Letters fly like a thousand birds
Each sentence is an incarnation of Nirvana.

I would like to "lean" on two verses of the late Professor Vu Hoang Chuong, to enter the literary world of Van Cong Tuan. Because, perhaps, he had many good fortunes to communicate with the profound thoughts of the venerable teachers at Van Hanh school in old Saigon. Also, later on, he had many favorable conditions to learn more about the thoughts of famous people in the world. Among them, he had a special affection for the writer Hermann Hesse. He inherited the "spiritual legacy" of a "ferryman" through the story of the river. ("When the river is calm, the true image will appear").

"Bodhi Seeds of Sunlight" is his pilgrimage diary, printed by Thai Ha bookstore on golden paper, with the supplement being very artistic images of the four movements of the heart and historical relics. Introduction by Master Thich Phuoc An. The author's greetings and thanks. Finally, Nhan reading Bodhi Seeds of Sunlight by Nguyen Hien Duc.

Please enter to follow the footsteps of the search...

Or in other words, entering the literary world of Mr. Tuan is to learn together, not to judge or criticize. Because I am also just a beginner in both life and religion. I only record my feelings after reading the book, and feel that this is a book that guides pilgrims to the homeland of Buddha, filled with all the important elements from form to content, from the outside to the inside in a rich and scientific way. We dare not say anything more, but only want to follow the footsteps... like Mr. Bui Giang:

Say that saying more would be wrong
Spring is waiting for someone to enter.

Because from "The Ancient Tree's Silent Shadow", to "The Bodhi Sunbeam", he has taken long steps, deeply immersed in contemplation. Contemplating the principle of impermanence, the principle of form and emptiness. From very profound perceptions and emotions about Buddhist culture. To the desire to study and wish to penetrate the sutras in this present life. Having gone through countless phenomena of overlapping causes and conditions of contradictory ideas, covered by the net of ignorance, it seems that he has encountered a "silent mark" to take a thousand-mile step in the search for the Bodhi Sunbeams, spreading gold along the footsteps of the True Man.

The first step is to introduce one of the four moving hearts, that is Bodh Gaya, where the Buddha attained Enlightenment. He recorded many events that happened, such as Buddha's attainment of the Threefold Knowledge (Knowledge of Past Lives, Divine Eye Knowledge, and Knowledge of the Extinction of Asavas) and his attainment of Supreme Enlightenment. Such as the first sermon on the Four Noble Truths to the five brothers Kondanna. As one of the glorious historical events of Buddhism, in which this most important factor cannot be ignored:

“For the first time – and also the only time – in human history, there was a religious leader who devoted himself to finding the path of liberation and after practicing the path dared to declare that everyone could attain enlightenment like him, could sit on the supreme dharma throne like him. That was the greatest event of humanity, even until today”. (excerpt: Attaining enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. That day is already in the past”. (page 30).

The second step is: Reading the Avatamsaka Sutra at the foot of the Avatamsaka Tower. As a Buddhist, surely everyone has heard the monks lecture on the Avatamsaka Sutra. The sutra that the Buddha, after attaining enlightenment, taught from meditation to Bodhisattvas and Pratyekabuddhas within twenty-one days. It is an extremely profound sutra, difficult to think about and discuss, not many people have set foot on the steps of the Avatamsaka Sutra. So here the author The author will only recount the reasons for the opportunity to read the sutras:

The first reason: The three words of the Avatamsaka Sutra are quite familiar to me, even though I had never recited the entire sutra before leaving. I say quite familiar because nearly twenty years ago I had enthusiastically read the book "Letting a Bamboo Raft" by Zen Master Nhat Hanh...

The second reason: When I began to study Buddhism, I studied according to the book "Popular Buddhist Studies" by Venerable Thien Hoa. That book says: "In the Avatamsaka Sutra, there is a sentence, "When a single thought of anger arises, a hundred thousand obstacles arise."

The third reason: Whenever I read Buddhist sutras and treatises for a while, someone will inevitably mention the Avatamsaka Sutra. The shade of the Avatamsaka Sutra spreads out over the entire Buddhist teachings like the shade of an ancient pine tree. There are fundamental sutra sentences such as: "All is created by the mind alone."

