Monks and disciples mourn in silence for late Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh

[ASEAN NOW News]

The body of late Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is put into the casket at Tu Hieu Pagoda in his birthplace Hue on Sunday reported VN Express.

 

Since early morning, monks and disciples have gathered at Tu Hieu Pagoda in Hue to pay respect for late Master Thich Nhat Hanh.

 

 

Before Hanh was put into the casket, his monks and disciples went to see him for one last time.

 

His funeral would last seven days as a silent meditation course. The pagoda has asked visitors to pray in silence.

 

The shrouding ceremony for late Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh began Sunday as part of a seven-day funeral that will be a silent meditation course.

 

The shrouding ceremony lasted around 30 minutes Sunday morning. After the ceremony ended, monks and disciples paid their respect to the Master at the Full Moon Meditation Hall of Tu Hieu Pagoda in Hue.

 

All participants wore masks as a Covid-19 precaution.

 

Before his passing, the Master had told his disciples not to build monuments for him after his death.

 

Dalai Lama paid tribute

 

The Dalai Lama paid tribute to Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh Saturday, praising his dedication to building peace.

 

In his condolence message shared on Thich Nhat Hanh’s official Twitter account, he called the Vietnamese Buddhist monk "my friend and spiritual brother."

 

"In his peaceful opposition to the Vietnam war, his support for Martin Luther King and most of all his dedication to sharing with others not only how mindfulness and compassion contribute to inner peace, how also how individuals cultivating peace of mind contributes to genuine world peace, the Venerable lived a truly meaningful life," he wrote.

 

"I have no doubt the best way we can pay tribute to him is to continue his work to promote peace in the world," he added.

 

Thich Nhat Hanh died Saturday at Tu Hieu Temple in his birthplace Hue in central Vietnam, aged ninety-five.

 

The Zen Master lived in France

 

The Zen Master, considered the second most influential Buddhist leader in the world after the Dalai Lama, studied and practiced Zen Buddhism from 1942.

 

He became a monk at the age of twenty-three after studying Buddhism for seven years.

 

He left Vietnam in 1966 and has lived in Plum Village in southern France for decades, traveling regularly throughout North America and Europe to give lectures on mindfulness and peace.

 

Tribute has been pouring in from across the world following his death.

 

AFP called him the "Buddhist monk who brought mindfulness to West", the New York Times called him "a monk of global influence" while CNN called him a "peace activist and leading voice in opposition to the Vietnam War."

 

Monks and disciples wore their appropriate attires and masks while paying respect to their late Master.

 

Thich Nhat Hanh, considered the second most influential Buddhist leader in the world after the Dalai Lama, studied and practiced Zen Buddhism from 1942.

 

 

At 8 a.m. Sunday, Hanh's body is moved to the Full Moon Meditation Hall to be put into the casket.

 

 

After his cremation, expected to take place on January 29, Hanh's Śarīra would rest at the Tu Hieu Pagoda and other Plum Villages of the world.