Leave the bustle of central Tokyo and travel northwest along the JR Takasaki Line or the Jōetsu Shinkansen to the city of Honjō at the northern edge of Saitama Prefecture, then continue into the wooded hills and pear orchards of Kodamachō Takayanagi, and you will come upon a spacious monastic compound flying five-colored Buddhist flags amid the quiet countryside. Across more than 5,000 square meters of gently sloping ground stands Dai An Pagoda (大恩寺, read Daion-ji in Japanese), the Central Headquarters of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan and one of the largest Vietnamese spiritual and cultural centers in the Kantō region.
Rooted in the pastoral and humanitarian vow of Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and Vietnamese Buddhists who formed their first Tokyo congregation in 2010 before opening the Honjō estate in January 2018 and celebrating its grand inauguration on May 6, 2018, this Buddhist monastery has transcended the role of an ordinary place of worship. During the darkest months of the COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2022, Dai An Pagoda became a nationwide symbol of compassion across Japan by opening its doors to house and feed thousands of stranded, unemployed Vietnamese technical interns and students free of charge while dispatching hundreds of tons of emergency food supplies across all forty-seven prefectures.
IThe Four Great Gratitudes in the name Dai An and Vietnamese Mahāyāna worship
The title Đại Ân Tự (大恩寺, Temple of Great Gratitude) chosen by Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and senior monastics draws directly upon the Mahāyāna Buddhist teaching of the Four Great Gratitudes (Tứ Trọng Ân): first, gratitude to parents for birth and upbringing, second, gratitude to the Three Jewels and teachers for awakening wisdom, third, gratitude to one's nation and society for peace and protection, and fourth, gratitude to all fellow beings for mutual support in life. For Vietnamese people studying, working, and raising families in Japan, the name Đại Ân calls to mind both deep filial gratitude toward their Vietnamese homeland and sincere appreciation toward the people and society of Japan who have welcomed hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese residents.
The Main Hall of Dai An Pagoda in Honjō is arranged according to the northern-tradition Vietnamese Mahāyāna liturgy, maintaining a direct spiritual link with historic homeland temples such as Quán Sứ Pagoda in Hanoi and Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City. Enthroned at the center of the sanctuary is Śākyamuni Buddha seated upon a golden lotus pedestal, accompanied by the Western Pure Land Triad of Amitābha Buddha flanked on the left by Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara holding the nectar vase and on the right by Bodhisattva Mahāsthāmaprāpta holding a blue lotus stem. Before the central dais stand the infant Buddha statue and Bodhisattva Cundī, while side altars venerate Avalokiteśvara and Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.
Sacred space at Dai An Pagoda also integrates Vietnamese Ancestor Veneration through its Patriarchs' Shrine and Memorial Hall for Departed Overseas Spirits (ban thờ hương linh ký tự). Alongside Patriarch Bodhidharma and deceased monastic masters, this hall enshrines hundreds of memorial tablets, portraits, and funerary urns of young Vietnamese technical interns, workers, and students who passed away from accidents or sudden illness in the Kantō region and across Japan. Whenever international flights were halted or bereaved families in rural Vietnam lacked the means to travel to Japan, Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and the nuns of Dai An Pagoda personally visited hospitals and crematoria to claim the deceased, chant funeral rites, and safeguard their ashes beside the Buddha altar until they could be returned to their parents' arms in Vietnam.
The origins of Dai An Pagoda trace back to more than two decades of scholarship and humanitarian service in Japan by Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí. Arriving in Japan in 2000 for graduate study and earning a doctorate in Buddhist Studies at Taishō University in Tokyo, she witnessed the rapid growth of the Vietnamese student and trainee population alongside their lack of an organized Buddhist support network. In 2010, the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan was established in Tokyo. When the devastating Tōhoku earthquake, tsunami, and Fukushima nuclear crisis struck in March 2011, Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí led Buddhist volunteers directly into the disaster zones of Fukushima and Miyagi to deliver food and evacuate nearly one hundred stranded Vietnamese trainees to shelter in Tokyo before arranging their safe return home. That 2011 crisis inspired the vow to establish a spacious permanent monastery capable of serving as an emergency humanitarian refuge whenever disasters struck.
When reading about the Dai An Pagoda network in Japan, visitors should distinguish between the original central monastery in Honjō (Saitama Prefecture) and later branch temples bearing the same name. The monastery at 668-2 Kodamachō Takayanagi, Honjō, Saitama Prefecture began operating in January 2018 and celebrated its official inauguration on May 6, 2018: this 5,000-square-meter estate is the first Dai An Pagoda and serves as the Central Headquarters of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan. Building upon the Honjō headquarters, Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and the Association subsequently established Dai An Pagoda Tochigi in Nasushiobara (Tochigi Prefecture, inaugurated in November 2021) and Dai An Pagoda Tokyo in Adachi Ward (Tokyo, inaugurated in May 2026).
