Step through the outer archway from busy Chùa Láng Street in Láng Ward, Hanoi, and walk down the Bát Tràng brick path shaded by centuries-old mango-plum (muỗm) trees: ahead rises a four-pillar triple gateway whose curved vaulted roof rests upon a carved stone platform shaped like an emperor's dragon couch. Across the brow of the gate stand three large Chinese characters reading Chiêu Thiền Tự. This is the ceremonial threshold of Láng Pagoda, the grand monastery hailed for centuries by the people of Thăng Long as the Foremost Monastic Forest (Đệ nhất tùng lâm) of the capital.
Far more than an ordinary Buddhist temple, Láng Pagoda is a premier sanctuary of the northern Vietnamese tradition of Buddha in front, Saint behind in the ancient Kẻ Láng (Yên Lãng) land. It was erected on the very site of the family home of Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh's parents, honoring the twelfth-century master who was at once an enlightened Zen patriarch, a master of esoteric dharma, the patron ancestor of traditional chèo theater and, in historical belief, the prior incarnation of King Lý Thần Tông.
IZen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh and his royal incarnation King Lý Thần Tông
Láng Pagoda stands at No. 112 Chùa Láng Street in Láng Ward, Hanoi (prior to 1 July 2025, Láng Thượng Ward of the former Đống Đa District, which after merging Láng Thượng Ward with the remaining parts of Láng Hạ and Ngọc Khánh wards under Resolution No. 1656/NQ-UBTVQH15 forms the new Láng Ward). In the historical geography of Thăng Long, this area was Yên Lãng Village (known in the vernacular as Kẻ Láng, comprising the three hamlets of Láng Thượng, Láng Trung and Láng Hạ along the right bank of the Tô Lịch River) in Hạ Canton, former Vĩnh Thuận District. Its formal Sino-Vietnamese name is Chiêu Thiền Tự (昭禪寺), meaning the monastery founded upon the manifest virtue of the Zen master or the temple that illuminates Zen.
The ritual layout of Láng Pagoda follows the classic northern Vietnamese arrangement of Buddha in front, Saint in the rear (tiền Phật hậu Thánh). The Front Hall and Incense-Burning Hall venerate the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats and Kings of the Underworld according to Northern Buddhist liturgy. The innermost Upper Sanctuary (Rear Sanctuary) is dedicated to the Saint of Láng, Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh (secular name Từ Lộ, died 1116), and King Lý Thần Tông (Lý Dương Hoán, 1116 - 1138, the fifth monarch of the Lý dynasty, revered as the reincarnated form of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh himself).
In eleventh- and twelfth-century Vietnamese Buddhism, Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh was a twelfth-generation patriarch of the Vinitaruci (Tỳ Ni Đa Lưu Chi) Zen school, renowned for his synthesis of Zen meditation, Esoteric (Tantric) Buddhism and indigenous folk belief. Before shedding his mortal body inside a rock cave on Mount Sài Sơn (Thầy Pagoda) in the seventh year of the Hội Tường Đại Khánh era (1116), he composed verses on the True Mind and a farewell verse demonstrating mastery over life and death and a vow to re-enter the world to protect the realm. The account of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh being reborn as the son of Marquis Sùng Hiền (younger brother of the childless King Lý Nhân Tông) and ascending the throne as King Lý Thần Tông reflects the intimate bond between the Sangha and royal authority under the Lý dynasty, where an eminent monk could manifest as a monarch to preserve dynastic stability.
