What are the three Quan The Am festival days?
In Vietnamese Buddhist life, Bodhisattva Quan The Am has three familiar festival days in the lunar calendar: the 19th of the second month is usually called the day of birth, the 19th of the sixth month is the day of attaining the path, and the 19th of the ninth month is the day of renunciation1. Many people call these collectively the Quan The Am festival days, and the word "via" here is the common way of speaking about commemoration days of Saints, Bodhisattvas or higher beings4.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thien mon nhat tungSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsThe division of the three days in the order birth, attainment of the path, renunciation was recorded in the ancient chanting texts of the Zen gate, not a newly invented naming2. The Bodhisattva's name also has many forms: Quan The Am, Quan Am, Quan Tu Tai, and the Sanskrit name Avalokitesvara2. In Mahayana sutras the Bodhisattva appears quite often, for example in the Avatamsaka Sutra, Surangama Sutra, Lotus Sutra, Heart Sutra, Mahayana Sublime Treasure King Sutra, Great Compassion Dharani, and Cundi Dharani2.
| Lunar date | Traditional name | Meaning according to sources |
|---|---|---|
| 19th of the 2nd month | Quan The Am birth festival | A commemoration called birth, honouring the Bodhisattva's deeds124 |
| 19th of the 6th month | Quan The Am attainment of the path festival | A commemoration called attainment of the path, mainly symbolic12 |
| 19th of the 9th month | Quan The Am renunciation festival | A commemoration called renunciation, honouring the Bodhisattva's deeds124 |
It should be said clearly from the start: the term "attainment of the path" should not be understood too simply as a historical event whose date can be fixed in the ordinary sense. The figure of Quan The Am is presented in many different sutras and traditions, so the festival days mainly carry symbolic meaning, giving the community an occasion to turn the mind toward the vow of relieving suffering, giving joy and the power of fearlessness1.
Where do the three festival days come from?
These three festival days belong to East Asian Mahayana devotional tradition, becoming markers for Buddhists to commemorate the Bodhisattva's deeds and make vows to practise1. This is the point to distinguish: Vietnamese Buddhism is a meeting place of many traditions, including both Northern and Southern traditions, along with schools such as Zen, Pure Land and Esoteric. Depending on the particular view of each school and each pagoda, the way the festival is organised differs3.
Kind of knowledge: DocumentedHistorical record. Backed by a document, a date and a source; the note number beside it points to that source. The five labelsIn practice, only the festival days of Shakyamuni Buddha and Bodhisattva Quan The Am are held solemnly with large numbers of devotees attending, while other festivals are usually combined by the pagoda with daily chanting sessions3. The form of these internal festivals is very simple: on the basis of the daily chanting session, the presiding monk only adds words of petition, intones the Bodhisattva's name and chants repentance verses about the vow of the Buddha or Bodhisattva being honoured3.
The reason some festival days are held at some pagodas but not others, according to the advisory board of Giac Ngo newspaper, may be objective conditions or the subjective karmic connection of the pagoda with that Buddha or Bodhisattva3. Thus whether a particular pagoda holds a Quan The Am festival is not a sign of orthodoxy, but reflects the tradition and particular affinity of each temple.
Original texts about Bodhisattva Quan The Am
Kind of knowledge: School: Phap HoaSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsThe most frequently cited original text about Bodhisattva Quan The Am is the Universal Gateway chapter of the Lotus Sutra, usually numbered as chapter 252. In this chapter the Bodhisattva is described with the ability to observe the cries of sentient beings, manifesting many bodies according to circumstances to save them1. The Bodhisattva is regarded as the one of Great Compassion in the Lotus Sutra, vowing to save all sentient beings, and as the one of Great Wisdom in the Heart Sutra, understanding that the five aggregates are all empty2.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Duy LucSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsAccording to the essential commentary on the Universal Gateway chapter compiled by Zen master Thich Duy Luc, when the Buddha answered Bodhisattva Inexhaustible Intention about the cause of the name Quan The Am, the teaching states that if countless sentient beings suffer various afflictions and single-mindedly call the name, the function of the self-nature of Quan The Am appears and all are liberated2. Also according to this commentary, the five contemplations of Bodhisattva Quan The Am are True Contemplation, Pure Contemplation, Compassionate Contemplation, Sympathetic Contemplation and Contemplation of Vast Wisdom2.
It should be noted this is the understanding of one school and one particular teacher, not something all traditions present in the same way.
