On August 17, a powerful earthquake hit Turkey, killing and wounding nearly forty thousand people and leaving six hundred thousand people homeless. In a little more than a month, another large-scale temblor devastated central Taiwan, again taking a heavy toll in human life and property.

The end-of-the-century earthquakes have made these two countries friends in adversity. The Tzu Chi Foundation first extended a helping hand to quake-stricken Turkey. A Turkish rescue team then rushed to the aid of Taiwan immediately after a tremor measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale ravaged the island. In their mutual help, these two countries exemplify the great love that transcends all borders.

August 17 and September 21: these two dates couldn't have been more ordinary for most people in the world, but they were times of great pain for many families in Turkey and Taiwan.

I am a Taiwanese businessman living in Turkey. Within forty short days, I experienced the pain of seeing two places--one my beloved home country, the other my workplace--assailed by the same kind of misfortune. The words "fear" and "grief" could hardly describe my feelings. But at the same time, I am glad I was also a witness to selfless great love.

On August 21, the fourth day after a lethal earthquake struck Turkey, I sat in my home in Istanbul watching quake-related news on television. As the death toll rose, my heart grew heavier. Knowing that there was not much I could do, I felt sad and helpless. As the names of the countries which had dispatched rescue teams to Turkey were shown on the television screen, I began to hope that the name of my home country would appear. But much to my disappointment, there was no sign of Taiwan. How could my countrymen be so indifferent to the suffering of the Turkish people? I felt bitterly let down.

At two in the morning, still unable to calm myself down, I decided to write a letter to the editor of the United Daily News, a prestigious paper in Taiwan, to express my disappointment in my countrymen. In my article, entitled "Where Is Taiwan When Turkey Is in Distress?," I expressed my opinion that the media in Taiwan should report more on the Turkish earthquake to raise awareness of the disaster and thereby to arouse our people’s compassion for the suffering people in Turkey.

On August 24, Huang Wen-rung, director of the Taiwan Far East Trade Service Inc. in Istanbul, introduced me to several Tzu Chi people: Kai-lun, Chu-chi, Yang-shui and Ching-kuei. I discovered that they were members of a Tzu Chi inspection team which had arrived in Turkey from Kosovo on August 19, the second day after the earthquake, and had already delivered three thousand comforters and waterproof mattresses to earthquake victims.

In the following week, I accompanied my four new friends on their fact-finding tour and helped them deliver relief items to survivors. From their positive, modest and grateful attitude, I completely changed my views about Buddhists and Buddhism. Because I grew up in a Moslem Chinese family, and because I left Taiwan when I was fifteen to study Moslem teachings in the Middle East, my understanding of Buddhism was very limited. Before I met these Tzu Chi people, I thought Buddhism consisted solely of worshipping the Buddha and chanting Buddhist sutras. But apparently Master Cheng Yen expects more from her followers. She tells them, "Buddhist sutras are paths, paths are roads, and roads are for people to walk on. So we should practice what the sutras teach us, instead of just chanting them."

At the beginning of September, I learned through the Internet that Tzu Chi volunteers all around the world had started a fundraising campaign for the earthquake victims in Turkey. When I saw the pictures of Tzu Chi people in blue-and-white uniforms holding fund-raising boxes and collecting donations in the streets, I pointed them out to my Turkish friends and said, "Those are my fellow countrymen." I was so proud that I could feel a surge of passion in my heart.

On September 18, the Tzu Chi inspection team, having gone back to Taiwan for the fund-raising campaign, came back again as they had promised. They brought back blessings from Tzu Chi people all over the globe and greeting cards painted by children in Taiwan.

They also brought back news that a decision had been reached to build prefabricated houses for Turkish survivors made homeless by the earthquake. The Tzu Chi team members were then busily engaged in a series of talks with local contractors, and at the same time they began to survey several pieces of land on which the prefabricated houses could be constructed. I saw how they took everything into consideration during the negotiations. They would not allow the houses to be of poorer quality just because they were intended for quake victims. They demanded that the houses be heatproof, windproof and waterproof, as well as snowproof. In addition, the houses had to be completed as soon as possible since winter was approaching. Seeing how hard these people worked for Turkish earthquake victims whom they did not even know, I was deeply moved. It also strengthened my determination to help them as best as I could.

On the night of September 20, with the Tzu Chi people at my home, I suddenly got a phone call from my father in Taiwan. He told me in an urgent voice that a tremendous earthquake had hit Taiwan. I prayed in my heart, "Please let there be no casualties." But ten minutes later, a CNN news flash on television announced that a massive earthquake measuring more than 7.3 on the Richter scale had hit Taiwan. Looking at buildings that had collapsed and toppled in the earthquake, my heart sank.

None of us could sleep that night. As soon as morning broke, our cell phones began to ring, and they rang all day. The Tzu Chi people had already made quite a few Turkish friends during their stay in this country. Many of these new friends called us to express their concern and care. Those phone calls warmed our hearts. We were informed that the AKUT Turkey rescue team had organized, in as little as twelve hours, a rescue contingent of forty people who were already on their way to Taiwan. Suddenly, I understood how closely related "give" and "take" were. Whereas one moment ago you could still be a giver, the next moment you might find yourself in the position of a recipient.

In spite of the catastrophe in Taiwan, four more Tzu Chi volunteers flew from Taiwan to Turkey to help implement the plan of building temporary homes. There was extensive news coverage in the Turkish press focusing on the good deeds of Tzu Chi and lauding their charity work as "a true humane relief effort." I myself took it as an act of great love which transcends races, religions and national boundaries.

I went back to Taiwan on September 29 when people all over the island were busy rebuilding the hard-hit disaster areas. Local news told us how Tzu Chi volunteers rushed to the aid of survivors. They loaded relief supplies onto trucks, comforted bereaved families and built temporary houses for survivors. The legion of volunteers ranged from medical doctors and prominent businessmen to small farmers and housewives. They had their own jobs, but they considered their work in Tzu Chi to be their mission in life. Their hearts were full of compassion, and their eyes radiated confidence. They believed that the catastrophe was a test, a test that the people of Taiwan were going to pass with flying colors, a test that would prove all the more meaningful because we made it through together, hand in hand.

On October 1, I went to the mosque in Taipei. There I met several Turkish students studying in Taiwan. They told us how Tzu Chi had helped their country when it suffered from the August 17 earthquake, and how after the earthquake in Taiwan they worked as interpreters for the Turkish rescue contingent that had flown over from Turkey. Hearing what they said, I smiled, knowing well in my heart that hereafter I will never hear anyone complain, "Where is Taiwan when Turkey is in distress?"