IIFrom the 2011 Fukushima tsunami relief mission to a humanitarian sanctuary during COVID-19
The history of Dai An Pagoda in Honjō mirrors the dramatic growth of the Vietnamese community in Japan (rising from a few tens of thousands in 2010 to more than half a million in the 2020s) and chronicles a series of humanitarian relief efforts that earned deep respect across Japanese society.
- 2010 to March 2011Founding of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan and Tōhoku tsunami reliefIn 2010, Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and fellow monastics and laypeople establish the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan in Tokyo. Following the March 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the Association enters Fukushima to rescue and shelter nearly 100 Vietnamese trainees, forging its humanitarian mission.
- 2017 to January 2018Acquisition of the 5,000-square-meter Honjō estate and opening of Dai An PagodaAfter years of fundraising and searching for a suitable site in the Kantō region, the Association acquires a 5,000-square-meter hillside compound in Kodamachō Takayanagi, Honjō, Saitama Prefecture, opening Dai An Pagoda for religious and community activities in January 2018.
- May 6, 2018Grand inauguration ceremony of Dai An Pagoda in HonjōOn May 6, 2018, during the Vesak season of Buddhist Era 2562, Dai An Pagoda holds its official ribbon-cutting and Buddha consecration ceremony attended by senior prelates of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, Japanese Buddhist clergy, diplomats from the Embassy of Vietnam in Japan, and thousands of devotees.
- 2020 to 2022The Dai An Shelter houses thousands of displaced Vietnamese citizens during COVID-19When the COVID-19 pandemic leaves thousands of Vietnamese technical interns and students jobless, homeless, and unable to board flights home, Dai An Pagoda opens its humanitarian dormitories to house and feed thousands of people free of charge (sheltering up to 150 residents daily at peak times) and ships over 200 tons of rice and food across all 47 prefectures of Japan.
- November 2021 to 2026Expansion of the Dai An Pagoda network to Tochigi and TokyoFrom its central seat in Honjō (Saitama), the Dai An network expands with the inauguration of Dai An Pagoda in Nasushiobara (Tochigi Prefecture) in November 2021 and Dai An Pagoda Tokyo in Adachi Ward in May 2026, linking Vietnamese Buddhist congregations across eastern Japan.
Between 2020 and 2022, Dai An Pagoda in Honjō was featured extensively on Japan's public broadcaster NHK and in leading national newspapers including the Asahi Shimbun, Mainichi Shimbun, and Yomiuri Shimbun. Japanese journalists and scholars hailed Dai An Pagoda as a modern-day Kakekomidera (a sanctuary temple of emergency refuge in Japanese historical tradition). Moved by reports of Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí feeding over a hundred displaced young Vietnamese workers every day, Japanese farmers from Saitama, Niigata, and Ibaraki along with Japanese civic groups drove truckloads of freshly harvested rice, vegetables, warm blankets, and medicine directly to the gates of Dai An Pagoda in solidarity.
IIIA 5,000-square-meter compound with Main Hall, Lumbini Garden, and humanitarian dormitories
Unlike urban temples hemmed in by dense city blocks in central Tokyo such as Sensō-ji in Asakusa or small prayer rooms rented inside office buildings, Dai An Pagoda in Honjō encompasses more than 5,000 square meters of tranquil hillside land in the Kodama district. The monastery compound is organized into interconnected functional zones: a solemn liturgical sanctuary for sutra chanting and meditation, expansive outdoor gardens capable of hosting thousands of festival participants, and well-equipped humanitarian residential quarters.
Occupying the heart of the compound, the sturdy Main Hall features a wide wood-floored worship space lined with red carpets where hundreds of devotees can chant together. The central dais enshrines gilded statues of Śākyamuni Buddha and the Western Pure Land Triad, flanked by a bronze bell, Prajñā drum, and traditional Vietnamese calligraphic plaques.
Standing in the breezy forecourt beneath pine and cherry trees is a serene white stone statue of Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara upon a lotus pedestal, surrounded by seasonal flowerbeds, Japanese stone lanterns, and benches where residents and visitors gather for morning and evening prayers.
Spread across the 5,000-square-meter grounds are a Lumbini Nativity Garden and an ecological orchard planted with dozens of persimmon, pear, plum, cherry, and peony trees alongside beds of Vietnamese herbs tended by the resident nuns and young shelter guests.
Adjacent to the Main Hall is a dedicated memorial chapel enshrining Patriarch Bodhidharma alongside the portraits, memorial tablets, and funerary urns of young Vietnamese citizens who passed away in Japan, comforted daily by incense and sutra chanting.