The life and deeds of Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh are recorded in detail in two foundational classical texts, the Thiền uyển tập anh (compiled in the Trần dynasty) and the Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư (Basic Annals, Book 3), as well as on the stone stele Chiêu Thiền tự tạo lệ bi carved in the fourth year of the Thịnh Đức era (1656) still standing at the pagoda. According to these records, Từ Đạo Hạnh's father was Từ Vinh (a native of An Lãng / Yên Lãng), who served as Chief Inspector of Monks in the capital Thăng Long, married Lady Tăng Thị Loan of Dịch Vọng Hamlet (near present-day Hoa Lăng Pagoda in Cầu Giấy) and established his residence at Yên Lãng (the ground of Láng Pagoda today). After Từ Vinh used magical arts to offend the consort of Marquis Diên Thành, the esoteric master Đại Điên struck him dead by sorcery and cast his body into the Tô Lịch River. Devoted to avenging his father, Từ Lộ (Từ Đạo Hạnh) set out toward India to master esoteric dharmas, chanted the Great Compassion Dharani 108,000 times and defeated Đại Điên at Yên Quyết Bridge on the Tô Lịch River, before awakening to the Zen law of karma under Masters Kiều Trí Huyền and Sùng Phạm and retiring to Mount Phật Tích (Sài Sơn, Quốc Oai) to attain realization.
When speaking of Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh, many visitors think only of Thầy Pagoda (Thiên Phúc Tự at Sài Sơn, Quốc Oai) and overlook the twin bond uniting Thầy Pagoda and Láng Pagoda. In the cultural memory of Thăng Long and the Đoài region, Thầy Pagoda is where Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh practiced asceticism, taught the Dharma and shed his mortal form (leaving his footprints pressed into the rock), whereas Láng Pagoda is his birthplace on the ground of his parents' home and the shrine celebrating his royal incarnation as King Lý Thần Tông. Hence the old folk verse linking the two sites: Remember the seventh day of the third month, / Go in to the Láng festival, go out to the Thầy festival.
IINearly nine hundred years of the Foremost Monastic Forest
Regarding the exact founding date and the monarch who commissioned Láng Pagoda, historical chronicles and epigraphy preserve two accounts tied to two twelfth-century Lý emperors. The first account (found in oral tradition and local spirit charters of Yên Lãng) holds that King Lý Thần Tông (reigned 1128 - 1138) built the pagoda on the former homestead of his previous life's parents (Từ Vinh and Lady Tăng Thị Loan) to venerate his own prior incarnation, Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh. The second account (inscribed on the 1656 stone stele Chiêu Thiền tự tạo lệ bi composed by Doctoral Laureate Nguyễn Văn Trạc and widely endorsed by modern historians) states that King Lý Anh Tông (reigned 1138 - 1175, son of King Lý Thần Tông), out of filial devotion to his late father King Lý Thần Tông and reverence for his father's prior incarnation Master Từ Đạo Hạnh, issued an edict founding Chiêu Thiền Monastery in Yên Lãng Village to honor both figures. The Hall of Myriad Paths presents both sources in full.
Across nearly nine centuries, Láng Pagoda was repeatedly restored and expanded under the Trần, Early Lê, Mạc, Restored Lê and Nguyễn dynasties. The most decisive reconstruction shaping its grand traditional layout took place in the Bính Thân year, the fourth year of the Thịnh Đức era (1656) under King Lê Thần Tông, supported by royal consorts of the Trịnh lords' palace and the people of the three Kẻ Láng hamlets. Subsequently, in the mid-nineteenth century under the Nguyễn dynasty (notably the restoration of the twelfth year of the Tự Đức era, 1859, and late nineteenth-century repairs), the triple gate, the octagonal pavilion and the inner-Công outer-Quốc corridors took the complete form seen today.
- 1116Transfiguration of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh and birth of Lý Dương HoánIn the seventh year of the Hội Tường Đại Khánh era (1116), Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh shed his mortal body on Mount Sài Sơn, in that same year the consort of Marquis Sùng Hiền gave birth to Prince Lý Dương Hoán, who ascended the throne as King Lý Thần Tông in 1128.
- 12th century (1128 - 1175)Founding of Chiêu Thiền Tự on the ancestral homestead in Yên LãngUnder King Lý Thần Tông (1128 - 1138) or King Lý Anh Tông (1138 - 1175, according to the 1656 stele), the court erected Chiêu Thiền Pagoda on the former home of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh's parents in Yên Lãng Village.
