Jade Emperor Pagoda, Ho Chi Minh City

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This Temple I was taken to when on my city tour.

I was dropped off at the temple courtyard which had a tortoise pool, and quite a few people in the courtyard.

On entering the main hall, the first thing I saw was the Jade Emperor who is referred to as " god of the Heavens"...........the emperor decides who will enter and who will be refused! The Emperor monitors entry through the gates of heaven, and is flanked by his senior officers, one bearing a light to illuminate the path, the other wielding an axe to administer justice.

The King of Hell and his red horse are on the right of the chamber were surrounded by the two gods of yin and yang, and four more gods who hand out punishment for evil and reward goodness.

The King of Hell faces towards the ‘Hall of the Ten Hells’, a room containing ten magnificently carved panes of depictions of the horrors awaiting the ungodly.

Next door, there is another room with twelve ceramic figures of women with many babies presided over by Kim Hoa, the protector of all mothers and children. Each figurine represents a particular human characteristic, good or bad, and one year of the 12 year Chinese calendar. Childless couples often visit this small chapel to pray to be granted a child.

To the left of the Jade Emperor in an enclosure containing Thien Loi, the god of lightning and other deities, is a life-sized effigy of a horse. This is also popular with women who seek fertility – they rub its flanks and neck and whisper their prayers in its ears.

This "different" Pagoda was built by the Cantonese around the 20th century, and was rather interesting!

A lot of the figures look rather nasty & mean, they may scare very young children!

OPEN Daily 8am-5pm

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This wonderful temple is located quite far from the city centre and I walked here from the zoo in the late afternoon. If you've got time for just one temple, this should be the one. Constructed by the city's Cantonese community at the turn of the 20th century, the Jade Emperor guards the entrance to heaven. His two companions, one with a lamp and the other with a gruesome axe, are there to help guide you in the right direction. These aren't the only deities here: you'll also find a fertility goddess, the Lord of Hell and even the Buddha of the future. The entire collection is somewhat of a fusion of Taoist, Buddhist and Confucian mythologies.

To the left of the main sanctuary is the highlight: the Hall of the 10 Hells. Lined with wooden panels that depict the 10 layers of hell, these carvings lay out exactly what is waiting for all you sinners. Each panel is topped with a representation of a King of Hell perusing a book that details the very evil acts perpetuated by the dead. Excellent place to take in an atmospheric city temple.

The Jade Emperor Pagoda provides an island of tranquillity in the sea of frenetic activity that is Saigon. With timber benches, shade trees, fish pond and pigeons, it is the ideal location to take a break and enjoy the peaceful surroundings.

The Pagoda is fairly busy with locals – young and old - popping in to pay their respects. It is a very colourful and dedicated to Ngoc Hoang, the Jade Emperor or King of Heaven. Presiding over the main sanctuary, the supreme Taoist god is robed luxuriously and said to preside over those who enter heaven and those who are refused.

One of the side rooms also contains carved wooden panels illustrating what awaits sinners in the Ten Regions of Hell!

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In a corner of the main “chapel” is a staircase leading to the first level, and then to the roof terrace; On the first floor are also some small chapels, shrines, statues of different style from the lower level, and then you can reach the roof, where, if you do not have a great view of the surroundings, you can have a closer look at the tiles and ceramics. On picture 2 and 3 are two statues of different style, a pilgrim and peaceful people. But I went up for the ceramics and tiles; I have seen pictures of deep oceanic monsters, but the people who made this dragon (main picture) probably have never seen a Melanocethus jonsthoni, a fish with the eyes at the end of “antennas”; divine inspiration?
Near the roof are a number of ceramics representing dragons people (pictures 4-5), which keep you in the atmosphere of a Buddhist place.
The Jade Emperor Pagoda has thousands of things more to show and to be discovered than I showed here in three tips! Be sure not to miss it, when you visit Saigon!

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In a corner of the main “chapel” is a staircase leading to the first level, and then to the roof terrace; On the first floor are also some small chapels, shrines, statues of different style from the lower level, and then you can reach the roof, where, if you do not have a great view of the surroundings, you can have a closer look at the tiles and ceramics. On picture 2 and 3 are two statues of different style, a pilgrim and peaceful people. But I went up for the ceramics and tiles; I have seen pictures of deep oceanic monsters, but the people who made this dragon (main picture) probably have never seen a Melanocethus jonsthoni, a fish with the eyes at the end of “antennas”; divine inspiration?
Near the roof are a number of ceramics representing dragons people (pictures 4-5), which keep you in the atmosphere of a Buddhist place.
The Jade Emperor Pagoda has thousands of things more to show and to be discovered than I showed here in three tips! Be sure not to miss it, when you visit Saigon!

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At some walking distance from the city hall area (Walking distance, as I am not afraid to walk 2 km) is one of the most famous pagodas of Saigon, Chua Phuoc Hai Tu, renowned for its impressive statues of Taoist deities inside.
This Pagoda, also known as the “Pagoda of Turtles” has been built in 1909 by Cantonese religious is hidden in a small street, between high buildings and may soon “disappear” in the city jungle, as another high rise building is just now growing on its back.
When you enter passing under a red porch, a huge banyan tree greets you, before you pass by a small shrine with a golden Buddha dominating a safe (picture 2), reminding you that, if entrance is free, you can donate. . . . There are other safes a bit everywhere in the building. . . . .
The Pagoda still tries to be worthy its name of “Pagoda of Turtles” as there is a pond where a few of these animals are swimming and are also an attraction for locals. . . (picture 3). Before entering we can have a look at the beautiful tiles covering the pagoda, and at some of the ceramics which decorate the yard in front. A pity the building at the back spoils the tile work on the gable above the main entrance (picture 4); in the yard are some (? Lions?) watching the visitors near the entrance to the pagoda (Picture 5).
And the Jade Emperor? Here he is (main picture), but we will get closer in the next tip!

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The Jade Emperor is the main Taoist deity, and on the main picture of the previous tip you could see lots of other deities aligned in two rows nearby; I know only few of the Catholic saints wonderfully displayed in the European churches, so, I am not at all able to tell a lot about all the characters displayed here. . . I just can say that in the main “chapel”, where the air is thick of incense smoke, the statues, in dim light are really impressive; I do not know the warriors, of the main picture , and when you pass by this 3 m high guy (picture 2), you feel humble. . . . Is this Dia Tang Vuong Bo Tat, the king of the Hell? Or is it this one (picture 3)? In this pagoda is also Phat Mau Chuan De, the multi armed goddess who gave birth to the five Buddhas, many famous heroes, you may spend hours looking at each individually! Some like this one (picture 4) look much more peaceful. I liked to look at all these statues, but also liked to see the local worshippers, coming to pray, make offerings, burning incense. . . . (picture 5). Ah let’s go on the roof terrace! … . . next tip.

one of the most stunning and the oldest Chinese temple in Saigon. As you go in, you will smell the pungent smoke burned by the faithfuls. Inside you will see small and large artifacts of the Emperors. Small temple but very nice. For more info, pls read Lonely Planet Vietnam.

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Saigon was little more than a large, muddy village when the French seized it in 1859. "French IndoChina" would survive less than a century; but in that time Saigon became a major city.

Its history explains why most monuments in what is now Ho Chi Minh City are of recent date. One is the Jade Emperor Pagoda, built by Chinese from Guanzhou in 1909. When I visited it, during Tet 2006, the temple was packed with worshippers and heavy with incense.

The Jade Emperor Pagoda is a gentle and exotic little spot full of character. The Chinese temple is filled with old carved statues and smoulders with incense. Set in calm leafy forecourts with a rare spiritual glow.