Venerable Jue Cheng, who is the Chief Abbess of Fo Guang Shan for Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, shares her “Keluarga Malaysia” experience recently.

Together with two other Buddhist nuns, they were assisted by rural Malays after encountering a flat tire on their way back to Dong Zen Temple in Jenjarom from Cameron Highlands.

Ven Jue Cheng, who is also the Chief Abbess of Dong Zen Temple, went to Cameron Highlands on January 13 to buy some fresh flowers for the temple in conjunction with the upcoming Chinese New Year.

The car was stalled by a flat tire near Simpang Pulai on their way back from Cameron Highlands in the evening.

They drove to a Malay village nearby to seek help.

A Malay lady called her neighbors and several turned up to help replace the punctured tire while calling for a mechanic. But it was after 6pm and nearby shops had already closed.

A young Malay man volunteered to locate the spare tire in the car but discovered that the spare tire required some technicalities which he did not know.

While waiting for a mechanic to come from Ipoh, the Malay lady served the Buddhist nuns bananas and rambutans grown in the village.

The nuns were given bananas to take along before they left the village.

“The journey to Kuala Lumpur is far and you can have the bananas inside the car,” she said.

In return, Ven Jue Cheng presented a pot of flowers from Cameron Highlands to the Malay lady.

“We are one Malaysian Family. We are touched by your help.

“The assistance which has transcended race should be complimented and such help should continue in future,” said Ven Jue Cheng.