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Founder Abbess of the Nun Pagoda Bảo Quang in Hamburg, Germany

Personal and Family Background

Most Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm’s name before she became ordained was Văn Thị Mai, and her Buddhist name is Nguyên Từ. She was born in the year of the Cat / Rabbit (1939) in the Xuyên Mỹ commune, of the Duy Xuyên district, in the Quảng Nam province, Việt Nam. She was the second child in a family of four siblings, and her father is Mr. Văn Công Thiều, Buddhist name Thị Liễu, and her mother is Mrs. Nguyễn Thị Liễu, Buddhist name Thị Châu.

Her parents received a modern education but they had a firm affinity to the Buddha's teachings. From a young age, she often accompanied them to the temple to recite Buddhist sutras. And since then, the seed of Bodhi sprung in the land of the Master's mind. When she was just 15-years-old, she gave rise to the monastic mind and became ordained. Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm’s mother had seen the challenging lifestyle in the monasteries, so she could not bear to imagine seeing her child suffer at such a young age. But because of Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm’s strong will to live the monastic life, her parents took her to the Bảo Thắng Pagoda in Hội An, with the intention of finding out what the living situation of the temple was like.

In general, all the temples in central Việt Nam in the 50s of the 20th century were of the same predicament. With a strong desire to live the monastic life, the Master convinced her parents to agree with her will. After that, the headmaster Thích Nữ Đàm Minh, abbot of the Bảo Thắng Pagoda, compassionately performed the ordination ceremony and gave the Dharma name Nguyên Từ. On June 19, 1959 (Kỷ Hợi), Master Thích Nữ Đàm Minh gave her the Sa Di Ni and two years later, on November 17, 1961 (Tân Sửu) she received the Thức Xoa Ma Na Ni. In 1965, realizing that her practice was complete, Master Thích Nữ Đàm Minh allowed her to become a bhikkhuni and honor bodhisattva vows at the Đại Giới Đàn Vạn Hạnh held at the Từ Hiếu Communal House, Huế (July 17-18, 1965 Ất Tỵ) led by the Great Elder Most Venerable Giác Nhiên, the second Supreme Patriarch of the Vietnamese Unified Buddhist Congregation.

Buddhist Studies

In addition to studying with many great monks and nuns, such as senior nun Diệu Không, senior nun Cát Tường, senior nun Diệu Trí, among others, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm was also sent by her master to study intermediate Buddhist programs at the Nha Trang Nunnery and majored in Social Studies under the Social Security Program of Vạn Hạnh University.

When the homeland of Việt Nam faced a new turning point after the spring of 1975, millions of Vietnamese compatriots were present all over the world, seeking freedom in the four continents. Since then, the Tathagata messengers from Việt Nam have united in the foreign land with the mission to promote Buddhism. In West Germany, the Most Venerable Thích Như Điển practiced and taught about Buddha. Leaving the loving homeland of the Quảng districts, the Venerable Master wished to invite Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm to go to Germany to assist with the monastery’s work, but Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm declined many times, because she wanted to say in her homeland to serve the Master and focus on her practice, especially now that her Master had grown old. But her Master talked to her many times, thus she listened and left her ancestral home to relocate to West Germany in the summer of 1984. Since then, Germany became Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm’s second home with many sentiments alongside her true homeland of Việt Nam.

Social Activities

She took on many duties, such as the director role of the Diệu Định Orphanage in Đà Nẵng, running the Bảo Quang Children’s Hospital and Thanh Khê Thanh Khê Children's Hospital, and being directly responsible for the Bảo Thắng Pagoda Hội An. Abroad, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm continued her work as General Director of the charity and social committee within the GHPGVNTN in EU, and she founded and operated the scholarship program for monks and nuns to study abroad in India, Taiwan, and for a few cases in the United States. She often directly leads charity work or supports social programs such as building bridges, distributing food to the sick, or helping with disaster relief in Việt Nam and around the world.

