This paper was presented at the International Association of Asian Studies,
held in Houston, TX, February 21-26, 2000

 

The aim of this page is to present to the world of scholarship a new perspective of Buddhism in Vietnam vis-a-vis existing information, based on writings by Dr. Le Manh That. Dr. Le graduated from Wisconsin at Madison in 1974 with a Ph.D. on the Philosophy of Vasubandhu, but he prefers to write his viewpoints on Vietnamese Buddhism in his native language, Vietnamese. While in the US, he read and collected extensive data from different sources, mostly historical, Chinese and Buddhist records, and soon after returning to Vietnam in 1974, he carefully re-reads available texts and thence writes on the history of Buddhism in Vietnam which results in a newly perspective achievement. Because all his writings are in Vietnamese, they should be introduced to scholars of Asian studies, especially Chinese and Buddhist studies, as they provide a mine of information for future research and exploration.

Existing information paints a sketchy picture of Buddhism that was thought to have existed in Vietnam towards the end of the 3rd century C.E. with the historical presence of K'ang Seng-hui (200-280). He was born and trained in Giao chau and went to the Wu kingdom to become the first Buddhist propagator in southern China in 247 C.E. Mou-tzu's Li huo lun, the first treatise written in Giao chau has been considered a polemic essay the date of which ranges from 191 to the beginning of the 4th century by various scholars. Only four persons, K'ang Seng-hui, Mou-tzu, Kalyaruci and Mahajivika, were known to be active in Giao chau during the 2nd-3rd centuries. Then, nothing is known of Buddhism in Vietnam during the 4th-5th centuries until the discovery of a text called Dai Nam thien uyen (Ch'an garden of Dai Nam) or Thien uyen tap anh (Biographies of Prominent Masters in the Ch’an Garden) recording three lines of Ch'an in Vietnam during the 6th to 13th centuries C.E. And then again very few information is known of Buddhist activity during the 14th century to the beginning of the 20th century. Scholars or amateurish writers always complain of the paucity of resources on Vietnamese Buddhism, yet up to date, no writer is bothered to search beyond the deploring state of information about the faith that was once considred the state religion of Vietnam during the Ly and Tran dynasties (11th-14th centuries).

The following works will be summarized to illustrate his resourceful perspective on Vietnamese Buddhism.

1. Lich su Phat giao Viet nam. (History of Buddhism in Vietnam, vol. I: from the Beginning to 544 C.E.). VanHanh Univ. Press, 1978. Rev. & enlarged ed. 1999. 839 p.
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   This work is divided into 12 chapters. Ch. I, Buddhism in the Hung Vuong era, relates the transmission of the Buddha's teachings by monk Phat Quang to Chu Dong Tu and his wife Tien Dung, daughter of a Hung king (c. 3^rd cent. B.C.E.). All three of them are no longer mythical figures as originally believed.¹ Phat Quang might have been one of the emissaries sent abroad by emperor Asoka (reign. 247-232 B.C.E.) to propagate Buddhism outside India.² He is now traced to have resided at Ne Le city, where a ruined stupa is found,³ at Thach Ban mountain, on Tam Dao ranges, Phuc Yen province. He resided at Chua Tay Thien, the vicinity of which was the political and military center of the Hung kingdom⁴ and at which there preserves a Royal Record of the Hung dynasty (reign. 2000 B.C.E - 43 C.E.). That suggests a closely bilateral relationship already existed between politics and religion at that time. Thus Phat Quang (3rd cent. B.C.E.) becomes the first propagator of Buddhism in Vietnam, replacing Khuong Tang Hoi (Chin. K'ang Seng-hui, 200-280 C.E.) who by then is a very late comer.

   Phat Quang taught Buddhism to Chu Dong Tu at Quynh Vien mountain, thought to be an imaginary place⁵ but it actually exists as a beautifully famous range situated in the southside of Nam Gioi Port,⁶ at the border of Vietnam and Champa of the 15th century, in present day Ha Tinh-Nghe An provinces. From Phat Quang, Chu Dong Tu received a straw hat and a wooden staff that performed wonders to help people in need. This is the beginning of esoteric performances, laying down the foundation for proper Buddhist practice in Vietnam in later days. Ch. II deals with Buddhism after the Hai Ba Trung period. After Hai Ba Trung was defeated by Ma Yuan in 43 C.E., one of their lieutenants was Lady Bat Nan, wounded in battle, retreated into her native village and became a nun. Her temple remains to this day and is known as Tien La temple, in Dien Ha prefecture, Thai Bình province, where a written record of her biography is consecrated and preserved. Other survivors might have done the same. Together they generated a latent force to continue keeping the national spirit of independence alive that resulted in numerous patriotic revolutionary activities direct against the Chinese between 100-180 C.E. These revolutions are recorded in the Hou Han shu,⁷ but unfortunately for the Vietnamese, they are not mentioned anywhere in Vietnamese historical texts. With Dr. Le's sighting of these events, the history of Vietnam in early days should also be re-written. These revolutions prepared ground for Buddhism as a literary and religious front to fight off Confucian ideals invading from the north. The Liu tu chi ching, Tsa shih yu ching, Chiu tsa shih yu ching, etc., were circulated during this period.⁸ They proclaim the Bodhisattva ideals and the Way of Life of the Vietnamese people at that time, based on Buddhism's five-precepts and ten vows of practising goodness.⁹

