Master Tang Hôi

Master Tang Hôi presents an overview of the life, work, and thought of Tang Hoi, the earliest known Buddhist meditation master of Vietnam. Tang Hôi was born in the region that is now Vietnam three hundred years before the well-known Indian monk Bodhidharma went to China. He is revered by Vietnamese Buddhists as the first patriarch of the Vietnamese Meditation school, and his life and work tell us much about the roots of Buddhism in Vietnam and southern China. 

The history of Buddhism in Vietnam spans two thousand years—nearly as long as Buddhism itself has been in existence. Due to Vietnam’s geographical location between India and China, Vietnamese culture and religion were enriched by these two great cultures. As the life of Tang Hôi shows, Vietnam was the fertile soil for a unique form of Buddhism that blends the teachings of both the early Buddhist Theravadin tradition and the later Mahayana.

Every practice has ancestors, and the meditation we do today reached us through teachers whose names many of us have never heard. Master Tang Hôi is Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s account of one of the earliest of them. Thich Nhat Hanh (or “Thay,” which means “teacher” in Vietnamese) looks at the life, work and thought of Tang Hôi, the first Buddhist meditation master known to us from the land that is now Vietnam. Tang Hôi was born there three hundred years before the Indian monk Bodhidharma travelled to China, and his story shows how Buddhism first took root in Vietnam and southern China.

The Roots of Vietnamese Zen Buddhism

Vietnamese Buddhists honour Tang Hôi as the first patriarch of their meditation school. Known in Vietnamese as Khuong Tang Hôi and in Chinese as Kang Senghui, he stands near the start of a history that spans some two thousand years, almost as long as Buddhism itself. Thay shows how the early Theravada teachings and the later Mahayana came together in Vietnam into one living tradition. Reading Tang Hôi’s life, we can see the practice many of us follow today growing from roots that teachers like him planted long ago.

A Practice: Touching the Earth for Our Spiritual Ancestors

• Stand quietly and follow three breaths, in and out.
• Bring to mind your spiritual ancestors: the Buddha, the teachers of your tradition, and the people who taught you, known and unknown.
• Kneel and touch the earth, or bow from where you sit, and stay there for three breaths.
• Feel the seeds of peace, understanding and love they have passed on to you.
• Stand up with a half-smile, knowing that your practice continues theirs.

About This Book

• Author: Thích Nhất Hạnh
• Subtitle: First Zen Teacher in Vietnam and China
• Subject: the life, work and thought of Master Tang Hôi, and the early history of Buddhism in Vietnam.
• Language: English.
• Reading as practice: before you open the book, take a breath for the teachers who carried the practice this far.

Two more of Thay’s books walk the same lineage: Old Path White Clouds, which follows the footsteps of the Buddha, and My Master’s Robe, his memories of life as a novice monk.

Going as a River: Why the Official Source Matters

In the Plum Village tradition, we know that a single drop of water evaporates, but as a river, it reaches the sea. When you choose to support your practice through the Plum Village Official Shop, your purchase is more than a transaction. It is an act of Dana (generosity). Every purchase directly supports the Plum Village monastic community and its mission to share the practice of mindfulness with the world. Thank you for going as a river with us.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Who was Master Tang Hôi?

A: Master Tang Hôi was the earliest known Buddhist meditation master of Vietnam. He was born in the land that is now Vietnam, three hundred years before Bodhidharma reached China, and Vietnamese Buddhists honour him as the first patriarch of their meditation school. He is also known as Khuong Tang Hôi in Vietnamese and Kang Senghui in Chinese. Thích Nhất Hạnh tells his story in Master Tang Hôi.

Q: What is Vietnamese Zen Buddhism?

A: Vietnamese Zen Buddhism is the meditation tradition of Vietnam, which Vietnamese Buddhists trace back to Master Tang Hôi. Over some two thousand years it brought together the early Theravada teachings and the later Mahayana. Thích Nhất Hạnh was a Vietnamese Zen monk, and the Plum Village tradition he founded grew from these roots.

Q: Who was the first Zen teacher in Vietnam?

A: Vietnamese Buddhists regard Master Tang Hôi as the first Zen teacher in Vietnam and the first patriarch of its meditation school. He taught three centuries before Bodhidharma, often called the founder of Zen in China. Thích Nhất Hạnh’s book Master Tang Hôi presents his life, work and thought for readers today.