Meet Hong Bui of Anaheim, CA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hong Bui.

Hi Hong, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
One bright morning, some four decades ago, while walking on the grounds of Patton State hospital in California- a hospital for mentally-ill convicted prisoners, I experienced an intuitive reception of energy with intense vibrations of mind and body. I felt deeply connected with All, from the patients, to the small green weeds with or without flowers, the majestic tall trees, the weathered yellowish buildings… They seem to be talking to me. A sense of Oneness embraced me, a poem emerged :
“Outside, into the night I stepped.
No it was not dark.
The moon shone its caressing rays
Into the dancing clouds,
And onto the trees, some tall, some stout.,
The breeze brought about
A harmony of perfumes,
From above and below.
Snails trod their way, silent and slow,
Crickets from nowhere sent
Their swift music show
.I realized I did not walk anymore,
I did not know when this happened ,
Since blended to All.,
Part of All
I had become One with the immense peace.”

Such experiences came back several times.
I received the message to work for the Unity of Religions and to convey that humans have a Divine Spark in their Inner-self, and with cultivation, they will fulfill the Oneness between the Divine, the universe and themselves- a state of being that gives immense bliss. An aura of peace enveloped me. I was grateful. Grateful for escaping the war plagued VietNam, and reborn in America.

Together with my caring, compassionate, enlightened husband, we felt called to translate CaoDai scriptures from Vietnamese to English, write books on CaoDai, spread the word in Interfaith meetings, present at the Parliament of World Religions, teach at temples and universities.
We were both Physicians, having experienced country medicine, to academic work, some private practice and finally state hospital. Thanks to being at state hospital, we had time to devote to spiritual life.

CaoDai teaches inclusiveness, oneness, harmony of religions in the face of plurality. Its major messages are:

1- All religions originated from One Divine Source, which is called differently by different groups: God, Duc Chi Ton, Jehovah, Allah.

2- God grants a Spark of His Divine Spirit to All. His Spirit is the Great Sacred Light, and ours is the Small Sacred Light. Thanks to that Divine Spark, humans can cultivate , enlighten and join God.

In practice, CaoDai offers the Triple Path of Service, Self-Cultivation and Turn to Inner-Self with meditation, a path reachable by All, with potential for enlightenment.
Service springs from spontaneous
Love, is rendered to All, regardless of age, gender, spiritual background, and without expecting for returns.
Self-Cultivation is the continuous learning, improvement of the physical, mental, spiritual status.
Turning to Inner-Self provides
reflection on our thoughts, speech,
behavior, connecting with the
deities.
This Triple Path consists of both
Exoteric and Esoteric approaches ,
offering a harmonious equilibrium.
I sincerely invite faith or non-faith based reader to embark on the spiritual path.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Overall, it has been relatively smooth.

Hardship arose at the depart from Saigon, Viet Nam to the US. Hum, my husband was the only physician in his family and his parents were elderly and frail. So he decided to go back to his hometown to stay with his parents. I was to take our 4 young children, aged 18 months to 6 year old, to go to the US with my own parents. But I decided for myself to send the 2 oldest children with their maternal grandparents and I would take the two younger ones to join live with my husband. However, 2 days before my parents departed, Hum came from the countryside, in tears. He was sent by my parents- in -law to join us. So we were united. It was a miracle.

Dr Branson, from Loma Linda University, Adventist Health Care, was our sponsor, helping us to get out of Viet Nam. My parents who worked for the Adventist hospital.and their unmarried children were on the official list to get out. My grandfather and our family of 6 (husband and wife and 4 children) were given the names of the family which did not show up on time to be airlifted. We were supposed to say present when “our name”was called, and proceed to the aircraft. My grandfather resisted to the “changing of name”. So when his supposed name was called, we “all’ answered “present” for him!! It sure was an awkward time.

In the US, because of training opportunities, we lived in different cities. There were some struggles to adjust to internship. But as we were marveled to see actual medicine as the textbooks describe, we can endure the new language, the new culture. the new medical informations. We feel blessed.

