Awakened Zen Master Thich Dieu Thien

THE LIFE OF AN AWAKENED ONE

Thich Dieu Thien

Since 2001, A Completely Dedicated Life of Waking Up sentient beings to fully Awaken to liberate the suffering of birth and death

Right from a young age, Zen Master Thich Dieu Thien had only one purpose in life: Wake Up to break the cycle of birth and death. Upon fully Awakening in 2001, from her unstoppable Great Vow, she has been Waking Up people of all backgrounds, cultures, religions, and ages, going to people’s houses, traveling all over the world, opening wisdom mind for people anywhere, anytime, anyplace.

THE LIFE OF AN AWAKENED ONE

Thich Dieu Thien

Since 2001, A Completely Dedicated Life of Waking Up sentient beings to fully Awaken to liberate the suffering of birth and death

THE JOURNEY TO AWAKENING

1971–1984

The Lifelong Question Begins

Awakened One Thich Dieu Thien was born Nguyen Dieu Thien in
1971 in Hue, Vietnam. From childhood, she was deeply troubled by impermanence,
suffering, birth, and death. At age thirteen, after reading the life of
Shakyamuni Buddha, she gained faith that Enlightenment and liberation were possible.

“Her deepest question became: How can one return to
the Awakened Home beyond suffering, birth, and death?”

1989–1994

Ordination and Buddhist Study

In 1989, she ordained as a novice nun under Venerable Thich Nhu Chau at Hoa Nghiem Zen Monastery in Vietnam. She studied Buddhist scriptures, discipline, doctrines, and meditation practices for five years. In 1994, she graduated from Dai Tong Lam–Thien Hoa Nunnery, yet her deepest question remained unanswered.

She had gained knowledge, but had not yet found the direct path to complete Enlightenment.

1994–2000

Searching in America

After immigrating to the United States, she continued visiting temples, meditation centers, and spiritual communities. In 1995, she stayed at Tam Quang Temple in Michigan and enrolled at Western Michigan University. By 2000, she earned two master’s degrees in Comparative Religion and Holistic Health, but still felt empty inside.

Even achievement could not satisfy her longing to return to the Awakened Home.

February 2001

Renouncing Everything

In February 2001, she left everything behind to travel the world in search of Truth. Carrying only three robes, one bowl, a small suitcase, and a small amount of money, she vowed not to return to the United States unless she found the answer. She traveled through countries such as France, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, practicing at respected meditation centers.

Her vow was firm: she would not return until she found the way to complete Awakening.

April 8, 2001

Complete Awakening

In Thailand, Thich Dieu Thien entered a ten-day meditation retreat, hoping to find the answers she had long sought. On the first day, she realized that the practice could help control the ego but would not lead to complete Awakening. Although she wanted to leave, she remained until the end of the retreat, while her frustration continued to deepen. At the lowest point of her search, she turned inward, sat in meditation, and made a vow to face herself completely.

On April 8, 2001, the eighth day of the retreat at Wat Suan Mokkh International Dharma Hermitage, she completely Awakened, shattered the root of ignorance, merged with the Buddha Source, and ended the cycle of birth and death. In that moment, all her questions became clear, and from then on, she lived continuously with the Awakened Mind.

2003 - 2004

The Great Vow Expands

After Awakened, from the Great Vow to liberate all sentient beings, Awakened Zen Master Thich Dieu Thien continued her journey around the world, spreading the Dharma in countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, awakening many people to recognize the Buddha Nature within themselves.

In 2003, she founded Universal Door Meditation Center in Houston, Texas, as an open gateway for all people to awaken their Buddha potential. In 2004, she met Awakened One Thich Thong Hoi in Hawaii, and their shared Great Vow united. Two Awakened Ones joined together to guide beings toward Awakening and liberation.

2013 - 2017

Centers, Book, and Growth

In 2013, After many years of traveling together and awakening people around the world, the two Awakened Ones received earnest requests from students in Dallas to establish a local practice center. They hoped for a place where they could meet the Awakened Ones, deepen their own practice, and serve the wider community. The two Awakened Ones co-founded Suối Từ Meditation Center in the Dallas area. In 2016, Awakened One Thich Dieu Thien published *The Power of Awake*, which quickly became an Amazon bestseller in Zen Buddhism categories. In 2017, Universal Door Meditation Center moved to a larger nine-acre property in Sugar Land, Texas.

The Great Vow continued to grow from one center into a wider path for many communities.

2017 - 2018

Pilgrimage and Recognition

As the number of practitioners continued to grow, the original meditation center could no longer accommodate the community. In 2017, Awakened One Thich Dieu Thien opened the present Universal Door Meditation Center on a nine-acre property, creating a larger international home for Awakening and liberation.

The two Awakened Ones led the Phổ Môn–Suối Từ Sangha on a pilgrimage to the sacred Buddhist sites in India. During the journey, both monastic and lay disciples had their Wisdom awakened and experienced the Awakened Mind more deeply. Many Hindu and Muslim visitors also felt the purity of the two Awakened Ones upon meeting them. With deep reverence, they asked for guidance, took refuge, and requested Dharma names.

2020 - 2023

Awakening Many Practitioners

Beginning in 2023, growing numbers of children and adults from many cultures came to the meditation centers to have their Wisdom opened by the two Awakened Ones. Through retreats for youth and adults, they were guided toward the Awakened Home and liberation. In 2024, senior Thai monastics recognized the complete Awakening of the two Awakened Ones and supported their Dharma work. Ajahn Marut also offered ancestral land for a meditation center in Thailand, fulfilling a fifty-year aspiration. Meanwhile, the expanding international community in Texas had outgrown the existing facilities. In response, the two Awakened Ones began developing the International Awakened Retreat Center with a larger meditation hall, residences, dining spaces, and essential facilities. Envisioned as a global Awakened Home, the center will help present and future generations awaken their Buddha potential and become liberated from the cycle of birth and death.

The Smile That Forever Blossom

AWAKENED ONE THICH DIEU THIEN

The poem that arose when Awakened One Thich Dieu Thien,
Realized True Suchness at Suan Mokkh International Dharma Hermitage, Thailand — April 8, 2001.

When the heart opens wide,
I step into life
without worry.

For love that embraces all beings
is giving empty, free,
at ease amid every condition.

I vow to awaken
all beings from slumber,
so they may directly perceive
the Source of True Light
the Light that has always
shone without ceasing.

Yet, through countless lifetimes,
delusion has veiled it.
Now return to Awakened Source.

Though I know
sentient beings are hard to liberate,
nothing can deter my steps.

For life itself,
I vow to devote fully,
to awaken the Buddha Nature in every being,
to merge them into the Awakened Source,
to shatter the root of delusion.

And from here,
I vow to devote fully,
so that Bodhi may bloom early, and from here,
I vow to devote fully,
so that the smile may forever blossom

Forever blossom
on the lips of all beings…

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