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我出生在越南北方，媽媽生我不久就每天帶我去廟裡聽經、參加法會，所以我一歲就皈依三寶，法名明心。因為每天跟著母親去廟上誦經，我三歲就會背《彌陀經》、晚上叩鐘偈，也會念佛，法師和居士看到我可以跟著念誦都很驚訝。六歲時，我請求母親讓我住在廟裡。她說「妳還太小，又不會工作。想要出家，妳要先學掃地、洗碗，等妳能做得好，我就帶妳去。」從此，我就每天早起掃地洗碗，做好才去上學。我七歲的那個夏天，媽媽一清早就送我到鄉下的一個廟裏(離家75公里)，除了她，家裡沒有人知道。媽媽拜託法師收留我、照顧我，第二天早上，她就回去了。剛開始師父擔心我會想念媽媽跑回家，沒想到我在廟裏好像回到老家似的，既不想媽媽，也沒有想回家。
這間廟叫多寶寺，在當地很有名，越戰前以印經為主。戰後因村民很窮，也不懂供養三寶，所以出家人日用品很缺乏，因此廟上種了二畝地的稻子。我年紀小，除了上學，還必須幫忙煮飯、劈柴、耕田種菜。
當初我去的時候，環境雖然很艱難，可是我師父還是讓我讀書。她說「以前我自己不能上學，既然我養妳，就一定要讓妳去念書。人如果沒有智慧，在世上想要做任何事都是很困難的。」
1995年，我高中畢業，在佛誕日受了沙彌尼戒。二年後，經過越南佛教會核准，在1997年受具足戒。後來師父又准許我讀越南佛教大學。
2001年，將要大學畢業時，有個出家人從法國回越南奔喪，她請我為她母親誦經。她問我想不想到美國讀書？我說願意。她給我萬佛城的地址，並說她有一位師兄在那兒，我可以寫信請她幫忙。畢業後兩星期，我真的接到回信，要我填入法界佛教大學申請書。
我在一年後接到入學許可。所以2002年九月八日我拜別師父、母親，獨自到美國來。因為在越南要拿美國學生簽證很不容易，所以我相信能夠順利成行，都是上人加被。這是我第一次到一個這麼美麗富裕的國家，和一個這麼奇特的學校。這裡環境跟越南完全不一樣，尤其是語言。在此誠懇地請各位法師和善知識慈悲教導我，幫助我順利完成學業。
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I was born in North Vietnam. Ever since I was born, my mother took me to listen to the Sutras and attend ceremonies everyday. When I was one year old, my mother took me to the temple to take refuge. My Dharma name is Ming Xin (“understand the mind”). When I turned three years old, although I didn’t know how to write or read, I accompanied my mother daily to the temple to recite sutras and thus memorized the
Amitabha Sutra and the evening bell recital, and learned to recite the Buddha’s name. The Dharma Masters and the lay people were very surprised to see that I could follow along with the reciting.
When I was six, I asked my mother to let me to live at the temple. My mother said, “You are still young and don’t know how to work yet. If you want to leave home, you must learn how to sweep the floor and wash the dishes. When you can do them well, I will bring you to the temple to live.” I listened to my mother and I got up early every morning. I swept the floor and washed the dishes. After I had finished, I went to school. The year I turned seven, in the summer my mother sent me to a temple in the countryside (75 km from home). Besides my mother, no one else in my family knew of my leaving. My mother asked the Dharma Master at that temple to accept and take care of me. The next morning my mother returned home. My Master was very worried that I would miss my mother and want to go back home. However, the temple was the home I longed for. For this reason, I did not miss my mother or wish to go back.
The temple is called Duo Bao (Many Treasures) Temple and is well known locally. Before the war broke out, this temple specialized in printing Sutra texts. After the war, the villagers were very poor and did not know how to make offerings to the Triple Jewel. Therefore, the temple had to plant two acres of grain. When I was young, aside from going to school I had to help cook, chop wood, plow the fields and plant vegetables.
When I first went there, even though it was difficult, my Master still tried to provide for my schooling. She said, “I didn’t have the chance to go to school; now if I am to raise you, I will try to support you to study. If one has no wisdom, it will be difficult for one to do anything for the world.”
In the year 1995, after I graduated from high school, I took the Shramanera [Novice] Precepts on Shakyamuni Buddha’s birthday. Two years later, I received permission from the Buddhist Association of Vietnam and took the complete precepts in 1997. Later, I got my Master’s permission to go to the capital to study at the Buddhist University of Vietnam.
In the year 2001, right before I graduated from the Buddhist University, a nun who came back from France for her mother’s funeral, invited me to recite Sutras for her deceased mother. She asked me whether I’d like to go to the United States to study. I answered that I would. She gave me the address of the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas (CTTB) and told me that she had a Dharma sister there. She suggested that I write to her to help me. Two weeks after my graduation, I received her reply with the application papers for Dharma Realm Buddhist University.
A year later, I was admitted to the university. On September 8th, 2002 I bowed and took leave of my Master and mother, and went on my own to America. I believe that my trip here was very smooth due to the aid of Master Hua, because it is usually very difficult for Vietnamese to obtain a student visa. This is the first time I have come to such a beautiful and rich country and to such a special place. The environment is totally different from Vietnam, especially the language. I sincerely request the Dharma Masters and good advisors to compassionately teach me and help me finish my studies here.
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