Mekong pagoda makes record book
By Lifestyle Desk
Publisher:Viet Nam News - Publication Date: 01-06-2007

The Viet Nam Guinness Book of Records (Vietbooks) has listed some of the oldest pagodas and Buddhist relics in its pages this year.
This was announced at a press meeting in HCM City on Monday to coincide with celebrations to mark Buddha’s birthday 2551 years ago.
Kh’ Leang Pagoda, built in 1533 in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta Province of Soc Trang, is among the many pagodas listed. The earliest known combination of Khmer, Chinese and Vietnamese architectural styles, it honours the Theravadan (southern style) of Buddhism. (Most Buddhist temples in Viet Nam are from the Mahayana school, believed to have originated in ancient kingdoms north of India and then carried along the Silk Road to China.)
Soc Trang Province is also listed as the home of the 16th century Mahatup Pagoda or the so-called Bat Pagoda (Chua Doi), which thousands of flying bats make their home.
Built in 1849, Vinh Trang Pagoda in the Mekong town of My Tho’s My Phong village is recognised as the oldest sacred place in the nation that combines both oriental and western styles of architecture.
Viet Nam’s largest Buddhist garden at Bach Lien Pagoda in An Phuoc village in Dong Nai Province east of HCM City covers 2000sq. m. Built in 1996, it contains several statues featuring the life of the Buddha, from his birth to enlightenment.
According to the Guinness record book, the biggest gold Buddha statue is at Nguyen Thuy Pagoda in HCM City’s District 2. It was made in 1972.
Viet Nam’s biggest Bo Tat Di Lac Bodhisattva (Goddess of Happiness) statue is at Van Phat Quang Dai Tong Lam Pagoda in Tan Thanh District, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. It is 5.1m in height and weighs 40 tonnes.
The pagoda has also the biggest collection of Buddha statues, a total of 10,000 bronze statues covered in layers of gold foil. Each statue is 30cm in height.
The highest pagoda in Viet Nam is the 37m tower at a Buddhist monastery run by the Vietnamese Mendicant Monks Buddhist Sangha in HCM City’s Binh Thanh District.
The Guinness book also has listed celebrated artist Bach Tuyet as the first Vietnamese to write songs for the cai luong (reformed theatre) based on Buddhist scripture. Tuyet is a member of the Truc Lam Congregation of Zen Buddhism.
Other interesting facts listed are that a compact disc compiled by Vo Van Tuong has information on every well-known pagoda in Viet Nam; that HCM City’s Dai Phat Company produces the highest number of religious items and that Nam Long Co in Can Tho Province possesses the nation’s biggest statue of the Buddha of Happiness (Phat Di Lac)
The 33.6m concrete statue sits on Cam Mountain in Tinh Bien District in the Mekong Delta.