With a great aspiration for self-discovery and a quest for authentic values amid life's superficialities, Thầy Minh Niệm made the decision to embark on the spiritual journey at the age of 17, fresh out of high school.
Seven years of monastic life at Huệ Nghiêm Buddhist Academy in Bình Tân district, Ho Chi Minh City, saw Thầy acquire all the essence of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy. However, it was still not the right timing for all this profound knowledge to truly penetrate his being. When faced with the greatest tragedy of his life — the simultaneous passing of his parents — Thầy fell apart, realizing he hadn't even begun the journey of transformation.
Setting aside scriptures to fully dedicate himself to practice, Thầy turned to meditation. Starting with books introducing basic meditation practices by Ajahn Chah on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, Thầy felt as if he awakened each day, truly living as a practitioner.
Two years later, at the age of 26, Thầy arrived at Plum Village, the ideal meditation environment he had dreamed of. Even more fortunate was his proximity and receiving direct guidance from Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh, while practicing in the work of updating the Pratimoshka list of rules for Buddhist monastics.
In 2005, at 30, Thầy met meditation teacher Sao Tejaniya in Hawaii, USA, while seeking the essence of the Early Buddhist practice, Vipassana. If the practice of "dwelling happily in the present moment" at Plum Village helped Thầy establish a foundation for returning to himself, finding refuge in the present moment, and developing determination, then the practice of "mere recognition" in Vipassana meditation helped Thầy develop mindfulness — constantly observing his mental afflictions. Although guided by this second meditation teacher for just over 3 months, this encounter greatly contributed to his decision to retreat into seclusion for three years to confront his mental afflictions.
In 2008, Thầy looked out for meditation centers in the northeastern United States to verify his cultivation. From there, he began sharing his meditation experiences, using modern psychological methods instead of traditional religious language. It was also when Thầy developed a dynamic meditation practice for himself, based on the original Theravada tradition and Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, called Insight Meditation. This was a continuation and development rather than a separate invention.
In 2010, Thầy published “Hiểu về trái tim”,quickly becoming popular among Vietnamese youth, voted as the favorite book of 2013 (by Fahasa) and bestseller in the country multiple times. This first book was also sold to Brain Works Asia Japan and sold on Amazon under the English title "Understanding the Heart - The Art of Living in Happiness". "Understanding the Heart – The Art of Living in Happiness”.
From 2011 to 2014, Thầy embarked on a pilgrimage around 25 states in the United States. He was living half the time in the wilderness and half the time living and volunteering on organic farms. Despite facing near-death experiences six times and enduring countless hardships, this journey served as potent medicine, liberating Thầy from his old, limited self. And it can be said that this was one of the most beautiful periods in Thầy's monastic life, as Nguyen Du famously said: "Not practicing but is like practicing" (The Tale of Kieu). “Không tu mà cũng như tu mới là” (Truyện Kiều).
In 2015, Thầy founded Bản Hoa Anh Đào (Cherry Blossom Center) for Soul Nurturing & Life Skills Training in Bảo Lộc, Lâm Đồng province. This center trains psychotherapists to serve the community, offering rehabilitation for those with emotional wounds and assisting companies and larger organizations in developing harmonious cohabiting and collaborating skills. And this is truly a gift that Thầy wants to give to young people who are seeking a meaningful path.
In September 2016, Thầy released his second book, "Làm Như Chơi" (Work like play) which was warmly received by readers.
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