PagodaEnter the temple

Your first visit to a Vietnamese temple, step by step

Nobody expects a first-time visitor to know what to do. This page walks you through a visit in the order most people follow, from the gate to a quiet seat. Each step links to a page with the details. Where temples differ, the common practice is given and a short note says what may vary. If someone at the temple shows you another way, follow them.

You can do all of this, or only the parts you like. A visit with no incense, no bowing and no offering is still a welcome visit.

The order of a visit

  1. Enter the main area (this page).
  2. Offer incense at the main burner: incense.
  3. Enter the hall.
  4. Make an offering: offerings.
  5. Bow to the Three Jewels: bowing.
  6. Ring the bell: bell and drum.
  7. Sit quietly: meditation.
  8. Bow to Quan Âm in the courtyard: Avalokiteshvara.
  9. Walk the rest of the grounds: garden, pond, benches, bell tower.

Some temples reverse the first steps and offer flowers or fruit before the incense. Both orders are common; the one above is the order the online Pagoda temple follows.

Enter the main area

Walk in slowly, lower your voice, and head toward the main burner in the courtyard in front of the hall.

  1. Pause at the gate. Stand still for a breath. If there is a three-door gate, the middle door is traditionally kept for ceremonies, so most visitors use a side door.
  2. Put your palms together. A slight bow is a greeting to the place and the people in it. You do not need to say anything.
  3. Slow down and quieten. Put your phone on silent. Walk rather than hurry; the courtyard is a place to arrive, not to pass through.
  4. Look before you go in. Find signs about where to leave shoes, where visitors may go, and where photos are not wanted. Living quarters and kitchens are private even when nothing says so.
  5. Walk toward the main burner. Go around other people rather than through them, and wait your turn if there is a queue.

Varies by temple: some temples have a gatekeeper's table, an entrance fee or a donation box; some have no outdoor burner at all and begin inside the hall.

Before you enter: dress and manners

You do not need special clothes. Neat and modest is enough: shoulders and knees covered, nothing loud. Take off hats and sunglasses before you enter the hall. Temple etiquette has the full list, including photos and how to treat monks and nuns.

After the main area

Once you are standing in the courtyard, the next step is to offer incense, and the page on incense shows how to hold, light and place the sticks without walking through the burner. From there the visit continues into the hall. For how the buildings are laid out, see the temple layout, and for what each altar is for, see the altars.

Leaving

Leave as you came: slowly and quietly. Step back a few paces from the altar before you turn if you can. You can return to the courtyard, the garden or a bench and stay as long as you like.

Where to go next

Related pages

Keep reading

Enter the temple