Chantarangsay Pagoda

Saigon's first Khmer Theravada pagoda, built in 1946 beside the Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe Canal

Walking along the Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe Canal, among familiar rows of townhouses, you suddenly come upon a block of orange-gold with three pointed spires soaring upward. This is Chantarangsay – meaning "Moonlight" in Khmer – the first Khmer pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City, built in 1946. The pagoda belongs to the Theravada Buddhist tradition, characteristic of the religious culture of the Khmer people of the southwestern region. The City has both Vietnamese pagodas following Mahayana Buddhism and Khmer pagodas following Hinayana Buddhism; the architectural difference is easy to spot, as Khmer pagodas stand out with their golden colours and tall pointed spires, as seen at Buu Long, Candaransi and Pothiwong pagodas. The main hall faces due east and has two storeys, with staircases at both front and back. Three tiers of roofs are stacked on top of one another, crowned by three Angkor-style spires symbolising the Three Jewels, each spire with eight levels symbolising the Noble Eightfold Path. The Buddha altar is arranged in five tiers with reliefs of the five Buddhas of the present kalpa. Southern Khmer motifs are everywhere: Naga serpents curving along the roofs, the divine bird Krut, guardian giant statues at the doors, and lotus flowers. The grounds of about 4,500 m² include the main hall, a sala, stupas, a flagpole and monks' quarters. If you want to see the pagoda at its busiest and most vibrant, go during a festival. Chol Chnam Thmay (Khmer New Year) takes place over three days in mid-April, with a Buddha-bathing ceremony on the final day. Sene Dolta falls around September. Ok Om Bok, the Moon Worship Festival, is held on the full moon of the 10th lunar month, around November, with flattened green rice (com dep) and floating lanterns. There are also the Kathina robe-offering ceremony and Vesak on the full moon of the 4th lunar month. The pagoda is a stop on two signature tourism programmes of former District 3: "Ride a Vespa to Explore Colourful District 3" and "A Green History Journey", both combined with the inner-city waterway tour on the Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe Canal.

English text: machine translation from the Localis platform — proper names kept in Vietnamese.