Buu Son Tu, also known as Chua Dat Set (Clay Pagoda), houses nearly 2,000 clay statues and eight giant candles weighing a total of 1.4 tons.

A temple crafted from earth

Located on Ton Duc Thang Street in Ward 5, Soc Trang City, Soc Trang Province, Buu Son Tu was built nearly 200 years ago by a man from the Ngo family who wished to dedicate his home to spiritual practice.

Unlike other temples that feature wood, gold, silver, or bronze artifacts, this pagoda is unique for its use of clay - a material rarely employed in sculpture due to its difficulty in shaping and preserving.

Initially, the site was merely a small thatched shrine with a modest altar. It wasn't until the fourth-generation caretaker, Ngo Kim Tong (1909–1970), took over that the temple underwent significant renovation and expansion.

Over the course of 42 years, Ngo Kim Tong meticulously crafted nearly 2,000 clay statues, turning the temple into a masterpiece of clay artistry.

According to temple records, the clay was sourced from uncultivated wetland areas. After drying, it was finely ground, sifted to remove sand and impurities, and mixed with incense powder and resin before being molded onto pre-made wire frames. Despite being made of clay, the statues exhibit a rich, lifelike appearance, resembling wood sculptures.

A sacred space of remarkable craftsmanship

One of the temple’s most awe-inspiring structures is the Bao Toa Lien Hoa (Lotus Throne), featuring 1,000 intricately sculpted lotus petals, each bearing a meditating Buddha.

Beneath the lotus pedestal is the Bat Quai Thien Tien (Eight Trigrams Celestial Realm), depicting eight mythical figures representing the trigrams: Can, Kham, Can, Chan, Ton, Ly, Khon, Doi. Each trigram is accompanied by two celestial maidens in reverence.

Adjacent to this is the Da Bao Tower, a 4-meter-tall, 13-tiered structure that Ngo Kim Tong built in 1939 at the age of 30. Each tier of the tower features 16 doors, with a Buddha statue enshrined in each opening.

Beyond its exquisite clay sculptures, Buu Son Tu is also renowned for its massive candles. In the final years of his life, instead of sculpting statues, Ngo Kim Tong dedicated himself to crafting these monumental candles to illuminate the temple’s main hall. He melted large quantities of wax in an industrial-sized cauldron and poured it into metal sheets, forming cylindrical molds standing 2.6 meters tall. The candles were then inscribed with golden calligraphy and adorned with intricate dragon motifs, their shapes shifting between visibility and concealment along the waxen surface.

In just a few months, Ngo Kim Tong successfully cast six large candles, each weighing 200 kilograms, and two smaller ones at 100 kilograms each. The two smaller candles were lit on July 18, 1970 - the day of his passing - and have continued burning for nearly 55 years.

In 2010, the People's Committee of Soc Trang Province designated Buu Son Tu as a provincial-level architectural and artistic heritage site. On September 21, 2013, the Da Bao Tower and Bao Toa Lien Hoa were officially recognized by the Vietnam Records Organization as extraordinary clay-based religious structures.

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Buu Son Tu, also known as Dat Set Pagoda, is located on Ton Duc Thang Street, Ward 5, Soc Trang City, Soc Trang Province. The pagoda was built nearly 200 years ago by a man from the Ngo family for home worship. It is famous for its artifacts, which are not made of wood, gold, silver, or bronze, but from clayb - a material that is difficult to craft.

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Initially, this place was just a small hut made of wood and leaves with a simple worship hall. It was not until the tenure of the fourth abbot, Ngo Kim Tong (1909–1970), that the pagoda was renovated and restored.
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Inside the pagoda, there are nearly 2,000 statues of various sizes, all sculpted from clay by artisan Ngo Kim Tong over 42 years.
According to records at the pagoda, the clay was sourced from uncultivated lowland fields. After being dried, it was finely ground using a mortar, with sand and impurities removed. Ngo Kim Tong then mixed it with incense powder and oud resin before shaping it onto pre-made wire frames. Despite being made of clay, the statues retain the beauty and lifelike expressions of wooden sculptures.
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“Bảo Tòa Liên Hoa” is a lotus pedestal with 1,000 petals, each featuring a Buddha in a meditative pose.
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The pagoda is not only famous for its thousands of clay statues but also for its giant candles.

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Within a few months, artisan Ngo Kim Tong crafted six large candles, each weighing 200 kg, and two smaller ones, each weighing 100 kg. The two smaller candles were lit on July 18, 1970 (the day of his passing) and have been burning for nearly 55 years.
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In 2010, the People’s Committee of Soc Trang Province recognized Buu Son Tu as a provincial-level architectural and artistic heritage site. Notably, on September 21, 2013, the pagoda’s clay-made Da Bao Tower and Bao Toa Lien Hoa were certified by the Vietnam Records Organization.

Tran Tuyen