Quan Am Pagoda Festival

Abstract

The belief of worshiping Quan Am (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva) plays an important role in Vietnamese cultural life. While the statue of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva is worshipped in most pagodas in Viet Nam, the festival is only celebrated by the one in Ngu Hanh Son district (Da Nang province) on February 19th of the lunar calendar. The festival which consists of two parts: the religious ceremony and festival itself, refl ects the association between the Buddhist culture and folk beliefs in the Central region of Viet Nam. In addition, it also performs certain social functions.

Received 27 April 2019; published 5 November 2019