Ngoa Van Spring Festival kicks off in Quang Ninh

The festival, running from the ninth day of the first lunar month to the end of the third lunar month, aims to pay tribute to King Monk Trần Nhân Tông, honour the ideological values of the Trúc Lâm Zen sect, and pray for a prosperous year. It is recorded that Trần Nhân Tông, the third King of the Trần dynasty, ascended to the throne when he was just 21. The King abdicated when he was 35 and spent the rest of his life on Yên Tử Mountain practicing Buddhism. He founded the first Vietnamese School of Buddhism called “Thiền Tông” or Trúc Lâm Yên Tử Zen on the 1,068 metre high Yên Tử Mountain.