   After his victory over Hai Ba Trung, Ma Yuan sent up a memorial to the Han emperor, citing that the Viet people "have their own legal system, called Viet luat (Viet laws), that has at least 10 articles not in compliance with Han laws."¹⁰ To govern with an independent set of laws, the country must also be self-sufficient in economy, self-ruling in administration and affluent in civilization and language. Thus, the Hung Vuong era, formerly thought to have vanished by the 3rd cent. B.C.E, is now proved to have lasted until 43 C.E. Furthermore, it suggests that the Chinese, though claimed that Vietnam was its southernmost province, actually violated the sovereignty of Vietnam. The existence prior to the first century B.C.E. of a Viet ca (Song of Viet)¹¹ ascertains that the Viets at that time had their own language, spoken and written, that differed greatly from the Chinese.¹² During that time, the Vietnamese people already knew how to grow flowers called Uat kim huong, a kind of tulip, to make offerings to the Buddha.¹³ These facts, among others newly discovered through re-reading Chinese records, prove that Vietnam during that period was an independent country with nationalistic tendency blended in Buddhist influence.

   Ch. III presents the process of acculturation of Buddhism into Vietnam where local people worshipped their deities, being an agriculture-based country,¹⁴ of clouds, rain, thunder and lightning who were assimilated and become Cloud-Buddha, Rain-Buddha, Thunder-Buddha and Lightning-Buddha,¹⁵ whose mother was Man Nuong (c. 175-255), a devout upasika of Kalacarya (c. 150-240), the second Buddhist monk known besides Phat Quang of the 3rd cent. B.C.E. The process of this assimilation has been recorded and retold throughout the centuries,¹⁶ These Buddhas' devotion is still widespread in North Vietnam today with annual festivals of grandiose fanfare.¹⁷ The major temple which houses the Cloud-Buddha, Chua Phap Van, is considered the first Budhist temple known in history, thought to be built by Shih Hsieh (fl. 186-226),¹⁸ and remains to this day. This acculturation process overlays another stratum of Buddhist assimilation in Vietnam that serves to consolidate the inter-relationship between the nation, its people and their faith.

   Ch. IV dedicates to Mou-tzu and his Li huo lun while ch. V reserves for Khuong Tang Hoi (Chin. K’ang Seng-hui, c.200-280), whose life and works will be summarized later in no. 2 & 3 respectively.

   Other chapters deal with the presence of a Vietnamese monk named Dao Thanh (fl. 266 C.E.) who was associated with Kalyanasiva¹⁹ in the task of translating the Fa hua san mei ching.²⁰ (Ch. VI). The presence of Yu Fa-lan ²¹ and his disciple Yu Tao-sui,²² leader of the "Doctrine of the World as Conditioned", one of the Six Schools of Chinese Buddhism in the Chin dynasty,²³ who sojourned and died in Vietnam c. 335,²⁴ must have left a great impact of Chinese Buddhist philosophy on this land in the 4th century (ch. VII). Ch. VIII highlights the "Six Letters of correspondence between monks Dao Cao (c.360-450), Phap Minh (c.370-460) and king Ly Mieu (c.380-465)",²⁵ in which Ly Mieu raises the question of uncertainty of seeing Buddha face to face by fervent practitioners. This is the first time these Six Letters are mentioned, bringing up a philosophical theme for Vietnamese Buddhism proper which must have been fashioned after the Pai Hei lun,²⁶ written by Hui-lin, who was banished to Vietnam in c. 424.²⁷ (ch. IX). Dam Hoang (fl. c.420-454), to prove that the practice of Reciting Buddha’s Name can help the adherents to see the Buddha personally, burned himself to death and was seen riding westwards in the air on a golden deer.²⁸ This is the first ritual sacrifice known in Buddhist literature; and this happened in Vietnam (ch. X). Hue Thang (c. 432-502),²⁹ and Dao Thien (457-527),³⁰ are another two newly-discovered prominent monks who were very active in southern China, but ignored by all Vietnamese records. Hue Thang was forcibly "invited" by governor Liu K'uei (457-502)³¹ to teach Buddhism at P'eng-ch'eng but he protested his capture by feigning ignorance; Dao Thien went to Chin-ling by his own accord to attend Prince Wen-hsuan's Buddhist Congress (held in 487) where he taught well-known sutras to "renowned men across the four seas, heroes among the masses and the best of monks" all through the night and presided over an ordination ceremony, using the Shih-sung lu.³² (ch. XI). Chih-p'in, a National Monk and master of herbal medicine, was banished to Vietnam in 465 and left behind a prescription for curing the cold that is still in use today (ch. XII).³³

   Chapters VI-XII, hence, fill in the gap of 3 centuries of silence about Buddhist activity in Vietnam. This period witnesses the emergence of proper Buddhism with philosophical themes such as discussed in the Six Letters or Amitabha practice through the death of Dam Hoang, the teachings of Saddharmapundarikasutra via Hue Thang's life or the Disciplinary school through Dao Thien's activity, and so on. All these personalities are not mentioned in Vietnamese records to have existed in Vietnam during this period.³⁴

