Vietnam Colors of life16

1. Colors of life

3. Bai Dinh Pagoda is Vietnam’s largest Buddhist complex. It consists of several temples and over 500 intricately carved statues of Buddha

4. The old Pagoda was built more than 1,000 years ago and was joined by a new Pagoda, built in 2008 on the 500ha compound at Gia Sinh Commune, Gia Vien District, Ninh Binh Province The new Pagoda features a three-door gate, the Tam Palace, the Quan Am Palace and the Bell Tower

5. The Pagoda is in the Trang An tourism Complex, which was admitted to Unesco's World Heritage List in June 2014 as a mixed natural and cultural site

6. The Stupa

7. One of the most imposing structures visible from many places is the Bao Thap Tower or stupa. Visitors can go up to the 13th floor of this structure (with an elevator and 72 steps), to get the best view of the complex from a height of 328 ft. (100 m)

8. Inside Bao Thap (stupa) of Bai Dinh pagoda

9. Ceiling decoration inside the  Bao Thien Stupa

11. The stupa at Bai Dinh pagoda is a place to display Buddha sariras (relics) from India Details of the ceiling decoration Bao Thien Stupa

12. Details of the ceiling decoration Bao Thien Stupa

13. Details of little stupa containing sariras

14. Bai Dinh Pagoda Entrance

15. The bell tower (22m high) is built of reinforced concrete with wooden imitation, with 3-storey curved roofs

16. There is a bronze bell weighing 36 tons hung inside the bell tower: "The largest bell in Vietnam“ Below the bronze bell, there is a bronze drum weighing 13 tons, the diameter of more than 6m and the height of nearly 7m

17. The Guanyin Bodhisattva Hall 14.8m high, is built entirely of wood Inside, the statue of Quan Am (Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara) with a thousand eyes and thousand arms, weighing 80 tons, 9.57m high

18. Statue carved from one large tree

19. The inner wall around is made of small cells inside, where a small bronze statue of Quan The Am is placed

21. Phap Chu Temple of Banh Dinh pagoda worships the Great Buddha (Buddha Dharma Lord Temple) is made of massive reinforced concrete with wooden imitation

23. The statue of Sakyamuni Buddha sitting on the lotus thron (10 m in height, 100 tons in weight). This statue is confirmed the record "The largest bronze Sakyamuni Buddha statue in Vietnam"

24. Buddha Dharma Lord Temple

26. Buddha Dharma Lord Temple

28. Buddha Dharma Lord Temple The Direction Guardians, or Four Guardian Kings, or the Four Heavenly Kings

32. The crane on the back of the tortoise is the symbol of longevity, seen mostly in temples dedicated to Confucius, emperors and local spirits. In principle, the symbol of crane is not used in Buddhist pagodas. The tortoise is believed to live ten thousand years, and the crane one thousand years; thus, the presence of this symbol means, a "May you be remembered for one thousand years, and may your cult endure for ten thousand years.”

33. Buddha Dharma Lord Temple The Direction Guardians, or Four Guardian Kings, or the Four Heavenly Kings

36. The biggest bronze Buddhas of the Three Times are in their own hall. In Chinese Buddhism, they are Dipankara of the past, Gautama of the present, and Maitreya of the future. Each of them weighs 50 tons and is over 7 meters tall

38. The Pagoda holds the record for Asia's longest corridor, at 3km, with 500 Arhat statues

39. The 3 km Arhat (A La Hán) corridor is made entirely of wood. Each Arhat is 2.5 meters tall and weighs around 2.5 tons. Arhats in Mahayana Buddhism are people far advanced along the path of enlightenment, but who may not have reached full Buddhahood.

46. Trang An Boat Tour

47. Trang An is a scenic area near Ninh Binh, renowned for its boat cave tours

48. The bell tower at Vu Lam royal step-over palace

50. The Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site