Ambassador’s Remarks at the Commemoration of the
60th Anniversary of the Bodhi Tree at the
Tran Quoc Pagoda, Hanoi
(22 December 2019)
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It gives me great pleasure to join this event organized by the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha to celebrate a gloriousbondinthe age-old relations between India and Vietnam – the bond of Buddhism.
Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and its leaders are at the forefront of promoting cultural and intellectual exchanges between India and Vietnam. They are a strong bridge of friendship between our two societies. I thank them for their immense contribution in making the India-Vietnam relationship a global example of mutual trust, empathy and understanding,rooted in distant as well as contemporary history.
Sixty years ago, when India’s first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad visited Vietnam in 1959, he and President Ho Chi Minh had planted at the Tran Quoc Pagoda a sapling of the Bodhi Tree under which Lord Buddha attained enlightenment in Bodhgaya some 2600 years ago.
Today, we are standing under the Tree that grew out of that sapling into an icon of millennia-old cultural and civilizational connection between India and Vietnam.
It is difficult to find many philosophies and thoughts that have so deeply and profoundly influenced the humanity over the past 2600 years as Buddhism. Both as a faith and as a spiritual-intellectual tradition, Buddhism has brought distant civilizations together and fostered empathies between them.
As we celebrate this commemorative event, we also feel ever more convinced that in the midst of today’s global uncertainties and challenges, and in face of the stresses of modern day living, Lord Buddha’s message of introspection, moderation and compassion is worth remembering every hour of every day in every part of the world.
The advent of Buddhism in Vietnam from India nearly 2000 years ago was a momentous event that created the civilizational connection between our two societies and forged the philosophical and spiritual bonds that continue to strengthen the friendship between India and Vietnam with each passing millennia, century and decade.
Buddhism, both as faith as well as the spiritual and intellectual tradition,continues to influence relations between India and Vietnam even in our modern-day engagement. This Bodhi tree at Tran Quoc Pagoda and our celebration today arethe most vivid examples of this.
When President Ho Chi Minh visited India in 1958, he was presented witha statue of Lord Buddha by his Indian hosts as a mark of love for him and our common respect for Lord Buddha.
The bonds of Buddhism have continued to find prominence in our high-level engagements ever since, including several visits to Bodhgaya by the top leaders of Vietnam. During his visit to Vietnam in 2016, Prime Minister Modi especially came to visit the Quan Su Pagoda and addressed a large number of Buddhist Monks and scholars from Vietnam.
In another landmark event showcasing our strong Buddhist connection, Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu participated as a keynote speaker in the 16th United Nations Vesak Day celebrations hosted by the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in Ha Nam province in May this year.
It is a matter of great honour for us that many of the Buddhist scholars from Vietnam have chosen to visit India for pilgrimage and studies. They are the cultural anchors of our relationship. Most Venerable ThicDucThien of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha is a recipient of one of India’s topmost honours – Padma Shree, which shows the high esteem and respect Buddhist scholars from Vietnam command in the hearts of the Indian people.
Today’s celebration is also a befitting finale to the commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of the apostle of truth and non-violence, who in the modern age perhaps most remarkably embodied the ideals of Lord Buddha – the father of the Indian nation, Mahatma Gandhi.
On behalf of our Embassy, I once again convey our heartfelt appreciation to the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha for taking this initiative. We also thank all the respected monks and Buddhist scholars present here, and all those who contributed in organizing this wonderful event.
Before I end, I would like to extend my warmest greetings to all of you for a joyous, peaceful and spiritually rewarding New Year and the Tet Festival.
ChucMung Nam Moi!
Quan He An Do Viet Nam Muon Nam!
