---
node: thien_mu_pagoda
type: art
slug: thien_mu_pagoda
title: "Thien Mu Pagoda"
lead: "Thien Mu Pagoda is a Buddhist temple on a hill above the Perfume River outside Hue, central Vietnam, founded in 1601 by the lord Nguyen Hoang. Its seven-storey tower Phuoc Duyen, added in 1844, has become the unofficial symbol of Hue."
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 Nguyen Hoang. According to legend, he built it after hearing of a celestial lady — Thien Mu 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 Hue 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 Hue. 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.