Hòa Hảo (Chu Nom: 和好) is a Buddhist religious tradition founded in 1939 by Huynh Phu So, a native of the Mekong River Delta region of southern Vietnam. Adherents consider So to be a prophet, and Hoa Hao a continuation of a 19th century Buddhist ministry known as Buu Son Ky Huong ("Strange Perfume from Precious Mountains," referring to the That Son range on the Vietnam-Cambodia border). The founders of these traditions are regarded by Hoa Hao followers as living Buddhas —destined to save mankind from suffering and to protect the Vietnamese nation. The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... A replica of an ancient statue of Gautama Buddha, found in Sarnath, near Varanasi. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Prophet HUYNH PHU SO, the founder of Hoa Hao Buddhism was born in 1919 at Hoa Hao village, in the south of Vietnamese province of Chau Doc, close to the Cambodian border. ... View of the Mekong before the sunset The Mekong is one of the worlds major rivers. ... In religion, a prophet is a person who has directly encountered God, of whose intentions he can then speak. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... That-Son also known as Thien-Cam-Son and now is popular to ordinary people is Lâm-Vien-Nui-Cam. ... A large Buddha image in Yangon, Myanmar In Buddhism, a buddha (Sanskrit बुद्ध) is any being who has become fully awakened (enlightened), has permanently overcome greed, hate, and ignorance, and has achieved complete liberation from suffering. ...

Hoa Hao claims approximately two million followers throughout Vietnam; in some provinces near its Delta birthplace, as many as 90 percent of the population practice this form of Buddhism. An important characteristic of this sect is its emphasis on peasant farmers, exemplified by the old slogan "Practicing Buddhism While Farming Your Land." Farm life is considered to be the most conducive to religious practice and self-improvement. Patriotism and willingness to defend the homeland are valued. In a detail of Brueghels Land of Cockaigne (1567) a soft-boiled egg has little feet to rush to the luxuriating peasant who catches drops of honey on his tongue, while roast pigs roam wild: the 16th century was a good time for European peasants A peasant, from 15th...

Hoa Hao also stresses the practice of Buddhism by lay people in the home, rather than focusing primarily on temple worship and ordination. Aid to the poor is favored over pagoda building or expensive rituals; religious and social ceremonies are ideally simple and modest, and are not to include the food offerings, divination services, and elaborate wedding and funeral customs found in some manifestations of Southeast Asian life. These are viewed as a waste of money which would be better spent helping the needy. A pagoda at Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia A pagoda is the general term in the English language for a tiered tower with multiple eaves common in China, Japan, Korea, and other parts of Asia. ... This article is about the religious practice of divination. ... Nubian wedding with some international modern touches, near Aswan, Egypt Preparing for the photographs, at a wedding in Thornbury Castle, England A traditional Japanese wedding ceremony A wedding is a civil or religious ceremony which celebrates the beginning of a marriage. ... Underwater funeral in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea A funeral is a ceremony marking a persons death. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...

In the Hoa Hao home, a plain brown cloth serves as an altar, at which the family prays morning and night. Separate altars are used to honor ancestors and the sacred directions. Only fresh water, flowers, and incense are used in worship; no bells or gongs accompany prayers. A believer away from home at prayer times faces west (i.e., toward India) to pray to the Buddha. Adherents are expected to attend communal services on the 1st and 15th of each lunar month and on other Buddhist holy days. Look up Altar in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Incense is a preparation of aromatic plant matter, often with the addition of essential oils extracted from plant or animal sources, intended to release fragrant smoke for religious, therapeutic, or aesthetic purposes as it smolders. ... It has been suggested that lunar year be merged into this article or section. ...

Hoa Hao History

Huynh Phu So faced a great deal of trouble when he began to spread the ideas of his religion, a large part of which was Vietnamese nationalism, a dangerous idea in this time of French colonial rule. He was famously put in a lunatic asylum because of his preaching but supposedly converted his doctor to the Hoa Hao belief. As the popularity of Hoa Hao grew, Huynh Phu So made a series of prophecies about the political future of Vietnam. He said that the "true king" would return to lead Vietnam to freedom and prosperity, which caused most Hoa Hao to support the Nguyen pretender Marquis Cuong De, living abroad in Japan.

During World War II, the Hoa Hao supported the Japanese occupation, as did many other groups, and planned for Cuong De to become Emperor of Vietnam. However, this never happened and the Hoa Hao came into conflict with the Communists both because the Viet Minh were anti-Japanese and because of their Marxist opposition to all religion. During the State of Vietnam (1949-1955) they made arrangements with the Head of State Bao Dai, much like those made by the religion of Cao Dai and the Binh Xuyen gang, which was control of their own affairs in return for their nominal support of the Bao Dai regime. In fact, the control of this government by France meant that most Hoa Hao opposed it. Motto: None Official language Vietnamese Capital Saigon First Chief Emperor Bao Dai Last Chief Ngo Dinh Diem Rule Area South Vietnam (1954-) Independence  - Provisional  - Declared  - Recognised  - Dissolved From Franch rule May 27, 1948 June 14, 1949 1954 October 26, 1955 Currency Piastre National anthem Call to the Citizens Caution: The... Emperor Bao Dai Bảo Đại (保大帝、22 October 1913 – 30 July 1997) was the last Emperor of Vietnam, the 13th and last Emperor of the Nguyá»…n Dynasty. ... Tay Ninh Holy See Cao Dai (Cao Đài) is a relatively new, syncretist, monotheistic religion, officially established in Tây Ninh, southern Vietnam, in 1926. ... Binh Xuyen was a powerful Vietnamese criminal organization. ...

When America began pushing for Ngo Dinh Diem to run South Vietnam the most powerful groups to concern them were the Cao Dai, Binh Xuyen and the Hoa Hao, which had formed a small private army under General Ba Cut. O.S.S. Colonel Edward Lansdale used bribery with CIA funds to split the Hoa Hao and in 1956 General Duong Van Minh crushed the Hoa Hao and had General Ba Cut beheaded in public. This was the end of the Hoa Hao as an armed group, some later joining the Viet Cong in opposition to the Diem regime. After the war, the Hoa Hao remained. This is a Vietnamese name; the persons family name is Ngô, but should be properly referred to as Diệm. ... Official language Vietnamese Capital Saigon Last President Duong Van Minh Last Prime Minister Vu Van Mau Area  - Total  - % water 173,809 km² N/A Population  - Total  - Density 19,370,000 (1973 est. ... Tay Ninh Holy See Cao Dai (Cao Đài) is a relatively new, syncretist, monotheistic religion, officially established in Tây Ninh, southern Vietnam, in 1926. ... Duong Van Minh (February 16, 1916 – August 5, 2001), known popularly as Big Minh, led the South Vietnamese army under Prime Minister Ngo Dinh Diem. ... A Viet Cong soldier, heavily guarded, awaits interrogation following capture in the attacks on Saigon during the festive Tet holiday period of 1968. ...

External links

• http://hoahao.org/
• http://hoahaobuddhism.org/