Vietnam Pagodas

Đại Bi Pagoda

Hưng Yên(Chùa Đại Bi)

Overview & history

Đại Bi Pagoda may refer to:

Đại Bi Pagoda (Bắc Ninh) in Thượng village, Hạp Lĩnh ward, Bắc Ninh province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Gia Bình) in Nhân Thắng commune, Bắc Ninh province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Xuân Lai) in Xuân Lai hamlet, Đa Phúc commune, Hanoi city. The pagoda belongs to the Northern School (Bắc tông) tradition.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Ninh Hiệp) in hamlet 8, Ninh Giàng village, Phù Đổng commune, Hanoi city.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Mỹ Đức) in Kim Bôi hamlet, Hương Sơn commune, Hanoi city.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Tứ Kỳ) in Ngọc Lâm hamlet, Tân Kỳ commune, Hải Phòng city.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Vũ Thư) in Thái Bình ward, Hưng Yên province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Bạch Hạc) in Thanh Miếu ward, Phú Thọ province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Nam Trực) in Nam Trực commune, Ninh Bình province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Thanh Hóa), also known as Mật Pagoda, on Mật Sơn mountain, Hạc Thành ward, Thanh Hóa province.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Cát Quế) in Dương Hòa commune, Hanoi city. The pagoda dates from the late Trần dynasty.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Mậu Lương) in Kiến Hưng ward, Hanoi city.

Đại Bi Pagoda (Yên Duyên) in Hoàng Mai ward, Hanoi city.

The formal name (tên chữ) of Kim Liên Pagoda in Nghi Tàm village, Tây Hồ ward, Hanoi city.

The formal name of Sét Pagoda, in Hoàng Mai ward, Hanoi city.

The formal name of Bối Khê Pagoda, Tam Hưng commune, Hanoi city.

The name of the pagoda within the Sóc Temple heritage site, Sóc Sơn commune, Hanoi city.

Meaning of the term đại bi

Currently, there are two opinions regarding the meaning of the term đại bi:

Bi means 'Bia' (stele), referring to a pagoda that has a large stone stele, as in Kim Liên Pagoda in Hanoi.

Bi as in the Four Immeasurables: loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity (Tứ vô lượng từ bi hỷ xả), expressing "the Buddha's boundless compassion for humanity", as in the Great Compassion Mantra (Chú đại bi).

It is also possible that each pagoda has a different intended meaning.

Photos

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Visiting tips

  • Dress modestly; remove hats and keep quiet inside the main hall.
  • Incense, flowers and offerings are usually sold right outside the gate; light an odd number of sticks (1 or 3).
  • Most pagodas open from early morning to evening and are free to enter (some major sites charge a small scenic fee).
  • Full-moon days, the 1st of the lunar month and Tet are very crowded; visit on weekday mornings for a quiet experience.
  • Ask permission before photographing inside shrines; do not touch statues or altar objects.

Read more & references

Useful links to learn more before your visit:

Location

Coordinates: 20.99747, 106.08194

🧭 Directions on Google Maps

References

Other pagodas in Hưng Yên

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Chùa Chuông
Chuông Temple (Vietnamese: Chùa Chuông, Chữ Hán: 金鐘寺, Sino-Vietnamese: Kim Chung Tự) is a Buddhist temple in Hưng Yên.
Chùa Keo Thái Bình
Chùa Keo Thái Bình
Keo Temple (Vietnamese: Chùa Keo, Official name: Thần Quang Tự (神光寺)) is a Buddhist temple in Vũ Thư District, Thái Bình Province, Vietnam. The temple was commenced in 1061 under the Lý dynasty near the Red River.
Chùa Thái Lạc
Chùa Thái Lạc
Thái Lạc Pagoda is located in Như Quỳnh commune, Hưng Yên province. The pagoda belongs to the Tứ Pháp (Four Dharmas) pagoda system and worships the Buddha and Pháp Vân. The pagoda is famous for its carved wooden panels dating from the Trần dynasty.
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Chùa Chành
Chành Pagoda is located in Thái Bình ward, Hưng Yên province. It is a provincial-level historical site, recognised in 1995. The pagoda was newly restored in 2012 and was inaugurated on 5 November 2012. Every year, the pagoda holds a festival from the 1st to the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month. It is a very sacred pagoda, well known to many devotees from near and far.
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Chùa Hanh Cù
Hanh Cù Pagoda is now located in Hanh Cù hamlet, Vũ Quý commune, Kiến Xương district, formerly part of Đông Trung village, Kiến Xương prefecture. Đông Trung village (now divided into the two communes of Vũ Quý and Vũ Trung) was traditionally a cultured village with many đình (communal houses), temples, and pagodas in its hamlets. Due to the policy of scorched earth during the resistance against the French, the communal houses and pagodas were dismantled; today, in the two communes, only Hanh Cù Pagoda remains, while Đại Ngạn Pagoda is currently being restored.
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Chùa Múa
Múa Pagoda, also known as Phượng Vũ Pagoda, is located in Thọ Lộc hamlet, Minh Khai commune, Vũ Thư district, Thái Bình province. This is an ancient pagoda built at the end of the 17th century during the Nguyễn dynasty. The pagoda is part of the Phượng Vũ temple-pagoda heritage complex. The pagoda is so named because, in the past, when Saint Láng Lý Triều Quốc Sư Từ Đạo Hạnh came to this land to teach the people how to cultivate crops, he saw a piece of land shaped like a phoenix spreading its wings to dance. Recognising the auspiciousness of the land, he established a pagoda there to worship the Buddha. Later, after he passed away and became a saint, the villagers, grateful to him, built a shrine in his honour.