COVID-19 spread out has become global and all countries have been severely impacted economically and socially, with lockdowns issued by governments in the USA, Indonesia, Nepal, and Myanmar to name but a few. The Ling Jiou Mountain Buddhist Society (LJM) has been supporting a total of 1,170 households (800 in Lashio, 370 in Naung Mon) in Myanmar since April 30 to-date. With 6 monasteries for respectively bhikkhus and bhikkhunis still on the recipient list, the net worth of donation currently reaches a total of $25-Mn Burmese Kyat.

Myanmar is the birthplace of Dharma Master Hsin Tao, Founding Abbot of LJM. Out of concerns for the negative impact of the pandemic, Master Hsin Tao has instructed Master Heng Ming of the Maha Kusala Yama at Naung Mon and Association Chair XU Chang-Tien (U Sai Tun Tin in Burmese) of the LJM Benefactors in Myanmar to implement outreach programs of relief for those in need.

Master Heng Ming pointed out that there are many in Myanmar who lead a life from hand to mouth on their daily earnings with no savings whatsoever. Lockdowns at any given time would translate into an immediate disruption of livelihood. LJM thus decided to provide relief materials such as rice, oil, salt, and vegetables to those in dire need of livelihood support. With the help of public servants in charge of district and borough administration, a reliable and comprehensive list of households in need was efficiently compiled for identification. Shortlisted families were then notified to claim relief help when the mission moved from village to village for dispatching in the two priority regions of Lashio and Naung Mon.

The name and life story of Dharma Master Hsin Tao went with the dispatching of relief help for those in dire need because the LJM help was both timely and necessary. Mothers were there with their children to claim the relief materials, even families were frequently spotted as well. A sense of relief was literally in the air on-site as people received concrete support in person and the appreciation for the LJM compassion became increasingly recognizable with the on-going mission.

The relief mission to Myanmar this time turned out to be an initiative by LJM’s Fourfold Assemblies. Within days upon mobilization, the LJM Buddhist Society’s local benefactors and Maha Kusala Yama’s teachers and staffs achieved the tedious and strenuous compilation of name lists of the recipients and their corresponding relief contents for cross-checking and matching that allow no discrepancies. But everyone involved offered more than their 150% and brought to the table their own respective professionalism and personal network for selfless contribution to the collective task in a collective effort to make the challenging task a success.

COVID-19 inflicted an enormously negative impact on the livelihood of people in Myanmar and many may still be trying to find ways to help. Dharma Master Hsin Tao quickly turned words to actions to lead by example. Government agencies in the public sector in Myanmar such as the Department of Religion in Lashio, the Regional Administration, and the city’s non-profit body KBZ, all joined to amplify the magnitude of the LJM relief campaign. The tumbleweed effect includes that posts thereabout have been uploaded onto the Facebook page of local newspaper Lashio News to broadcast the LJM deed of kindness, compassion, and charitable actions.

Venerable Master Hsin Tao has been promoting the “Loving the Earth, Loving Peace” campaign long-term, while dedicating much time and resources to the creation of the future University for Life & Peace in Myanmar, that will integrate the strengths of spirituality and technologies towards healing our Planet Earth. Over the decades the Master has been leading his disciples and followers in extending concrete help where most needed all around the world: to the remote areas in Canada and Nepal, to the disaster zones when the mega-tsunami devastated much of southeastern Asia to offer prefabricated housing units in teamwork with interfaith groups. There is also the Pu-Jen Award that makes support available to children from a struggling background yet with a fighter’s willpower and humility. In the present effort of taking support to those in need in Myanmar, LJM’s initiative caught the attention of both the public and the private sections in the country. Many joined and started actions on their own to help. A rippling effect is thus strengthening over the time to inject a touch of warmth in times of need. People around the world are rattled by the pandemic. Some in Myanmar are direct recipients of material support from the LJM relief mission. But all have been on the receiving end of the LJM key message of peace at heart.