Why is the Quan The Am attainment of the path festival on the 19th of the sixth month?
Short answer: according to the interpretation of phatgiao.org.vn, the 19th of the sixth month can be seen as an occasion reminding practitioners of the fulfilment of the practice of listening1. Deep listening is not merely a communication skill. It is the result of a mind that has reduced self-clinging, not obscured by prejudice and anger. When the mind is calm, one can hear what others have not said and see the causes behind their behaviour1.
Kind of knowledge: School: Dai thuaSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsThe core spirit of Quan The Am's vow, according to this source, does not lie in satisfying every worldly desire, but in great compassion always accompanied by skilful means. The Bodhisattva helps so that sentient beings overcome suffering and move toward understanding1. In other words, the festival day is not an occasion to exchange offerings for blessings, but an occasion to recall a particular vow.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Vien TriSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsOn the philosophical level, Venerable Thich Vien Tri, Deputy Head of the Central Buddhist Education Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, quoted by Giac Ngo newspaper, holds that Quan The Am is a personification of the virtue of compassion. Therefore whoever lives by the vow "in the morning bring others more joy, in the afternoon help others suffer less" is an envoy of Quan The Am, or an embodiment of Quan The Am4.
What do the stories of Quan Am Nam Hai and Quan Am Thi Kinh have to do with the three festival days?
No source among the references links the three festival days to the events in the story of Princess Dieu Thien or the story of Quan Am Thi Kinh. These stories are separate legends, formed through cultural acculturation and the basis of "manifestation" in the Universal Gateway chapter, not the source that fixed the festival days2.
Kind of knowledge: DocumentedHistorical record. Backed by a document, a date and a source; the note number beside it points to that source. The five labelsAccording to author Nguyen Lang, in the book Viet Nam Phat giao su luan volume II, the Nom verse story of Quan Am Thi Kinh is not yet known to have been composed at any particular time. The Vietnamese version published by Nguyen Van Vinh in 1911 contains 788 luc bat couplets and a letter from Kinh Tam to her parents in parallel prose2. Judging by the content, this may be a variant of Korean Buddhism, with the character Thi Kinh as the daughter of the Mang family, in Lung Tai district, Da Bang city, Korea2. The story's setting is closely connected to Phap Van pagoda (Dau pagoda, Bac Ninh), and the Lady Buddha of Dau pagoda is regarded as Lady Quan Am Thi Kinh2.
The verse story of Quan Am Nam Hai contains 1,426 lines and circulated among the people before the story of Quan Am Thi Kinh. According to Nguyen Lang, this story originally came from a Yuan dynasty monk in China, was transmitted in Vietnam from around the late 14th or 15th century and was Vietnamised2.
Kind of knowledge: School: Nghien cuuSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsAccording to researchers, the statue of Quan Am holding a child first appeared in the history of figurative devotion in Vietnam in the 17th century and became famous in the 18th century, and is still preserved at many pagodas today2.
How was the image of Quan The Am feminised over the ages?
Kind of knowledge: School: Dai thuaSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsMahayana sutras speak of Bodhisattva Quan The Am with a masculine form, male rather than female2. The notion of Bodhisattva Quan The Am with a female form took shape gradually. Mahayana sutras, especially the Lotus Sutra, were transmitted to China, and the main and auxiliary translations of this sutra spread quite widely from 255 to 601. By the Tang dynasty (618-907) the female form seems to have become completely widespread, especially among common people, forming an important devotion2.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Vien TriSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsAccording to Venerable Thich Vien Tri, studies state that before entering China, Quan The Am was male and the process of feminisation occurred over a long period afterwards. Under the influence of Esoteric Buddhism in the Tang dynasty, this gender shift became clearer and more distinct as many images of a deity called White-Robed Quan Am circulated. From then on, paintings and images of the Bodhisattva in China and neighbouring countries were all female4.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Thanh TuSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsVenerable Thich Thanh Tu also wrote that the practice of compassion is close to a mother's love, so people carved the statue as female. That is an image symbolising the practice of compassion, not that the Bodhisattva is truly a woman4.
Kind of knowledge: Folk beliefFolk belief. What people believe, avoid or pass on by word of mouth, recorded as a belief, not as a checked fact. The five labelsIn folk belief, Bodhisattva Quan The Am is conceived as a female figure, a mother, a Buddha, perhaps connected to the Mother principle that many cultures, beliefs and religions express through female saints2.
