{"id":8948,"date":"2022-07-21T01:46:41","date_gmt":"2022-07-20T18:46:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/phapnhan.org\/en\/?p=8948"},"modified":"2022-07-21T22:41:47","modified_gmt":"2022-07-21T15:41:47","slug":"biography-venerable-master-thich-nhu-minh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/phapnhan.org\/en\/biography-venerable-master-thich-nhu-minh\/","title":{"rendered":"Biography Venerable Master Thich Nhu Minh"},"content":{"rendered":"

HT. Th\u00edch Nh\u01b0 Minh<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

BIOGRAPHY VENERABLE MASTER THICH NHU MINH<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I. FAMILY<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0Most Venerable Thich Nhu Minh, whose world name is Huynh Phac, was born on the 27th day of the 6th month of the lunar Year of the Horse (1954), at the white sand beaches of Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa province to a devoted Buddhist family. His father is Mr. Huynh At with the Dharma name Nh\u01b0 Khai, and his mother is Mrs. Le Thi Xich, Dharma name Nguyen Xuan.<\/span><\/p>\n

II. CHILDHOOD<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Venerable Nhu Minh was raised in the love of his parents, and when he finished his first class of elementary school, they left their hometown to live in the wild highlands of Quang Duc province; today Daknong province. His family had a house with wooden walls and thatched roof with rattan leaves in Sung Duc commune. Later the next year they moved to a new house in Kien Tin commune, Kien Duc district. The following year (1960) Venerable Master\u2019s family came to settle down in this land, where they still live. Near his house, there was a pagoda called Li\u00ean Hoa (Lotus Flower) located on a beautiful hillside, where the Venerable Master Thich Tri Huy (as the Proved Master, Chief Representative of Buddhism in Quang Duc Province, Abbot of Phap Hoa Pagoda, the provincial headquarters of Buddhism) lived and spread Buddhism. Venerable Master Thich Tri Huy was ordained by Patriarch Hoang Thac at the Sac Tu Thach Son Temple in Quang Ngai, a co-teacher with Elder Chon Giam Dao Quang Tri Hai (1876 \u20131950), the editor of Tu Bi Am Buddhist magazine. In 1958, he left Pho Quang Pagoda in Quang Ngai to Quang Duc to establish Phap Hoa Pagoda. Venerable Master\u2019s father took refuge with the Venerable Elder Monk and became a member of the Representative Board of Lien Hoa Temple. As a child, Venerable Nh\u01b0 Minh often followed his parents to the temple every fortnight, in addition to attending festivals to worship Buddha and recite sutras. Thanks to such a predestined relationship, Venerable Nhu Minh followed the ideal path of Buddhism under the guidance of Master Tri\u0301 Huy.<\/span><\/p>\n

III. MONASTIC EDUCATION<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In the Mouse Year (1965), Venerable Nhu Minh was accepted as a monastic disciple by the Most Venerable Chon Bich Dao Lien Tri Huy (1917\u20131970) bestowed the Dharma name Nhu Minh. In the summer of 1967, after two years of diligent study and practice as a young novice, Rev. Nhu Minh was ordained by the Most Venerable Master Tri Huy and officially entered the Tao Khe stream of Buddhist Order and became a member of Phap Hoa Pagoda. In the Rooster Year (1969), on the occasion of the Enlightenment Day of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, Rev. Nhu Minh received the Ten Novice Precepts ordination ceremony under his Elder, Most Venerable Master Tri Huy. But unfortunately, half a year later, Master Tri Huy passed away on the afternoon of the first day of the lunar year, the Dog Year, in 1970. In 1970, Venerable Nhu Minh completed four years of Middle School at Quang Duc High School. Because this province did not have a high school level, he had to move to the neighboring province of Dak Lak to study at Ban Me Thuot General High School. Here, Venerable Nh\u01b0 Minh was admitted to live at the Sac Tu Khai Doan Pagoda by the Venerable Abbot Thich Quang Huy. After passing the baccalaureate exam in 1974, Venerable Nh\u01b0 Minh attended the Faculty of Buddhism at Van Hanh University in Saigon. The President of Van Hanh University is the Most Venerable Thich Minh Chau. In the same year, Venerable Nhu Minh studied at the Eastern Philosophy Faculty at Van Khoa University in Saigon. The Vietnamese historical event on April 30, 1975 happened, and the Government of the Vietnamese Republic dissolved the universities, including Van Hanh University, which was closed. Therefore, a year later, the president of Van Hanh University decided to move Van Hanh University to a new address at 716 Vo Di Nguy street, the 4th Ward, Phu Nhuan District, Saigon. Venerable Nh\u01b0 Minh followed the instructions of President Thich Minh Chau and the Venerable Bhikkhuni Thich Nu Tri Hai (Head of Van Hanh University Library) to transfer the entire Buddhist Library to the Van Hanh Institute of Buddhist Studies. Here, the Venerable President directed the major in Buddhist studies and continued to translate and print sections of the Pali Canon (two sets of the Collection of Long Discourses (Pali: D\u012bghanik\u0101ya) and the Collection of Middle Length Discourses (Pali: Majjhima Nik\u0101ya) at Van Hanh University, the Chinese Tripitaka, Buddhist research, Vietnamese Buddhist history, authoring, translating, and teaching Buddhist Studies to student monks and nuns and lay Buddhists. In the Dragon year (1976), Ven. Nhu Minh paid homage to the Most Venerable Thich Minh Chau whose titled Tam TriVien Dung Minh Chau (1918-2012), the High Priest, the Heart of the Law, became the teacher of Ven. Nhu Minh. Master Thich Minh Chau agreed and gave him the Dharma name Nguyen Khong and sent Ven. Nhu Minh to ordain him with the Bhikkhu precepts at the Quang Duc ordination ceremony at An Quang Temple in January 1977. It was the first ordination ceremony organized by the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam since 1975. The precept masters in the ordination consisted of the dignified and virtuous monks: the Elder Venerable Thich Tri Thu (the president), the Elder Venerable Thich Hanh Tru (the nest leader), the Elder Venerable Thich Don Hau (the lawyer), the Elder Venerable Thich Mat Hien and the Elder Venerable Thich Thien Tuong (the instructors\/ teachers).<\/span><\/p>\n

