Temples in Vietnam. Buddhist temples in Vietnam. More about the temple

Vietnam is a promising and constantly developing tourist destination in Southeast Asia. The country attracts millions of travelers with its exotic nature, relatively cheap tours, high-quality beach holidays and an acceptable level of infrastructure. Tourism in Vietnam began to actively develop around the late 1990s. For almost the entire first decade of the 2000s, the bulk of travelers were Chinese, and only a small percentage came from guests from Europe, America, and other continents.

The country's territory stretches along the Pacific coast for about 2000 km. It is conventionally divided into Northern, Central and Southern Vietnam. Each of these parts has seaside resorts with beautiful beaches, quality hotels and interesting attractions.

People go to Vietnam mainly for a beach holiday. In any part of the country you can find hotels to suit every taste - from small, economical 2* and 3* to luxurious 5* on the first coastline. Almost every one has a cozy garden with bright unusual flowers and plants, and a small swimming pool. For those who want to get to know Vietnam better, local travel agencies organize exciting excursions. Gourmets will not remain indifferent to traditional cuisine. Pho soup, nem pancakes, spring rolls, lau soup are basic dishes for the locals. Seafood is a special item. In Vietnam they are excellent and sold at reasonable prices.

The best hotels and inns at affordable prices.

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What to see in Vietnam?

The most interesting and beautiful places, photographs and brief descriptions.

This is a modern metropolis with developed industry. Here you can feel the pulse of business Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh City is also called the “city of mopeds”. In the mornings, residents do gymnastics in parks, and in the evenings they walk in the square in front of Notre Dame de Saigon, the main Catholic cathedral in the south of the country. The city is named after Ho Chi Minh, the founder of the Communist Party and the first president of a united Vietnam.

This bay is one of the most recognizable symbols of Vietnam. Almost every tourist brings a postcard with a picture of a ship with flying scarlet or brown sails against the backdrop of views of the bay. Halong is a bay with three thousand islands, grottoes, caves, cliffs, located a couple of hundred kilometers from the capital. The bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its unique beauty.

This complex was created to show people all the horrors of the war with the United States of 1965-1973. The museum contains photographs of Vietnamese people maimed by American chemical weapons (under the special name “Agent Orange”), instruments of torture, stories of abuse of the local population, and mass exterminations.

An underground labyrinth of approximately 250 km. These tunnels near Ho Chi Minh City served as a refuge and base for Vietnamese guerrillas. From here they made successful attacks against the Americans. Visitors are presented with cunning traps, weapons and household items of the soldiers who once lived here.

It is of great historical interest, since the imperial family once lived here, and mere mortals could not get here. Tu Cam Thanh is located in Hue and consists of a complex of palace buildings, temples and gardens, many of which are hundreds of years old.

The surviving remains of Hindu temples of the Thiapma (Champa) Empire that once existed on the territory of Vietnam. Before the arrival of the Viets, the lands were inhabited by Chams, who approximately moved here from the island of Borneo. From the 4th century Michonne was the capital of the Cham state.

A large cultural complex where excavations are still ongoing. It began to be built during the Vietnamese Ly dynasty in the 11th century. Over the course of its long existence, the territory of the citadel expanded, was destroyed, rebuilt again, and only in the 20th century. managed to begin full-scale archaeological work to extract valuable ancient exhibits.

The tomb of the national hero and socialist leader Uncle “Ho”, as he is called locally. This is one of the main modern attractions of Hanoi. In addition to the body of Ho Chi Minh itself, tourists are invited to look at the chambers where the leader of the nation lived and worked, as well as stroll through the magnificent park around the mausoleum.

A seven-tiered structure symbolizing the moment of Buddha's enlightenment. It was created in 1601. Thien Mu is the tallest pagoda in Vietnam. Not far from the tower in the 60s. In the twentieth century, the Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc, who, together with his brothers, fought against the oppression of the Catholic ruler, committed ritual self-immolation.

Another architectural monument from the period of Tyampa’s rule. This is a group of temples located in the city of Nha Trang. Some of them are still in effect today, despite the fact that they are more than a thousand years old. An extensive panorama of Nha Trang opens from the observation deck on the territory of the temple complex.

A temple with a large statue of a deity towering over the whole of Nha Trang. It can be observed from almost anywhere in the city; it seems to be floating in the clouds. There is a Buddhist monastery on the territory of the pagoda, and services are constantly held. To climb to the seated Buddha statue (the highest point of the pagoda), you need to walk 150 steps.

Another unusual temple from the reign of Ly Thanh Tong in Hanoi. It was built in 1049 by a grateful emperor in honor of the goddess Quan Am, who in a dream predicted the birth of a son. Nowadays, only a small pagoda with a statue of Quan Am, actually standing on one pillar, has survived from the entire building.

This is a complex in Hue, including a pavilion, a temple, a crypt, a court of honor and a pond with lotuses. All these structures were supposed to emphasize the greatness of the ruler and perpetuate his name. It was You Duc who came up with the tradition of building tombs in this way. After him, many tombs of later rulers appeared in the surrounding area.

Another name for the temple is Notre Dame de Saigon. This is a piece of Europe near the equator and the main Catholic church of Ho Chi Minh City, built in 1880. During construction, Notre Dame de Paris was taken as a model. In the temple you can attend a classical mass, celebrated by a Vietnamese priest in broken Latin, or simply admire the beautiful stained glass windows.

Another Catholic church built with the help of the French. It can be seen from almost anywhere in the city. This temple took many years to build and was completed by 1939. The structure turned out to be majestic and massive, designed to inspire appropriate awe of divine power. Now the residence of the bishop is located there, and Mass is regularly celebrated.

The cathedral is another striking architectural monument, reminiscent of French rule throughout Indochina. European canons are easily discernible in the Gothic outlines of the temple, and the interior decoration creates an atmosphere of reverence.

One of the most striking attractions of the capital of Vietnam. Emperor Ly Thanh Tong ordered the construction of this temple in honor of Confucius in 1070. A few years later, a university for the offspring of high-ranking officials of the state arose on its basis. Here the tourist will see thousand-year-old historical monuments: statues, a cult hall, the Gue Wan pavilion.

Better known as the famous mud bath in Central Vietnam. Here they take baths from healing mud, swim in pools filled with hot mineral water, and do health treatments. You can also buy high-quality inexpensive cosmetics here. There are package offers for visitors, which include a set of spa treatments, fruit snacks and various additional options.

It is considered the longest road of this type over the sea. It leads to the island where the Winpearl amusement park, popular among tourists, is located. The supporting structures are made in the form of French “Eiffel towers”, which are beautifully illuminated at night.

It is located 20 kilometers from Nha Trang and is a popular tourist attraction. These funny and unceremonious animals live everywhere, since at one time they uncontrollably multiplied and populated a small territory. On the island you can not only see monkeys, but also swim, sunbathe, and stroll through quiet parks and gardens.

A bizarre joint creation of man and nature. Inside the natural rocks of unusual coloring there are huge halls with temples and altars. Outside, houses of worship and pagodas are scattered among the greenery. The Marble Mountains are not just a tourist attraction, but a sacred pilgrimage site for Buddhists.

In the center of old Hanoi is located perhaps one of the most interesting attractions of the city - the Lake of the Returned Sword. Legend has it that a giant turtle inhabitant of the lake during the wars with China gave a sword to the hero Le Liu, who defeated the enemy with its help. Then the turtle took the sword back, hence the name.

A picturesque series of small freshwater lakes collectively called Lotus Lake is located in the vicinity of the resort of Mui Ne. They are notable for the fact that they are almost completely overgrown with lotus. It is especially beautiful on the lakes in the summer during the flowering period - during a walk, the visitor seems to plunge into the “kingdom of the lotus”.

In the vicinity of Phan Thiet and Mui Ne there are a lot of colorful sand dunes. The most impressive are the white and red dunes - huge formations of sand, interspersed with rare pine groves and lakes. When tourists get here, they feel like they are in an endless desert. Quad biking is the most popular activity for visitors to the dunes.

The Ke Ga Lighthouse is located about 50 kilometers from the tourist area of ​​Phan Thiet. It was built during French rule in 1899. Later it was recognized as one of the most beautiful in Southeast Asia. The lighthouse stands on a 25-meter cliff, the structure itself is 41 meters in height. The light from the generator is noticeable already 40 km from the coast.

Dalat is home to one of the most unusual attractions in the region - the Hang Nga madhouse or crazy house. It was designed by the daughter of Vietnamese politician Dang Viet Nga, who was an avid Gaudí fan. Now it is a hotel in the shape of a giant tree with branches-passages, rooms “cut out” in the trunk, hanging gardens and statues of fairy-tale animals.

According to reviews of local guides, this park is an upscale resort “without Asian exoticism.” In addition to attractions, a water park, dolphin and seal shows, an aquarium, there is a 5* hotel, excellent white sand beaches, and bright evening shows are constantly organized.

It is located near the city of Kobang and is considered the most beautiful in all of Southeast Asia. Around Detian there are rice fields, mangrove and palm groves and plantings of cotton trees. The landscape is complemented by pointed rock peaks, which against the blue sky are reminiscent of the scenery from Avatar.

Buddhist temples in Vietnam

Vietnam is a country where representatives of many faiths live well together. Often in Vietnamese cities you can find a Hindu temple, a Buddhist pagoda and a Catholic cathedral within one square kilometer. This is not surprising, because at different times Vietnam was influenced by representatives of different nationalities and religions.

Buddhism in Vietnam

Not much information has been preserved about how Buddhism spread throughout Vietnam. According to information from Chinese sources, the first Buddhist preachers appeared in the northern part of the country (then part of the Chinese Han Empire) in the 2nd-3rd centuries. Despite the fact that at the moment many of the Vietnamese are atheists who support only the cult of the spirit of their ancestors, Buddhist temples are never empty. Monks live in them, people come to perform traditional Buddhist rituals. New beautiful pagodas are constantly being built, which attract not only local residents, but also tourists.

Buddhist temples occupy a large place in the religious and spiritual life of the country. There are pagodas both in cities and outside them. Often, the Vietnamese choose beautiful places to build temples, such as mountains with magnificent viewing platforms at the top, or build pagodas among green rice fields.

The peculiarity of Buddhist temples in Vietnam is that the Buddha statue is the center of attention. This can be a fairly large-scale sculpture that can be seen from different parts of the city. Pagodas with large statues are usually the most attractive to tourists.

We want to tell you about several famous Buddhist temples in Vietnam located in different parts of the country.

One Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi (Chùa Một Cột)

This very small pagoda is known throughout Vietnam. Despite its tiny size, many tourists come to the temple. Its peculiarity is that it actually stands on one pillar in the middle of the lake in the center of the Vietnamese capital. The shape of the pagoda resembles a lotus flower, which is a Buddhist symbol of purity. The temple was built in 1049 by the then emperor, to whom the bodhisattva appeared in a dream and gave the ruler a son. The pagoda has certainly undergone restoration over the course of its thousand-year history. However, this place still retains the power and spirituality of past centuries.

Linh Ung Pagoda in Danang (Chùa LinhỨng)

This pagoda is located on a peninsula near the city of Da Nang. It is famous primarily for the huge statue of the goddess of mercy Quan Am. In the European style, she is called Lady Buddha. The statue can be seen from the city beach of Da Nang, and to get to its foot you need to drive onto the peninsula and drive along the serpentine road to the top. The height of the statue is 67 meters. And from the territory of the pagoda there is a magical view of the sea and the city of Da Nang.

Long Son Pagoda in Nha Trang (Chùa Long Sơn)

This pagoda is also famous mainly because of the large white Buddha statue. The temple is located near the city center, so most tourists definitely come here. A white Buddha sitting in a lotus flower rises on a mountain, reached by a staircase of half a hundred steps.

Temple on Mount Taku near the resort of Mui Ne

The place itself is very attractive for tourists. You can climb the mountain by cable car, the cabins of which offer magnificent views. At the top is the famous statue of the reclining Buddha. It is to her that hundreds of pilgrims come to pray. By the way, they don’t use the cable car, but walk the hard way up the mountain.

Chuc Lam Buddhist Monastery in Dalat (Thiền Viện Trúc Lâm)

This is a wonderful place by the lake, next to a pine forest, where the monks grow beautiful flowers and bonsai trees. If you get there, after a walk near the temple and flower beds, be sure to go down to the lake and enjoy the peace and tranquility that reigns in the forest.

How to behave in a Buddhist temple

It is always worth showing respect for other people's religions. When entering temples, you must cover your knees and shoulders. On hot days, you can take a light jacket or scarf with you. Some temples give out special capes at the entrance. Before entering the premises located under the roof, you must remove your shoes. In the halls of some temples there are signs prohibiting photography. This is extremely rare, but still, if you are faced with such a ban, it is better to refrain from taking photos. So this rule has its reasons.

Having visited Vietnamese Buddhist temples, you will see that they are all similar in their atmosphere, but each of them is unique in its own way. It is especially good to come to the temples early, when there are still few tourists. Or choose to visit remote and uncrowded pagodas.

Vietnam is a country not only of snow-white beaches, clear turquoise seas and comfortable hotels. Of particular interest to tourists are temples of Vietnam, after all, by visiting them you can touch the original culture of the country and its inhabitants.

Temples of Vietnam on the tourist map of the country

The ancient city of Dalat is a treasure trove of temple architecture in Vietnam. The city is rich in attractions. Among them are the most visited by tourists temples of vietnam: Ngoi Temple, called by the inhabitants of the country the Temple of the Golden Buddha, and Linh Phuoc Pagoda, built from fragments of broken dishes.

