60th Anniversary Commemoration of Bodhisattva Thich Quang Duc's Self-Immolation

Attending the ceremony were Most Venerable Elder Thich Giac Quang, Vice Supreme Patriarch of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha; Most Venerable Elder Thich Duc Thanh, Standing Member of the Council of Monks; Most Venerable Elders, Members of the Council of Monks; Most Venerable Monks, Members of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in the province, and a large number of monks and nuns from pagodas, monasteries, hermitages, and Buddhists of all walks of life.

On the government side, there were member of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee Nguyen Nam Tien; member of the Provincial Party Committee, Head of the Provincial Party Committee's Mass Mobilization Commission Nguyen Chi Tai, and leaders of departments and branches.

Before the memorial service, the Venerables of the Provincial Executive Committee, the affiliated Committees and Buddhists respectfully offered incense in memory. After the Buddha's name and prayers, Most Venerable Thich Hue Phuoc, Standing Member of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, recited the biography of Bodhisattva Thich Quang Duc.

Next, Most Venerable Thich Khe Chon, Vice President of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, Head of the Executive Board and Head of the Provincial Sangha Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, sincerely offered the commemoration of all levels of the Sangha about the life and virtue of Bodhisattva Thich Quang Duc who vowed to self-immolate to protect the Dharma and the nation.

The sound of the Prajna bells and drums is solemn, the incense spreads, in front of the statue of Bodhisattva Thich Quang Duc and the souls of the martyrs, Venerable Elder Thich Duc Thanh wholeheartedly offers incense and offerings in memory. The congregation chants the Four Great Vows, the Three Refuges, and expresses gratitude and dedication.

Venerable Thich Quang Duc, dharma name Thi Thuy, dharma name Hanh Phap, secular name Lam Van Tuat, was born in 1897 in Hoi Khanh village, Van Ninh district, Khanh Hoa province, in Central Vietnam, in a family of seven siblings, father Lam Huu Ung and mother Nguyen Thi Nuong.

On June 11, 1963 (April 20, the leap year of Quy Mao), at the intersection of Phan Dinh Phung - Le Van Duyet (Saigon), Venerable Thich Quang Duc burned himself to death to protest the policy of religious discrimination and nepotism of the Ngo Dinh Diem government. Venerable Thich Quang Duc's self-immolation shook the hearts of millions of people around the world . After the cremation, he left behind an "Immortal Heart" for posterity.

N. MINH

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