Venerable 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 Buddhist nun. 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 estaWished the Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation, 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 1991, Master Cheng Yen receivcd the Philippine Magsaysay Award, the Asian Nobel Prize. Living a simple life with only the basic necessities, she has actively pursued her work of helping the poor and educatine the rich.