Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument, Ho Chi Minh City Overview

Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument in Ho Chi Minh City is a memorial that honours the Buddhist monk's final act of courage in the face of religious discrimination. He self-immolated in the middle of a busy road to protest the killings of Buddhists by then-president Ngo Dinh Diem. The act has been immortalized by a memorial that shows him wreathed in flames in front of a bas-relief.

On his memory and to keep his brave deed alive in the hearts of the people, the Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument was built in 2010 as a memorial, around the corner of the same intersection, where he self-immolated. The park consists of an elevated structure of Quang Duc, encompassed into rising flames. It is truly a peaceful place. Learning the story of Quang Duc will help you understand a little bit of Vietnam's history, as this sacrifice is not to be sympathized but to be acknowledged. Malcolm Brown, an American journalist, photographed the incident. His photographs act as the ultimate evidence to this horrific yet heroic incident.

How to Reach Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument

The Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument is situated at the crossing of the Cach Mang Thang and the Nguyen Dinh Chieu streets in District 3 of Ho Chi Minh City. It is walking distance from the city centre. You can either take bus number 69 and 150 to the Cách mạng Tháng Tám bus station or bus number 28 and 65 to the Nguyễn Thị Diệu bus station in order to reach the monument. A taxi or grabcar is also a good option.

Story of Venerable Thich Quang Duc Monument

During the early 1950s, the Vietnam government turned extremely unfavourable towards its Buddhist citizens. Though, 70 to 90 percent of Vietnam’s Population were Buddhist, they were not given equal rights and were denied from public services, defence, business or any field of work. The first president of the country, Ngo Dinh Diem, belonged to the Catholic minority and thus favoured the Catholics in every aspect. The discrimination escalated with the ban on the Buddhist Flag from being flown on Gautama Buddha’s Birth Ceremony. The protests became hostile and the government turned even more hostile towards the poor community. Quang Duc wanted to protest against these transgressions. On 11 June, 1963, he arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, sat silently inhis car in the middle of the busy cross-road, while his fellow-mate poured diesel over his calm body. Chanting the name of Buddha for the last time, he struck a match and set himself on fire, which was being witnessed by hundreds of people. The memorial was built close to the same spot where he burned himself in 2010.