By the way, the entire interior decoration of the pagoda also consists of tiny pieces of porcelain. The city is a popular resort, so fascinating excursions to ancient shrines can be combined with a wonderful holiday in one of the hotels on the shores of the cleanest mountain lake Xuan Huong.

No less popular among tourists, Nha Trang can also offer guests of the city a very interesting excursion program to visit ancient Buddhist temples. The pagoda with the beautiful name Long Son deserves attention, where tourists from all over the world flock every year in search of real Asian exoticism. The pagoda has a distinctive feature that sets it apart from the long line of Buddhist temples in Vietnam.

Here there is a 38-meter snow-white statue of Buddha, which can only be reached by climbing 150 steps that go steeply up the mountain. There are others in the city interesting places.

For example, St. Mary's Cathedral, built in the Gothic style and sharply contrasting with the numerous Buddhist temples and pagodas.

The capital of the country, Hanoi, is a place of attraction for believers from all over the world. After all, in this ancient city there are about six hundred temples. Each of them has an ancient history, each is unique in its own way. The most famous of Vietnam, Quan Thanh, is located in Hanoi. According to ancient legend, it is he who protects the city from troubles and misfortunes.

Rules for visiting a Buddhist temple

Buddhism is one of the most democratic of all religions existing in the world. However, visiting Buddhist temples, However, you must follow a few simple rules:

1. Before entering the temple, you must remove your hat and shoes.
2. Clothes for both men and women should not be too revealing.
3. It is considered rude to stand with your back to the altar.
4. You should also leave the temple turning your face to the shrines.

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Temple of a Thousand Faces Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn is an atypical temple located 27 km from Nha Trang. If you are an independent traveler and are wondering what to do in Nha Trang, then a trip to this quiet, peaceful temple, surrounded by mountains, greenery and rice fields, is definitely a great idea.

More about the temple

Important: as of February 2019, the temple is closed to visitors. If you know that the temple is open now, please write in the comments!

I am completely indifferent to religious buildings. I don't admire them or encourage them to visit. It seems to me that instead of pouring money into churches, they would have renovated schools and hospitals better, instead of building another pagoda dedicated to a fictional creature, they would have better solved real problems.

Therefore, if at the beginning of our travels I also wrote about, then in recent years I have completely stopped mentioning them. But this time I will make an exception, because in the vicinity of Nha Trang there are 2 religious buildings that are really worthy of mention: Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn and Tu Van (Chùa Từ Vân).

While you can easily find reports online about the Dragon’s Labyrinth and the Tu Van Pagoda (Chùa Từ Vân), made from sea shells (Russian tourists are taken there), the Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn Temple is almost unknown to the general public. Let's talk about him.

Construction of Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn (pronounced phap vien sun) began in 2006 and is still ongoing. The design of the temple mixes the styles of various religious movements (from Buddhism to Hinduism), so the temple does not have its own style, but it’s funny that this is where all its charm lies.

For example, a stone statue overgrown with moss (typical of Bali) - a symbol of calm, is adjacent to a screaming monk. Cool, right?

An adorable baby elephant and his mother sat down next to the Chinese dragons. Where else can you find something like this?

The temple is beautiful, elegant, completely new! And there is no one here except monks, students of monks and rare tourists. Gorgeous.

Just look how cute it is: a grandmother walks across a bridge over a pond full of red fish, and a disgruntled wooden grandfather with long eyebrows sits next to him.

Do you want a joke? IN In March 2017, friends, on my advice, went to this temple by taxi and even the taxi driver was there for the first time! Can you imagine how amazing this place is?

I managed to find a blog in Vietnamese, which said that until the author came to the Nha Trang area, he knew nothing at all about this place. And when I arrived, I realized that in narrow circles this is actually a fairly well-known place: benches with the names of Vietnamese singers, musicians and other popular personalities who donated funds for construction are placed everywhere (in Asia it is customary to write the names of donors on beautiful benches).

And yet, how the temple manages to hide from ordinary people for so long is beyond me. Why is there still so little information about this place on the Internet? Some kind of mysticism.

What, at every step you can find temples where the styles of different religions are mixed and even have their own mini-version of Angkor Wat?

This is a photo of the real Angkor Wat:

Or are there mini versions of Vietnam's most popular attractions everywhere? Here, for example, you can climb into a tiny copy of the famous Hanoi Pagoda on one pillar and stroke the head of the Golden Turtle, the same one that, according to legend, gave Le Loi the sword that defeated the Chinese armies.

