Ngô Thì Nhậm ( vi-hantu, 吳時任, 1746–1803) was an important

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

ese scholar and official who served several regimes during the turbulent last decades of the eighteenth century. He had served as an official for the

Trịnh lords The Trịnh lords ( vi, Chúa Trịnh; Chữ Nôm: 主鄭; 1545–1787), formal title Trịnh Viceroy (; ), also known as Trịnh clan (鄭氏, ''Trịnh thị'') or the House of Trịnh, were a noble feudal clan who de facto ruled Northern Viet ...

before losing his position as a result of a coup that followed the death of the Trịnh lord

Trịnh Sâm Trịnh Sâm (, 9 February 1739 – 13 September 1782) ruled northern Vietnam from 1767 to 1782 AD. He ruled with the title "Tĩnh Đô Vương" () and was one of the last of the powerful Trịnh lords. Trịnh Sâm defeated the ancient enemy of t ...

in 1782. He retreated from public life, focusing on his scholarship, before being lured back to official service by the Tây Sơn leader,

Nguyễn Huệ Emperor Quang Trung ( vi-hantu, 光中, 1753 – 16 September 1792) or Nguyễn Huệ ( vi-hantu, 阮惠), also known as Nguyễn Quang Bình ( vi-hantu, 阮光平), was the second emperor of the Tây Sơn dynasty, reigning from 1788 until 17 ...

in the late 1780s. He served the Tay Son regime with enthusiasm during the reign of the

Quang Trung Emperor Quang Trung ( vi-hantu, 光中, 1753 – 16 September 1792) or Nguyễn Huệ ( vi-hantu, 阮惠), also known as Nguyễn Quang Bình ( vi-hantu, 阮光平), was the second emperor of the Tây Sơn dynasty, reigning from 1788 until 17 ...

Emperor (r. 1788-1792), writing edicts for the Tây Sơn court, and serving as an emissary to the Chinese court. After the unexpected death of the Quang Trung Emperor and the ascent to the throne of an underage son, Ngô Thì Nhậm slowly decreased his service to the court, and turned his attention to an interest in

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

. He became noted for his writings on Vietnamese Buddhism, and was actively involved in attempting to revive the 13th Century

Trúc Lâm Trúc Lâm Yên Tử (竹林安子), or simply Trúc Lâm ("Bamboo Grove"), is a Vietnamese ''Thiền'' (i.e. zen) sect. It is the only native school of Buddhism in Vietnam. The school was founded by Emperor Trần Nhân Tông (1258–1308) showing ...

("Bamboo Grove")

zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

sect, the only native Vietnamese school of Buddhism. The revival attempted to harmonize the "Three teachings" of Buddhism,

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

and

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

.George Edson Dutton ''The Tây Sơn Uprising: Society and Rebellion in Eighteenth-century Vietnam'' 2006 Page 278 After the defeat of the Tây Sơn by the resurgent Nguyễn family in 1802, Ngô Thì Nhậm was captured and publicly flogged by a vengeful Nguyễn official, dying shortly thereafter from the injuries sustained in the beating.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ngo, Thi Nham 1746 births 1803 deaths Mandarins of the Trịnh lords Tây Sơn dynasty officials Vietnamese Confucianists Thiền Buddhists Tây Sơn dynasty writers 18th-century Vietnamese philosophers 19th-century Vietnamese philosophers