Dharma Master Cheng Yen was born in 1937 in a small town in Taichung County, Taiwan. When she was twenty-three years old, she left home to become a Buddhist nun, and was instructed by her mentor, Venerable Master Yin Shun, to work “for Buddha’s teachings, for sentient beings.” In 1966, she founded a charity, which later turned into the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, to “help the poor and educate the rich”—to give material aid to the needy and inspire love and humanity in both givers and recipients.

 

In recent years, Master Cheng Yen’s contributions have been increasingly recognized by the global community. In 2011, she was recognized with the Roosevelt Institute’s FDR Distinguished Public Service Award and was named to the 2011 TIME 100 list of the world’s most influential people. In 2014, she was presented with Rotary International’s Award of Honor in recognition of her humanitarian efforts and contributions to world peace.

“Creating a life of happiness must start from the mind. If we can all work to purify our minds and strive to do good every day, this world can become a pure land filled with happiness.”

 

The Thirty-Seven Practices to Enlightenment are thirty-seven practices through which we can attain wisdom and reach the state of Nirvana. In this book, Dharma Master Cheng Yen uses the Adapted Verses of the Thirty-Seven Practices to Enlightenment as an outline to explain these essential practices, guiding practitioners onto the Bodhisattva-path.

證嚴上人於一九三七年，出生於臺灣臺中清水。上人服膺上印下順導師「為佛教、為眾生」之慈示奉持不懈。一九六六年創辦佛教克難慈濟功德會，自此展開「濟貧教富」的工作。慈濟世界在法師慈悲呵護下，數十年來，一步一步地堅實茁壯；發展為慈善、醫療、教育、人文四大志業，以及國際賑災、環境保護、社區志工、骨髓捐贈八大腳印，透過親手拔除眾生的苦痛，以善與大愛膚慰人間。

 

近年來，證嚴上人的貢獻獲得國際間一致推崇；於2011年獲美國羅斯福基金會頒贈「傑出公共服務獎」， 並被時代雜誌列為2011年全球百大最具影響力人物。2014年獲頒國際扶輪社「最高榮譽獎」，肯定證嚴上人對於人道主義精神與世界和平的貢獻。

「要創造幸福的人生，唯有從人心起，人人的心念淨化，能夠做到日日向善，這就是人間的淨土。所以人間的淨土，一定要人人共同來創造。」

 

「三十七道品」是為追求智慧，進入涅槃境界之三十七種修行方法。於《三十七道品偈頌釋義》一書中，證嚴上人透過「三十七助道品」偈頌提綱挈領，解釋此三十七助道法，引領學佛者行在菩薩道上。