The Supreme Master Ching Hai
By Formosan Relief Team (Originally in Chinese)
Receiving Master’s loving instruction to provide daily necessities to the wandering monks and those in need in India, our Association members from Tainan Center in Formosa traveled with Her fund of US$55,000 on October 10, 2015. We arrived in Dehli, India and met with our local Association members as well as those from Singapore and Nepal.
Prior to the departure, our Formosa team had talked with our local team to determine the relief materials and distribution locations. Our local team also prepared the supplies in advance, including 2,000 bags containing blankets, capes, hats, socks, mixed nuts, and laddu (a traditional Indian sweet). The manufacturers kindly donated 600 bags of mixed nuts and sweets for the distribution.
On the morning of October 11, we divided the relief team into two groups with each taking a truck loaded with 1,000 bags of supplies. Each group headed for different areas at the base of the Himalayans, including the foot of Mt. Everest.
On the morning of October 12, our first team visited the Brijeshwar Devi Temple in Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh and distributed 25 packs of relief materials to the wandering monks and to local disadvantaged people. At noon, we distributed 350 packs at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics in McLeod Ganj of the Kangra District. We also shared copies of Master’s The Key of Immediate Enlightenment Sample Booklet and Loving the Silent Tears musical DVDs with the students of the Institute as well as the wandering monks from various countries. In the afternoon, we distributed 150 packs and other gifts at the nearby Geden Choeling Nunnery, which happened to be having a major annual event with a large gathering of nearby nuns.
The next day, our team asked the local Tibetan Settlement Office (TSO) to kindly distribute 100 packs for us, and left 300 more packs and some snacks donated by the manufacturers. The TSO directed our team to two hermit camps – Upper T.C.V Hermit Camp and the Tipa Road Hermit Camp, where we distributed 75 packs in total. Later 143 packs were distributed to nearby Jampaling Elders Home and approximately 100 packs were given to people we saw on the road including wandering monks, meditation groups in the forests, and homeless and disadvantaged people.
On October 15, our team distributed the rest of the relief packs and snacks to wandering monks, and those less fortunate or homeless along the Hamra Road and Gaushala Road in Ludhiana, Punjab. We decided that our local Association members will purchase more relief materials with the remaining fund of US$17,095, and distribute in Ludhiana and the state of Rajasthan between the end of October and mid-November, when a grand celebration will be held. This way, more wandering monks will receive God’s love and blessing.
Our other relief team headed to the Haridwar District of Uttarakhand on October 11. The next day, we went to a hospital ashram and distributed 250 packs to spiritual practitioners who stayed in the hospital to treat their illness. On the way back, our team also distributed more materials to monks and those less fortunate.
Our team learned from Shri Bhran Nivas Ashram that many spiritual practitioners do not come to the Ashram for food or supplies on a daily basis, so we asked the Ashram’s help to inform the practitioners living in isolation, and the wandering monks to come to the Ashram to pick up the relief items on October 13. A total of 730 packs were distributed by the end of that day. All the recipients smiled with gratitude upon receiving Master’s loving gifts. Our team members all felt the love and joy, and were thankful that God had given us the opportunity to learn firsthand that it is more blessed to give than to receive. May Heaven bless the devoted wandering monks, and those less fortunate in India with much peace and happiness.
Expenditures by Supreme Master Ching Hai for Helping Wandering Monks and Those Less Fortunate in India
| Description | Amount (INR) | Receipt |
|---|---|---|
| Supplies (blankets, capes, hats, socks, gloves, and shoes) and food (mixed nuts and laddu) | 2,413,476 | A |
| Other expenses (traveling, transportation, and packing etc.) | 50,400 | B |
| Daily necessities | 1,111,200 | C |
| Total | INR$3,575,076 (US$55,000) |
Throughout the relief operation, our team members paid US$4,140 for their own transportation, food and accommodations.