Separate, heated men's and women's dormitory wings equipped with winter bedding, bath facilities, a rice storehouse holding tens of tons of grain, and a high-capacity vegetarian kitchen ready to house and feed hundreds of people in distress or retreat participants.
The spacious gardens and orchards of Dai An Pagoda in Honjō serve both as a scenic setting for festivals and as a therapeutic space of mindful work for young Vietnamese people recovering from job loss, isolation, or grief abroad. While staying at the monastery, alongside daily chanting and Dharma talks, young residents tend vegetable plots, harvest fruit, cook communal vegetarian meals, and pack relief boxes for others in need, regaining a sense of purpose and community strength.
IVLandform and Orientation
It should be stated clearly that the 5,000-square-meter estate in Kodamachō Takayanagi was acquired by the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan in 2017 to 2018 for practical reasons: providing ample, peaceful space for a national headquarters and humanitarian shelter within reach of Tokyo. Viewed comparatively through traditional Vietnamese landform geomancy (phong thủy), however, the site's position at the northwestern gateway of the Kantō Plain aligns remarkably well with the temple's protective mission.
Located in northern Saitama Prefecture at coordinates 36.1777° N and 139.1108° E, the Takayanagi district of historic Kodama sits precisely along the piedmont transition zone where the Chichibu mountains and Jōmō peaks to the southwest and northwest descend into the vast Kantō Plain stretching southeastward. Behind and to the southwest of the temple rise the wooded Kodama Hills (児玉丘陵) and low peaks such as Mount Kanasa and Mount Jinryū, forming a stable rear backing (hậu chẩm) that buffers the compound against dry winter winds blowing down from the Gunma mountains. Even the local place names carry auspicious Buddhist resonances: Kodama (児玉) means Precious Jewel, while Takayanagi (高柳) means High Willow, evoking the willow branch with which Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara sprinkles pure nectar to relieve suffering.
In terms of water courses and the bright hall, looking east and northeast from the Takayanagi slope opens onto the fertile plain watered by the Kanna River (神流川) and the Koyama River (小山川) before they join the great Tone River (利根川, Japan's largest river basin) flowing north of Honjō. In classical geomancy, a sanctuary perched on well-drained elevated ground safe from flooding (cao nguyên tàng phong) with tributary streams curving ahead toward a great river exemplifies a mountain-backed, water-gathering bright hall (minh đường). The broad, level 5,000-square-meter terrace on the hill corresponds to an Earth-element node (thổ tinh kết huyệt), associated in traditional cosmology with nurturing generosity, stability, and shelter for all beings.
VVesak, Vu Lan Filial Piety Festival, Homeland Tết, and humanitarian programs at the Central Headquarters
As the Central Headquarters of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan, Dai An Pagoda in Honjō hosts some of the largest Vietnamese Buddhist and cultural gatherings in the Kantō region, combining the Vietnamese lunar calendar with Japanese national holidays to bring together thousands of overseas Vietnamese, students, technical interns, and Japanese guests.
| Date | Calendar | Observance or Program | Spiritual, Cultural, and Humanitarian Activities at Dai An Pagoda, Honjō |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lunar New Year's Eve and 1st to 15th day of the 1st Lunar Month | Vietnamese lunar calendar (paired with Japanese New Year holidays) | Homeland Spring Festival, National Peace Prayers, and Bánh Chưng Wrapping Festival | Thousands of Buddhists from Tokyo, Saitama, Gunma, Tochigi, and Ibaraki gather for New Year's Eve prayers, wrap thousands of square glutinous rice cakes (bánh chưng) for trainees away from home, and enjoy cultural performances. |
| Early May (commemorating the May 6, 2018 inauguration) | Vietnamese lunar calendar paired with Japan's Golden Week | Grand Vesak Celebration (Buddha's Birthday) and Founding Anniversary of Dai An Pagoda | Bathing the Infant Buddha rite in the Lumbini Garden, floral processions, Dharma lectures, Vietnamese-Japanese Buddhist exchange, and celebration of the Honjō monastery's anniversary. |
| 7th Lunar Month (celebrated in mid-August during Obon) | Vietnamese lunar calendar paired with Japan's Obon holiday | Vu Lan Filial Piety Festival and Grand Requiem for Departed Overseas Souls | Rose-Pinning Ceremony (Bông hồng cài áo) honoring parents, Medicine Buddha assembly, and requiem rites for ancestors, disaster victims, and young Vietnamese citizens who passed away in Japan. |
| Summer and Autumn annually | Schedule of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan | Youth Toward the Buddha Retreat, One-Day Mindfulness Retreats, and Mid-Autumn Festival | Residential retreats for hundreds of students and technical interns in Kantō featuring meditation, psychological and labor-law counseling, and Mid-Autumn lantern festivities for children. |
| Year-round and Year-End Lunar Season | Ongoing humanitarian outreach schedule | Grains of Compassion Program and Community Relief Convoys | Distribution of free rice and food packages to workers and students in financial distress, free temporary housing at the Dai An Shelter, and pastoral visits to Vietnamese hospital patients and detainees. |
Beyond serving the Vietnamese community, during Vesak and Lunar New Year celebrations Dai An Pagoda regularly welcomes local mayors, municipal assembly members, Japanese Buddhist abbots from Saitama, and Honjō citizens to share vegetarian phở and spring rolls, fostering warm grassroots friendship between Japan and Vietnam.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Getting there
- From central Tokyo (Ueno Station or Tokyo Station), take the JR Takasaki Line (about 80 minutes) to Honjō Station (本庄駅) or the Jōetsu Shinkansen to Honjō-Waseda Station, or transfer to the JR Hachikō Line to Kodama Station (児玉駅). From Kodama Station take a 10-minute taxi ride (or a 20-minute taxi ride from Honjō Station) southwest to 668-2 Kodamachō Takayanagi to reach Dai An Pagoda.
