What is special about the ancient temple where Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is meditating?
(Baonghean.vn) - Tu Hieu Pagoda, where Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is currently meditating, is a famous ancient pagoda in Hue and is also where the Zen Master became a monk and studied Buddhism as a young man.
Tu Hieu Pagoda, where Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is currently recuperating, is a famous ancient temple in Hue and is said to have been named by King Tu Duc.
It is said that Venerable Thich Nhat Dinh was very filial. While at Thao Am Duong, his mother became seriously ill.
The story was rumored to have reached King Tu Duc. The king immediately sent someone to find out the truth.
When hearing this story, the king was moved by the filial piety of Venerable Thich Nhat Dinh. After the Venerable passed away in 1848, Thao Am Duong was expanded into a pagoda and was visited by eunuchs and Buddhists. Remembering the story of Venerable Thich Nhat Dinh's filial piety, King Tu Duc named this pagoda "Tu Hieu Tu".
Tu Hieu Pagoda is also where Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh became a monk at the age of 16. Here, he studied with Zen Master Thanh Quy Chan That.
Graduating from Bao Quoc Buddhist Institute, Hue, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh studied Zen according to the Mahayana school of Buddhism and officially became a monk in 1949.
Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh was born in 1926 in Thua Thien Hue. He is a writer, poet, social activist and famous monk of world Buddhism.
With his tireless activities, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh has become the second most influential Buddhist leader in the West, after the Dalai Lama, according to foreign news agencies.
On October 26, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh returned to Vietnam from Bangkok (Thailand) via Da Nang International Airport. On the afternoon of October 28, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh arrived at Tu Hieu Pagoda to the welcome of monks, nuns, and Buddhists from his hometown.
Monk Thich Tu Dao - Abbot of Tu Hieu Pagoda revealed that upon returning to Vietnam this time, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh asked to stay at Tu Hieu Pagoda to recuperate from now until his death.
The reason Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh chose Tu Hieu Pagoda as a place to meditate is because this is the pagoda where he became a monk when he was young.
The abbot of Tu Hieu Pagoda added that after returning to Tu Hieu Pagoda to recuperate, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh's health is very good. Every day, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh eats a very simple vegetarian diet.
Although he could not speak, the Zen Master's complexion was quite good. He could communicate with people through gestures and eyes.
