Behind the Thien Mu Pagoda in Hue is a light blue Austin sedan, quietly rusting in the corner of a monastic building.
On June 11, 1963, buddhist monk Thích Quang Ðuc drove this car to the corner of Phan Đình Phung street and Lê Văn Duyet street in Saigon. He took a gasoline can from the trunk and sat in the lotus position on the street corner. He doused himself in gasoline, and he burned himself alive.
It was a protest against the Diem regime's repression of Buddhism in Vietnam.
New York Times correspondent David Halbersham witnessed the event:
"I was too shocked to cry, too confused to take notes or ask questions, too bewildered to even think.... As he burned he never moved a muscle, never uttered a sound, his outward composure in sharp contrast to the wailing people around him."
I can't imagine a conviction that could drive someone to endure such pain. It makes me wish I was in touch with such a strong purpose. I can't imagine a clearer, more powerful statement. The random, angry destructiveness of today's suicide bombings clouds their message.
2 comments:
Nirvikalpa Samahdi. Deep formless awareness. Needless to say, that takes practice... and fundamentally, an amazing amount of presence, courage and just pure intention.
Your're right. Blowing yourself up is pure childsplay in comparison.
/martin
There is no spoon, apparently.
hoogo
Post a Comment