I used to get up very early, go into the hospital, “worked up the patients”, then drove back home to pick up the children to take them to school or the daycare. Then rushed back to the hospital on time for the attending’s rounds, where i would present on the patients. There was a day I was so stressed, I drove from the hospital and drove past home, forgot to stop to pick up the children and drove to their school and daycare without them.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Medical school in Saigon was a happy time. I stayed with my parents. Rode the motorbike to school and to clinical rotations. Avid of new knowledge, i enjoyed those years. I met Hum at a clinic , having fallen in love when I caught his compassionate smile. He was one year ahead in school and helped me with preparing to sit for the internship exam. It was a competitive exam, in which a limited number of students were selected. I was fortunate to succeed. Since I knew English, I was chosen to shadow visiting professors from England serving as a translator. It was a very rewarding experience.

One year after we knew each other, we got married. And soon I became pregnant of our first child, while Hum has graduated and moved from Saigon to Tay Ninh to serve in the military hospital, as he was supported when a military medical student. Hum graduated first in his class, so he could choose Tay Ninh, his hometown. He would be able to care for his ailing parents. After graduation, I joined him there.

We served, Hum in the military hospital and I in the civilian one. We both carried some private practice after the hours at the regular work. Our patients, villagers often times cannot pay. They would come back days later to gift us with a shower of bananas, a pineapple, some vegetables or once in a while a chicken. They had the charm of country people.
One night, we were awakened by loud calls for doctor, with hard thumps on the door. A woman doubled in pain. Hum suspected it was a rupture of ectopic pregnancy. We drove her and her husband to the hospital, in our station-wagon.
After careful examination, Hum carried an emergency laparotomy and sure enough brought the woman out of trouble.

These were the years we built up our family. Four children were raised, with the help of grandparents.
.
The war intensified, in that year of 1975,shrapnels fell more intensely at our places of work. One nurse was injured. I remember one day, the bombs were pounding so hard, we could hear the buzzing over the roof The patients and nurses urged me to flee, as i had a station-wagon. They piled up in the car, opened all the doors and hung on to the doors. We quickly left the areas, seeing with horror people injured, loss of limbs.
It was decided that i and the children would take refuge in Saigon with my parents. Hum miraculously joined us just 2 days before we were called by the Adventist staff to proceed to the airport, to be lifted out of Viet Nam.
We were fortunate to get out of the war ravaged country all six of our young family. We thought we would go away temporarily, and Americans would prevail and we would return to Viet Nam.

In America, our second hometown happened to be Loma Linda. I was 30.
I was accepted to the Internship in Pediatrics, 2 months after arrival. There were vacant slots because not too many enrolled to Pediatrics. I received happily the training. I excelled, was complimented as “bright, hard-working and kind.” My every 2 weeks intern/resident salary was the sole income for our extended family of 15. We lived paycheck to paycheck.
When I finished residency 3 years later, we did not have any saving to be able to move on, install a practice. I accepted with relief the offer from Loma Linda to pursue a subspecialty in Pediatric Infectious Diseases. This meant continuity of paychecks.

Our family moved to West Hollywood, I pursue training at Cedars-Sinai. My husband. was in Surgery residency. We bought our first home in America. A year later, I transferred my Infectious Diseases training to Harbor-UCLA, in Torrance, CA.
We purchased a house in Cerritos, from the money gained with the house in West Hollywood. It was a house newly built, at walking distance to schools.
The training there at Harbor_UCLA was excellent. I felt with comfort that I can return to Loma Linda as an academician. It was happy time.
But driving the freeway for the first times was dreadful, especially when huge trucks rolled by you. I felt like I would be sucked in at anytime. I prayed as I was forced to drive.