Here is a photo of the real 1 Pillar Pagoda from Hanoi:

In general, Vietnam is an amazing country, so many thousands of tourists seem to come here, but there are still little-known places here. For example, few people know about, but it is not so close to Nha Trang, or about, where you can feed crocodiles with giant pieces of meat, or about, or about - there are so many cool non-tourist places in Vietnam that you can’t even visit them on just one vacation!

But let's return to the temple.

Despite the heat, it is very comfortable to be on the temple grounds. Hidden in a charming grove, you sit and admire the views.

And what views!

The temple is surrounded rice fields, palm trees, hills and mountains.

The Temple has its own website and even Facebook page. It’s great when modern technologies are used, the bad thing is that all the texts there are only in Vietnamese, and Google translator translates from Vietnamese so-so. For example, the very name Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn is translated by Google translator in the context of some phrases as Dharma Institute. I don’t know about you, but for me this translation is clearly associated with the Dharma Initiative (hello to the recently revised “Lost”) :)

The monk's disciple goes about his business:

Meanwhile, we are relaxing in the attic. It is not tidy here, unlike other places in the temple, where there is perfect cleanliness. But that's a good thing. Atmospheric.

Pilgrims often visit the “Land of Buddha” (as they themselves call this place). I hope I was able to convince you that the Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn temple is worthy of visiting not only pilgrims, but also ordinary mortals. Come before the place becomes super popular. It's great here! And entry is free.

How to get there

The secluded Pháp Viện Thánh Sơn temple is located 27 km west of Nha Trang.

Exact coordinates: 12.31015, 109.01922

You can get there by taxi (), motorcycle taxi or rented motorbike. Renting a bike in 2017 costs approximately 120,000 VND per day if rented at a hotel or 100,000 VND if rented on the street. Read about

The diversity of religion in Vietnam is explained by the historical influence on the fate of the country of its neighbors (India, China), as well as French expansion. And although according to official data, socialist Vietnam is an atheistic state, in practice everything turns out to be a little different.
About 40% of the population are representatives of traditional beliefs. It is impossible to count their exact number, but they are united by the fact that they are based on the cult of ancestors.
Buddhism is the second largest religion in Vietnam.
Confucianism has also played a prominent role in Vietnamese society in the past.
Those who preach Christianity in Vietnam are only about 7-9%. In general, the fact that there are followers of Christ among the Vietnamese is the merit of the French, who carried out their colonial policy here in the 19th century. That is why such a branch of Christianity as Catholicism is represented in Vietnam. There are very few Orthodox people. After all, Vietnam did not have such close ties with countries in which Orthodoxy was the dominant religion. Perhaps the USSR in the second half of the twentieth century... But we know that religion in the country of the Soviets was banned and persecuted in every possible way. Therefore, this denomination is represented here by a rather small number of people who, by the will of fate, were thrown into this remote country from the CIS countries quite recently.
For many Christian tourists, it is fundamentally important to visit the temple on holidays. Where can you fulfill your spiritual needs in Vietnam?
1. Saigon Cathedral of Our Lady in Ho Chi Minh City
It was built according to the design of the architect J. Bourg in 1880.

Cathedral of Our Lady in Ho Chi Minh City

All materials for construction were imported from France. Thanks to their high quality, the church still looks like it was just rebuilt.

The cathedral has 6 bells that repeat the sounds of 6 musical notes: do, re, mi, sol, la, si. In front of him lies a cozy square in which there is a statue of the Mother of God.

Rumor has it that in 2005 her eyes were shedding tears.

2. Hanoi Cathedral
In its place, the Bao Thien Pagoda was previously located. The cathedral was opened in 1886 on the feast of the Nativity of Christ. Its architecture is reminiscent of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. It was closed for some time, but has been operating again since 1990.

For parishioners and tourists, the temple is open from 8-00 to 18-00 every day. Break: from 12-00 to 14-00.
3. Nha Trang Cathedral
Built in the best traditions of the French Gothic style: stained glass windows, elongated arches. It was opened in 1934. This temple was presented with 3 bells from the famous Bordon company.

It is the residence of the bishop. Services are held every day at 5.00 and 16.30, and on Sundays at 5.00, 7.00 and 16.30.

Unfortunately, there are no Orthodox churches in Vietnam. This fact certainly upsets Orthodox Christians who permanently reside in Vietnam. Despite all the efforts of the Orthodox community, the temple has not yet been built. But there is a parish of the Russian Orthodox Church in Vung Tau. He is in an ordinary apartment of the most ordinary five-story building on the second floor of the joint Russian-Vietnamese enterprise Vietsovpetro. On major Orthodox holidays, priests from Moscow and Vladivostok come to conduct services.