The abbot of Pitu Khosa Rangsay pagoda, located at the center of the city and attracting millions of travelers, is Venerable Ly Hung, who built two dormitories within the pagoda’s campus and turned them into places to accommodate poor students and fund their study at university level.

Since 1996, with the assistance of the Venerable Ly Hung, more than 1,000 students have graduated from schools. Many of them have become directors of businesses, others are studying for master’s and doctor’s degrees in Vietnam and overseas.

Born in Can Tho City, the monk experienced a childhood with hardships. He had to undertake simple jobs, including collecting scraps, catching crabs and snails to get money to go to school. With his confidence and effort, he overcame all difficulties, established his position in life and vowed to help the people in needs.

At the age of 14, he left his home to become a monk at Sanvor Pothinhen Pagoda in O Mon district. 

Over many years, Venerable Ly Hung has devoted his attention to studying and practicing. Currently, he is the holder of a doctorate in religious studies and can speak many languages such as Khmer, English, Chinese and Balinese.

“Having gone through a period of poverty and having to work hard to earn my living, I have a feeling that I have to myself to study diligently to gain qualifications and knowledge, so as to help other people,” he said.

Understanding the difficulties of ethnic Khmer students studying in Can Tho City, since 1996, Venerable Ly Hung has helped and cared for them by providing accommodations and bringing them up.

“At first, because of limited financial resources, the pagoda could only give support to several students. Later, as I can seek aid from benefactors, the number of students receiving support from the pagoda increased gradually,” he said.

The students don’t have to pay for any product or service. Meals, electricity and water are all free of charge. The pagoda grants scholarship to students, gives bicycles to the students who need a vehicle to go to school, and encourages students to nurture their dreams. 

The students live as members of the pagoda. Their parents are happy leaving their children at the pagoda as the financial burden on their shoulders have been lifted.

Monk Ly Hung said the pagoda is ready to receive and provide accommodations and meals to students to fund their studies, provided that their parents agree on this. The pagoda won’t accept the students with bad conduct.

When living at the temple, children are taught rituals, customs, lifestyle, and culture of the ethnic group.

According to the monk, most of the students who once lived at the pagoda have become good citizens and have stable jobs after they finish higher education.

“When studying at university, many students had to spend time to sell lottery tickets and bread to earn extra money. If they cannot sell the products, the monk would be the buyer,” he said.

Some students nurtured by the pagoda have become directors of large companies, while some others continue to study for master’s degree and doctorate. Succeeding in life and business, they come back to the pagoda to show their gratitude and donate money to help the students, who were just like them in the past.

According to the monk, the students at the pagoda all receive the support from local authorities. He hopes that once the students gain achievements in their lives, they would think of supporting poor students and people like they were in the past.

Danh Trung Chanh, 18, from Kien Giang, is studying Mechatronics Engineering at Can Tho University, said he is lucky to receive the support. It is always very quiet at the pagoda, which allows him to concentrate on his lessons.

Hoai Thanh