How do Vietnamese pagodas celebrate those days?
At many pagodas, the festival day includes chanting the Universal Gateway chapter, making offerings, reciting the Bodhisattva's name, releasing living beings or doing charity1. Devotees attending should learn the programme and keep a solemn manner. Eating vegetarian, chanting or doing good deeds all have meaning when they help reduce greed, anger and delusion and increase compassion1.
Kind of knowledge: DocumentedHistorical record. Backed by a document, a date and a source; the note number beside it points to that source. The five labelsAs noted, the scale of celebration differs between pagodas. Only the festival days of Shakyamuni Buddha and Bodhisattva Quan The Am are held solemnly with large numbers of devotees attending, while other festivals are usually combined by the pagoda with daily chanting sessions3. For internal festivals, the form is very simple: the presiding monk adds words of petition, intones the name and chants repentance verses about the vow of the one being honoured3.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Vien TriSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsAlso according to Venerable Thich Vien Tri, "the Bodhisattva's festival" is also a time when people nurture compassion, turn toward good and away from evil, avoid killing, alcohol and gambling, and resolve to eat vegetarian and recite the Buddha's name so the mind becomes pure4. Thus the Quan The Am festival is not only for practising Buddhist rituals but is also a means of spreading the message of "compassion, joy and equanimity" to everyone4.
What can busy people do at home?
According to phatgiao.org.vn, busy people who cannot go to the pagoda can still commemorate the festival day at home: tidy a clean space, light incense if appropriate, chant one chapter of a sutra or recite the Bodhisattva's name1.
Kind of knowledge: School: Chanh tinSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsThis source also notes one should not turn the festival day into an occasion to beg for everything in a transactional way. Some people think that offering a large tray will bring many blessings, or that merely reciting the name will naturally dissolve all consequences of unwholesome actions. Right faith does not deny the wonder of belief, but emphasises cause and effect: to want peace one must sow the causes of peace1. One should also avoid unfounded information about having to make offerings at the right hour, prepare special offerings or perform costly rituals1.
How do the three Quan The Am festival days differ from other Buddha and Bodhisattva festival days?
During the year, according to the list commonly used by pagodas, there are many Buddha and Bodhisattva festival days: the 1st of the first month for Bodhisattva Maitreya, the 8th of the second month for Shakyamuni Buddha's renunciation, the 15th of the second month for Shakyamuni Buddha's parinirvana, the 19th of the second month for Bodhisattva Quan The Am's birth, the 21st of the second month for Bodhisattva Samantabhadra, the 16th of the third month for Bodhisattva Cundi, the 4th of the fourth month for Bodhisattva Manjushri, the 15th of the fourth month for Shakyamuni Buddha's birth, the 19th of the sixth month for Bodhisattva Quan The Am's attainment of the path, the 13th of the seventh month for Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta, the 30th of the seventh month for Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, the 19th of the ninth month for Bodhisattva Quan The Am's renunciation, the 30th of the ninth month for Medicine Buddha, the 17th of the eleventh month for Amitabha Buddha, and the 8th of the twelfth month for Shakyamuni Buddha's attainment of the path3.
A notable point is that Quan The Am is the only Bodhisattva with as many as three festival days in the year according to the common division, while most others have only one day3. This reflects the special place of Quan The Am's vow in the devotional life of East Asian Mahayana in general and Vietnamese Buddhism in particular.
Why do some pagodas hold the festival and others not?
According to the advisory board of Giac Ngo newspaper, the reason some Buddha and Bodhisattva festival days are held at some pagodas but not others is, in their humble view, objective conditions or the subjective karmic connection of the pagoda with that Buddha or Bodhisattva3. This subjective affinity depends on the tradition, school, lineage, practice and dharma method of each pagoda, which produce different views, objects of veneration and ways of celebrating3.
Kind of knowledge: School: Thich Thanh TuSchool's interpretation. How one school or one book reads it; other schools may read it differently. The five labelsOn the meaning of worshipping Quan The Am in Vietnam, Venerable Thich Thanh Tu holds that if Vietnamese people who worship the Buddha or Bodhisattvas in the open air all remember that meaning, it is very good. One pagoda worships Lady Quan Am, many pagodas worship Lady Quan Am, to express the spirit of Vietnamese Buddhists longing to realise compassion and the virtue of patience. That is the essential goal of the spirit of Vietnamese Buddhism4.
