Yesterday (Nov 11, 2009), on a rainy, windy Nor’easter evening Thay Chuc Thanh and I drove out to Tidewater Community College (TCC), located on Princess Anne Road in Virginia Beach. Thay was scheduled to be a guest speaker for a World Religion Class. Once parked, I was happy to know that Thay knew exactly where he was going so I simply followed, while we hopped over puddles and dodged the rain. See pictures

Once we entered the very, dry building we were greeted with a warm, hello by the Professor. She told Chuc Thanh that it was a blessing to have him. The Professor introduced Thay as Chuc Thanh to the class and everyone gave him a friendly welcome. The class had many questions, but Thay began with an introduction to the basic concepts of Buddhism as well as the history behind how he became a monk.

The students followed up with questions such as “What is suffering?”, “What is attachment?”  And “What is Karma?” Thay was able to answer all their questions and even illicit a few laughs with his anecdotal stories.  Some students wondered what was the result of being Buddhist? What was the “goal?” Thay explained that it was Buddhahood and that this is something we can achieve in our own lifetime. He said this does not happen at death, but actually when we are still alive and ready to get to the hard work of sharing the dharma!  He said that even after the Buddha, himself attained enlightenment, he spent the next 49 years traveling and teaching the Dharma. After questions, some students asked how they could find out more about Buddhism and the Temple. Thay directed them to the website, www.buddhistedu.org (we handed out business cards) and also recommended the book, The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh.

In closing, Thay Thanh thanked the Professor and the students for allowing him to visit and share about Buddhism. Thay remained for awhile shaking hands with students, while they thanked him for his time. We had a wonderful time at TCC and Thay Chuc Thanh looks forward to many other opportunities like this one to share the wisdom of Buddhism.

Kathy Manzella– Thánh Từ