A close look: Buddhist monks enjoy photos at an exhibition held as part of Buddhist Culture Week.

HA NOI — The fourth Buddhist Culture Week has begun in the city of Vinh in the central province of Nghe An.

Events will last through August 18 at Can Linh and Dai Tue pagodas, the city's Central Park and the provincial Workers' Culture House under the theme Phat giao Nghe An dong hanh cung dan toc (Nghe An Buddhism: Part of the Nation). This year's festival was expected to be bigger than ever, according to the organising committee.

"The week will help enhance people's awareness of Buddhist thought and spirit and help develop Buddhism in modern times on the basis of Buddhism as part of the nation," said the committee's vice chairman, the Most Venerable Thich Tho Lac.

Nghe An People's Committee vice chairman Thai Van Hang told the opening ceremony that he expected Viet Nam's Buddhist Sangha and Buddhists around the country to unite to develop Buddhism's fine tradition in response to the Government's policies, allowing Buddhism to go hand-in-hand with national development.

On the opening day on Sunday of the festival, thousand of Buddhists presented a Buddhism flag and flowers at the monument of President Ho Chi Minh in Vinh.

The remainder of the week's events will include a seminar on the development of Buddhism in Nghe An, a vegetarian cuisine festival, preaching on Buddhist morality, and a coloured lantern festival to pray for happiness and peace.

A photo exhibition in Central Park entitled Chua Viet (Vietnamese Pagodas) will display over 100 photos of architecture and sculpture from pagodas around the country. A display entitled Hoi Tu Ba Mien (Gathering of Three Regions) will also feature 40 large photos of beautiful locations captured by HCM City-based photographers Nguyen Thinh and Thuy Hong.

The week is expected to attract 20,000 pilgrims to the province ahead of the 7th National Congress of the Buddhist Sangha to be held early next month in Ha Noi. — VNS