Phụ Lục
He was the eldest son of king Tran Thai Tong. He was a king, patriot and hero. He was also famous for his generosity and humaneness. He proposed a unity policy; advocated easing people’s labour, promoted and recruited talented men for the state machine through competition examinations, and expanded democracy. During his reign there were two famous conferences, one in Binh Than in 1282 between kings and officers, and another in Dien Hong in 1284 between kings and elders all over the country. As a result, 500.000 Mongol soldiers were defeated in 1285 and 1288. He was also a poet and founder of the Truc Lam Zen school, the first school of the Viets, which united other contemporary alien Zen schools, met the religious need of the people and contributed to the construction of an influential, civilised and independent Dai Viet[1] against the exotic impacts. It is in the reign of king Tran Nhan Tong, Vietnamese Buddhism reached its peak. In 1293 he yielded his throne to his son and started plunging headlong into Buddhist activities. In 1298 he was ordained a monk, then in 1304 he travelled all over the country for propagation of Buddhism and advising people to destroyed Dam tu[2]. At that time, the Viets had quite many religious beliefs; they worshipped Rivers, Mountains, Thunder, Thunderbolt, Rain, Clouds, Crocodiles, Gigantic Persons, Reproductive organs… Destroying Dam tu, Tran Nhan Tong advised his subjects to follow Truc Lam Zen school, the unique religious belief of the nation. This Zen school used Thap-thien[3].
[1] Name of Vietnam under the Ly and Tran dynasties
[2] refering to the religious belief of worshipping Reproductive organs
[3] The non-committal of 10 evils: killing, stealing, sensuality, lying, slander, unkind words, frivolous talk, greed, aversion, and delusion.
HT. Thích Tâm Đức