Introducing

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TEN THOUSAND BUDDHAS PAGODA

The Ten Thousand Pagoda is one of the most famous pagodas in District 5.This place makes visitors feel stunning with five floors of Buddha statues. In addition, these gorgeous statues ranked in the Vietnamese record. The Ten Thousand Pagoda was built in 1959 by two Buddhist monks,“Đức Bổn” and “Diệu Hoa," with the purpose of serving as a place to study Buddhism and worship Buddha for monks and Chinese Buddhists in Hồ Chí Minh City and neighboring provinces.

By 1998, the pagoda was renovated and rebuilt to be more spacious, with architecture including four floors and a terrace. By 2008, the pagoda had a new construction called Phổ Quang Minh Hall. This work marked a great improvement in the architecture of the The Ten Thousand pagoda. Creating a vision with the role of "heart" is the "highlight" of The Ten Thousand Pagoda. After a great 10-year renovation (1998–2008), As the name implies, the pagoda has a system of Buddha statues ranked among the best in Vietnam, with more than 10,000 statues created in many different styles.

On the wall of the Great Palace are 10,000 small statues, placed next to each other impressively, creating the uniqueness of the The Ten Thousand pagoda. Located in a crowded residential area, the pagoda has to expand the area of worship and activities vertically. The Ten Thousand pagoda has an area of more than 400 m2 with a total of 5 floors, including 3 floors, 1 ground floor, and 1 terrace.

The terrace has a 5-story The Ten Thousand Pagoda tower, on either side of which there is a tower to worship the late monk Đức Bổn (2000) and the tower to worship the late monk Diệu Hoa (2009), in front of which there is a picture of Cửu Long Bích relieved nine dragons winding in the clouds. When viewed from a distance, The Ten Thousand Pagoda is like a brightly colored building.

In ancient Chinese culture, red was the lucky color. The materials are made of wood, and the black and red Chinese stickers are the most characteristic of this style. That’s why red was chosen as the main color of the The Ten Thousand Pagoda.

In Chinese legends, these are considered to be the guardians of the world and of Buddhism. The space and architecture on each floor are full of Chinese culture, such as the archways and the red-papered poems. When you enter the The Ten Thousand Pagoda pagoda, you will feel like you are lost in the scenery of ancient China. The Ten Thousand Pagoda pagoda is also currently the office of the Executive Board of the Vietnamese Buddhist Association in District 5, and Most Venerable Thích Truyền Cường, Head of the Executive Board, is also the abbot of the pagoda. When you visit the The Ten Thousand Pagoda pagoda, you can not only worship the Buddha and visit the architecture but also experience Chinese culture.

From there, you will have more knowledge and understanding of yourself. Not only that, but with a peaceful and pure space, this place will definitely be a place where you can "nestle" away from the hustle and bustle of life. The Ten Thousand Pagoda is also a place for you to remove burdens and difficulties to make your soul lighter. Notably, inside the campus of the The Ten Thousand Pagoda pagoda, there is also an area to send the ashes of the deceased. This means wishing that relatives will receive the protection of the Buddha, soon to the place of bliss.

With a 5-story design, each floor of the The Ten Thousand Pagoda has unique and impressive Buddha statues. It is remarkable that the most magnificent statue is set in the main hall with the name of Quang Minh Great Hall. This work gathers both massive statues and other small statues, such as Shakyamuni Buddha, Manjushri Bodhisattva, and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. In particular, the lotus with thousands of petals at the foot of the Gautama Buddha (Shakyamuni Buddha) statue is elaborately and finely crafted. Besides the Buddha statues, the Great Hall is also decorated with the Four Heavenly Kings placed in four directions.

Every major holiday in the year, this is also the place where people often come to offer incense and worship. For more than 50 years, The Ten Thousand Pagoda pagoda has been the center of social charity activities of Buddhism in District 5 to help people experiencing natural disasters, help orphanage centers, and help those who miss the road. Not only that, but with a peaceful and pure space, this place will definitely be a place where you can "nestle" away from the hustle and bustle of life. The Ten Thousand Pagoda is also a place for you to remove burdens and difficulties to make your soul lighter.

Notably, inside the campus of The Ten Thousand Pagoda, there is also an area to send the ashes of the deceased. This means wishing that relatives will receive the protection of the Buddha, soon to the place of bliss. Every major holiday in the year, this is also the place where people often come to offer incense and worship. For more than 50 years, The Ten Thousand Pagoda has been the center of social charity activities of Buddhism in District 5 to help people experiencing natural disasters, help orphanage centers, and help those who miss the road.

