Travels in Da Nang: The Lady Buddha

The largest Buddha statue in Vietnam was just north of our hotel (on the Son Tra Peninsula), and every morning we would see her, the Lady Buddha (Chua Linh Ung) from our balcony, and later, as we walked on the beach. She was a calming, consistent presence that we appreciated as we looked out on the water each morning.

As she was not too far away, we could take a taxi whenever we wanted to visit her. We waited for a slightly cloudy day and took the short drive up to the Linh Ung Pagoda, which is the name of the whole complex, which has many temples, pagodas and shrines on the site.

We arrived and it was busy, but the grounds are large, so not claustrophobic. There is no entry fee, which is nice, and we began wandering through some of the courtyards,

The huge Bonsai trees immediately drew our attention.

The Bonsai trees all throughout the complex were amazing. There were way too many to take pictures of, and the ones nearest to the Lady Buddha were the most impressive, which we’ll soon see. Before that, we wandered into one of the temple buildings where 100 or so monks were eating lunch. We did not disturb them, of course, and headed the other way, to see more shrines. My favorite one had the shining glass peacocks flanking the statue below.

One last pagoda before we reached the Lady Buddha was very intricate and the dragon with a blue globe in its mouth was especially cool.

As we approached, we could see the Lady Buddha, all 220 feet (67 meters) of her. Lady Buddha is unique to Vietnam, as she was a monk (when only men could be monks) and was eventually accused of fathering a child and kicked out of the monkhood. She did not say she was a woman (even to save herself), and only upon her death was it revealed she was. Now she protects and is prayed to by many Vietnamese Buddhists.

…finally we arrived, wow!

There are actually 17 floors within the statue (you can see the windows that go up her back in the pictures above), and at the base inside, a small shrine. It was incredibly hot and humid, so we opted not to climb the crowded, seventeen floors. There were many people in the courtyard, taking their pictures with her, and we had to join in.

There is a small pond with Koi and a much smaller statue of the money Buddha with his big belly and laughing face.

The Bonsai trees in the courtyard in front of the Lady Buddha were some of the biggest and coolest we have seen so far in our travels and they are well maintained. We also noted the vases that would be incorporated into the tree, like the one on the left, below.

We lingered for a while, and even with all our fellow tourists, there was a serene calmness to the space. Being so close, we were treated to spectacular views of the city.

Not too far from the Lady Buddha there was another shrine that had the four Guardians, made of marble.

The four guardians, or Four Heavenly Kings, represent each direction (North, South, East and West) and defend the Dharma. I have been enamored with the interpretations of them since I first became familiar with them in Seoul, South Korea, months ago, at the Bonguesa Temple.

That is not all that there is to visit here; right across the street from the entrance to the Lady Buddha is the Xa Loi Pagoda, which is something in its own right (and much less crowded). Standing nearly 100 feet high (30 meters), we also could see the pagoda from our hotel, and we saw it above the trees as we approached.

There is a huge gate at the entrance, with a resting Buddha statue.

The Bonsai trees in the courtyard are even more impressive than the ones in front of the Lady Buddha, and it is much more peaceful and quiet to wander here and really appreciate them and the serenity.

Here are some more pictures facing out from the pagoda; of which there is a small shrine inside for worshiping.

We really had a great time exploring the whole Pagoda/temple grounds; it was a great way to spend a morning in Da Nang. This was our favorite temple complex, but there are many spread across Da Nang, and we visited as many as we could, some in our neighborhood and others we took a taxi to; and the next post will delve into those, and some of the churches too. Come on back!