Our World

The Story Behind Our World

From the Editors

In the winter of 2012, vast stretches of ice around the world began disappearing due to the effects of global warming. Without floating ice as a safe breeding ground, many mother seals had to give birth to their pups on the seashore, despite the risk of predators on land. On the coast of Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, where we live, we encountered one of these baby seals and witnessed its life hanging in the balance as its mother, its only protector from coyotes lurking and howling in the woods nearby, had to leave in search of food.

That was when George, a kind Islander, came to the seal pup’s rescue, together with the help of a few monks at the GEBIS monastery, who at the time were still new to PEI and adjusting to the Island’s cold winter themselves. For nearly a month that followed, they stood guard over the baby seal 24 hours a day, through freezing wind, brutal snowstorms, and endless nights, until eventually the pup was ready to enter the sea.

The story is one filled with love, wisdom, and courage. In the eyes of our spiritual teacher Zhen-Ru, a good deed, no matter how small or fleeting, is always something to be cherished deeply--—not to mention a marathon of kindness like this one, which put one’s body, mind, and heart all to the test as the days and hours passed with seemingly no end in sight.

Ever since Zhen-Ru was a child, she has had a tender heart for all living creatures. Whenever she saw animals in danger or people in need, she would go out of her way to help them, doing everything in her power to alleviate their troubles. For years now, she has advocated for the protection of and compassion for all living beings. Through the monastery, the community of laypeople, and her work both locally and abroad, she hopes to spread the spirit and stories of kindness for all to enjoy.

With her encouragement, her friend Pengfei Zhao, an artist, created 12 oil paintings to capture the scenes of guarding and caring for the baby seal. Together with the story itself, they comprise Bliss and Wisdom Publishing Co.’s first illustrated story book–Our World: Protecting the Baby Seal.

Delighted to see the completion of the book, Zhen-Ru composed a short preface for it titled “Compassion.” The story in fact moved her so much that she also went on to write a poem by the same title as the book, “Our World,” in her personal collection of writings, Lotus Recollections. We hope that in the future, there will be more and more books just like this one, to warm our hearts with stories from all over the world of people’s kindness toward other living beings. Above all, we pray for all living beings to have peace and happiness, and to thrive harmoniously in this beautiful world that we share—our world.