INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son and Indian Foreign Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar visited Tran Quoc Pagoda, Tay Ho district, Hanoi.
Vietnamnet
16 October 2023
At the invitation of Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Indian Foreign Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar is on an official visit to Vietnam and co-chairs the 18th session of the Vietnam - India Joint Committee.
On the afternoon of October 15 (September 1 of the lunar calendar), Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son and Indian Foreign Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar visited Tran Quoc Pagoda, Tay Ho district, Hanoi. Minister Bui Thanh Son welcomed the Indian Foreign Minister from outside the gate and briefly introduced Tran Quoc Pagoda - a pagoda with a long and famous history in Vietnam, located on West Lake.
Minister Bui Thanh Son said that today is the first day of the lunar calendar, Vietnamese people often go to pagodas on these days, so Tran Quoc Pagoda is very crowded this afternoon.
Most Venerable Thich Thanh Nha, Abbot of Tran Quoc Pagoda, welcomed the two Ministers and introduced thoroughly the history of the pagoda. The abbot gave the two Ministers 2 artistically crafted Bodhi leaves.
The Indian Foreign Minister also gave Tran Quoc Pagoda Bodhi leaves extracted from the Bodhi tree in Bodhgaya (Bodh Gaya - where Buddha Shakyamuni attained enlightenment).
After that, the two Ministers attended the prayer ceremony at the main hall of Tran Quoc Pagoda according to Vietnamese Buddhist spiritual rituals.
The group worshiped the Bodhi tree in the middle of Tran Quoc Pagoda's yard. This is a Bodhi tree extracted from the sacred Bodhi tree where Buddha attained enlightenment in Bodhgaya and was given to President Ho Chi Minh by Indian President Rajendra Prasad in 1959 during his visit to Vietnam. After nearly 60 years, the Bodhi tree has grown tall, casting a shadow over the entire temple yard.
Many high-ranking Indian leadership delegations, when visiting Vietnam, go to Tran Quoc Pagoda to pay their respects to Buddha and admire the Bodhi tree. The Bodhi tree at Tran Quoc Pagoda is a symbol of the long-standing cultural and civilizational connection between India and Vietnam.
The birth of Buddhism in Vietnam, spread from India nearly 2 thousand years ago, was an important event. From the beginning, Buddhism has been building civilized connections between the two societies, creating long-term philosophical and spiritual links, and is also a symbol of strengthening the friendship between India and Vietnam over time.
The Indian Foreign Minister thanked the welcome of Vietnamese Foreign Minister, Abbot, monks, nuns, and Buddhists of Tran Quoc Pagoda. He hopes that Indian-Vietnamese Buddhism will always strengthen exchanges and cooperation for peace and prosperity of the two countries.