TRUC LAM ZEN MONASTERY IN DA LAT

The Dalat Zen monastery, Thien Vien Truc Lam is the largest pagoda in Dalat now. It is located on Phung Hoang (Phoenix) Mountain, 4 km from Dalat, established by Thich Thanh Tu Monk in the 90s and it was opened on February 8th, 1994, just across the street from the Dalat Telpher Cable Car Station

Featuring numerous temples, manicured gardens and an outdoor meditation area, the entire complex sits atop a hill. With the expansive grounds were quiet and the mountain setting added a touch of serenity that attracts many sightseers that were visiting.

The Dalat Zen monastery, Thien Vien Truc Lam

This is a unique architecture besides Tuyen Lam Lake. Starting from Tuyen Lam Lake is a stone140-step path, flanked by the towering pines reaching three gates to enter the main gate of Sanctuary. The main area of 192m2 is decorated simply but meaningfully of the Buddha. The 2-meter Buddha statue of Guru Shakyamuni stood in the center of the shrine; his right hand holding lotus flower is called Shakyamuni “United States Minor” – that means the statue’s image was built based on “Lotus Minor”.
The right of the Buddha is Bodhisattva Manjushree riding a lion and the left of the Buda is the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra riding a 6-tusk white elephant. Around the top of the sanctuary is the bas-relief carvings 8 manifestations of Buddha and wooden altars carved meticulously.
The front corridor is four round timber columns and ceilings are covered with shiny glazed tiles imbuing Vietnamese people’s humility or the elegance of meditation.

On the right side of the main hall, a steeple carved relief with the deeper meaning of Buddhism is very delicate and beautiful. Inside the steeple is a bell pot weighing about 1.1 tons with elegant sense full of morals.

Many beautiful and rare flowers such as purple sim, Australian cotton, lovely, etc are carried by monks from all over the world to plant, making the scene more romantic.