Dharma Master Cheng Yen was born in a small town called Chingshui in central Taiwan in 1937.When she was twenty-three years old， she left home to become a Bucidhist nun.Dharma Master Cheng Yen has always led a simple and virtuous life. In her frugality， she made candles and bean powder to maintain a living. In 1966， she established the Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Founda-tion， and over the years this organization has concentrated its activities in the major areas of charity， medicine， education， culture， international relief， bone marrow donation， community volunteerism， and environmental protection.In recent years， Master Cheng Yen s contributions have been increasingly recognized by the global community. In 2011， she was recognrzed with the Roosevelt Institute s FDR Distinguished Public Service Award and was named to the 2011 TIME 100 list of the wortd s most in fluential people. Living a simple life with only the basic necessities， she has actively pursued her work of helping the poor and educating the rich.
