Commemorating the 715th anniversary of the death of Buddhist Emperor Tran Nhan Tong

On the morning of December 12, at Con Son Pagoda, Chi Linh City, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha coordinated with the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in Hai Duong Province and the Management Board of the Con Son - Kiep Bac Special National Relic Site to organize the 715th Commemoration Ceremony of King - Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong entering Nirvana.

500 delegates, monks, nuns and Buddhists from districts, towns and cities throughout Hai Duong province attended.

Buddhists reviewed the biography of the King - Buddhist Emperor Tran Nhan Tong (born in 1258, died in 1308). In 1278, when he was 20 years old, he was crowned Emperor, with the title Hieu Hoang. Continuing the career of the previous Tran emperors, the King implemented many lenient and pro-people policies, ruled Dai Viet with virtue, cared for the people, and built a peaceful and prosperous nation. He directly led the army and people of Dai Viet to defeat the Yuan-Mongol invaders twice in 1285 and 1288. In 1294, the retired Emperor Tran Nhan Tong abdicated the throne to his son Tran Anh Tong and asked to become a monk to seek the path with the National Master Hue Tue, beginning the career of a monk of the three worlds.

In 1299, he returned to Thang Long Citadel from Vu Lam Palace (in Ninh Binh), then went straight to Yen Tu Mountain (Quang Ninh) to diligently practice asceticism and took the name Huong Van Dai Dau Da. He built a pagoda, preached the Dharma, and ordained monks; unified the three Zen sects, and established the Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen sect with the worldly ideology of "Living in the world and enjoying the Dharma", "Harmony in the world", a Zen sect with its own identity of Dai Viet.

The Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen lineage has been preserved and passed down through the ages. Generations of Vietnamese Buddhists, of which the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha today is the subject that inherits the quintessence of entering the world and accompanying the nation. He became a monk, with a profound spirit of entering the world, King Tran Nhan Tong often traveled to many places to teach Buddhism. He not only propagated Buddhism throughout urban and rural areas, but also traveled to other lands.

Through Buddhism, he established cooperative, peaceful and friendly relations with neighboring countries. Truc Lam Zen sect is not only a place for spiritual activities but also a cultural work affirming the sovereignty of the nation, spreading Dai Viet culture. In 1304, he used a bamboo stick to travel to all localities and villages in the country to encourage people to keep the five precepts, practice the ten good deeds, eliminate places of worship that are not in accordance with the Dharma, eliminate superstitions, and build righteous beliefs. In 1307, Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong passed on the robe and bowl and wrote a heart verse to Venerable Phap Loa to continue the Truc Lam lineage. On November 1, Mau Than year 1308, Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong entered nirvana at Ngoa Van peak, Tu Tieu hermitage, Yen Tu mountain, at the age of 51.

In his career of propagating the Dharma, Buddhist Emperor Tran Nhan Tong left behind for posterity an extremely valuable treasure trove of Dharma treasures such as: Nhan Tong Poetry Collection, Dai Huong Hai An Poetry Collection, Tang Gia Toai Su, Thach That My Ngu, Trung Hung Thuc Luc, Truyen Dang Luc...

King - Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong was a wise Emperor, a national hero, a great cultural figure, a great thinker, and at the same time an enlightened monk who left behind a unique system of Buddhist thought. The founder of Truc Lam Buddhism and the Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen sect, he was honored by generations of our people as the Buddha King of Vietnam.

The grand ceremony commemorating the Nirvana of King - Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong is an opportunity for monks and nuns in the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, Buddhists and society to admire and understand more about the heroic Tran Dynasty in history with the King - Buddha representing the will to rise up and the unity of the country. King Tran Nhan Tong is the founder who left for future generations a brilliant career of practicing religion, harmoniously combining the roles of a king and a monk, Buddhism always accompanies the nation.