- 1656Major Restored Lê reconstruction and erection of the Thịnh Đức steleIn the fourth year of the Thịnh Đức era (1656) under King Lê Thần Tông, the monastery underwent a major reconstruction and erected the great stone stele Chiêu Thiền tự tạo lệ bi composed by Doctoral Laureate Nguyễn Văn Trạc.
- 1859 - late 19th centuryComprehensive Nguyễn-dynasty restoration under Emperor Tự ĐứcThe pagoda was thoroughly restored, perfecting the dragon-couch Triple Gate, the central Octagonal Pavilion, the Front Hall, the Upper Sanctuary and the two side corridors of the Ten Courts of Hell.
- 1962Ranked as a National Historical and Architectural Heritage SiteOn 28 April 1962, the Ministry of Culture issued Decision No. 313-VH/VP classifying Láng Pagoda in the first batch of national historical and cultural heritage sites.
- 2015Recognition of the Vietnam Heritage Trees at Láng PagodaA group of 19 ancient trees on the pagoda grounds (including 15 mango-plum muỗm trees aged 300 to nearly 900 years, 2 plumerias, 1 banyan and 1 hackberry) was officially recognized as Vietnam Heritage Trees.
- 2019Láng Pagoda Festival inscribed as National Intangible Cultural HeritageOn 12 December 2019, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism signed Decision No. 4602/QĐ-BVHTTDL inscribing the Láng Pagoda Festival on the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The stone stele Chiêu Thiền tự tạo lệ bi carved in the twelfth lunar month of the Bính Thân year, the fourth year of the Thịnh Đức era (1656), at Láng Pagoda is a primary historical document on seventeenth-century Thăng Long. Composed by the eminent scholar Nguyễn Văn Trạc (Doctoral Laureate of the Mậu Thìn examination in the tenth year of the Vĩnh Tộ era, 1628), the inscription praises Chiêu Thiền Tự as the foremost scenic monastery of the imperial capital shaded by pine groves and ancient muỗm trees across all four seasons, while recording in detail the ritual statutes, temple lands and saint-procession customs of Yên Lãng Village.
IIIInner-Công outer-Quốc layout, the dragon-couch gate and 198 statues
Láng Pagoda is one of the largest and most intact traditional architectural complexes surviving within inner Hanoi. The entire monastery is laid out symmetrically along a sacred axis facing west-southwest, leading visitors through three successive gateways and an Octagonal Pavilion before entering the main sanctuary built on the inner-Công outer-Quốc (nội công ngoại quốc) plan: the inner halls form the Chinese character Công (工, comprising the Front Hall, Incense-Burning Hall and Upper Sanctuary), enclosed on the outside like the character Quốc (國) by two long side corridors connected to the Patriarchs' Hall and Mother Goddess Hall at the rear.
The most distinctive architectural feature embodying the royal character of Láng Pagoda is the Main Triple Gate (the second gate after the street archway). Consisting of four massive brick-and-stone square pillars dividing three passageways, its central bay is crowned not by an ordinary flat roof or bell loft, but by a gracefully arched timber vault joined to a square dragon-carved stone platform set directly beneath the central arch. This gate-and-platform structure represents the imperial dragon couch (long sàng) of the king, reminding all who enter that this temple venerates a Zen master who was also an emperor (King Lý Thần Tông). On ordinary days the central portal remains closed, opening only during grand festival processions.
Beyond the dragon-couch Triple Gate stretches a broad Bát Tràng brick courtyard shaded by ancient trees, at whose center stands the two-tiered, eight-roofed Octagonal Pavilion (Phương đình) with eight upturned roof corners carved with dragons flanking the moon. During the third-month festival, the palanquin carrying the statue of Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh is placed inside this pavilion for public veneration. Passing through the third gate brings visitors into the inner sanctuary consisting of the nine-bay Front Hall, the Incense-Burning Hall and the Upper Sanctuary, flanked by two fifteen-bay side corridors and backed by the Rear Hall.