INTRODUCED INSIDE THE TEMPLE OF TEN THOUSAND BUDDHAS

The Ten Thousand Pagoda in district 5 has an area of more than 400 m2, with 5 floors, including 3 floors, 1 ground floor, and 1 terrace. Ground floor: It is a temple area of the Stratum Bodhisattva; on both sides is the statue of a sage, Đạo Minh, and a household, Mẫn Công. Besides, there is also the statue of the Buddhist Trinity with the Amitabha Buddha and the two Bodhisattvas of Avalokitesvara, Mahasthama-prapta Bodhisattva.

The first floor of the The Ten Thousand Pagoda is the place to worship a statue of Thousand-Hand Thousand-Eye Great Mercy Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. On both sides are ancestral tablets placed in the glass cabinet. Behind is the area to send the ashes of the deceased, chanted by monks. A stone statue of Ksihitigarbha is put in here for people to offer incense and worship, a statue of Thousand-Hand Thousand-Eye Great Mercy Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. This is a realistically carved statue. Wearing a yellow shirt, the statue is extremely bright. a statue of Thousand-Hand Thousand-Eye Great Mercy Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva placed on the first floor.

The second floor is the place to worship a statue of the Buddha of Medicine, Lưu Ly Quang Như Lai. On the two sides, there is a statue of the Sunlight Bodhisattva and a statue of the Moonlight Bodhisattva. On both sides of the wall, there are 18 Arhats and Sutras in the glass cabinet. According to the Buddha's teachings, the Buddha of Medicine protected sentient beings from mental and physical illness. He is also the one who eliminates the hindrances.Not only that, he also dissolves the three extremely dangerous poisons in the world: arrogance, ignorance and hatred.

The third floor is the main palace, also known as the main hall, and the space is full of statues of Buddha. The two sides of the Vairocana Buddha are one statue of Manjushri Bodhisattva and one statue of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. In front of the statue of the Vairocana Buddha, there are 5 statues of Buddha: Shakyamuni Buddha (in the middle), Amitabha Buddha (on the side), Medicine Buddha (on the side), the Bodhisattva of Avalokitesvara (on the side), and the Ksihitigarbha (on the side).

In addition, around the Great Palace of The Ten Thousand Pagoda in district 5, there are many small Buddha statues on the wall. Especially in front of the palace, there are the great bell, drums, and 3 signs with the words “Phổ Quang Minh Điện”, “Diệu Trí Văn Thù” and “Đại Hạnh Phổ Hiền”. On the outer wall of the palace, there are 26 large paintings with 18 Arhats, 2 Kasyapa Buddhas, Ananda, and six Chinese Zen Patriarchs. The Buddha statues are arranged on all floors, and the main hall (Phổ Quang Minh Palace) is located on the terrace. This is also the floor with the most Buddha statues. In the middle of the palace is a statue of Vairocana Buddha sitting on the lotus of a thousand pentals. In front of the lotus, there are five statues of Buddha: Shakyamuni Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, Medicine Buddha, the Bodhisattva of Avalokitesvara, and the Ksihitigarbha. The two sides of the main hall are the statues of Manjushri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. In addition to the Buddha statue, the main hall also has the statue of the Four Heavenly Kings placed in four directions.

These four statues are carved very subtly and meticulously. According to Chinese legend, the Four Heavenly Kings are considered to be the guardians of the world and of Buddhism. The most impressive and unique is the statue of Shakyamuni Buddha sitting on 1,000 lotus petals. This is the largest Buddha statue placed on the lotus, with 1000 golden lotus petals. This Buddha statue is placed in the middle of the main hall, behind 10,000 small Buddha statues, very neatly. This is also a very majestic and magnificent place for The Ten Thousand Pagoda. Especially, looking closely, hidden behind these 1,000 lotus petals are small Buddha statues that are ivory white. Around the lotus, there are four statues of the Four Heavenly Kings. The two sides of Shakyamuni Buddha are Manjushri Bodhisattva riding a lion and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva riding a white elephant with six tusks.

Moreover, the pagoda also has an automatic fortune stick machine. Usually, most temples keep drawing a fortune stick the traditional way, and then they need someone to answer that fortune. However, at The Ten Thousand Pagoda, the machine has a direct explanation of fortune sticks.Because of its uniqueness, many visitors come to the The Ten Thousand Pagoda to get a fortune stick from a machine to predict their future.