By Jahnathan Williams
The Dong Hung Temple, also known as the Buddhist Education Center of America, is a religious institute located in Virginia Beach. It quietly sits along Davis Street and is surrounded by trees on nearly all sides, giving the temple an ethereal appearance. Throughout the temple grounds, you can see statues that depict the life of the Buddha.These statues highlight his birth, his first teaching, and his death. A large statue of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara can be seen besides the Buddha hall, the main building where the congregation carries out their practices.
The temple was founded by the Venerable Thich Thong Kinh in 1998, who was one of the 10th generation descendants of the Lam Te Chuc Thanh tradition. The Lam Te Chuc Thanh tradition was established by the Venerable Minh Hai Phap Bao, which spread throughout middle and southern Vietnam. Thong Kinh grew up in a temple also named Dong Hung in Ho Chi Minh City. There, he and other monks studied the Buddhist doctrine and ordained. Thong Kinh later came to the United States and became a resident of Virginia. In 1994, he decided to bring the Zen sect to Virginia Beach. He and his fellow monks needed a temple to continue their practices and meet the spiritual needs of the Vietnamese community in Virginia Beach , so they decided to create one. Thong Kinh named the temple after the one where he ordained. The name,“Dong Hung”, means “to spiritually maintain and strengthen the traditional teachings of the east”.
Dong Hung was first established in the Kempsville area of Virginia Beach. They later moved to the rural community of Pungo in Virginia Beach due to the original being too small to fit additional members. However, they eventually had to relocate to another area. This was due to a violation of the city’s zoning laws, as the monks both lived and worked in the area. Since they could not fulfill its goals to the monk community and abide by the zoning laws at the same time, they moved to Davis Street. A documentary called “Living in the Pure Land” explored the situation the monks were facing.
The temple’s followers practice the Pure Land tradition of Zen Buddhism found in Vietnam. The teachings of this tradition are mainly focused on meditation. The strict rules and principles of the tradition are meant to grow one’s virtue and wisdom. The goal of the temple is to teach the Dharma to the citizens of Hampton Roads. Its monks want to take the Dharma and apply it to modern situations and circumstances. Although the majority of the congregation is Vietnamese, they allow any person, regardless of their race, religious affiliation, or creed, to become part of their community.
The temple has many religious activities, educational classes, and charity events. Their religious activities consist of rituals, community events, lectures on the Dharma, classes on meditation, and retreats. Many of these services are spoken in both English and Vietnamese. Monks also give counseling to its members, as well as teachings on moral practices that can help communities maintain their happiness. In addition, they allow services and ceremonies for weddings, funerals, and memorials. As part of their educational goals, they teach the practices, basics, and history of Buddhism. They also teach about East Asian culture, specifically Vietnamese. Students can learn about the Vietnamese language, traditions, and moral codes. The temple has classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and public services on Wednesdays and Sundays.
The temple is also deeply involved in charity. The monks of the temple follow the Buddha’s belief in helping sentient beings for a good cause. They want to display compassion and love towards those who live in poor conditions, especially in Vietnam. Donations are collected and distributed to communities around the world. The temple also provides scholarship funding, supplies food for the needy in the local community, and has humanitarian trips to places that have been damaged by natural disasters. In 2010, when two floods destroyed homes and carried away personal belongings of families, Dong Hung decided to have a charity drive. The drive collected food and other materials so that they could be given to the needy.
Since 2013, the temple has held The Great Compassion Festival. It is an annual event where there are mantra chants, Dharma lectures, and offerings to Hungry ghosts. Monasteries from states such as North Carolina and Ohio join the event to participate in the ceremonies. The purpose of the event is to teach and practice the Buddhist notion of Loving-Kindness.
