Glossary of Key Terms
Hòa Hảo Buddhism is deeply rooted in the Vietnamese language, and its central ideas are often best understood through their original terms. This glossary explains the vocabulary used throughout this site. Diacritics are given as an aid to pronunciation and accuracy.
Names of the tradition and its lineage
- Phật Giáo Hòa Hảo (PGHH)
- "Hòa Hảo Buddhism" — the tradition's own name, after the village of Hòa Hảo where it was founded in 1939.
- Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương
- "Strange Fragrance from the Precious Mountain" — the nineteenth-century Mekong Delta reform movement, founded in 1849, from which Hòa Hảo Buddhism descends.
- Phật Thầy Tây An
- The "Buddha Master of Western Peace," Đoàn Minh Huyên, founder of Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương.
- Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa
- A related reform tradition of the same delta lineage, emphasising the four debts and filial righteousness.
The founder
- Huỳnh Phú Sổ
- (1920–1947) The founder of Hòa Hảo Buddhism. See the founder page.
- Đức Huỳnh Giáo Chủ
- "The Venerable Master Huỳnh," the honorific title by which adherents refer to the founder.
Teachings
- Học Phật Tu Nhân
- "Study the Buddha's way; cultivate the person." A short phrase summarising the tradition's path. See teachings.
- Tứ Ân
- The "Four Debts of Gratitude" — to ancestors and parents, to country, to the Three Jewels, and to humankind. See the Four Debts page.
- Tam Nghiệp
- The "three karmas" — action, speech, and thought — the three domains in which harmful conduct is to be avoided.
- Bát Chánh Đạo
- The Noble Eightfold Path, the classical Buddhist road of right understanding, thought, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration.
Scriptures and practice
- Sấm Giảng (Thi Văn)
- The founder's "oracles and sermons" in verse, the tradition's central writings. See scriptures.
- Lục bát
- The "six-eight" Vietnamese folk-verse metre in which much of the Sấm Giảng is composed.
- Dà (nâu sồng)
- The plain brown/maroon colour used at the place of worship, symbolising humility and the harmony of all people. See symbols.
- Bàn thông thiên
- The outdoor "altar communicating with Heaven," a simple standing incense holder kept in the yard of many Hòa Hảo homes.
Places
- An Hòa Tự
- The temple in Hòa Hảo village closely associated with the tradition's origins.
- Tổ Đình
- The "ancestral hall" — the founder's family site, honoured as the source of the tradition.
- Thất Sơn
- The "Seven Mountains," an isolated range near the Cambodian border of deep significance to the delta's reform traditions.
- An Giang
- The Mekong Delta province, formerly part of Châu Đốc Province, that contains Hòa Hảo village and forms the heart of the tradition's territory.
Observances
- Đại Lễ
- A "grand ceremony" — the major commemorative gatherings of the Hòa Hảo year.
- Lễ 18 tháng 5
- The founding anniversary, on the eighteenth day of the fifth lunar month, marking the beginning of the founder's mission in 1939 — the most important date in the tradition.
- Tam Bảo
- The "Three Jewels" or Three Treasures — Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha — to which the third of the Four Debts of Gratitude is owed.
A note on the diacritics: Vietnamese is a tonal language written in a Latin-based alphabet with tone and vowel marks that change meaning. We include them throughout for accuracy; readers unfamiliar with them can simply read the words as ordinary romanised names. For fuller treatment of any term above, follow the links or return to the home page.