Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy

A Prime Minister's Name Card Starts a Friendship by Sharing Love and Peace

2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) was held in Brazil in June. Shan-Ru Lin, a Tai Ji Men dizi and volunteer of Federation of World Peace and Love (FOWPAL), attended the event and shared in Turkish the ideas of love and peace with many Turkish officials. She also invited them to ring the Bell of World Peace and Love. The Turkish officials couldn’t help but ask Shan-Ru, "Why can you speak Turkish so good?" They felt very warm to see a young Asian girl speaking fluent Turkish.

Shan-Ru just graduated from Department of Turkish Language and Culture of National Chengchi University last year, and she had been to Turkey as an exchange student before. This time she went with other volunteers of FOWPAL to Rio. In addition to interviewing conference attendees, she also invited prominent figures there to ring the Bell of World Peace and Love and to make their wishes for love and peace. This was not the first time that Shan-Ru conducted interviews in a foreign land. She interviewed His Holiness Dalai Lama at the 11th International Conference of Chief Justices of the World and the Global Symposium Awakening Planetary Consciousness, held in India in 2010. During the conference, in order to pray blessings for Tibet, India, and their people as well as all creatures in the universe, the organizer of the event especially held the Ceremony of Rining the Bell of World Peace and Love, where His Holiness Dalai Lama rang the bell and made his wish for peace: "Real peace must be developed from within. As such it is important to quell the fire of hatred. That also has to come through education. "At the solemn ceremony, there were approxiamtely 3000 people from 63 countries, incluidng 116 chief justices, NGO representatives, and the teachers and students at City Montessori School.

At the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development this year, Shan-Ru felt very excited when she met the Prime Minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdo?an. " I was like a fan of his, and I almost screamed with excitement," she said. Shan-Ru had seen the photos of the prime minister in her class, and she felt thrilled when she got to meet him in person.

She immediately introduced herself to the prime minister in Turkish and also shared the key points that she had heard from his speech (Turkey’s stance is to be unselfish. Turkey will not only make itself grow and prosper, but also help other countries with their development.). "How can you speak Turkish so good?" the prime minister was curious and asked Shan-Ru. She replied that she had been studying Turkish and would start her graduate study in Turkey this September. She grasped the opportunity to invite the prime minister to ring the Bell of World Peace and Love.

Prime Minister Erdo?an couldn’t ring the bell due to his tight schedule, but he gave her his name card and said that she can contact him when she studies in Turkey. Shan-Ru was surpried that the prime minister didn’t appear aloof and was as friendly as a grandfather. This photo with the prime minister appeared on his website; it is such a precious memory for Shan-Ru!

Although the prime minister couldn’t ring the bell, Shan-Ru felt cheerful the next day when other volunteers of FOWPAL told her, "The Minister of Development of Turkey had come and rung the bell!" Actually, when Shan-Ru was chatting and taking a photo with the prime minster, Turkey’s Minister of Development Cevdet Yilmaz, who was with the prime minister, accepted other FOWPAL members’ invitation to ring the bell. Shan-Ru immediately realized that "The intention to convey your best wishes to your country and the world will spread positive energy! Everyone, regarless of his/her position or social status, can have a powerful impact on others."

During the entire conference, whenever Shan-Ru met a Turkish official, she would take that opportunity to share the idea of love and peace that Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze has devoted his life. Dr. Hong is the Zhang-men-ren of Tai Ji Men and president of FOWPAL. The Turkish officials were all surprised to see a young Asian girl speaking fluent Turkish, and they happily offered their name cards to Shan-Ru.

"Because I have studied Turkish for years, I have deep affection for Turkey. So, I grasp the opportunity to use my language skill and share the seeds of love." Shan-Ru started to practice qigong at Tai Ji Men when she was little. Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze once said, "One should not only improve oneself, but also help others improve themselves so that the whole environment can get better." Hence, with the intention to share goodness with the people of the world, Shan-Ru conducted cultural exchange with Turkish people.

During the RIO+20 conference, 25 heads of state, ministers, and NGO leaders took time out of their busy schedules to ring the Bell of World Peace and Love. Before ringing the Bell of World Peace and Love, they prayed for their countries, this conference, and all living things on earth. The clear sound of the bell cleansed people’s hearts and poured powerful positive energy into this event. The positive energy encouraged those influential leaders to lead the people of the world to work together to enhance mutual understanding, respect, and communication and to create a future of peace. The sound of the bell touched the depths of people’s hearts. Shan-Ru felt very moved when she watched the leaders of various countries ringing the bell and shed tears when heard the wish made by the president of Costa Rica Laura Chinchilla Miranda at the solemn ceremony.

President Chinchilla said that her country has been committed to peace. Their army was abolished six decades ago because they do not want any wars in the world. Moreover, in order to bring her people and their families peace, her country also developed a very important social policy. She and other officials of her nation came to Rio de Janeiro to work together for a peaceful world with other leaders around the world. Shan-Ru said,"From President Chinchilla’s wish, we can deeply feel her sincere wish for love and peace, as well as her efforts for peace in the Latin American countries."

Shan-Ru is to attend a graduate school in Turkey with a major in history this coming September. "I chose this field of cultural history because I started practicing qigong at Tai Ji Men when I was little and have planted the seeds of peace in my heart ever since. I hope to build the bridge of culture between Turkey and my country and increase mutual understanding, so that people of different races can be closer and become friends." She is practicing the idea that "The world is a big family," advocated by her Shi-fu, Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze.