Tam Chuc pagoda in Ha Nam province.

The pagoda, which has been entirely damaged with time, is being rebuilt with the first phase expected to be completed in May 2019 when the pagoda hosts the UN Day of Vesak (Buddha's Birthday, Enlightenment and Passing Away).

The new pagoda has been built using giant blocks from Kim Lan ceramic village in Hanoi. As many as 12,000 murals depicting legends of Buddha craved into volcano rock by Indonesian artisans will decorate the area.

A garden of 99 stone pillars, each 13.5m high and 200 tonnes in weight, carved with Buddhist teachings, will also be installed at the site.

The new Tam Chuc Pagoda sits on a site of nearly 5,000 hectares, surrounded by lakes, mountains, forests, and valleys. Following the traditional architectures of Buddhist pagodas, Tam Chuc Pagoda Complex includes Cong Tam Quan (the three-arched-entrances gate), Dien Quan Am, Dien Tam The, Dien Phap Chu, Chua Ngoc (Pearl Pagoda). Inside these places are gigantic Buddhist statues carved skillfully.

Located at an altitude of 15 meters, the 3-storey Ngoc Pagoda is the final place to visit in the complex. Standing at the pagoda, people can admire the scenic landscape created by imposing nature and impressive structures built by human’s hands.

Besides giant blocks sculpted in Kim Lan ceramic village of Hanoi, as many as 12,000 murals depicting legends of Buddha craved into volcano rock by Indonesian artisans will brighten up the area. Further, a garden of 99 stone pillars, each 13.5m high carved with Buddhist teachings, will also be installed at the site.

Inside, three colossal Buddha statues in black bronze representing the past, present, and future are situated in the very heart of Dien Tam The in which great pictures about Nirvana are hung. These statues are over 100 tons weight and they are the biggest statues in Vietnam, defeating the record of those in Bai Dinh Pagoda.

Under Dien Tam The is Dien Phap Chu in which a 150-ton Phap Chu statue occupies religiously. Dien Quan Am is the place people locate the gigantic Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva statue. The image is totally made from bronze and weighs up to 100 tons. Visitors also have the chance to admire other meticulously carved statues that make the complex mystical and sacred.

The Tam Chuc complex was recognised by the Prime Minister as a national tourism site in 2013.

Up to 1,500 international delegates from 106 countries and territories and the United Nations (UN) will attend the UN Day of Vesak Celebrations 2019 slated for May 12-14 at Tam Chuc Buddhist Culture Centre in the northern province of Ha Nam, according to organisers.

The event is also expected to bring together 1,500 domestic delegates, including Party and State leaders, representatives of ministries, agencies and localities, and monks, nuns and Buddhist followers.

This will be the third time the UN’s commemoration of Vesak is held in Vietnam. Previously, it took place in Hanoi in 2008 and the northern province of Ninh Binh in 2014/.

VNF