Hi friends,
Have you ever in the midst of your busy life, taken time to listen to the birdsong, the temple bells ring, or watch a yellow leaf fall? Try it once Exploring the Buddha-land in the magnificent city will make your soul lighter and purer.
Visit Phap Hoa Pagoda, you will be immersed in the fresh nature, listening to the temple bells, the steady knocking, the solemn recitation of sutras, but the soul seems to be peaceful, quiet, and really wants to slow down to enjoy life. Enjoy these moments to the fullest.
I went to the temple at noon so it was empty. Outside the busy and bustling traffic, when entering the temple, you can feel the tranquility and peace from the trees, flowers, and the inherent peace of the Buddha's place. With the permission of the monks in the temple, I took photos to save the moments at this sacred and beautiful temple. Phap Hoa Pagoda in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City. It was established in 1928. The abbot who founded this temple is the monk Dao Ha Thanh. In the past, this was just a very simple temple. After a time, this place has undergone many historical events, then restored and restored to have the appearance it is today.
The pagoda stands tall and shimmering next to the Nhieu Loc canal, creating a picture full of poetic landscape.
Standing from afar, visitors can feel the poetic and peaceful beauty of this pagoda named Phap Hoa. The entrance to the temple and the small courtyard planted with many green trees and beautiful baskets of orchids are competing for color, bringing freshness and a feeling of peace and tranquility to the place of rest in the land of Buddha. It was as if we were lost in another timeline and this was a peaceful resting place from worldly entanglements. Phap Hoa Temple is a temple of the Bac Tong sect in Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City, so the design of the pagoda is also very special.
Because right in the city, the area of the temple is limited, so there is no back street, but instead is a unique three-chamber architecture that is distributed harmoniously on different floors. Going through the main gate is a small courtyard with many green trees on display, bringing freshness and freshness to the temple. Because it is located in the center of the district, this temple is limited in the area.
Thap Hoa Pagoda has a main hall consisting of 3 floors, divided into small compartments where a Buddha is worshiped. The main room is located in the middle including the main hall, the 2 next to the space are the library and the house, and at the same time, this is also the restroom for Buddhist monks and nuns. On the ground floor is the lecture hall.
Visitors to the temple will come here to perform the ceremony and listen to the sermon. Therefore, the space here is quite airy and spacious with the doors always open to welcome visitors. Up to the first floor is the ancestral house, the place to worship the founders of the temple and those with meritorious services to the temple. This place is decorated with many rows of tables and chairs to be suitable for the meeting of Buddhists on Buddhist Occasions.
This is also the place to worship the statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. Most of the Buddha and bodhisattva statues are carved with jackfruit wood, so they have a very pleasant fragrance. If you want to find peace and quiet, choose the time to come to Phap Hoa Pagoda on weekdays or in the early morning. The temple is open in the morning from 6 am to 11 am and in the afternoon from 1 pm to 9 pm.
This is really a great and unforgettable experience when visitors stop by exploring this city.
The pace of life stops as if slowing down for a few seconds, people seem to no longer be in a hurry to get busy with life out there. And especially, on the occasion of April every year, if you have the opportunity, you should definitely not forget to visit this place. Because in April, this place celebrates Buddha's Birthday - this is considered the great festival of the year.
This event attracts a lot of participants, so the atmosphere is extremely crowded and bustling. Hope you have the opportunity to visit to enjoy the most important holiday of the year. Around the temple is decorated with colorful lanterns and lotus flowers, shimmering electric lights add a solemn and sacred look to this place. The lights from lotus flowers are released on the river, bringing everyone's wishes for peace and luck. The water flows quietly, waiting for the flower boats to spread throughout the canal, gently and elegantly. In the middle of a large and bustling city like this, there is a place that brings such a warm and reassuring feeling.
The temple will become more sparkling and poetic when lit with golden lights radiating down the cool green canal. One thing that makes me very impressed is the statue of happy and funny monks in the first corridor when entering the temple. The expression of the monk in the set of 4 no: "Do not listen to wrong things - Don't say bad things - Don't look at wrong things - Don't do bad things" is cute, cheerful, symbolizing peace and holiness benevolent.
This is the representative of the mind of a student of the Way, towards the right path. The image of 4 little boys covering their eyes, covering their ears, covering their mouth, and covering their bodies, respectively, are named Mizaru.
The blindfolded statue means I don't see bad things Kikazaru: The earmuff statue means I don't hear bad things Iwazaru: The gag statute means I don't say bad things Shizaru: The veiled statue means I don't do bad things. This set of 4 minions (quartet set?) was born more than 400 years ago, originating from the idea of four voids in a temple, in the city of Nikko, Japan.
Up to now, the statue is still preserved by an ancient sculpture made by a famous artist at that time. A second origin is that the set of four little monk statues originated in more than 1,000 years BC in India by the god Vajrakilaya, who had six arms, specializing in breaking all obstacles from the source.
Today, in human life, people always have to hear and witness many things that are wrong with ethical standards. So the profound meaning of a set of 4 No This advice advises us not to see, not hear, not speak, not do these wrong things. There are other preachers, who say that the deeper meaning of this set of 4 no statues is to advise people to live in humility, that is: Blindfold your eyes to use your mind to see, cover your ears to use your mind to hear, and shut your mouth to Use the mind to speak and cover the body to use the mind to act. When the human soul is in a state of peace, tranquility, undisturbed by the bad things seen, heard, spoken by the mouth, and reflected by actions, the mind will immediately generate negative emotions good things.
Human nature is inherently curious, so any story, about anyone, even if it is not related, also wants to hear, want to see, to tell, to comment with others. However, hearing - seeing - talking about other people's stories only wastes time and becomes worse. The bad thing here is in the mind, by prying into other people's affairs, but often not focusing on the good.
Therefore, everything you hear, speak and see needs to be selective, in order to hope to keep your mind calm. When the perception of the surrounding world through hearing - seeing - speaking becomes subtle and profound from the heart, people will observe and evaluate all problems completely. If you want to visit this place, visit the temple in the evening.
When the golden light is lit, the temple becomes dreamy and fanciful. On holidays, the temple welcomes a lot of tourists, monks, and nuns from all over the country.
You can also try fortune-telling at Phap Hoa Pagoda, the temple's abbot is very famous in this field. Phap Hoa Pagoda regulates specific opening times, visitors should find out carefully to avoid affecting travel. When coming to the temple, visitors should dress conservatively, seriously, not laugh loudly in the temple.
Buddhists only offer vegetarian offerings, not salty foods in the temple. It is advisable to consult the monks before filming or taking pictures.
Thank you for looking, I wish you are all having a great weekend!
See you soon 🍎