Cherish Your Blessings Room

(Translated by Douglas Shaw)

Chinese version

"Cherish Your Blessings Room" originally referred to the Abode of Still Thoughts and the Tzu Chi Junior College of Nursing where, in the spirit of appreciating the "life" of material things, stations were set up to reclaim usable junk, sort out garbage, and recycle resources. Later, the term was broadened to include anywhere that Tzu Chi resource recycling was carried out.

Since much of the recycled garbage could be sold for money, it came to be called "Cherish Your Blessings Room Funds." These funds were used for Tzu Chi construction projects, and thus were described as "turning garbage into gold." However, the deeper meaning lay in reminding Tzu Chi people to value the "life" of material things and the spirit of "know, appreciate and create more blessings."