---
node: thien_mu_pagoda
type: art
slug: thien_mu_pagoda
title: "Thiên Mụ Pagoda"
lead: "Thiên Mụ Pagoda is a Buddhist temple on a hill above the Perfume River outside Huế, central Vietnam, founded in 1601 by the lord Nguyễn Hoàng. Its seven-storey tower Phuoc Duyen, added in 1844, has become the unofficial symbol of Huế."
published: 2026-07-11
updated: 2026-07-11
image_file: thien_mu_pagoda.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thien_Mu_Pagoda_in_February_2025.jpg"
image_author: "SerChevalerie"
image_license: "CC0"
---

## Overview

The pagoda was founded in 1601 by the lord Nguyễn Hoàng. According to legend, he built it after hearing of a celestial lady — Thiên Mụ means heavenly lady — who had prophesied that a lord would raise a pagoda on the hill for the country's fortune.

## Description

The temple stands on a hill above the Perfume River outside Huế in central Vietnam. Its emblem is Phuoc Duyen, a seven-storey octagonal brick tower about 21 metres tall.

## History and legacy

The Phuoc Duyen tower was added in 1844 by Emperor Thieu Tri and has become the unofficial symbol of Huế. The pagoda also preserves the Austin car in which the monk Thich Quang Duc drove to Saigon in 1963, where he burned himself to death in protest against the Diem government's treatment of Buddhists.