Public veneration of Bodhisattva Thích Quảng Đức’s heart relic begins on May 6

The public veneration will take place at Việt Nam Quốc Tự (The Vietnamese National Pagoda) in District 10, Ho Chi Minh City, according to representatives from the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha.

On the afternoon of May 3, Venerable Thích Tâm Hải, Deputy Head of the Information and Communications Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, announced that the relic is currently preserved at the State Bank of Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City. It will be ceremoniously transported to Việt Nam Quốc Tự on 3 Tháng 2 Street, District 10.

Devotees and the public may begin paying their respects starting at 2:00 pm on May 6.

As of May 2, the organizing committee reported that 1,088 delegations - comprising nearly 50,000 people - had registered to participate in the veneration of the relic.

Previously, the ceremony to enshrine and venerate the relic at Việt Nam Quốc Tự was postponed from its original date of May 3. The Vietnam Buddhist Sangha stated that "the auspicious conditions were not yet met."

Both the heart relic of Bodhisattva Thích Quảng Đức and the Buddha’s relics - brought from India to Vietnam - are considered spiritual treasures and will be featured during the Vesak 2025 grand celebration in Ho Chi Minh City, commemorating the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and passing. 

The Buddha’s relics have already been enshrined at Thanh Tam Pagoda, located within the Vietnam Buddhist Academy, where the relics have been available for public visitation and reverence since 6:00 am on May 3.

Bodhisattva Thích Quảng Đức, born Lam Van Tuat in 1897 in Van Ninh District, Khanh Hoa Province, is remembered for his self-immolation on June 11, 1963. 

He self-immolated at the intersection of Phan Dinh Phung Boulevard and Le Van Duyet Street (now Nguyen Dinh Chieu and Cach Mang Thang Tam Streets) in Saigon, protesting the suppression of Buddhism by the Ngo Dinh Diem regime. Witnessed by thousands of citizens and Buddhists, the act shocked the world.

Remarkably, his heart remained intact after hours in the cremation chamber, solidified into a stone-like, indestructible form. The Inter-sect Committee for the Protection of Buddhism later decided to enshrine this "immortal heart" at Xá Lợi Pagoda. 

It was subsequently transferred to Việt Nam Quốc Tự and entrusted to the State Bank of Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City for safekeeping.