   Volume I of History of Buddhism in Vietnam covers the first period of Vietnamese Buddhism, the period of Acculturation and Assimilation, from the beginning to 544 C.E. during which time thaumaturgic-tantric Buddhism was manifested and highlighted by a philosophical theme expressed in the Six Letters. The next period is that of Consolidation, from 6th to 13th centuries, when Ch'an pratice was predominant with the arrival of Vinitaruci,³⁵ followed by others as seen in the Thien Uyen Tap Anh,³⁶ while monks were engaged in defending the country and offering rulers with political and military advices;³⁷ thence began another new aspect of Vietnamese Buddhism. The third period, that of Characterisation, from the 13th century to present day, conveyed through the famous saying of king Tran Nhan Ton (1258-1308): "cu tran lac dao", living in the world yet enjoy the Tao; in another word, practising the sacred Way without leaving the profane world. This is the attitude of non-attachment of a Buddhist Master, a determined king who led the army to defeat the Chinese invasion and then went forth to found the fourth Ch'an line, the Truc Lam Yen Tu (Bamboo-Grove) sect, shaping the characteristics of Vietnamese Buddhism that lasts until present day.

   Volume II of Buddhism in Vietnam, from 6th to 10th centuries, is in print and promises more discoveries with verified facts and data to justify a new perspective on this subject field during this period.

3. Nghien cuu ve Mau-Tu (Research on Mou-tzu [and his Li huo lun]). VanHanh University Press, 1982. 568p.

Mou-tzu’s Li huo lun ³⁸ is considered the first philosophical treatise ever written in Chinese Buddhist literature. John P. Keenan’s How Master Mou Removes Our Doubts, is perhaps the only serious study dedicated to Mou-tzu Li huo lun to date.³⁹ Keenan certainly sees the core of this problematic treatise : "...the rhetoric of the text does not occupy itself with issues of the truth of specifically Buddhist doctrines", so, "the unqualified assertion that the Li-huo lun is a doctrinal apologetic for Buddhism needs reexamination..." because "the text itself does not attempt to present the normative teachings of Buddhism".⁴⁰ However, Keenan fails in the task of re-examining this text simply because he, like his predecessors, is also on the side of the Chinese when reading Li huo lun; hence, he offers no new information nor conjecture about the purpose of this text. By contrast, Dr. Le put this problematic treatise under the Vietnamese telescopic lenses to carefully re-examine the date of Mau-tu’s life, and the meaning of each of the 37 articles of Li huo lun, citing profusely reliable sources, discovering new facts never considered before, then boldly declares, with convincing proofs, that:

1. Ly hoac luan is not an apologetic by Mou-tzu (Viet. Mau tu), a Chinese Confucian converted to Buddhism, as always suggested. Since Buddhism existed in Vietnam long before his time, Mau Tu did not have to defend his newly found faith. His Ly hoac luan was written as a declaration for the defense of Vietnamese national identity against the assail of Chinese civilization trying to engulf the ways of life of the Viets. It stood as the vanguard for Vietnamese civilization, freedom and independence from the invading force of the north. For example, on Chinese claim of supremacy , Mau Tu boldly states in article 14 that "Han land is not necessarily the center of the universe,". i.e. why should Vietnamese people have to center around that "middle kingdom", chung kuo? Article 7: "The Book (Analects) is not necessarily words of Confucius", i.e. why should we study, or forced to take, it as the only book on earth?

• Mau tu was born circa 160-164, wrote Ly Hoac luan c. 198 and died c. 220-230. This confirms earlier claim by Paul Pelliot,⁴¹ which is supported reluctantly by Fukui Kojun,⁴² and refutes other authorities on early Han Buddhism who claim that Mou-tzu was born between 191-c. 400.

• Mau tu was one of the three masters of Khuong Tang Hoi (Chin. K’ang Seng-hui, born c.200-280) whom Khuong Tang Hoi mentions with respect and love in some of his writings.

• Mau tu was also considered the author of Luc Do Tap Kinh (Chin. Liu tu chi ching, Collection of sutras on the Six Paramitas) ⁴³ that was translated by Khuong Tang Hoi, from Vietnamese into Chinese, not from Sanskrit as believed.

3. Khuong Tang Hoi toan tap. ⁴⁴ (Collection of K'ang Seng-hui's writings). Vol. I. VanHanh University Press, 1975. 615p.

1. Dr. Le Manh That claims, after careful examination of the text’s content and style, that the Luc do tap kinh (Chin. Liu tu chi ching) is originally a Vietnamese work, and translated into Chinese, not from Sanskrit, but from old-style Vietnamese, by Khuong Tang Hoi (Chin. K'ang Seng-hui). This claim though bold explains satisfactorily the reason why in the Chinese version, Khuong Tang Hoi’s style is "very refine and full of literary expressions" as determined by T’ang Yung-t’ung.⁴⁶ However, T’ang’s suggestion that it might be written by Khuong Tang Hoi himself is refuted; rather, it exists before Hoi's time and could have been composed or collected by one of his three masters, who is likely Mau tu (Chin. Mou-tzu).