Time went by, and I was to join Loma Linda Department of Pediatrics, at the age of 36 and was with Loma Linda between training and on staff for 14 years.
Hum remained in LA, finishing his residency of surgery. We were separated again.
He then opened a private practice for 2 years, and joined Lanterman State Hospital. There he had free time to devote in reading and translating CaoDai scriptures from Vietnamese to English. He lived in Pomona, I and the children in Redlands, near Loma Linda.
I happened to be the first specialist in Pediatric Infectious Diseases in that area of the Inland Valley. I was a very good teacher and consultant.
Between academia and providing assistance to the private practitioners, and raising 4 young children, I became worn out. Work was 24/7, since I was the only pediatric Infectious Diseases specialist of a busy teaching hospital.
I had a Buddhist background (before becoming CaoDaist when meeting Hum), and felt obliged to pay back for the years i received support in training by Loma Linda.
I had to stop, as I developed bipolar disease, from work without rest.

Meanwhile Patton State Hospital opened their Department of Medicine. Hum transferred from Lanterman in Pomona to Patton, which was 8 miles from our Redlands home.
Six months after stopping work, I felt better and resumed my practice of medicine at Patton. So we happily drove to work together, for 20 years of peaceful life.
We had moved 9 times when we came to America.
We retired in 2009, Hum was 66 and I, 64. We enjoyed our life in Redlands, where we served in our spare time, the Free Clinic. We developed our Spiritual activities, wrote books on CaoDai in English and Vietnamese.
Together we published
“For the Rhythm of our Journey: the Way of Life in CaoDai”

In 2019, Hum unexpectedly passed away.
Our children moved me from Redlands to San Diego.
In San Diego, I finished the book that Hum began writing
“CaoDai, a Realizable Path to Light”
and wrote 2 more books, bilingual English and Vietnamese:
” CaoDai, Practical Answers for Seekers”
” Appreciation of CaoDai Teachings”

I continue life with answering to seekers, devoting in precious quiet time, in contemplation and meditation, sending positive energy to All.

My professional career therefore spanned from a countryside doctor in a developing country, to a private practitioner, to an academician in a Pediatric Subspecialty in America, to a doctor for the underserved of a free clinic (New Hope Free Clinic in Redlands). I practiced family medicine, pediatrics and infectious diseases.

Attached are the list of publications. Books are available on Amazon, at an average price of 10$ per copy.

PUBLICATIONS
HUM DAC BUI, M.D. & HONG DANG BUI, M.D.

1- Tân Luật – New Religious codes -Bilingual – 1992

2- Pháp Chánh Tryền – The Religious Constitution of CaoDai- 1992-1 c

3- CaoDai, Faith of Unity, Emerald Wave, 2000.

4- CaoDai, Một Mối Đạo Hiệp Nhất, song ngữ
Sach tre em va gia đình, hinh màu, 2015

5- CaoDai, Faith of Unity, Parent and Child Book
Fully colored illustrated, 2015
English version and Bilingual

6- CaoDai, Essence and Prayers, Bilingual, 2016

7- Collection of Selected CD Holy Messages, 2015

8- CaoDai, Brief Essential Notions, 2018

9- CaoDai, Một Lối Sống An Bình, 2018

10- The Way of CD: For the Rhythm of our Journey, 2019

11- CaoDai, a Realizable Path to Light, 2021, 2022

12- CaoDai Practical Answers to Seekers, 2024

13- Appreciation of CaoDai Teachings, 2025

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Go with the flow.
Receive as much Love from God as you wish.
Know that we are All endowed with a Spark of the Divine Spirit
Bring as much Love as we can to All.

Be positive.
While joining our aspirations, skills, to contribute for the well-being of our fellow humans, animals, plants, the Universe.
See the bright side that our companions carry.

Don’t hesitate to get help.
Don’t let the fear of failure paralyze us.
Remember any journey, however long it may be, begins with a first step.
Be courageous, understanding, supportive, confident.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.caodai.org
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamesb117
• Other: hongbui24568@gmail.com

Image Credits
Compilation of Cao Dai activities. Pictures taken by various friends and family from the temple. Activities include making gifts for the elderly, serving food for the underserved, interfaith meetings, Parliament of the World’s Religions and lecturing. Photos also include my husband Hum Bui, M.D. a dedicated and kind Cao Dai leader.