teachers are interested, they can gather collective strength, do trivial things vividly, and do activities with complicated procedures vigorously.

How to promote volunteer work

Take people with your heart.

In Buddhism, Gui Mu became the patron saint of Buddhism because the Buddha asked the monks to support her and meet her needs. There is a saying in the army: "Be careful when leading troops." The so-called care means sincere consideration and care from the heart, putting yourself in the other person's shoes, solving problems for him, and giving him all kinds of respect and convenience, so that the good relationship between the two people can last for a long time.

A volunteer.

Volunteer bodhisattvas don't take things for granted for us. How can we repay their kindness? Treat volunteers with care, consideration, care, encouragement and praise, and be able to drive, coach and assist them to enter the work situation, which is naturally very helpful for the promotion of work. Don't command the volunteers around you easily, and don't care about friendship. If you are heartless, how can he be righteous? Don't boss around. If you want to ask volunteers for help, you have to be a "volunteer" before you can have volunteers. For example, volunteers are required to write slogans, distribute leaflets, prepare paper and pens in advance, and arrange seats; If you ask believers to water flowers and plant grass, prepare buckets and water pipes and tell the newcomers where the faucets and toolboxes are. When dining, warmly entertain them and prepare tea and snacks for them at the right time; Remember to show sympathy for their hard work, praise their achievements, and even send them all the way to the door to watch them leave. Only by serving the volunteers well first will there be a lot of feedback; Only by respecting each other can the spirit of service really come into play.

Organize volunteers

With the spread of Buddhism, more and more people are willing to volunteer. Therefore, volunteers should be planned systematically to maximize their service effectiveness.

Establish volunteer organizations: Volunteers have different characteristics and expertise, so they must adapt and plan well. If they have high skills, they should be cultural and educational volunteers. If you don't have enough cultural and educational ability, you will be a charity volunteer. For another example, some people can copy, document, type, calligraphy, cook, Chinese, drive and direct traffic. , and should give them appropriate arrangements to play the role of volunteers.

Compilation of volunteer handbook: the time and professional knowledge of volunteers come to the heart are different according to everyone's situation. Making a volunteer handbook can facilitate contact during the service period and give full play to the use of human resources.

Improve the level of volunteers: when holding activities, hold workshops before and after the activities, so that participants can not only serve Buddhism with the joy of Buddhism, but also realize their extensive learning opportunities, thus improving the level of volunteers.

Give volunteers rights: Volunteers must be given rights, respected, and allowed to use various venues such as living rooms and fasting halls, so that volunteers can work freely and not be at a loss.

In recent years, many places have come to Hong to thank the Buddha's Light Society for its good deeds, or to invite the Buddha's Light Society to co-organize public welfare activities. For things that really benefit the public, no matter how big or small, the Buddha Light Society thinks it is obligatory, so it will not refuse. As for some praise, it is shameful, because the Buddha Light Society is just a "volunteer" who tries to combine all kinds of good causes and good deeds to do his part to create a pure land on earth. After retirement, some people are often determined to engage in this kind of voluntary work focusing on serving the public, hoping to make good use of the valuable experience of life, find a second spring in life, gain inspiration and generate strength. In fact, to be a "volunteer", no matter what age level, you don't have to look forward to the future. At this moment, you can practice the volunteer spirit of Bodhisattva and enjoy yourself. If you really want to serve the public, you don't have to wait until you retire. You can expect yourself to be an "uninvited friend", "never retreat to be a bodhisattva" and "always strive to be a bodhisattva". Life is hard to win. Isn't it more meaningful to seize every moment and establish good contacts in the world?

No one in the world can do it, and no one can't, just willing or not. As a volunteer, I can deeply understand that hard work not only gains many precious friendships, but also learns wisdom and dexterity, knows how to do things and achieves the ability to take responsibility. "Diamond Sutra" said: If people give with the treasure of three thousand generations, all merits are less than four sentences. This sentence tells us that the treasure will be exhausted one day, and only the knowledge, technology, truth, magic weapon and heart will be endless. This is exactly what Buddhist volunteers do.

In addition to contributing according to their gender, professional knowledge and time, volunteers should also be able to do the following four things:

Words of love: Volunteer service is not only a kind of effort and time, but also a kind of life, confidence and praise. The most beautiful and easiest charity in the world is love words, and most people don't want to say good things about wood. However, to be a good volunteer, the first step is to speak the language of love, praise Buddhism, praise good members, praise good Dojo and praise believers. There are not many good words.

Colleague: Colleagues can put themselves in the other person's shoes, and the other person's pain is their own. "Colleagues" can empathize with superiors and subordinates, right and wrong, rich and poor, and can stimulate the enthusiasm and mind to help others and tolerate others.

Li Xing: Provide convenience for people, help each other and help others anytime and anywhere. The merit of lifting a finger can help people tide over difficulties, give people hope, give people joy and give people confidence at any time.

Give up: Giving up is giving, and giving up is getting. Giving without Buddhism cannot be called giving up, and promising return is poverty, so giving up is giving, not giving to others.

Volunteers are eight parts of Buddhism, and they are all kinds of good gods who come to protect the Dojo. Service is the foundation of happiness. You should not only volunteer yourself, but also encourage everyone to volunteer. The most important thing is that "if people want to volunteer, they must volunteer first".