The Rise of Tzu Chi: The Making of a Global Buddhist Movement

Examines the growth of Tzu Chi to understand its success as a religious movement.

With ten million members worldwide, Tzu Chi’s influence is unmatched by most East Asian religious and non—profit organizations. The Buddhist foundation was established in Taiwan in 1966 by nun Cheng Yen and a group of laywomen. As with most religious movements, its success is often attributed to a charismatic leader, but The Rise of Tzu Chi offers a strikingly new analysis.

Chengpang Lee traces Tzu Chi’s apparently contradictory trajectory. Although authority is centralized, it is not authoritarian. Each unit has significant autonomy, resulting in an exceptional array of charitable initiatives: the world’s first crowdfunded hospital, a Taiwan—wide recycling system, Asia’s most effective bone marrow bank, a new university, and a global medical humanitarian team.

Lee demonstrates that its unique capacity to synthesize religious and lay leadership has allowed Tzu Chi to continuously integrate heterogeneous elements. The Rise of Tzu Chi shows us a dynamic Asian religious movement with diversity at the root of its success.