Misty afternoon, sun sets in a cold wind. “I am tired but happy. It is so beautiful here”, Xuan Anh says almost breathless. She just climbed half day in the mountains of Yen Tu, in the north-eastern province of Quang Ninh, finally reaching the Dong Pagoda, sitting on the peak of the mountain. Yen Tu Mount is home to the Truc Lam (Bamboo Forest) Buddhist sect.
Now arriving on top, she can gaze at the splendid panoramic view. “It is a wonderful climb. Like in every pilgrimage, the road tests your perseverance and your faith. But here, it is much more about meditation. The whole way, I was meditating and reflecting. Now that I am here, after climbing four hours, it is like an achievement. But the calm and the modesty of the temple here teaches me so much. The breathless climb leads higher and higher, giving me the impression of an ascent to the heavens. But a pilgrimage isn’t a pilgrimage without a dose of suffering!” she laughs. “And after such efforts , the reward is not a huge temple with tons of golden statues, but just a small and humble temple… for meditation”. Legend has it that the Yen Tu peak is the final line separating heaven from earth, where the celestial world touches the clouds. Whenever the pagoda’s bell chimes, rain clouds would mass.
Xuan Anh is a young viet kieu. She follows the sect of Truc Lam in France. This sect is popular there thanks to Thich Nhat Hanh, a well-know Vietnamese monk who is living in southwestern France. He founded a retreat center twelve years ago, the Plum Village. There, he continues to teach, write, and garden. Plum Village houses only thirty monks, nuns, and laypeople, but thousands from around the globe call it home. Accommodation is readily available for short-term visitors seeking spiritual relief, for refugees in transit, or for activists in need of inspiration. Thich Nhat Hanh gathers people of diverse nationalities, races, religions, and sexes in order to expose them to mindfulness-taking care in the present moment, being profoundly aware and appreciative of life.
Zen school of Buddhism is a little different from Buddhism. It focuses on meditation. In tantric Buddhism (practiced in Tibet), monks focuses on visualising deities. In Zen school, meditation is the rest of the mind. According to legend, when Buddha was growing old, he convened his disciples for an important discourse. And when they gathered and sat down silently, reverently waiting to hear their Master speak, the Buddha arose, came forward on the flower-decked platform, looked over his audience of disciples and monks, then bent down and picked up a flower which he raised to the level of his eyes. Then, without uttering a word, he returned to his seat. His followers looked at each other in bewilderment, not understanding the meaning of his silence. Only the venerable Mahakasyapa serenely smiled at the Master. And the Master smiled back at him and wordlessly bequeathed to him the spiritual meaning of his wordless sermon. And that, according to legend, was the moment Zen was born.
In Yen Tu, those seeking a quicker route to salvation can take the cable car. It may seem like cheating, but the birds’ eye views are superb. Yen Tu Mount, which stands some 1,068 meters above sea level, is the highest peak in the nation’s north-east. It is also known as Elephant Mountain, because it resembles a reclining elephant looking out towards the sea.
It has played a part in history for centuries, as monks seek out its sanctuary and solitude. But the mountain, just north of the provincial capital of Uong Bi and nestling close to the world-famous Ha Long Bay, really came to prominence after King Tran Nhan Tong retired from the throne in 1299 to become a monk. Tong (who lived until 1308) took two other monks: Phap Loa Ton Gia (1284-1330) and Ly Dao Tai (1254-1334), and founded the Zen Buddhist sect known as Truc Lam. Before Tong came to prominence for his religious activities, he had already established a reputation as a strong and true governor. Aided by legendary general Tran Hung Dao, the young king led the nation to victory in two out of three resistance wars against the Yuan- Mongol invasions in 1285 and 1288.
The first Mongol invasion in 1258 was repelled by his father, King Tran Thanh Tong (1240-1290). Even after King Tran Nhan Tong had abdicated in favor of his son, he still advised the court and came up with strategies to protect the northern and southern borders. He had developed a taste for Buddhist teachings and a love of letters in his childhood. But it was only after he retired from the throne that he could pour his heart and soul into his religion.
Xuan Anh met an intriguing monk here. “I was so surprised to see him smoking cigarettes. It troubled me so much I could not concentrate and medidate in my room last night. I was wondering why a monk could smoke in the open! And he got these marks on the arms, like having been done by cigarettes. He never speaks about it though. In Buddhism, you should not say malicious words or ingest poisons like alcohol or tobacco. Maybe the lesson he was teaching me was about appearances. One should not believe in them. Nor get attached to them as they lead to deception and ultimately suffering. Or maybe he just likes it? so, I should always do what I like? I don’t know…”, she reflects.
Yen Tu Mount, and the Truc Lam sect, flourished during the reign of the Tran Dynasty (1200-1400). Xuan Anh took some and paid her respects to this founding father.
The many places to visit along the way are said the replicate the path King Tran Nhan Tong followed on his first pilgrimage. The first stop is the Suoi Tam (Bathing Brook), where he washed off the dust and grime of his earthly life. Not far away is a pagoda called Cam Thuc (Fasting), where the king was said to have had his first vegetarian meal - comprising nothing more than plain rice cooked with water from the brook and vegetables gathered on the spot.
The next destination is Giai Oan (Salvation of Wandering Souls) Pagoda, located on the banks of another stream. It is said that 100 of the king’s concubines volunteered to continue serving him in his solitary life and followed him to Yen Tu Mount. When the party reached the stream, the king told them to return to their native villages and start life anew. The concubines begged to stay, saying their life would be worth nothing if they were turned away. When their request was denied, they jumped into the stream where they met their deaths. To release these wandering souls from a life in purgatory, the king built a pagoda on the site, so that they would always have someone to honour their memory.
A short walk takes you up to the Ngoc (Jade) Mount, the place where visiting royal family members and court officers had to step down from their palanquins and proceed up the mountain on foot. The area also has dozens of stupas, the tombs of those monks who led their solitary life in Yen Tu during the Le Dynasty (1428-1788). Not far from this is another cluster of stupas, the chief of which is the final resting place of King Tran Nhan Tong. The stupa, known as the Hue Quang Kim Thap, is surrounded by 97 other smaller stupas which are also the final resting places of Yen Tu monks from the Tran Dynasty.
The largest and most beautiful edifice along the trail is the Hoa Yen Pagoda, located on a strip of land 800 meters above sea level. This was the place where the retired king meditated, preached and received his successor and court officers.
Before Xuan Anh left, she asked the monk how long he would meditate during the day. “About 12 hours”, he replied. “But everyone is different. Maybe I need to medidate that long because of my lack of wisdom in my previous life. Maybe you need to medidate less. Everyone is different.” Before Xuan Anh left, he gave her a riddle to meditate on her way back: “where were you before the creation of the universe?”. Xuan Anh is still thinking about it. And so are we. (Photo by Olivier Llouquet)