The fourth reason: Before preparing to go to India, I went to see Venerable Nhu Dien to ask him for advice. What sutra should I read during my stay in Bodh Gaya... The teacher immediately said: Avatamsaka Sutra. I understood what he meant, and obeyed without asking any further questions (page 52).

These are the materials that will help him have steady steps, hoping to penetrate the sutras, to be in harmony with the Avatamsaka realm.

The third step: "The sun and moon shine brightly on the top of Thuu mountain". It has been his dream for a long time, to sleep on the top of Thuu mountain once, to watch the moon at night and watch the sunrise in the morning. Because the moon is different in each place, the sun is also different in the east and west. Because there is reality, there is also fantasy. If it passes through the consciousness of a superman, it will become a legend.

As for the legend in the Zen monastery, there is: "A bowl of Huong Tich rice, a cup of Cao Khe tea, sitting on the Bat Nha boat, watching the Lang Gia moon". I wonder who has had enough good fortune to enjoy the supernatural flavor? But perhaps for Mr. Tuan, it seems like there has been Once he told: “Once when he visited the homeland of Buddha, he overcame many challenges and still tried to fulfill his wish to see both the sun and the moon. And he saw: “The mountains are still there, the trees and grass are still there, the rock shaped like a vulture still stands there: How many times has the sun risen to light up this sacred mountain after dark nights? Who can count them all, who bothers to record them all? But one thing I am sure of: the sun has never stopped shining on the top of this Vulture Mountain.” (page 66).

And he met: “A group of four pilgrims from four different countries, they made an appointment to come to Vulture Mountain. The strange thing is that they wanted to come here to sleep and enjoy the moon in the sacred sky of the Buddhas and Patriarchs. And they did not just want to come here to enjoy the moon, they wanted to come here to pray, chant, meditate, practice... Each person prayed in their own way. Sometimes they chanted loudly in four different languages at the same time each other.” (page 68).

The fourth step: Fate. This time it was truly a fortunate fate to come to “Dao Trang”, he said: “One afternoon, I stopped by the library of Vien Giac meditation center. I met nun Lieu Phap, who was very happy and lovely (she is an international student studying for a Master's degree at Gaya University and is temporarily residing at Vien Giac). The story led to details about holy relics, pilgrimages, then the worship of Buddha's relics, and the ordination course to sow karma at this Vien Giac center in the next few months. The nun said she had also helped many lay people to shave their heads to sow karma at the holy land. After talking for a while, my wife suddenly turned to me and asked quietly: “Why don't we ask the nun to help us with the matter of shaving our heads to sow karma, what do you think?”...(page 103).

It was truly “A favor like opening my heart”... so I asked the nun to contact and introduce to the Sri Lankan temple to invite her to the Dai Giac tower to perform the hair-cutting ceremony. After that to the temple to offer food to the monks, as well as give gifts to 15 young people who are here. And the abbot promised to allow the appointment at 9 o'clock tomorrow. Everyone prepared everything and went to the meeting place early in the morning to wait, but it was past the time and the monk still had not arrived! Suddenly, I saw a group of about 30 lamas, they quickly set up a dharma throne with many dharma instruments and they were waiting for something?

- Nun Lieu Phap asked me: "There must be something wrong at the Sri Lankan temple? Usually the monk is very punctual. Why don't we ask this noble lama to help us shave our hair, what do you think?" "Yes", I also secretly hoped so." (page 108).

And he asked someone to go and ask, but was immediately refused! The nun wanted to try her luck one more time, so she came to respectfully clasp her hands and asked him. But he also shook her head. The nun said: "This time you must personally go and ask him, maybe he will be compassionate and allow it." I thought so too, then my wife stood up immediately, went straight to the head monk and clasped her hands in prostration. Before we could say anything, he smiled and called the lama in charge of the dharma assembly and said something. This lama translated that if they didn't bring scissors, how could they shave our hair... Sir, we have scissors with us, and explained in detail. Everyone was extremely happy..." (page 109).

