Vinh Trang Pagoda is located in My Phong Commune, which is three kilometres from My Tho centre city. It was built in 1849 by a Buddhist monk Thich Hue Dang using funds collected from practitioners. The religious site was seriously damaged by French colonists in 1861 and a severe storm in 1904. On both occasions, practitioners restored the pagoda to its original splendor.
Vinh Trang, with the area of 2000m2 with many beautiful trees, is the biggest pagoda in Mekong Delta. is one of the most well-known in the Delta However, formerly it was a small leaf hermitage set up in the early 19th century by District Chief Bui Cong Dat. In 1849, the Most Venerable Abbot Thich Hue Dang put it up a big pagoda and named it Vinh Trang Pagoda. After many times of changing who in charge of the pagoda and reconstructing, now the pagoda has many netlike panels, horizontal boards and oblong boards of the parallel sentences.
In the late 1890s, the temple was completely renovated under the eye of new abbot Thích Chánh Hậu, only it to be heavily damaged by a powerful tropical storm. Another extensive rebuilding campaign began in 1907 under the same abbot. After his death in 1923, his successor Thích Minh Đàn organized several more renovations of the complex and oversaw the construction of the ceremonial hall and the main triple gate.
The Pagoda’s style is an elegant blend of East and West; Renaissance-style patterns and Romanesque arches blend seamlessly with Japanese tile and traditional Vietnamese architectural styles.