- Coordinates
- 36.1777, 139.1108
When visiting or attending a retreat at Dai An Pagoda in Honjō, please wear modest, respectful attire (a gray Buddhist robe is encouraged for initiated lay Buddhists) and maintain quiet when walking past the monastery's humanitarian residential dormitories. During major festivals such as Lunar New Year, Vesak, or Vu Lan, the temple frequently arranges free shuttle buses for worshippers from Honjō Station or Kodama Station, so please check announcements in advance to board at the designated pickup point and avoid parking along rural roads in Takayanagi.
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VIIContribute To This Page
Contribute photos, information or video for Dai An Pagoda
Góp ảnh, thông tin hoặc video cho Chùa Đại Ân (大恩寺)Everyone is welcome to enrich this page: a photo you took, a detail the page misses, a short video. Every contribution is read and answered.
Thầy Ưng Khiêm mời cộng đồng cùng làm giàu trang này. Ảnh chụp tận nơi, một chi tiết lịch sử chưa được nhắc, một đoạn video ngắn: mọi đóng góp đều được đọc và trả lời.
No community contribution yet. You could be the first. Chưa có đóng góp nào từ cộng đồng. Bạn có thể là người đầu tiên.
?Quick Questions
What role does Dai An Pagoda in Honjō (Saitama Prefecture) play in Vietnamese Buddhism in Japan?
Dai An Pagoda (大恩寺, Daion-ji) in Honjō, Saitama Prefecture serves as the Central Headquarters of the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan and is one of the largest Vietnamese Buddhist monasteries in the Kantō region, covering more than 5,000 square meters. Initiated by Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí (President of the Association), the Honjō monastery opened in January 2018 and was formally inaugurated on May 6, 2018.
Why did Dai An Pagoda and Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí become famous across Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Between 2020 and 2022, when thousands of Vietnamese technical interns and students lost their jobs, housing, and flights home due to COVID-19 border closures, Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí opened Dai An Pagoda to provide free lodging and meals to thousands of displaced youth while shipping hundreds of tons of rice and food across all 47 prefectures of Japan, earning nationwide praise on NHK and in major Japanese newspapers.
What Buddhist teaching inspires the name Dai An Pagoda?
The name Đại Ân (大恩, Great Gratitude) comes from the Mahāyāna Buddhist teaching of the Four Great Gratitudes (Tứ Trọng Ân): gratitude to parents, gratitude to the Three Jewels and teachers, gratitude to one's nation and society, and gratitude to all fellow beings. It reminds overseas Vietnamese Buddhists to honor their homeland while thanking Japan for welcoming them.
Besides the main monastery in Honjō (Saitama Prefecture), what other branches belong to the Dai An Pagoda network?
Alongside the Central Headquarters at Dai An Pagoda in Honjō (Saitama Prefecture, inaugurated on May 6, 2018), Venerable Nun Thích Tâm Trí and the Association of Vietnamese Buddhists in Japan established Dai An Pagoda Tochigi in Nasushiobara (Tochigi Prefecture, inaugurated in November 2021) and Dai An Pagoda Tokyo in Adachi Ward (Tokyo, inaugurated in May 2026).
How can visitors travel from Tokyo to Dai An Pagoda in Honjō, Saitama Prefecture?
From Tokyo Station or Ueno Station, visitors can take the JR Takasaki Line to Honjō Station (本庄駅), the Jōetsu Shinkansen to Honjō-Waseda Station, or the JR Hachikō Line to Kodama Station (児玉駅). From Kodama Station it is a 10-minute taxi ride (or 20 minutes from Honjō Station) to 668-2 Kodamachō Takayanagi, Honjō, Saitama Prefecture.