Follow-Up: Tzu Chi's 60th Anniversary "Musical Storytelling" Held Today in Walnut: Sutra Adaptation, Sign Language and Drums

Tzu Chi USA's "Musical Storytelling" celebration of Tzu Chi's 60th anniversary was held today (Sunday, November 1) at the gymnasium of the Tzu Chi Education Campus in Walnut, Los Angeles County, California, running from 1:00 to 4:30 p.m. at 1920 S. Brea Canyon Cutoff Road. GSM first reported the event on October 9, when the time and venue had not yet been announced; both have since been confirmed.

According to Tzu Chi USA's official website, the program, themed "Sharing love through music, touching hearts through stories," centers on a sutra adaptation of the Sutra of Innumerable Meanings. Performing groups include the Dharma Boat performance team, Tzu Chi USA's sign language team, the STC Foundation and Tzu Chi youth group, the Tzu Chi Elementary School choir, the Walnut Shaolin Kung Fu Center, and the Tzu Chi choir, presenting teachings of compassion and wisdom through music, sign language, and drumming.

Tzu Chi USA's official account notes that the "Practice Vows Boat" segment was performed by 25 Vajra volunteers who rehearsed weekly for two months, with three generations of Tzu Chi members on stage. Longtime volunteer Suong Thongkham, who has undergone 12 rounds of chemotherapy, returned to the stage to sing with the choir, saying: "My body may be ill, but my will must not be. I have to be even stronger."

Tzu Chi was founded by Dharma Master Cheng Yen in Hualien, Taiwan, in 1966. Tzu Chi USA was established in Alhambra in 1989 as Tzu Chi's first chapter outside Taiwan; its national headquarters is now in San Dimas, and it carries out charitable, medical, educational, and disaster-relief work across the United States.

Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 慈济发源地台湾花莲静思精舍（资料图）。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons。 / The Jing Si Abode in Hualien, Taiwan, where Tzu Chi was founded in 1966 (file photo). Source: Wikimedia Commons.

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