IV. STUDYING DHARMA<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

After being ordained as a new bhikkhu under the tutelage of the Elder Venerable Minh Chau at the Van Hanh Institute of Buddhist Studies, Ven. Nhu Minh took refuge from his Master to study the way, consult and study the scriptures, and practice the precepts and stateliness. At that time, Ven. Nhu Minh was one of six members on the director\u2019s board of Van Hanh Institute of Buddhist Studies. Every day, in addition to his work as a librarian at the Van Hanh Buddhist Library, he joined the class to learn the Collection of Middle-length Discourses (Pali: Majjhima Nik\u0101ya), the Pali language and Buddhism in English (taught by President Thich Minh Ch\u00e2u), Sanskrit (instructed by the Most Venerable Tri Sieu), and Buddhism (guided by the Most Venerable Tue Sy). The Buddhist studies program was long-lasting and continued until the spring of 1984.<\/span><\/p>\n

V. SHARING DHARMA<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

As a monk, spreading the Dharma is a noble aspiration. Therefore, Venerable Nhu Minh always remembered the Patriarchs\u2019 teachings of taking the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom to nurture his own bodhi mind for the peace and happiness for himself and others in this life. In order to fulfill that wish, Venerable Nhu Minh diligently studied for many years the Canon scriptures (translated into Vietnamese from Pali by his master, Thich Minh Chau) and Mahayana sutras such asthe Lotus Sutra (Sanskrit: Saddharmapu\u1e47\u1e0dar\u012bka-s\u016btra), Nirvana Sutra, and the Flower Ornament Scripture (Sanskrit: the Avatamsaka Sutra), and the Diamond Sutra (Sanskrit: Vajracchedik\u0101 Praj\u00f1\u0101p\u0101ramit\u0101 S\u016btra), and so on. In the Rooster Year (1981), Ven. Nhu Minh was invited by the Board of Directors to be a teacher of the ancient Pali language for the student monks and nuns at the Intermediate Buddhist School at An Quang Pagoda and the Primary School of Buddhist Studies at Giac Ngo Temple. In the same year, the Most Venerable Abbot Thich Minh Chau instructed Ven. Nhu Minh to assume the position of administrator of the Van Hanh Institute and to restore its buildings. In 1989, under the instructions of the Venerable Most Thich Minh Chau, Ven. Nhu Minh carried out the construction of a new three-way gate of Van Hanh Zen Monastery. In 1989\u20132001, as a chief librarian of the Library of Buddhist Studies, Vietnam Institute of Buddhist Studies, Ven. Nhu Minh edited and printed a number of books on Buddhism and the history of Buddhism in Vietnam. In 1990, following the instructions of the Venerable Elder Thich Minh Chau, Ven. Nhu Minh directed the construction of the Patriarch’s building and the lecture hall of Van Hanh Zen Monastery. In 1992, the Phap Lac stupa of the Elder Venerable Master Abbot Thich Minh Chau at Van Hanh Zen Monastery had been built in accordance with the ideas of the sangha at Van Hanh Institute. In 1995, Ven. Nhu Minh graduated from the United States Department at S\u01b0 Pham University. Ven. Nhu Minh attended the Faculty of International Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, and graduated in 2000. In 2001, he became a professor of Sanskrit, Course IV of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy in Saigon. In 1997, he kept the position as Deputy Head of the Committee and directed the construction of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy Building at Van Hanh Zen Monastery. In 2001, he received his Doctorate from Pacific Western University in the United States with the research thesis: “Buddhist literature: A proposed scheme of classification and cataloguing of works on Buddhism modeled on the Buddhist collection at Van Hanh University Library, 1964\u20131999.”<\/span><\/p>\n