I was able to attend a service, spoken in Vietnamese, on the 27th of November in 2016. The service involved making offerings to the Hungry Ghosts, in order to recognize their suffering and to show compassion to them. Before entering the hall, members had to take off their shoes and dress in their robes. Inside the Buddha Hall were statues of the Buddha with his two disciples. In front of the statues were altars where offerings were presented. There were also two other altars with offerings: one dedicated to the Venerable Thich Hanh Tru, the master of Thanh Kinh, and one dedicated to other monks who have passed away. Members of the temple wore blue robes over their clothing while the head monks wore yellow robes. Pillows were laid out for the congregation. The service began with the beating of drums and the chiming of bells, followed by a series of chanting and prostrations. They first made prostrations to the Buddha statues, then toward the altar of Hanh Tru, and finally to the altar of the deceased monks. For the majority of the service, the monks chanted mantras such as the Diamond mantra, the Compassion mantra, and the Wisdom mantra. The purpose of these chants was to remind the monks to maintain loving compassion. After the service, another ceremony was done in the back of the hall, where people made offerings for the deceased and chanted other mantras. Here, the mantras have the purpose of reminding the deceased of impermanence so that they no longer have to cling to their families. Once they let go, they can be reborn in another realm.
The monks that currently run the temple are the Venerable Thich Chuc Hoi, Thich Chuc Do, Thich Chuc Thanh, and Thich Chuc Dai. They are the four disciples of Thong Kinh. I had the chance to speak with the Venerable Thich Cuc Thanh about several topics, such as impermanence and displaying loving kindness. When I asked him about the goals of the monks at the temple, he replied that the goal was to follow the tradition of the Buddha and apply it to the conditions of a modern, changing America. This led to our discussion of impermanence. Since everything around us changes, it is their goal to adapt their teachings to those changes, and to see things as they are. He made a metaphor with the changes of the seasons: when it goes from Summer to Winter, we adapt to the change by wearing extra layers of clothes. Instead of complaining about the change in weather, enjoy it. Embrace it. Let the winter come.
When he said this, I made a comparison to the changes in temples. He told me the temples aren’t meant to be permanent, since, as mentioned before, everything goes through a state of change. In “Living in The Pure Land”, Thich Cuc Thanh mentioned that the monks were not frustrated with their situation of moving to other temples. Being frustrated would just make the situation worse. They had to accept the change and see the situation as it was.
He then explained how, whenever there was a newcomer, they would have to change their teachings to compensate for the monks. This is related to the practice of skillful means. He made a metaphor for tactfulness with a tree in a storm. Before the storm, a tree is rigid and not flexible. When the storm comes, the tree may break, but can become more flexible. He said to “be the tree after the storm”. Adapt to the changes, no matter how challenging they are, and use your skills to help others.
He also spoke about the application of loving compassion. When we meet people, we usually take their lives for granted. One day they are there, one day they are not. He compares taking life for granted with walking. When we walk, we usually do not pay attention to how much effort is put into it. If one day we cannot walk, we begin to appreciate how much walking means to us.We do not fully appreciate the presence of someone until they are gone. We do not realize how much we love them until they are gone.
The Dong Hung Temple has a very open, accepting community. After my brief interview with Chuc Thanh, he invited my dad and me for lunch with the temple’s members. My dad and I became acquainted with them very quickly, as we talked about many subjects regarding the temple and Buddhism. They instantly accepted us as brothers.
Works Cited
Thanh, Chuc. Personal Communication. 27 Nov. 2016.
“Prologue- A Brief History about Us.” Blog post. Dong Hung Temple – Buddhist Education Center of America – Chua Dong Hung. N.p., 05 Apr. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
“A Brief History and Activities of Dong Hung Temple in Virginia Beach.” Blog post. Dong Hung Temple – Buddhist Education Center of America – Chua Dong Hung. N.p., 29 Mar. 2011. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
Emmanuel, Steven. “Vietnamese Buddhism in Rural Virginia.” Blog post. Dong Hung Temple – Buddhist Education Center of America – Chua Dong Hung. N.p., 11 Dec. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
Living in The Pure Land. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
Trung, Phap. “History of Dong Hung Temple.” Blog post. Dong Hung Temple – Buddhist Education Center of America – Chua Dong Hung. N.p., 05 Apr. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
“Charitable and Humanitarian Projects.” Blog post. Dong Hung Temple – Buddhist Education Center of America – Chua Dong Hung. N.p., 05 Apr. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.
Website: www.buddhistedu.org.