Thích Thanh Từ

Thích Thanh Từ (1924–2022) was the most important figure in the modern revival of the Trúc Lâm Zen school and one of the most influential Vietnamese Buddhist monks of the twentieth century. Born in Cần Giuộc, Long An Province, he ordained in 1949 and initially studied in the general Mahāyāna tradition before becoming increasingly drawn to the distinctively Vietnamese Zen heritage of Trần Nhân Tông's Trúc Lâm lineage. In the 1960s and 1970s, he devoted himself to translating classical Chinese Chan and Vietnamese Thiền texts into modern Vietnamese, making them accessible to contemporary practitioners for the first time.

In 1971, Thanh Từ established Chân Không Monastery (later renamed Thường Chiếu) in Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province, which became the mother temple of the revived Trúc Lâm movement. Following Vietnam's reunification in 1975, he continued his work despite the political constraints on religious activity, and when conditions eased in the 1990s, he oversaw the construction of Trúc Lâm Đà Lạt Monastery, Trúc Lâm Yên Tử, and numerous other monasteries across Vietnam. His central teaching emphasized the Vietnamese identity of Buddhism — the conviction that Vietnamese Buddhists should practice within their own national tradition rather than simply importing Chinese or Japanese forms. He trained hundreds of monks and nuns in Trúc Lâm practice, effectively resurrecting a lineage that had been dormant for centuries and making it once again a living force in Vietnamese religious life.