Clay Pagoda
Chùa Đất Sét (Bửu Sơn Tự)
Clay Pagoda
Chùa Đất Sét (Bửu Sơn Tự)
A unique Buddhist temple, almost entirely handcrafted from clay by a single master over 42 years.
Soc Trang
Temple
Cultural Heritage
The Clay Pagoda (Buu Son Tu) is an amazing example of folk art and spiritual devotion. Starting its history as a modest family altar, thanks to the labor of Abbot Ngo Kim Tong, it transformed into a masterpiece where thousands of Buddha, dragon, and deity sculptures are made of clay. This is an active place of worship that has preserved the atmosphere of meditation and unique artifacts, such as huge "eternal" candles.
- Visit duration
30–45 minutes
- Average budget
Free
- Admission
Free (donations welcome)
- Best months
Year-round
- Local language
Vietnamese
What you need to know
The pagoda was founded by the Ngo family over 200 years ago. In 1929, following a miraculous healing, Abbot Ngo Kim Tong dedicated his life to transforming the temple into a work of art using a mixture of clay, wood dust, agarwood resin, and cinnamon latex.
Must-see highlights:
- Clay statues: Over 1,900 figures created without professional artistic training.
- Towers: Thap Da Bao (13 levels, 156 dragons) and Bao Tho Tower.
- Thousand-Petal Lotus Temple: A unique structure featuring 1,000 petals, each holding a miniature Buddha statue.
- Giant candles: A pair of 100 kg candles that have been burning continuously since 1970.
Important: This is an active temple. Please keep quiet, do not touch fragile statues, and behave respectfully.
The pagoda is open for visits at any time of the year. Tourism in the Mekong Delta is active year-round.
On site
- Address
286 đường Tôn Đức Thắng, phường 5, TP. Sóc Trăng, tỉnh Sóc Trăng
- Getting there
Taxi or motorbike from downtown Soc Trang (1.5 km)
- Cash
Recommended for donations
- With kids
Possible, provided rules are followed