A Special Meeting in Bhutan | November 2, 2026

Today in Bhutan, Venerable Bhikkhu Paññākāra Tuệ Nhân shared a warm and joyful meeting with two fellow Vietnamese venerable monks who are widely known, deeply respected, and dearly loved among Vietnamese Buddhist communities and around the world: Venerable Thích Pháp Hòa (Thầy Pháp Hòa) and Venerable Thích Tâm Nguyên.

Thầy Pháp Hòa is the abbot of Trúc Lâm Monastery and Tây Thiên Monastery in Alberta, Canada. Through his gentle humor, clear explanations, and deeply practical teachings, he has helped many people understand how the Buddha’s wisdom can be applied to family life, relationships, suffering, and the challenges of everyday living.

Venerable Thích Tâm Nguyên is the abbot of Happy Monastery in Sarasota, Florida. His warm and relatable way of sharing the Dhamma, especially through reflections on parents, family, love, and daily life, has touched many hearts, including those of younger generations seeking peace and direction.

To meet fellow Vietnamese venerable monks so far from their shared homeland, here in the peaceful Kingdom of Bhutan during the sacred days surrounding Project 108, brought a special sense of warmth and joy.

Seeing the venerable monks standing together is deeply heartwarming. Each has followed a different path of service, reaching different communities and generations, yet they share the same sincere aspiration: to bring understanding, compassion, peace, and well-being into the lives of others.

This beautiful meeting reminds us that the path of peace reaches beyond distance, language, nationality, and traditions. Wherever sincere hearts gather with a wish to ease suffering and nurture goodness, a sense of home can quietly arise.

We are grateful for this joyful encounter and for the loving service these venerable monks continue to offer to Vietnamese Buddhist communities and friends around the world. May their meeting in Bhutan strengthen the shared aspiration to carry wisdom, loving-kindness, and peace wherever they go.

Until Our Paths Meet Again | A Farewell Among Venerable Monk Brothers

As their time together came to an end, Most Venerable Ratanaguna and Venerable Paññākāra offered a tender farewell to their fellow venerable monks.

It was a simple moment, yet deeply moving. In their warm smiles, gentle embraces, and quiet words of farewell, we could feel the sincere affection of Dhamma brothers who share more than a common homeland. They walk together on the path of spiritual practice, seeking freedom from suffering and dedicating their lives to bringing wisdom, peace, and well-being to others.

Every meeting must eventually come to a close, but this parting is only temporary. Their paths may lead them to different places and communities, yet we trust that they will meet again somewhere along the journey ahead.

Even when physical distance separates them, they remain close in spirit. On the path of peace, and in the shared aspiration to bring benefit and happiness to all beings, sincere hearts are never truly far apart.

We are grateful for the warmth of this meeting in Bhutan and for this beautiful reminder that spiritual friendship does not end with a farewell. It continues quietly through shared practice, compassionate service, and the goodness each person carries forward into the world.

Until our paths meet again, may we continue walking together in spirit.

May you and all beings be well, happy and at peace. 🙏