1. The Luc do tap kinh is translated from an original text written in old-style Vietnamese because it comprises a number of languistic structures not in accordance with Chinese grammatical style, thus provides a framework for re-constructing the language of Vietnam that was in use more than 2,000 years ago. This is truly an invaluable contribution to Vietnamese civilization and for linguists who are interested in the origin of Vietnamese literature and linguistics.
2. Not only the Luc do tap kinh but the Chiu tsa shih yu ching (Viet. Cuu tap thi du kinh), is also written in old-style Vietnamese originally.⁵⁰ This sutra preserves many stories that are now become folklore of the populace. The content of both sutras is another concrete evidence that Vietnam enjoyed a form of culture and civilization that was different from the Chinese.

4. Luc Do Tap Kinh va Lich Su Khoi Nguyen Dan Toc Ta. (Collection of Stories of the Six Paramitas and the Origin of the Viet People). VanHanh University Press, 1982. 457p.
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   The myth of One Hundred Egg, born out of Au Co and Lac Long Quan, that were hatched into One Hundred Children to become the Vietnamese’s supposedly original ancestors was first found in the Linh Nam Trich Quai ⁵² and later accepted by historians to be included in historical records.⁵³ In this work, that myth is rejected because the story of children borne out of eggs is not uniquely Vietnamese. We can find traces of this fable in the famous epic Mahabharata,⁵⁴ in the Avadanasataka,⁵⁵ and in Chinese sources.⁵⁶ It is also discovered that the events of Trieu Da defeating An Duong Vuong in the 2nd century B.C.E. was simply a fiction invented from the story of Yuddhisthira defeating Duryodhana in the Mahabharata.⁵⁷ The Luc do tap kinh, story no. 23. also mentions a similar account. Again, Vietnamese historians recorded this narrative to determine that the Hung kingdom perished by the 3rd century B.C.E. But with the presence of the Viet Laws and these fables, the Hung era is now asserted that it lasted until Hai Ba Trung was defeated in 43 C.E., and not overthrown by An Duong Vuong in 2nd-3rd centuries B.C.E. as history has it.

   Luc Do Tap Kinh has been translated into Japanese and French long ago.⁵⁸ Ironically, there is no extensive study of this text in Vietnamese. (Neither is the Chìu tsa shih yu ching.⁵⁹). Dr. Le’s work is an ambitious effort to pioneer for further research on this text -Luc Do Tap Kinh- in the hope that it will lead to a movement of "render unto Ceasar", or "returning to the source" , the Vietnamese source that holds a heroic and patriotic period of Vietnam at the time Luc Do Tap Kinh was circulating, in c. 138 C.E.

5. Nghien cuu ve Thien Uyen Tap Anh (Research on the Biographies of Prominent Masters in the Vietnamese Ch’an Garden) with Introduction, Translations and Commentaries). Van Hanh University Press, 1976. New enlarged & revised ed. 1999. 840p.

Thien Uyen Tap Anh is a text written in Chinese that plays an important role in Vietnamese classics, history, national spirit of liberation and independence, literature, civilization and Buddhism during 6th-13th centuries. It was discovered in 1927 and mentioned in French in 1932,⁶⁰ translated in parts into English,⁶¹ based on the Nguyen version of 1858. Dr. Le has collected two rare woodblock print copies of the Le era, the 1715 and the 1750 editions of the same text, based on which a comparative study is carried out complete with analytical commentaries and translation and is entitled Research on Thien Uyen Tap Anh. This work is divided into 7 parts. Part I deals with textual criticism of the Tran (c.1337), the Ho (c. 1407), the Le ( 1715 & 1750) and the Nguyen (1858) editions, establishing its uniformed title, authorship, date and sources of compilation, its historiographical method, including a table of variant words or phrases between these editions. Part II is translation of the text from Chinese into Vietnamese, with exhaustive annotations and commentaries that occupy part III. Part IV is excerpts from various classical texts that have biographies related to Thien Uyen Tap Anh. Parts V & VI are comprehensive bibliography and index. Part VII includes the text of the 1715 edition.

Besides re-reading concerned texts as described, Dr. Le Manh That, on many hazardous field trips walked through Vietnam, during 1974-1975, visited remote and unlikely places throughtout the countryside and discovered many rare manuscripts and wood-blocks, by ancient Vietnamese Buddhist authors, lying incognito on dusty shelves of desolete temples or private houses. All in all, he collected more than 300 texts that have never been known to exist before. This discovery helps confirm with concrete proof popular belief that Vietnamese civilization - history, language, literature and Buddhism- existed prior to and independently from Chinese civilization. This should change all that has been written about the history of Vietnam in general and of Vietnamese Buddhism in particular. These texts are still preserved intact in his study, awaiting attention and interest from scholars worldwide.

During 1974-1984, Dr. Le Manh That identified and classified some of these texts and the result is the following works:

6. Chan Nguyen thien su toan tap (Complete Works Of Ch'an Master Chan Nguyen, 1646-1726), 4 volumes. VanHanh University Press, 1978-1983.

