Setting foot on its ground and all at once hearing the noisy barking of its pack of dogs, I seemed to be, all of a sudden, awakened amidst a dream when realizing I was then standing in the courtyard of a small pagoda, simple and plain, in a distinctively rustic environment. Looking around and finding no gilded statues nor golden bells but a few brick houses with red tile roofs, a fishpond covered with aquatic vegetables and a bamboo footbridge, I told myself it was really a typical village pagoda of the North. With its simplicity, I couldn’t envision that it was the abode of such an elderly monk of respectable morals and virtues as Most Venerable Thich Pho Tue.

While I was wandering in vague thinking, I suddenly found the venerable monk walking out in his yellow robe like the bright early sunshine. He gently sat down, in front of me, his physical body looking like a weathered wooden statue but his mind still lucid, chanting prayers in a whisper and talking to the prayer beads in an undisturbed and enlightened manner.

Actually, the elderly monk was born in the year of Dinh Ty (1917), in the village of Phung Thien , Khanh Thien Commune, Yen Khanh District, Ninh Binh Province . At the age of 5, seemingly for his predestination with Buddhism, he had his head shaved and entered monkhood. As he grew up, he travelled to all corners of the North to learn Buddhism, and by 1936, he arrived at Vien Minh Pagoda, being adopted by Senior Bonze Thich Quang Ton, second-generation verger of Vien Minh Pagoda, as his protégé. In 1961, the senior bonze passed away and the venerable monk succeeded to him as third-generation verger and has stayed there ever since, for more than 70 years now.

Having a talk with him for quite a long while, I suggested making the rounds of the premise with him, strolling about in the backyard and orchard, with groves of lush bamboos and luxuriant shady longans. He nodded, smiling, and went into another room to change into drab brown garments, quite simple and homely. He then looked like an elderly farmer always preoccupied with his farming.nbsp;nbsp;

Most Venerable Thich Pho Tue, March 2008.

Later I found out that he was quite experienced in farm work. According to the local people, when he had been in better health, he could work to feed himself, besides his usual praying sessions in the mornings and evenings. Only at 80 did he stop ploughing the fields, but he still went on doing the gardening. For this very reason, he sometimes laughed at himself as a “farming bonze” and he always taught his disciples “You should know to work for your own livelihood. If all people are lazy, how could they feed themselves? And starvation is a result of fomenting chaos and confusion, the roots of all evils.”

Not only is he an expert at farming, he is also scholarly, well conversant with “dharma” (Buddhist law). For his whole life, he has wholeheartedly dedicated himself to Buddhism and Buddhist affairs and the broad masses of people. Aside from all this, he has also joined in compiling, translating and editing so many major Buddhist works, and giving lectures at the large Buddhist institutions across the country. Talking about the monks’ and nuns’ studying nowadays, he says, for the time being, they enjoy better opportunities for learning. However, the current life offers so much temptation that people may embark on wrong ways to monkhood. nbsp;That’s the reason why the junior monks and nuns should train themselves for self-improvement, both spiritual and intellectual.

When asked about the Buddhist affairs of today, he said Buddhism at all times is the same, possibly going through ups and downs. Nowadays, Buddhism is flourishing, assisting in national prosperity. Buddhist believers are free to practise their religion, under the guiding principle of “Dharma – Nation – Socialism”, with a view to national unity for both religious and secular services. That’s a great blessing for the Buddhist Shangha of today, indeed.

In talking with Most Venerable Thich Pho Tue, I found that he kept repeating the term “tứ đức” (the four virtues) – the four great gratitude’s in life, i.e. gratitude to parents, gratitude to teachers, gratitude to the Fatherland, and gratitude to society”. In his view, people may, by themselves, not be born, grown up and mature, therefore they should learn to be grateful to those who do them good services. For example, when taking rice, they should remember the tiller’s hard work, when enjoying a life in peace, they should know of the great services of the entire nation. His heart’s so plain, yet so noble!

The further we walked the more interesting things I discovered from him.nbsp; Contemplating his shadow flickering on the red bricks and his plain brown garments covering his bony body, I wondered what attire Gautama Buddha had worn 2500 years before and whether there was any other venerable priest so simple and as erudite as he was in this world.

At 92 years of age, with 87 years of monkhood, he has kept his daily routine, saying prayers in the mornings and reading scriptures in the evenings, enjoying vegetarian meals, practising his religion, without overlooking the secular affairs, and living close to the secular life without compromising his religious beliefs. Most Venerable Thich Pho Tue has been preserving his heart pure and upright, sparkling and glittering, though holding a paramount position. Such is the enlightening virtue of a genuine bonze, a great blessing for the Buddhist Shangha of Vietnam, indeed.

Story by Thanh Hoa - Photos by Trong Chinh, Le Minh