05/02/2010 09:59 (GMT+7)
As relative newcomers to
Korea and students of Vietnamese Buddhism, we have naturally drawn comparisons
between Korean and Vietnamese Buddhism. Unfortunately, we have discovered a
Buddhism in Korea racked by internal divisions, under assault from Christian
extremists on one hand and in danger of being eclipsed by Christian activists
on the other, with temples that seemed deserted, and monks and nuns who are
reluctant to talk to Westerners. In many ways, Korean Buddhism seems hidden and
kept out of the view of many observers while Christianity has very high
visibility in this society. These conditions have lead us to conclude that
Buddhism is in serious decline in Korea. |
05/02/2010 09:59 (GMT+7)
Vietnamese Buddhism has a long history of more than 2000 years. Its origin
dates back to the 3rd century B.C., when numerous Buddhist missions were sent
abroad by Emperor Asoka to disseminate Lord Buddha’s Teachings in such distant
countries beyond the borders of India as those in Africa, West and Central Asia
as well as South East Asia including Malaysia, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia
and North Vietnam, which was known then as Giao Chau ( modern Bac Ninh province
). |
05/02/2010 10:12 (GMT+7)
Vietnam
has a population of about 25 million inhabitants, a fifth of which is imposed
of mountain tribes. It is believed that of the rest at least three fourths,
that is to say 15 million are "cool or warm Buddhists," according to
a very accurate term of a French author - the reason is that the "Light of
Asia" spread over the country in the very early days, from the beginning
of the second century of the Christian era [*]. |
05/02/2010 10:36 (GMT+7)
For many Americans, the dramatic photo of the Thich Quang Duc’s
self-immolation in 1963 constitutes their most enduring memory of the Vietnam
War. In June of that year, as the Buddhist rebellion against Ngo Dinh Diem
gained momentum, the elderly monk sat in a lotus position on a busy Saigon
street and set himself on fire. This first and most spectacular self-immolation
of the 1963 Buddhist crisis, an incredible act of protest that galvanized world
opinion, served as a moving example of South Vietnamese resistance to the Diem
regime that stamped an image on the Vietnam war that has never faded
away. |
05/02/2010 10:49 (GMT+7)
Evolution of architecture - A pagoda (from tamioul, pagoda, and from
Sanskrit, bhagavat) is a building consecrated to the cult of Buddha, also an
abode for monks. It comes from the Indian stupa. According to Thuy Kinh Chu,
Indian King Asoka made people build at Luy Lau (in ancient Bac Ninh province) a
stupa, which was considered the most ancient religious building on Vietnamese
soil (3rd B.C.). At the beginning of the Christian era, the pagoda was called Tong
Mieu or Mieu duong, but no vestige was left. In XIth century, Buddhism saw a
full bloom. Pagodas were classified into 3 categories: |
05/02/2010 10:57 (GMT+7)
As a king and as a Buddhist practitioner, Tran Thai Tong was much interested
in the study of Chinese civilization to draw from it necessary lessons for the
exercise of his political duty. He was devoted to Buddhism both for his
personal awakening and that of his people. He founded in 1253 in the capital a
national institute, erected statutes in honor of Chu Cong, Confucius, Mencius.