Many anonymous Buddhist texts are now classified as written by Chan Nguyen, a major writer of Vietnamese Buddhist literature in the 17th century. Among many of these texts, the Kien tanh thanh Phat luc (Essay on Seeing One's Own Nature and Become Buddha) is a major treatise on Buddhist philosophy. See Appendix @ 14.

7. Toan Nhat thien su toan tap (Complete Works of Ch’an Master Toan Nhat, c.1755-1832), 2 vol. VanHanh University Press, 1978. Toan Nhat writes stories on Buddhist ethics and national themes in poetic forms that have become folk literature. Appendix @ 22.
8. Minh Chau Huong Hai thien su tuyen tap (Selected Works of Ch'an Master Minh Chau Huong Hai, 1628-1708). VanHanh University Press, 1982. New revised and enlarged edition, June 2000. Appendix @12.

These works, including introductions, translations, annotations and analytical commentaries on these Ch'an Masters' classical texts, should be known to and shared by scholars worldwide. Their existence proves that there is no paucity of Buddhist activity or literature during the 15th-19th centuries as always claimed.

Many more Buddhist personalities are discovered, especially those living in the 15th-18th centuries during which time Confucianism is thought to have been favoured over Buddhism by the ruling powers. The lives and works of such sofar unknown ch'an masters like Vien Thai (1400-1460. App. @ 6), Phap Tính (1470-1550, App. @ 9), etc. will prove otherwise. Exegesises of texts by some of these meditation masters, being identified and classified, are already in typescript or drafted forms, awaiting publication. They are listed in the Appendix for scholars' information and interest. Many others, estimated 200, are kept intact in Dr. Le's study pending future studies and researches.

9. Lich su Am nhac Viet nam; Am nhac va Le nhac Phat giao Viet nam (History of Vietnamese music; Buddhist music and Buddhist liturgical music, from the beginning to 5th century C.E.). In print. Available April 2000.

In this work that is surprisingly his, Dr. Le proves that music, especially liturgical music, is known in Vietnam long before the 10th century C.E., the period claimed as music first known in Vietnam.⁶² His proofs: a. The Viet ca (Song of Viet) recorded in Thuyet uyen 11, p. 6a11-7a4 by Liu Hsiang (77-06 B.C.E.) as mentioned earlier; b. the Bronze Drum of Ngoc Lu: the engraved pictures on the drum suggest that it is a nautical festival in honor of the Sun-God with an archer trying to shoot an arrow up onto the sky and designs of 12 musicians playing 11 kinds of musical instruments;⁶³ c. in Mou-tzu Li huo lun, articles 1, 4, 7, 13, 15, 19, 20, 22, 24, 26, 33 & 34 mention musical notes, scales, instruments or well-known musicians of ancient times. This affirms that Mau Tu must have knowledge of music, at least in theory, mastering the art from musical texts that were likely available in Vietnam at that time; d. Khuong Tang Hoi introduces Fan-bai, a kind of Brahmin chant to Buddhist liturgical ceremonies.⁶⁴ Likewise, Dao Cao and Phap Minh, in the Six Letters of Correspondence with king Ly Mieu, mention that at their time, four different ways of Buddhist chants and liturgical chantings (ca, tan, tung, vinh) were known. e. The life of Shih-Hsieh (fl. 186-226 C.E.) with his entourage of Hu jen playing the flutes, beating drums and bells;⁶⁵ and so on. These references confirm that Music in both theory and practice did exist at least a millinneum of years before the 10th century, the time it is thought first known in Vietnam.

Above are outlines of Dr.’s Le works which once for all, convincingly assert that there is no dearth nor paucity of informative resources on Buddhism in Vietnam. Any future attempts to write on the history of Vietnamese Buddhism in general or on a particularly related subject should first consult and refer to Dr. Le's genuine perception in order to benefit from his bona fide efforts. His works offer a wealth of information and resources that should be brought to western scholars' attention. Each of these works should be translated into English by interested scholars so that Dr. Le's newly discovery will not be left in oblivion. In the last 3 decades, researches in Chinese and Buddhist (both Chinese and Indian) studies have almost exhausted all resources available on philosophical or textual themes; no single issue or minute topic is left untouched. It is about time that scholars start to look beyond these subject fields to find that Vietnamese Buddhist texts, written in Chinese or Chu Nom, are offering a wealth of information that will greatly reward those who take an interest in them. Dr. Le Manh That's new perspective is a challenge to the conservative writers in the past and an open-armed welcome to prospective researchers in the future who want to invest their learning in that unmined field of hermeneutics and exegetical studies of Vietnamese Buddhist classics.

Actually, we should instigate a few projects relating to Dr. Le's works in the following ways: a/ Translating them into English in order to share this little known wealth of information and resources with scholars and historians worldwide; b/ Editing, commenting, analyzing and translating the remaining texts, -preserved in Dr. Le's study- , into English, in view of civilization, history, and ideology of Vietnam and of Vietnamese Buddhism. Dr. Le Manh That would only be too glad to welcome interested scholars to his study and offer advice on the studies of these texts; c/ Providing facilities to help him continue his tireless task of collecting and preserving rare Buddhist manuscripts & wood-blocks that are awaiting to be discovered - as he did discover- in private collections and ancient Buddhist temples throughout Vietnam; d/ Preserving these manuscripts and wood-blocks by transcribing them onto high-tech media (i.e. CD, etc.) for future use.

