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(Bhikṣuṇī Jampa Tsedroen) - Thich Nhu Dien ceremony, 12/12/2021


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Venerable Thich Nhu Dien,
Dear brothers and sisters in the Dharma, special guests,

It is a great honour for me to say a few words of congratulations and something about the role of Buddhism in teaching in state schools.

The Order of Merit award to the Most Venerable Thich Nhu Dien fills me with great joy and pride. To my knowledge, he is the first Buddhist monk in Germany to be awarded this highest honour by the FRG in recognition of his services to the common good.

Highly deserved in my view - and indeed “long overdue.” Before I turn to the subject of teaching in schools, let me go back a little in the memory of our common 40-year history and tell you about some stages that have remained particularly memorable to me. I want to keep this a little more personal, linked to my career:

When Venerable Thich Nhu Dien found asylum in Germany in 1978, I finished my technical school education and started a voluntary social year in the Protestant hospital in Holzminden. At that time, I knew nothing about Buddhism. At school, it had only been mentioned briefly in geography lessons in the context of Asia.

I came to Buddhism in 1980 and was ordained as a novice (śramaṇerikā) by the Venerable Geshe Thubten Ngawang in the Tibetan Centre Hamburg on 22 September 1981. Shortly after that, in November 1981, the Venerable Thich Nhu Dien and Vien Giac Pagoda hosted Buddhist teachings by the high Tibetan dignitary Kyabje Song Rinpoche for a week through the mediation of a German couple in Hanover (Karl and Sigrid Rumpf). Together with his entourage, we stayed for a week in the pagoda. At that time still a kind of factory building. If I remember correctly, the novice ordination of Christof Spitz, the German translator of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, even took place spontaneously in the pagoda at the end. Thus we were able to witness exemplary Vietnamese hospitality.

In 1982 you, Venerable Thich Nhu Dien, and your order were present at the first visit of H. H. Dalai Lama. You joined his public lectures and teachings in the Audimax of the University of Hamburg - 1,700 participants attended. You and your monks and nuns participated in a lunch with H.H. Dalai Lama in the restaurant of the Lodge House. We were regularly invited to your Vesakh Festival in Hanover in the following years.

Then in December 1985, I went to Taiwan for my highest ordination to the Bhikṣuṇī. For another three years after my return, I was the only nun living alone among monks in the Tibetan Centre. The Tibetan tradition had no experience with fully ordained nuns. Whenever there were questions about how to do this in practice, for example, with the seating arrangement, my teacher Geshe Thubten Ngawang would say, “We'll ask the Venerable Thich Nhu Dien and follow the Vietnamese tradition.”

Around this time, the Venerable Thich Nhu Dien showed us a construction drawing and presented a project during a visit to the pagoda. There was fundraising for the construction of a pagoda. The costs were estimated at 6 million Deutsch Mark. It seems that the state of Lower Saxony had promised that if half of the expenses were borne by the Vietnamese community, the state of Lower Saxony would pay the other half. The determination of Venerable Thich Nhu Dien reminded me of a bodhisattva's determination to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all living beings. The Venerable had made the firm resolve that is always at the beginning of such an undertaking. Soon you achieved the great goal accordingly. I cannot say whether the state of Lower Saxony kept its promise, and half of it came from there, nor whether the costs were not higher after all.

The fact is, the construction of the pagoda began in 1987. The inauguration of the pagoda took place in 1991. That was the same year when the second visit of H. H. Dalai Lama took place in Hamburg, in the Congress Centrum Hamburg with 5,000 participants. Also, on this occasion ‒ under the patronage of the physicist and philosopher Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker, the brother of the then Federal President ‒ you and your monks and nuns sat on stage together with H.H. the Dalai Lama. Although you had so much to do yourself, you took the time and gave us the honour to be there.

Then in 1995, the first visit of H.H. the Dalai Lama took place in your pagoda. In 2007 you were also present at the Nuns’ Congress at the University of Hamburg. You, Venerable Thich Quang Ba from Australia and also Ven. Nun Thich Nu Dieu Tam attended a lunch with H.H. Dalai Lama, and you sat at the same table with him.

The second visit of H.H. Dalai Lama to the pagoda took place in 2013. Before that, the Dalai Lama had visited the Global Ethic Schools (Weltethosschulen) in Steinhude and discussed peace and non-violence with hundreds of students, also across religious boundaries. It was about the shared values of people of different religions and non-religions.