The pantheon of 198 statues and the heritage muỗm tree grove
Láng Pagoda has long been celebrated in Vietnamese art history for its vast sculptural pantheon numbering 198 statues of wood, molded clay and lacquered woven rattan. In the Front Hall stand two colossal Dharma Guardian statues (Khuyến Thiện and Trừng Ác) nearly 4 meters tall alongside the Eight Vajra Guardians and the reliefs of the Ten Kings of Hell. In the Incense-Burning Hall and Upper Sanctuary sit the Three Times Buddhas, the Amitabha Triad, Cundi Avalokiteshvara, Avalokiteshvara of the Southern Sea, the Nine-Dragon birth relief and the Eighteen Arhats.
Most treasured of all inside the innermost Upper Sanctuary are two historical portrait statues of exceptional craftsmanship: on the high central throne sits King Lý Thần Tông wearing an imperial flat-topped crown and dragon robe, holding a jade tablet atop an intricately carved dragon throne, while beside him sits Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh in a monastic robe and Seven-Buddha crown. Remarkably, the core of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh's statue is woven from rattan strips using an ancient technique and then covered with cloth, natural lacquer and gold leaf, making the statue both durable across centuries and light enough for the young men of Láng Village to carry on an eight-bearer palanquin across the Tô Lịch River on festival day.
Surrounding the architectural complex is the grove of ancient trees immortalized in Thăng Long folk verse: Highest of all is Mount Ba Vì, / Third is Láng Pagoda, second is Độc Tôn. Legend holds that the monastery once stood amid hundreds of pines and nearly two hundred ancient mango-plum (muỗm) trees planted by the Lý kings and local villagers. Today dozens of venerable trees still shade the grounds, including 15 ancient muỗm trees (some with trunks over a meter thick and ages ranging from 300 to nearly 900 years) certified as Vietnam Heritage Trees in 2015.
A unique four-pillar brick-and-stone gateway combining a curved vaulted roof with a dragon-carved stone platform symbolizing the imperial couch of King Lý Thần Tông, inscribed Chiêu Thiền Tự.
An eight-sided pavilion roofed with curved tiles and eight dragon-carved upturned eaves standing at the center of the Bát Tràng brick courtyard, where Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh's palanquin rests during the festival.
Two rare portrait statues in the Rear Sanctuary: a lightweight lacquered rattan statue of Master Từ Đạo Hạnh carried in festival processions and a statue of King Lý Thần Tông seated on a dragon throne.
A collection of 15 historic stone stelae (the oldest dated to the 4th year of Thịnh Đức, 1656, composed by Doctoral Laureate Nguyễn Văn Trạc) and a great bronze bell from the Later Lê - Nguyễn periods.
A forest of centuries-old trees including 15 ancient muỗm trees, plumerias, a banyan and a hackberry lining the sacred path and courtyards, earning the pagoda the title Foremost Monastic Forest.
When hearing the famous number 198 associated with Láng Pagoda, many people confuse 198 statues with 198 muỗm trees. According to Hanoi cultural heritage inventories, 198 is the total number of worship statues cataloged across the halls of Láng Pagoda (nearly all of which survive today), whereas the ancient muỗm trees still standing around the grounds number several dozen (with the 15 oldest recognized as Vietnam Heritage Trees). Together, both the grove of ancient muỗm trees and the pantheon of 198 statues define the soul of Chiêu Thiền Tự.
IVThe lie of the land and the facing
This section is the library's own reading through the eyes of traditional form-school feng shui, not something recorded in the pagoda's stelae or spirit charters. We state this clearly so that readers can distinguish historical documentation from geomantic interpretation.
At coordinates 21.02343 degrees North latitude and 105.80277 degrees East longitude, Láng Pagoda stands on the fertile elevated bank of ancient Yên Lãng Village west of the Thăng Long citadel, directly beside the right bank of the Tô Lịch River. In the historical hydrography of Thăng Long, the Tô Lịch River was the vital waterway branching from the Red River and curving around the northern and western flanks of the capital before flowing south. Along the Kẻ Láng stretch, the Tô Lịch River bends in a wide arc embracing the Yên Lãng rise, forming the auspicious curving water embracing the hall configuration prized in delta geomancy.