These are a few suggestions that are presented hereby to scholars worldwide considering Dr. Le Manh That's visionary perspective on Vietnamese Buddhism. This is a new field of research that should not be ignored by those who are interesed in Chinese and Buddhist studies in general and in Vietnamese studies in particular. Dr. Le Manh That can be contacted at: VanHanh Research Institute of Buddhist Studies, 716 Nguyen Kiem St., Phu Nhuan - Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Email: <hphac@tlnet.com.vn> or Dr. Budden Gyoshi <tinhoc2000@yahoo.com>

1.  Tran The Phap( 15th cent.). "Truyen Nhat Da trach" (Lake of One-Night Encounter) in Linh Nam Trich Quai (Strange and Supernatural Stories from Linh Nam). ed. Tran Khanh Hao. (Publications de l'Ecole francaise d'Extreme-Orient), Taiwan, Hoc sanh thu cuc, 1986 (Viet nam Han van tieu thuyet tung san , vol.I); Ly Te Xuyen (fl. 1314-1341). "Bao Cuc truyen" in Viet Dien U Linh Tap (Anthology of Mythical Stories of the Viets). Hanoi, UBVHXH, 1987; Vu Ngoc Khanh. Tu Bat Tu (The Four Immortals). Hanoi, UBVHXH, 1989.
2. According to A.L. Basham, Emperor Asoka after securing his political power within India, sent emissaries abroad to proclaim his authority in India, established diplomatic relations, developing trade etc. Buddhist monks may have accompanied such emissaries.
3. Li Tao-yuan ( ? -529). Shui ching chu, chuan 37, p. 6b4-6 states that Chua Thay Thien, popularly known as Chua Dia Nguc, or Temple of Hades, Naraka Temple, was erected by king Asoka.
4. Madrolle, Claude. "Le Tonkin Ancien: Leilou et les disctricts chinois de l'epoque des Han: a population Yue-chang". BEFEO XXXVII (1937): 301-2; Holmgren, Jennifer. Chinese colonisation of Northern Vietnam. Canberra: A. N. U. press, 1980: 43
5. Vien Han Nom (Institue of Chinese and Nom Studies) . Tho van Ly Tran (Literature of Ly-Tran periods). Hanoi: UBKHXH, vol. 3, p. 657
6. Le Qui Don, Toan Viet thi luc (Anthology of Poetry of Vietnam) ; Bui Huy Bich, Hoang Viet thi tuyen (Selections of poems of Royal Viet). King Le Thanh Ton composed 13 poems entitled Minh löông caåm tuù (Natural beauties of the peaceful nation) praising the beautiful scenery of the 13 coastal ports where he passed by on the way to conquer Champa in 1470.
7. For example, in 101 C.E., described in HHS 4 p.11b11-12; in 138, HHS 6 p. 9b6-13; in 146, HHS 6 p. 14a1-2; in 158, HHS 7 p.8a3-5 & HHS 116 p. 7a10-b12; in 178, HHS 101 p. 7b1-9
8. Wang Shao. She li kan ying chi, KHMC XVIII, 213a and the conversation between Sui Wen-ti and T'an T'ien, KSC, 571b-573c
9. Liu tu chi ching, Taisho 152. Stories no. 9, 15, 23, 40, 70, 82, 91; Chiu tsa p'i yu ching, Taisho 206. Story no. 1.
10. Hou Han shu 54, p. 8b6-8
11. Liu Hsiang (77-06 B.C.E.). Shuo yuan 11, p. 6a11-7a4; Pan Ku (32-92 C.E.). Ch'ien Han shu 10, p. 5a8-9 & 98, p. 8b4-6; Ch'ien Han shu 98, p. 8b4-6.
12. This old style Vietnamese is different from Chu Nom (Sino-Vietnamese). Cf. Janse, Olaf. Archhaeological Research in Indochina 1. Cambridge, Harvard UP, 1956, photo 146, 1 : "... In Bac Ninh, an archaeoligical object was found with inscription in Chinese style that can not be decipher..."; Giles, Lionel. Descriptive Catalogue of the Chinese manuscripts from Tunhuang in the British Museum. London, 1957, p. 567b: S.5731: "... a list of characters, many rather uncommon..."
13. Li Shih-chen (1518-1593). Pen ch'ao chiang mu 14, p. 69b4-5 under entry "Yu chin hsiang" quoting Nan chou yi wu chih by Yang Fu (fl. c. 100 C.E.)
14. Li Tao-yuan. Shui ching chu 37; Maspeùro, Henri. "Le Royaume de Van Lang". BEFO XVIII (1918).
15. Tran The Phap (15th cent.). "Chuyen Man nuong " (Lady Man's Story) in Linh Nam trich quai; Ly Tu Tan (1378-1460). Phap Van co tu bi ky (Stelea of Old Temple Phap Van); Le Qui Don. Kien van tieu luc 9, p. 14b515b9; Dai Viet Su Ky Ban Ky Toan Thu 3, p. 6b8; Kham Dinh Viet Su Thong Giam Cuong Muc 3, p. 31b6; Dai Viet Su Luoc 2, p. 15a7