VI. PRACTICE IN THE USA<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0In the Goat Year (2001), Ven. Nh\u01b0 Minh was sponsored to settle down in America by the Most Venerable Thich Man Giac, the President the General Congregation of Vietnamese Buddhism in the United States and the Abbot of the Vietnamese Temple in Los Angeles. In the Monkey Year (2002), Ven. Nhu Minh was appointed to be the Abbot of Viet Nam Temple by the Elder Venerable Master Thich Man Giac. This temple which was the first Vietnam temple in the United State, was founded in 1975 by the Late Venerable Thich Thien An. In 2003, under the instruction of the Elder Venerable Master Thich Man Giac, Ven. Nhu Minh organized the 40th Anniversary of Vietnamese Buddhist involvement in Orange County in southern California. In 2006, Ven. Nhu Minh represented the Vietnamese Buddhist Association in the United States to attend the 23rd World Buddhist Fellowship (WFB) in Fo Quang Son Monastery, Taiwan. Taking this opportunity, he also visited the Zen Temple in Taichung. In 2007, Ven. Nhu Minh was invited to join the organizing committee of the Buddhist Sangha of Southern California and the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam in the United States as the deputy organizing committee in charge of young monks and nuns. He held this position until 2015. In 2008, Ven. Nhu Minh became the President of Vietnamese United Buddhist Churches (VUBC) and the spiritual leader for Tam Bao Pagoda in Tulsa City, Oklahoma. He advised the Venerable Abbot Thich Duc Tri to make a vow in front of the sangha that Ven. Duc Tri will embellish the 57-foot high, 420,000- pound heavy marble statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, erected on the back premises of Tam Bao pagoda. The solemn inauguration ceremony of the monument took place on the occasion of the Buddha’s birthday, the Buddhist calendar 2557, on June 9, 2013. In 2008, Ven. Nhu Minh established the website www.chuaphatgiaovietnam.com and the Editor-in-Chief published the first issues of the Journal of Buddhist Studies on this webpage. The 49th journal was printed on the occasion of Vesak 2022. In 2012, Ven. Nhu Minh was invited to hold the position of Vice President of the International Buddhist Meditation Center (IBMC). In 2012, Venerable Master attended the 26th World Buddhist Fellowship (WFB) in Yeosu, Korea. On this occasion the Venerable Master and congress delegates attended the ordination of the Bodhisattva precepts for 30,000 disciples at Yeosu Stadium and visited famous ancient temples in Korea. In the Goat Year (2013), the Elder Venerable Thich Tam Chau, Senior Master of the Vietnam Buddhist Church in the World, conferred to Ven. Nhu Minh the title of the \u201cMost Venerable.\u201d In the same year, the Most Ven. Nhu Minh founded Thich Thien An Zen Monastery in Atlanta, Georgia, whose American name is known as the Boulder Park Meditation Center (BPMC). He purchased two houses in 2011 to convert to meditation halls, as well as setting up a website for the monastery: www.thienvienthichthienan.com. In 2014, two large bronze statues of Shakyamuni Buddha and the ancient wooden statue of Amitabha Buddha were erected and worshipped at the main hall of a Vietnamese Temple. Then, work was begun to repair and restore the temple and was completed at the beginning of 2019. In 2014 and 2019, the Most Venerable Dr. Kyuse Enshinjoh, the founding President of the Buddhist Summit World Buddhist Supreme Conference in Japan, invited the Most Ven. Nh\u01b0 Minh to write a congratulatory message for the 6th and 8th events and a speech for the inauguration of Nalanda Mahavihara that were held in Japan and reported in the Buddhist Summit News. In 2015, the Most Ven. Nhu Minh translated the Vajracchedik\u0101 Praj\u00f1\u0101p\u0101ramit\u0101 S\u016btra from the Chinese version and from the Sanskrit original, which was proved and the introduction written by the Most Venerable Thich Tam Chau, the Chief of the Vietnamese Buddhist Church in the World. In 2015, he was invited to write a congratulatory message to read to the Organization of the first Buddhist Conference held at the White House on May 14, 2015. In the Rooster Year (2015), he solemnly organized the 40th Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Dharma of Vietnam Temples and the 40th Exhibition of Vietnamese Buddhist Journalism in the United States and overseas. In the Dog Year (2016), he made a vow to embellish the 40,000-pound heavy white stone statue of Buddha Shakyamuni at Truc Lam Monastery, and to build a Shakyamuni Buddha platform at Thich Thien An Zen Monastery in Atlanta. In the Rat Year (2018), he inaugurated the new main hall, Thich Thien An Zen Monastery, in the house next to the Zen Monastery that was purchased that year. In the Ox Year (2019), on the first day of the Lunar New Year, he with other monks and nuns, decided to establish the Vietnamese America Fellowship Buddhist Sangha (VAFB). The first term of sangha in 2020\u20132024 was solemnly held at the Arena of the Anaheim Convention Center with the programs of the Enlightenment Ceremony, the Mahayana Dharma Conference, and the exhibition of Buddhist journalism which has been presented for 45 years in the United States and overseas. This included an exhibition of images of Vietnamese temples after 45 years of Vietnamese Buddhism’s presence in the United States, and an exhibition of 80 meditative water paintings and the Golden Enlightenment Music Festival. In the same year, on the auspicious day of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, the Most Ven. returned to Vietnam to pay respects to Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and the Buddhist monks in Hue and Van Hanh Zen Monastery in Saigon, A ceremony was held to pour bronze casting for the Great Bell for World Peace Center in Hue city. It will be shifted to Thich Thien An Zen Monastery in the United States. In 2020, the 5,500-pound big bell for World Peace was completed in Hue, Vietnam. It was shifted overseas to Atlanta, Georgia, and placed at Thich Thien An Zen Monastery on August 13. Two days later, the Sangha was extremely happy to celebrate the opening ceremony to pray for Buddhism to be long-lasting, for world peace, a happy life, and the rapid elimination of the coronavirus covid19 epidemic. On the occasion of New Year’s Eve and the first day of the New Year in 2021 at the Thich Thien An Monastery in Atlanta, monks and nuns of the Vietnam America Fellowship Buddhist Sangha (VAFB) held the first ceremony to pray for World Peace. In January 2021, the Most Ven. Nhu Minh founded the Huyen Khong Buddhist Library at the Vietnamese Temple in Los Angeles and the Vi Dieu Phap Media program. Looking back on 20 years of preaching Dharma in the United States, the Most Ven. Nhu Minh devoted himself wholeheartedly for the sake of Dharma. Although his aspirations were high and wide, his strength was limited, all the Buddha works have been accomplished thanks to the grace of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, the saints, the support and devotion of monks, nuns, and many lay Buddhists.<\/span><\/p>\n