The fifth step: Sujãtã's milk bowl. Tells the story of Su-jãtã who lived in the village with the same name as her. She often went into the forest to make offerings to the teachers. She suddenly saw a monk lying unconscious under a tree, looking at his appearance like a god, she knelt down to pray and took milk from the bowl and dropped it into the monk's mouth. He gradually regained consciousness, and after that she brought milk to make offerings every day until the day he attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. What a great benefactor of World Buddhism, because if that village girl had not made an offering, who knows if the history of Buddhism would have existed?

On this occasion, Mr. Tuan asked the question: "Was there lactose in the bowl of milk of that village girl Sujãtã? Then discussing this matter, I found it very useful. It reminded me of a friend who told me that every time he drank milk, he suffered from bloating and diarrhea. When he went to the doctor and could not find the disease, the doctor suddenly asked: Do you drink milk? The answer was yes. He explained that some people's bodies cannot consume enough milk sugar (lactose), especially those in hot countries. And advised him to drink lactose-free milk. This can be said to be a very valuable topic of popular medicine.

The sixth step: Pure Land. Surely many people are accustomed to the civilized lifestyle of Westerners, so when they go on pilgrimages to India, they also encounter unpleasant things. Especially the scene of going to the toilet and always feeling a foul smell forever in my mind. I could not erase that feeling of impurity. As for Tuan, he said: “I kept thinking about it, so I had to go to Venerable Sariputta. The Venerable once taught the monks at that time about the meaning of impurity. He taught: There are four types of people in the world. Those who have impurity but do not know it; those who have impurity and really know that they have it; those who are not impure but do not know it; those who are not impure and know that they are not impure. The Venerable also taught that those who have impurity but do not know that they have it are the low class people. I was scared! Before, I sometimes lived in the low class neighborhood, but now I have cut my household registration and left that area.” (page 136).

Seventh step: Learn the virtue of giving. It is said that when pilgrimage groups come to Bodh Gaya, they often stop for a few days to rest, worship and pay homage to the sacred place where Buddha attained enlightenment and visit the temples and monasteries in this holy land. And then there is the work of giving gifts to the poor. The Indian people are very poor, and the ancients often said: "Poverty breeds thieves." Everyone wants to receive more, not to mention the "fake organizations" that deceive pilgrims!

As for the giver, there are many different minds, so giving alms is also full of complications. So he turned to the old stories in the scriptures for convenient learning. The first story is: "The old woman offering the lamp" in the Ajatasatru King's Longevity Sutra. Second: The story of Emperor Liang Wu and Bodhidharma in China. Third: The story of the Venerable Kusalachitta, a Sri Lankan monk who vowed to use his wisdom as a lamp to light the young steps of his youth in the holy land of Buddha, through the practice of giving Dharma because of all the means of giving, giving Dharma is the most victorious, the most supreme.

The eighth step: Going to Bodh Gaya is not just to find Buddha. Retelling the story of meeting a very special Buddha statue that is not sitting on a lotus throne, but sitting on a on a platform like a bundle of grass, a mattress of straw. “I saw this Buddha statue so close, so familiar. It felt as if the Buddha was stepping down from his seat, approaching me to hand me a torch and telling me, light the torch and go... (page 166).

Step nine: On the top of Dungeshwari and Pico de Bandama, contemplating the path of asceticism: Once, while visiting the Pico de Bandama volcano in Spain, he felt a chill when looking down. Seeing the scene of life and death existing every moment in the creatures on this earth. And then today he thought of the ascetic path of Prince Siddhartha, who left home to become a monk until the day he attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. At first, he thought that life in the golden palace was full of sensual pleasures. He pampered his body too much, so his mind did not find peace. So he practiced with the ascetics... And after six years in the jungle, he saw his body becoming more and more emaciated, but he still had not found liberation and enlightenment. One morning, he left Dungeshwari hill and headed for Bakraur village. On the way, he collapsed under a tree in that village, exhausted. Here, he received a bowl of milk offered by the village girl Sujãtã. When he regained consciousness, he went down to the Nilian River, bathed, and then went to the Bodhi tree to meditate. Until one day he attained the first meditation, second meditation, third meditation, fourth meditation... He attained the fruit of Supreme Enlightenment.