16. Coå chaâu Phaùp Vaân Phaät baûn haønh ngöõ luïc (Recorded biography of the Cloud-Buddha at Coå chaâu) in Chinese, supposed to be compiled by Kim Sôn thieàn sö (1300-1370 ); Vieân Thaùi Thieàn sö ( 1400-1460 ). Coå Chaâu Phaùp Vaân Phaät Baûn Haïnh Ngöõ Luïc (tr. from Chinese into Vietnamese); Phaùp Tính thieàn sö (1470-1550 ). Coå chaâu Phaùp Vaân Phaät baûn haïnh (in verses in Sino-Vietnamese).
17. Coå chaâu Phaùp Vaân Phaät baûn haønh ngöõ luïc, op.cit.; Le Qui Don. Dai Viet Thong Su; Phan Huy Chu. Lich Trieu Hien Chuong Loai Chi; Honey, P.J. Modern Vietnamese Historiography, p. 95
18. Thought to be built by Shih Hsieh (137-226). Co chau Phap Van Phat ban hanh ngu luc. op.cit.
19. Earlier Sinologists called him Kalyaruci, but Dr. Leâ Maïnh Thaùt reconstructs his name as Kalyanasiva.; Zurcher, Erik. The Buddhist Conquest of China. Leiden: Brill, 1959 : p 71 & note 258 doubts that Chiang liang lou chih and Chih chiang liang chieh were the same person; Pelliot, P. "Court reùsumeù de la geùnealogie mythique de la jeunesse et des 12 anneùes de preùdication du Boudha Cakyamuni", T'oung Pao (1923) : 100, concludes that these names were but variations in transliteration of the same personality.
20. FL V, 56c : Fa hua san mei ching was translated by Chih chiang liang chiehh, which means Cheng Wu-wei, in Giao chau, consisting og 6 chuan. Tao hsin (Viet. Dao Thanh) assisted him in the task of writing down what he orally translated. CSTCC says that this translation is now lost but FL VI, 6a says that the suøtra was translated by Chiang liang lou chih during the reign T'ai shih 2nd year (266 C.E.) in Kuang chou. It was mentioned in the Catalogue compiled by Chu Tao-tzu of the Wei dynasty and in Shui-hsing; Nanjio, App. II fol. 390 & 393 says that he translated the suøtra in 255-56 C.E.; Nei tien lu II, 227a; T'oung p'ao (1918): 257; Zurcher, op.cit.: 71 & note 257-58
21. Kao seng chuan IV, 349c-350a
22. Kao seng chuan IV, 350b
23. T'ang Yung-tung. op.cit.: 230-273; W. Liebenthal. The Book of Chao, Appendix I, pp. 133-150; Fung Yu-lan. Chung kuo che-hsueh shih, v. 2, pp. 243-258; E. Zurcher. op. cit.: 140-141
24. E. Zurcher. The Buddhist Conquest of China, p. 141 & vol. 2, p. 335, note 135.
25. Hung ming chi II, 70c-72a. This is the first time, since Mau-tu Ly hoac luan, that a philosophical debate is raised, concerning the practice of Buddhism.
26. Hung ming chi 3, 17a-21c; T'ang Yung-tung. op. cit., 418-423; W. Liebenthal translates the Pai Hei lun into English in Monumenta Nipponica 8 (1952): 365-373.
27. Kao Seng chuan 7, 369a. Hui-lin also edited the I chieh ching ying i; Kuang Hung ming chi 18, 227a & 23, 265b-c.
28. Kao Seng Chuan 12: 405c.
29. Hsu Kao Seng Chuan 16: 550c
30. Hsu Kao Seng Chuan 21: 607b
31. Nan Ch'i shu 48: 5a-6a
32. Taisho 1435. Tr. by Kumarajiva (died 413 C.E.) in c. 402-412 and used by Hui-kuang as the basic text for the Disciplinary School.
33. Kao seng chuan VII, 373c11-15
34. Tran van Giap. "Le Boudhisme en Annam deøs origines aux 13eø sieøcle" BEFEO XXXII (1932): 191-268, was silent about Buddhist activity during 4th-6th century.
35. Li tai san pao chi XII: 102c, Taisho 2034; Yen Tsung, Chung ching mu lu chuan 1, p. 152a25-26 & chuan 2, p. 158b19-20, Taisho 2147; Chih Sheng (fl. 730), Khai yuan shih chiao lu , Taishoâ 2154.
36. Tran van Giap. op.cit. It is due to the discovery of the Thien Uyen Tap Anh in 1927 that Tran van Giap writes his lengthy article. This text records biographies of 3 ch'an sects in Vietnam, namely Vinitaruci, arrived Vietnam in c. 582 C.E., Vo Ngon Thong who began his llineage in 820 and Thao Duong started his sect in 1069. Cf. Budden Gyoshi. Buddhism in Vietnam: the Southern Records of the Transmission of the Lamp. M. Phil. thesis, Murdoch University, Western Australia, 1977 in which Thien Uyen Tap Anh, Nguyen edition is analysed and the major part of it is translated with annotated commentaries.