VII. EPILOGUE<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0The Buddha taught that all things are illusory, the body is unreal. Life and death are cyclical. The mind without both the appearance and disappearance is the great joy of the eminent monk. Recalling Truc Lam Dai Si’s two-syllable exclamation, his heart fluttered like the moonlight shining in the two parallel rhymes that Master Thich Tue Si offered to the Most Ven. Nhu Minh: Penetrating the compassion, regardless of many lifetimes, I vow to be close. Thanks to the saving, regardless how the body is destroyed, I vow to bear. Venerable Nhu Minh\u2019s ideal and vow was to dedicate himself for the sake of the Buddhadharma. So throughout his journey of cultivation, from the moment he took a good predestined step into the temple gate as a young novice, and then as a Bhikkhu. As he went through a long path of propagating the Dharma, he always followed the shining role model of his virtuous two masters. He spent his entire life carefully observing the precepts, studying, and consulting the Tripitaka (the Triple Basket) with the vow of propagating the Dharma and dedication to the ideals of Vietnamese Buddhism. The Most Venerable Thich Nhu Minh has come and walked in an illusory world. The 44th lineage of the Lam Te Sect, the Abbot of Vietnam Temple, Los Angeles and Thich Thien An Zen Monastery, Atlanta, titled Nguyen Khong, means \u201cthe Most Venerable Thich Nhu Minh, Dai Phuong Master.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ti\u1ec3u S\u1eed H\u00f2a Th\u01b0\u1ee3ng Th\u00edch Nh\u01b0 Minh<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n