An overview of Ha Tinh’s Buddhism: history, present, and some features

Abstract

According to some documents, Buddhism had been presented in Hà Tĩnh quite early. Lê Mạnh Thát in History of Vietnamese Buddhism (volume 1), by examining the story of Chử Đồng Tử’s reception of Buddhism from an Indian monk at Quỳnh Viên Mountain in Cửa Sót, argues that Buddhism had practised in Hà Tĩnh during the Hùng King period (about the 2nd century BC). Later documents show that during the Chinese colonial period, Buddhism appeared in Hà Tĩnh. The vestiges of Buddhism in Hà Tĩnh became more systematic under the Lý and Trần dynasties, as evidenced by the emergence of many temples and promulgation of Buddhism by many renowned monks in Hoan Châu region in general and Hà Tĩnh in particular. However, most of the Buddhist temples in Hà Tĩnh today were built or renovated during the Lê and Nguyễn dynasties, still bearing the architectural and artistic imprints of the earlier period. During the resistance wars against the French and the Americans, Buddhism in Hà Tĩnh was in poor conditions to develop. Most temples were destroyed and Buddhist activities mainly took place as family practice. Indeed, Buddhism in Hà Tĩnh has been revitalized and developed in recent 30 years, especially when the Buddhist Sangha in Hà Tĩnh province was established.