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Testing Vietnam's Religious Resolve
By Simon Montlake
in Bat Nha, Vietnam

On a hillside temple in southern Vietnam, one of the country's most renowned Buddhist teachers is giving a talk.

This is Thich Nhat Hanh's second trip to Vietnam in four decades



Around 5,000 people, including hundreds of monks and lay followers from overseas, sit listening in a newly-built meditation hall.

Some have spent the night sleeping on mats, waking in the cold dawn to join the morning rituals.

Thich Nhat Hanh, a Zen master, peace activist and bestselling author, has spent the last four decades living mostly in France.

This is only his second trip back to Vietnam since 1966, when he went to the United States to call for an end to the war in his homeland.

He was then forced to live in exile after both South and North Vietnam refused to allow him to return.

In 1969, he led a Buddhist delegation to the Paris peace talks on Vietnam.

Today, he is back in Vietnam on a 10-week tour that is testing the limits of the Communist-ruled country's freedom of expression and faith.

On Friday he will hold a public requiem in Ho Chi Minh City for the souls of those who died in the Vietnam War, including those who fought for US-backed South Vietnam.

The idea is to heal the wounds and divisions of the past. The three-day chanting ceremony is open to all faiths, and even to non-believers.

"Marxists are invited to recite passages and statements from Marx which reflect his spirituality and his love for humanity," said the organisers in a statement.

Young enthusiasts ... (CONT'D )

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6450273.stm