He ordered the painting of portraits of 72 Wisemen for their celebration. |
20/02/2010 11:44 (GMT+7)
In the early 80s, I had the occasion of reading the French version of
Zen
doctrine by the Japanese professor D.T. Suzuki, a book lent to me by
writer
Nguyen Huu Dang. A volume of that work, "Satori" catches my
attention. I have consulted many French and Vietnamese dictionaries in
my
possession and acquired a clear enough explanation of that key-word of
Buddhism. |
20/02/2010 11:43 (GMT+7)
In May 1967, a young South Vietnamese Buddhist woman named
Nhat Chi Mai penned a series of letters to the combatants in her
homeland and
the president of the United States and then immolated herself in an
attempt to
stop the conflict in her nation. In her message to Lyndon Johnson, she
asked
the US
leader..... |
20/02/2010 11:43 (GMT+7)
Before considering the Zen-Pure Land union as introduced to Vietnam
through
the Thảo - Đườngng school, let us survey the Vietnamese Buddhist
scene from
the Ddinh (969-981) to Trần (1225-1400) dynasties when Buddhism
developed
from a national religion to a nationalist religion before merging with
aspects
of Taoist and Confucian |
26/03/2010 11:16 (GMT+7)
The inconvenience of carrying a notebook is offset by the delight ofrealizing, at least to some extent, "why the sea is boiling hot, andwhether pigs have wings." An insight into existence and nonexistence andtheir complementarity, and other similarly deep realizations, can beliberating, and I treat my notebook as simply part of a larger practice. |
25/03/2010 01:32 (GMT+7)
Dau Pagoda is located in Thanh Khuong
village, Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh Province, about 30km from
Hanoi. Being a center of the ancient Luy Lau Citadel that dates back to
the second century A.D, this pagoda is considered the most ancient
religious structure and an initial source of Buddhism in Vietnam. |
25/03/2010 01:30 (GMT+7)
The pagoda was built under the dynasty
of King Tran Thanh Tong (1258-1278) and rebuilt in 1647 in the Le
Dynasty by Chinese Zen Buddhist priest Zhus Zhus, known as Chuyet Chuyet
in Vietnamese. Legend has it that when leaving his former pagoda on the
northern bank of the Duong River |
25/03/2010 00:50 (GMT+7)
Phat
Tich Pagoda or Van Phuc Pagoda originally named Thien Phuc Tu - is
situated on the side of Lan Kha mountain, Phat Tich village, Tien Du
district, presently Phuong Hoang village, Tien Son district, Ha Bac
province. |
26/03/2010 10:50 (GMT+7)
Before His reaching
Nirvana, the Buddha had given the last admonition to His disciples
that:
“the Dharma which I have taught and the Fundamental Laws enacted, will
be your guidance now that I no longer remain with you.” To comply with
the Lord Buddha’s last teachings, |
26/03/2010 11:15 (GMT+7)
Ever since a very young age,
the rather slim monk with sharply glinting eyes, had many times been
at
the podium of the Van Hanh Buddhist University (in Saigon before 1975)
to lecture tirelessly on topics ranging from Ancient and Modern as
well
as Eastern and Western philosophical topics, to profound debates on
the
Original, |
26/03/2010 11:14 (GMT+7)
Since the introduction of Buddhism into Vietnam, Buddhist teachings
are
not only for monks and nuns, but also for the society as a whole
including the majority of men and women of every class of life.
Actually, the first Buddhist work still extant in Vietnam |
26/03/2010 11:13 (GMT+7)
As various attempts to
keep peace and improve the people’s living in the postwar period were
proceeding, the Emperor Nhân Tông decided to hand over the imperial
throne to his son Trần Anh Tông in the 3rd month of Quý Tỵ
(1293) |
26/03/2010 11:13 (GMT+7)
According to various historical materials of Vietnam, the Emperor Nhân
Tông is recognized to be the founder of the Trúc Lâm Dhyāna School,
which flourished for a long time in the history of Vietnamese
Buddhism.
In spite of this, it has been generally assumed... |
05/04/2010 02:25 (GMT+7)
Buddhism
came to Vietnam in the
first century CE [1]. By the end of the second century, Vietnam
developed a major Buddhist
centre in the region, commonly known as the Luy-Lâu centre, now
in the Bắc-Ninh
province, north of the present Hanoi city. |
05/04/2010 02:24 (GMT+7)
June
11, 1963, in Saigon, Vietnam, a Buddhist monk, Thich Quang Duc
immolated himself in a busy intersection. The following is an
excerpt taken from my Manufacturing
Religion, pp. 167-177, which discusses this incident. |
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