And with that, I would like to move on to the second part, the role of Buddhism in German schools:

In his younger years in Japan, the Venerable Thich Nhu Dien studied Buddhism and education. Therefore, I believe that he can become a key figure for Buddhism in Germany in this field. I know you have already worked a lot, you are tired and would like to retire a little more, but in this matter, we need your support once again, your mediation!

During the last 40 years, we have had discussions from time to time about

- the education of monks and nuns,
- the teaching of Buddhism to children and young people.
- the idea of a Buddhist university.

I think we have now reached a decisive turning point: many of you have Vietnamese roots but are also German citizens.
I don't know what it’s like to live between two cultures. Would you describe yourself as Vietnamese Buddhists or as German Buddhists? It seems essential that young people don’t lose contact with the Buddhist religion and develop something like a Buddhist identity.

The Venerable Thich Nhu Dien compared Buddhism in a beautiful way to another flower, a lotus for the religious garden of Germany, and emphasised the beauty of all the flowers in this garden. The Foreign Office in Berlin is also very interested in discovering and promoting the peace potential of religions.

Peace education and the practice of mindfulness and compassion are subject areas to which Buddhism could contribute much from its excellent treasure chest. These treasures would help all children and young people, not only Buddhists.

In Hamburg, a unique way of religious education exists. It is called “Religious Education for All.” Here in Lower Saxony, you have a different concept. The Protestant and Catholic churches have recently decided to offer cooperative religious education in the future. In parallel, there is teaching Norms and Values from grade 5‒10. The question is, what are Vietnamese children doing in Lower Saxony, Hamburg, Berlin, etc.? Where do they learn about their religion and other religions? To what extent is their religious responsiveness promoted?

In Hamburg, Buddhism is mentioned just as extensively as the other religions in the new framework curricula that will come into force next year. But Buddhists cannot become teachers for religious instruction at the moment. Unlike in Austria, there is no teacher training for the Buddhist religion. The Buddhist religious community in Hamburg is very committed to co-responsibility for religious education for all. In mid-November, a symposium took place at the University of Hamburg, organized together with the German Buddhist Union. The school authorities assume that an initial application by the Buddhist Religious Community of Hamburg, an umbrella organization of currently eight member communities, will be revised and resubmitted. During the discussions, people keep asking where the Vietnamese are. There are relatively many Vietnamese children at school in the Hamburg districts Wandsbek and St. Georg. That means we need your participation and support!

On Wednesday, the mayor of Hanover said that Buddhist participation in religious education is also an important one in Lower Saxony. It would be good if we worked together nationally and locally and pulled in the same direction. Recognition as a public corporation (Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts, KöR) is not necessary for the provision of religious education but would probably simplify the process.

The German Buddhist Union (DBU) and the Congregation of the United Vietnamese Buddhist Church and Association of Vietnamese Buddhist Students and Vietnamese in the FRG applied for recognition as KöR in Lower Saxony and Baden-Württemberg in 1984. Unfortunately, neither organisation succeeded in being recognised on its own at the first attempt.

In the meantime, the religious landscape in Germany has changed. The landscape has become more diverse, more colourful. Non-Christian religions like the Bahai and the Aymadia now have KöR status. Buddhism is a world religion. After Muslims, it is the next largest non-Christian religion in Germany. I think it is essential to take responsibility and work together for recognition.

I am confident that, similar to Austria and Norway, we could achieve it with united forces in Germany.

I ask myself: How do your children come into contact with Buddhism? How much do they know about it and what skills do they acquire in this area, how and where?

Unlike in France, religious education in Germany, for example, occurs not only at home, and in the community, but also at school. Scientific studies show that 14-16-year-olds are no longer reached primarily at home but through school and peer groups. They usually decide which religious/spiritual path to take at this age.

In contrast to Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, in Germany, Buddhists cannot train as a religion teacher or study Buddhist “theology,” for example, to become professionally involved as a chaplain in the communities.

Religious education and pastoral care are two big fields in which Buddhists can contribute a lot to the common good ‒ we need young Buddhists ‒ not trained in Asia, but here in Germany. Without the Vietnamese as the largest ethnic Buddhist community in Germany, it will be challenging to tackle this. We need your expertise! That is my request: Help to continue to establish the Dharma in Germany firmly, also at educational institutions and in pastoral care in hospitals, in hospice work, in prisons, and the military.

[English translation by Quoc-Bao Do, slightly revised and authorised by the author.]

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