Over the course of a human life, everyone has at least played the roles of student and teachers many times, and many people have spent a lifetime teaching.

The teacher-student relationship here is not only limited to the academic category, but also includes general social life. Confucianism has the phrase, "A letter is thanks to teachers, half of a letter is also thanks to teachers,” i.e., people who teach a word or half of a word are considered as teachers. Also, “teachers” include those who lift up the dream for us to reach the end of the path or a part of the way (if we had the opportunity to meet once) to further encourage us on the path of scholarly success. According to this meaning, Vietnam has the saying: "Learning from the teacher is not equal to learning from friends" (this means friends can also be considered as teachers).

Owing to these things, we become more aware of the position and role of the teacher. In religion, our teachers are masters and fellow practitioners. On Teacher's Day, surely everyone has that feeling when thinking about enlightened people who bring us the lamp of knowledge for us to pass through the dark banks of ignorance. To repay that debt, we usually express ourselves through our actions and words. There are many different wishes and expressions of gratitude to teachers, but I myself find it very mechanical to repeat those wishes to teachers. Why don't we use pure Vietnamese language to express our feelings of respecting teachers?

Since then, on every occasion of November 20, we often wish for our teachers good health and constant faith on their path of being boatman on the river of knowledge, because sometimes young students are playful and mischievous, disturbing and discouraging the will of the professors to preach. With that wish, we also try to correct and rectify ourselves, to improve ourselves more and more, so that every day the teachers coming to class will see us mature on the path of knowledge.

To teachers, perhaps the highest and most meaningful gift is taking on the career of becoming a teacher and planting seeds in people. We will follow after the master to produce good results in life and carry on your educated career by planting seeds in human beings.

Respectfully gifted to Venerable Thích No Giới Hương.

Vietnam Buddhist University, December 3, 2019

With Regards,

Bhikkhuni Quảng Hiền

Course 13, The Art of Speech and Presentation

Flowers for Venerable Bhikkhunī Giới Hương

 on Teacher’s Day, November 11, 2018

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