In terms of orientation and axial alignment, the entire Láng Pagoda complex from the outer gate, the muỗm-shaded sacred avenue, the dragon-couch Triple Gate and the Octagonal Pavilion to the Upper Sanctuary is aligned along a straight axis sitting in the east-northeast (Gen - Yin) and facing west-southwest (Kun - Shen). This west-southwest facing carries a dual geomantic and spiritual meaning: first, the front of the pagoda looks directly toward the Tô Lịch River flowing a few hundred meters to the west as its water-gathering bright hall (minh đường) and across the river toward Hoa Lăng Pagoda (where the Saint's mother, Lady Tăng Thị Loan, is venerated), and second, the west-southwest axis points directly toward Mount Sài Sơn (Thầy Pagoda) in the Đoài region, where Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh attained realization and shed his mortal form. Surrounded by old ponds (Láng Lake) and sheltered on all four sides by centuries-old muỗm trees like a green canopy that gathers qi and keeps it tranquil, the site stands as the spiritual anchor guarding the western gateway of Thăng Long.
VThe Láng Pagoda festival: National Intangible Cultural Heritage and the battle of deities
The Láng Pagoda Festival (Hội Láng), held annually on the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month (marking the birthday and commemoration day of Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh), is one of the grandest traditional festivals of the Thăng Long capital region and was inscribed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2019. Historically, major festival years spanned from the 5th to the 15th day of the 3rd lunar month with the participation of sworn sister villages across Hạ Canton and the Tô Lịch River basin, including Láng Thượng, Láng Trung, Láng Hạ, Dịch Vọng, Mọc (Nhân Chính), Thượng Yên Quyết and Hạ Yên Quyết.
The most famous ritual of the Láng Pagoda Festival is the procession of the Saint's palanquin across the Tô Lịch River and the dramatic battle of the deities (đấu thần). On the morning of the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month, the woven-rattan statue of Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh is bathed in fragrant pomelo-blossom water, carried on an eight-bearer palanquin from the Upper Sanctuary to the Octagonal Pavilion in the courtyard, and then borne in procession from Láng Pagoda across the Tô Lịch River to Hoa Lăng Pagoda (in Dịch Vọng, where his mother Lady Tăng Thị Loan is worshipped) so the Saint may visit his mother. As the palanquin passes near the shrine where his father's old rival, the sorcerer Đại Điên, is worshipped, the young palanquin bearers break into a thunderous sprint, historically firing skyrockets toward the rival shrine while unfurling parasols to shield the palanquin, reenacting the legendary magical duel (đấu thần) between Từ Đạo Hạnh and Đại Điên. Early in the third lunar month, sudden spring showers often fall to cool the procession, remembered in the folk couplet: Wherever one may wander far and wide, / Return for the Láng festival on the seventh and the Thầy festival on the tenth.
| Lunar date | Festival / Rite | Traditional rituals and performances |
|---|---|---|
| 6th day of the 3rd month | Bathing-of-the-statue rite and opening sacrifice | Bathing the statue of Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh in fragrant pomelo-blossom water, carrying the statue to the Octagonal Pavilion and performing the opening ceremonial sacrifice |
| 7th day of the 3rd month (main day) | Grand palanquin procession across the Tô Lịch River and battle of deities | Carrying Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh's palanquin across the Tô Lịch River to Hoa Lăng Pagoda to visit his mother, reenacting the battle of deities, welcoming palanquins of the sworn Láng - Mọc villages, and offering flowers and sesame rice balls |
| 8th day of the 3rd month | Thanksgiving sacrifice and return to the sanctuary | Thanksgiving rites to the Buddhas, Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh and King Lý Thần Tông, and returning the Saint's statue from the Octagonal Pavilion to the innermost Upper Sanctuary |
| 15th day of the 1st, 4th and 7th months | Lantern Festival, Buddha's Birthday and Vu Lan Festival | Major Buddhist ceremonial days drawing numerous Buddhists and university students around Chùa Láng Street to offer incense and pray for peace |
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Số 112 phố Chùa Láng, phường Láng (trước ngày 01/07/2025 là phường Láng Thượng, quận Đống Đa cũ), thành phố Hà Nội
- Getting there
- Located at No. 112 Chùa Láng Street, Láng Ward, about 800 meters north of the Nguyễn Chí Thanh - Đường Láng - Trần Duy Hưng intersection. From central Hoàn Kiếm Lake, follow the Kim Mã - Nguyễn Chí Thanh axis and turn into Chùa Láng Street (about 6 km) or travel along Đường Láng beside the Tô Lịch River.