Establishing An Ashram

From the moment in which Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm was ordained, as the first disciple, she always did her best to help her Master establish nunnery temples of Bảo Thắng in the ancient town of Hội An, and the Bảo Quang nunnery temple in the city of Đà Nẵng. Following her Master's deeds, right after going to Germany in the summer of 1984, she established a nun temple named Bảo Quang in the city of Hamburg. She had to overcome many initial obstacles to build the ashram and nunnery in this foreign land, where she used to joke that it was as difficult as sowing the bodhi seed in a cement ground.

In addition to educating the masses and teaching the Buddha dharma to Buddhists, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm was also very concerned about and helped others with their studies. She mentored, directly guided, and became a spiritual advisor for many nuns and institutions everywhere, such as Bảo Vân and Hoa Đàm in Việt Nam, Linh Thứu in Berlin, Bảo Thành in Koblenz, Bảo Đức in Oberhausen in Germany, and Bảo Liên in Odense in Denmark. In addition to all these feats, she has always supported programs to build or restore ancestral temples and monasteries in Việt Nam, often donating to pagodas and Buddhist iInstitutes around the world.

Pilgrimage to Champa

In order to cultivate a firm belief in Buddhism among Buddhists, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm often organizes pilgrimages to worship Buddha relics in India, Ceylon, and Thailand, and has visited the Four Great Relics in China as well as other ancient sites around the world. She also often goes to monasteries throughout all the continents to visit and pay respects, as well as to visit and greet fellow monks and nuns.

Public Relations

Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm always values the importance of relationships and helps Buddhist organizations in her home province of Hamburg, such as the German, Tibetan, Sri Lankan Buddhist Associations, etc. She also maintains relationships with other cultural and educational organizations in the locality such as the university, the Hamburg City Museum, or local religious organizations such as Protestants, Catholics, etc.

Through her simple and modest lifestyle, diligent practice, and dignified abstinence, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm is well-respected by many monks and nuns all over the world. When they have the opportunity to go to Germany, they often visit Hamburg to visit the Bảo Quang Pagoda, although at times the pagoda was still small, it was honored to welcome such high-ranking monks as the Most Venerable Master H.T. Thích Tâm Châu (Canada); H.T. Thích Mãn Giác, Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh, H.T. Thích Tịnh Từ, H.T. Thích Tín Nghĩa, H.T. Thích Nguyên Siêu (USA); H.T. Thích Minh Tâm, H.T. Thích Tánh Thiệt (France); H.T. Thích Như Huệ, H.T. Thích Bảo Lạc (Australia); H.T. Thích Minh Tuyền (Japan); H.T. Thích Như Điển (Germany), among many other respectable venerable Masters. Famous foreign teachers such as Zen Master Ajahn Brahm have given lectures there. Young monks and nuns everywhere also often visit Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm, sometimes to discuss and exchange ideas or advice in a deeply religious love. For lay-Buddhists, Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm often cares about the health of the elderly, and monitors the activities of young people, advising them to live ethically. Sometimes, she travels hundreds of kilometers to give advice to families. Wherever she goes, she is respected and loved by Buddhists.

The Last Days

Although her body has many diseases, she is always smiling and joyful whenever she meets Buddhists from near and far, and regularly asks about the ashrams, and she continues to guide her disciples and followers to practice together.

The aspiration of Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm is to preserve the mission of “creating the Tathagata, practicing the Tathagata" without expecting people to mention it. In the last years of her life, she has often taught and reminded her disciples to practice Buddhism diligently, strictly adhere to the precepts, enjoy living in Six Harmony, and be compassionate with all living beings.

Following the law of impermanence, at 6:59 p.m. Saturday, June 12, 2021 (on the third day of the fifth lunar month, Tân Sửu), Venerable Thích Nữ Diệu Tâm returns her body to the earth and passes away at the Bảo Quang Pagoda, Hamburg, Germany, returning to the Buddhas and the Patriarchs, in the love, remembrance and prayer of monks, nuns, and Buddhists.

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