HCM City bids adieu to jade Buddha statue

      Thousands of people participated in the lantern festival at Hoang Phap Pagoda, HCM City to say farewell to the world’s largest jade Buddha statue on April 24 in the evening.
Over 10,000 followers respectfully offered lanterns and candles to the Buddha statue. The entire Hoang Phap Pagoda looked fanciful in the light from the lanterns and with the praying of Buddhists.
Senior monk Thich Giac Thong said that in the 17 days the jade Buddha statue resided in the pagoda, Hoang Phap welcomed over 600,000 followers, over 30,000 a day.
The statue left Hoang Phap Pagoda for Van An Pagoda in the southern province of Dong Thap. The statue will stay there until May 10 and then visit Phat Tich Pagoda in the northern province of Bac Ninh from May 16-22.