- Coordinates
- 21.02343, 105.80277
When visiting Láng Pagoda, after passing through the street archway, please walk through the two side openings (Left Gate and Right Gate) of the central dragon-couch Triple Gate, as the central vaulted portal is opened only during grand festival processions. Inside the halls housing 198 ancient statues and Lê-dynasty stone stelae, visitors are asked to dress modestly, speak softly, refrain from touching the gilded statues and never open the doors of the inner sanctuary shrines.
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?Quick Questions
Who is worshipped at Láng Pagoda and why does it honor both a monk and a king?
Láng Pagoda (Chiêu Thiền Tự) worships the Buddha in its front halls and venerates Zen Master Từ Đạo Hạnh together with King Lý Thần Tông in the Rear Sanctuary following the Buddha in front, Saint behind tradition. According to Lý-dynasty chronicles and Buddhist records, after shedding his mortal body on Mount Sài Sơn in 1116, Master Từ Đạo Hạnh reincarnated as the son of Marquis Sùng Hiền and ascended the throne as King Lý Thần Tông, so the pagoda was built on his parents' old homestead to honor both lives.
Which twelfth-century monarch founded Láng Pagoda?
Historical sources preserve two accounts: folk tradition holds that King Lý Thần Tông (reigned 1128 - 1138) founded the pagoda on the homestead of his previous life's parents to honor his prior incarnation Master Từ Đạo Hạnh, whereas the stone stele Chiêu Thiền tự tạo lệ bi carved in the 4th year of Thịnh Đức (1656) states that King Lý Anh Tông (son of Lý Thần Tông, reigned 1138 - 1175) commissioned the monastery out of filial devotion to his late father and reverence for the Saint.
What makes the Triple Gate of Láng Pagoda architecturally unique?
The Triple Gate of Láng Pagoda consists of four square brick-and-stone pillars supporting a curved vaulted timber roof, beneath which sits a square dragon-carved stone platform representing the imperial dragon couch (long sàng) of the king. This combination of a triple gate and an imperial dragon couch is unique in Vietnamese temple architecture, signifying the royal status of King Lý Thần Tông and Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh.
When does the Láng Pagoda Festival take place and what is the battle of the deities?
The Láng Pagoda Festival (inscribed as National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2019) celebrates its main day on the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month. Its centerpiece is the palanquin procession carrying the woven-rattan statue of Saint Từ Đạo Hạnh across the Tô Lịch River to Hoa Lăng Pagoda to visit his mother, accompanied by the dramatic battle of the deities (sprinting with the palanquin and historically firing rockets toward the shrine of his rival Đại Điên).
Which ward of Hanoi does Láng Pagoda belong to after 1 July 2025?
Láng Pagoda is located at No. 112 Chùa Láng Street in Láng Ward, Hanoi. Prior to 1 July 2025, it belonged to Láng Thượng Ward of the former Đống Đa District. Under Resolution No. 1656/NQ-UBTVQH15 of 2025 issued by the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, Láng Thượng Ward and the remaining portions of Láng Hạ and Ngọc Khánh wards were merged to form the new Láng Ward directly under Hanoi.