One Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi Blessing Childless Couples For 1000 Years
The One Pillar Pagoda is a legendary symbol of Hanoi, with many childless couples seeking the Goddess of Mercy (Quan Am) for a baby.
Also known as Chùa Một Cột in Vietnamese, the historic Buddhist temple has unique architecture in Asia.
One of Vietnam’s most popular tourist attractions, these iconic temples, is next to the Perfume Temple.
The One Pillar Pagoda is an excellent example of traditional Vietnamese temple architecture.
The temple dates back nearly 1,000 years of history.
One of the must-visit places in the travel notebook of tourists and worshippers seeking blessings when visiting Hanoi.
The Pagoda attracts many domestic and foreign tourists to Vietnam Travel.
Contents
Why is the One Pillar Pagoda Famous?
Many childless couples visit the temple to offer prayers for fertility.
Entrance to the One Pillar Pagoda (Chùa Một Cột) in Hanoi, Vietnam
What is Pagoda?
A Pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia.
What is the meaning of Pagoda?
In a Hindu or Buddhist temple, a pagoda means many-tiered ornamental towers.
What is the purpose of a Pagoda?
We can trace the origin of the Pagoda to the stupa (3rd century BCE).
The stupa, a dome-shaped monument, is a commemorative monument associated with storing sacred relics.
The Pagoda’s original purpose was to house relics and sacred writings.
Source: Wikipedia
What is the difference between a Pagoda and a Temple?
In English, ‘temple’ is a more general term designating any building where people worship.
The term ‘pagoda’ refers to a Hindu or Buddhist temple.
The Vietnamese also use two main words, “đền” and “chùa,” translated as temple and Pagoda.
The History of One Pillar Pagoda
Emperor Lý Thái Tông (1028 to 1054) built the temple childless.
The emperor would visit pagodas and pray earnestly to the Buddha for a son.
One night, the emperor dreamed that he met the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
The Buddha handed him a baby son.
Lý Thái Tông married a peasant girl that he met.
She bore him a son.
In gratitude, the emperor ordered the temple’s construction to resemble the one he saw in his dream.
The design of the One Pillar Pagoda rises out in the middle of a lotus pond.
The design resembled a pink lotus flower with 1000 petals lifting a glittering golden Buddha statue.
A lotus flower that rises out of a muddy pond to bloom is a Buddhist symbol of purity.
The monks recited Buddhist scriptures and prayed for the longevity of Emperor Lý Thái Tông.
The Destruction of the One Pillar Pagoda Temple
Dien Huu Pagoda means long-lasting happiness and good luck.
However, luck ran out for the Pagoda during the First Indochina War (1954).
The French Union forces destroyed the Pagoda that year.
The unique architecture of the One Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi sits in the middle of a lotus pond.
One Pillar Pagoda’s Architecture and Historical Values
The One Pillar Pagoda (Chùa Một Cột) was classified as a historical relic on April 28, 1962.
On May 4, 2006, they recorded it in the Vietnamese Guinness Book as The Pagoda with Vietnam’s unique architecture.
The One Pillar Pagoda has become one of Hanoi’s most delightful architectural complexes, attracting many domestic and foreign tourists.
The Reconstruction of the One Pillar Pagoda
The unique architecture of Chùa Một Cột is that it supports the entire temple on a single stone column.
This stone column is approximately 4m high from the pond’s water level and 1.2m in diameter.
The temple was built with wood in the shape of a square with a curved roof on each side of 3m.
The unique architecture harmoniously combines poetical imagery, imagination, and sound structural design.
The construction system of wood beams is perfect for showing off the beauty of the serene Pagoda.
The setting of the Pagoda is in the middle of a square-shaped lotus pond.
Trees shade it to create closeness and harmony.
Thousands of visitors go to this Pagoda every year. There is a sense of peace on the temple grounds.
The purity, elegance, and mindfulness are present here.
They design the temple to express the Buddhist noble teaching of compassion.
One Pillar Pagoda’s architecture harmonizes with the elements.
The blue sky above, green of leaves and water, gives rest and repose to the soul. Many visits and go from the temple at peace with the purity of the soul.
One Pillar Pagoda Opening Hours
Opening Hours: Daily 7.00 AM to 6.00 PM
The entrance is FREE.
A replica of the One Pillar Pagoda is in Thủ Đức in Saigon.
How to Travel to the One Pillar Pagoda?
Hanoi is a central transport hub in Vietnam.
Most flights land at Noi Bai International Airport, connecting flights to other cities in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.
The railway connects to Ho Chi Minh City. Visit Train Street in Hanoi’s Old Quarter.
The famous narrow gap railway line has trains running in the tight space between old houses in Hanoi.
The buses connect to almost every Vietnamese province.
Pro Tips When Visiting The One Pillar Pagoda
- Temple Opening Hours Daily 7.00 AM to 6.00 PM; it is always good to verify this when you get to Hanoi.
- The entrance is free.
- In this temple, visitors cannot enter with sleeveless tops and shorts. So please dress appropriately.
- Besides the One Pillar Pagoda is the Ho Chi Minh complex, which houses the Museum, the Mausoleum, and Ho Chi Minh’s House.
- You can schedule your visit to the Pagoda on the same day.
- There are days when the Mausoleum is closed during lunch hours.
Where to Visit Next
One Pillar Pagoda
Chùa Một Cột, Đội Cấn, Ba Đình, Hà Nội 100000, Vietnam
Opening Hours: Daily 7.00 am to 6.00 pm
The One Pillar Pagoda is next to Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum on Ngoc Ha Street.