Step ten: The story of the two Stone Men. Retells the story of two Bodhisattvas who protect the Dharma. The first one is the great emperor Asoka, whose Vietnamese name is King Ashoka. He was born a cruel and evil king, so he was called Candasoka. He once led an army to conquer the country of Kalinga and won quickly, but left behind a bloody battlefield with hundreds of thousands of dead people and hundreds of thousands of people captured as slaves...! But not long after that, a very special change happened: while he was still glorious on the throne, in the language of Zen, he "suddenly became enlightened". He took refuge in the Buddha and kept the precepts, so he was called Dharmasoka. He had stone pillars built and edicts carved on them, which had the same meaning as the precepts for Buddhists as the Buddha had established. Hoping to bring a happy life to all people, as well as respect the lives of all other creatures... But those events remain in legend, because the relics are buried underground, and later generations cannot read ancient languages! Until 1831, nearly twenty centuries after Asoka, someone followed the traces to reveal the truth. That was Sir Alexander Cunningham, a former general, sent to India, assigned to Calcutta. He and his colleague James Prinsep began to take an interest in scientific and archaeological research here...

Step Eleven: Cows, just eat grass! Taking the opportunity to visit the city of Baranasi, one morning the hotel guide took him to the Ganges River to watch the sunrise. The winding path through the working-class neighborhoods was an opportunity for him to witness the real lifestyle of Indian society in miniature. On the way, he met cows burying their heads in the garbage to look for food. But where can we find food from the garbage of this poor country? It makes him feel pity for the cows that are honored as “Gods”, but are born in such a dark situation! Then he thinks about the fate of all living beings, to escape this tragic situation, he needs to light a torch, the torch of the wisdom of the Tathagata.

Step 12: Hear somewhere around here the sound of Tagore. In the steps of searching for the truth, suddenly he sees the image of a great man in the space. A genius of world literature is the poet Tagore, the first Asian to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1930. But for Buddhists, admiration is not only that, but also admiration for a heart and faith. According to Professor Krishna Kripalani, who wrote an English biography of Tagore, “Tagore was extremely arrogant and never bowed down to any person or image in his entire life. Yet Tagore had a deep respect for the Buddha at Bodh Gaya, Saranath and other Buddhist holy places. He expressed it with deep affection: “I am a disciple of the Buddha, I have taken refuge in his wisdom, I am deeply moved by the feeling of being close to him.” (page 262).

Step thirteen: Taj Mahal – The golden age has passed. The temple honored as “The Wonder of the World” has passed its golden age, or has passed a painful legend, heaped upon the Indian people. Full of inhumane stories, immoral acts, and ironically now the “tour guide” takes that tragic history to honor as “the symbol of eternal love” to become a wonder, so when thinking about right and wrong, it is difficult to distinguish!

Step fourteen: The story of the three monkeys of Saint Gandhi. When he arrived at Saint Gandhi’s memorial room, he saw: “Next to the small and low writing desk, there was a funny image that caught my eye right away. On a small white platform, there is a small statue of three monkeys covering their eyes, ears, and mouths..." (page 290). And he remembers the places he had been to before and had seen this image. Each place explains it in a different way. In Europe, it is: "Listen, look, and keep quiet if you want to live in peace." In Asia, "Confucius taught his disciples: "If something is not reasonable, do not look at it; if something is not reasonable, do not listen to it; if something is not reasonable, do not speak about it; if something is not reasonable, do not act on it." (page 291). Then he thought of the Buddha's teaching that the path to happiness and peace is: the Noble Eightfold Path..

The fifteenth step: Aftertaste. “Usually after trips, whether visiting, short trips or long trips, when I return, I have the habit of sitting quietly to think about the “space and time remaining” in my memory after those trips. So that one day, I will take a train that goes far and long, to the end of the world.” (page 306).

Conclusion:

“Bodhi Sunbeam” is a record of each pilgrimage step and the desire to study and practice that Van Cong Tuan has taken. The places he went to, the historical sites he saw, the spiritual realms he felt, the philosophies about life he heard, the comments on Buddhist culture he learned. All of them were recorded by him in a simple, clear writing style. A very valuable work in the spiritual field for those who wish to find a peaceful world.