37. During this second period, king Ly Thanh Ton (reign. 1054-1073), first successor of the Thao Duong line, issued a decree in 1072 to establish Van Mieu, the Temple of Literature, in Hanoi that remains a tourist attraction nowadays. This is seen as a great change in the religious and intellectual life of Buddhism, though no significant historical event is recorded.
38. Hung ming chi I, 1a-7a
39. Keenan, John P. How Master Mou Removes Our Doubts; a Reader-Response Study and Translation of the Mou-tzu Li-huo lun. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994
40. Keenan, op.cit. p. 2
41. Pelliot, Paul. "Meou-tseu ou les doutes leveùs", T'oung-pao XIX (1918-1919); 255-433
42. Fukui Kojun. Dokyo no kisoteki kenkyu. Tokyo, 1952: 332-436
43. Sat-paramita-samgraha sutra or Samnipata-sutra: A Collection of Stories Classified According to the Order of the Six Perfections, as mentioned in Indian Budhism, by Hajime Nakamura, p. 139), Taisho 152. tr. into Chinese by K'ang Seng-hui as Liu tu chi ching.
44. Kao Seng chuan 1, 325-326
45. Kao Seng chuan 1, 325a13-326b13; Chu San Tsang Chi Chi 13, 96a29-97a17; T'ang Yung-tung, op.cit. p.135-139; Zurcher, op.cit. p. 53-54; Chavannes, E. "Seng-houi", T'ong pao, series II, vol. X (1909): 199-212
46. T'ang Yung-t'ung. Han Wei liang Chin Nan Pei ch'ao Fo-chiao shih (History of Buddhism in Han, Wei, the Two Chins, Northern and Southern Dynasties), Shanghai: Commercial Press, 1938. vol. I, p. 137-138.
47. Kao Seng chuan 1, 325a. "ky phu nhan thuong co di vu Giao Chi"
48. Khuong Tang Hoi's biography states that he went to Ch'ien-yeh in 10th year of the Chi-wu period (248 C.E.).
49. Pham van Son. Viet Su Toan Thu (General History of Vietnam). p. 126-128
50. Chiu tsa p'i yu ching (Viet. Cuu tap thi du kinh, Sutra on Ancient Miscellaneous Parables) Taisho 206 : E. Chavannes, op. cit. p.347-428;
51. Le Manh That. Luc Do Tap Kinh va Lich Su Khoi Nguyen Dan Toc Ta (Collection of stories classified according to the order of the Six Perfections [tr. Nakamura] and the Historical Origin of Our [Vietnamese] People). Saigon: VanHanh Univ. Press, 1972 .457 p; Taisho 152: Liu tu chi ching, Sat-paøramitaø-samgraha sutra.
52. Linh Nam Trich Quai, op.cit. Truyen Hong Bang (Story of Hong Bang).
53. Ngo Sy Lien. Dai Viet su ky toan thu (Complete Recorded History of the Great Viet), comp. 1479 ; Kham Dinh Viet Su Thong Giam Cuong Muc (General History of Vietnam by Imperial Order of the Nguyen Dynasty, comp. 1856-1881)
54. Mahabharata 1.107.1-37; 1.109.1-31; 1.1.27-38; 1.14.1-23; 1.98.16-33
55. Avadanasataka, Sanskrit edition by Speyer, p. 375-379; Tibetan Tripitaka 1012, p. 204d6-205d3.
56. Pai yuan ching, Taisho 200, p. 237a20-b9
57. Mahabharata 9.29.1-66; 9.30.1-5
58. Chavannes, Edouard. "Cinq cent contes et apologies" in BEFEO I (1901): 1-347
59. Chavannes, Edouard. ibid. p. 347-428
60. Tran van Giap. "Le Boudhisme en Annam deøs origines aux 13eø sieøcle". BEFEO XXXII (1932): 191-268.
61. Budden Gyoshi. Buddhism in Vietnam: the Southern Record of the Transmission of the Lamp. M. Phil. thesis, Murdoch University, Western Australia, 1979
62. Tran van Khe, La Musique Vietnamienne traditionelle, Paris, 1962: 15, claims that before 10th century, music was unknown in Vietnam and classifies it as in the dark age. Towards the end of 1999, news broadcasted on the BBC reached me that two musical instruments were found in Vietnam dating back to c. 1,000 B.C.E. This discovery would greatly support Dr. Le's confirmation of the existence of music in Vietnam thousand of years before the limited period claimed by Dr. Tran van Khe. I am unable to have a written reord for this reference.
63. Goloubew, Victor. L'AÂge du Bronze au Tonkin et dans le Nord-Annam. BEFEO XXIX (1929): 1-46; Goloubew, Victor. L'Archeùologie du Tonkin et les Fouilles de DongSon. Hanoi: Imp. d'Extreâme-Orient, 1937, 29p.
64. Whitaker, K. Tsaur Jyr and the introduction of Fannbay into China. BSOAS XX (1957): 585-587
65. San kuo chih, Wu chi 4, Hsueh chuan; Li shih 17, 16a; Fukui Kojun, op. cit.: 109-110 & 391-395; T'ang Yung-t'ung, op. cit.: 79; E. Zurcher. op.cit., p. 51