Hải Đức Pagoda

Hải Đức Pagoda is located on the western branch at the summit of Trại Thủy hill, at 51 Hải Đức Street, Phương Sơn ward, Nha Trang city, Khánh Hòa province. The pagoda was built over 120 years ago and is one of the four important pagodas in the Trại Thủy hill complex, along with Long Sơn Pagoda, Bửu Phong Pagoda, and Lôi Am Pagoda.

The pagoda was founded by Zen master Viên Giác in 1883, initially as a thatched hermitage named Duyên Sanh Tự. In 1891, the pagoda was expanded and renamed Hải Đức Tự.

After Zen master Viên Giác passed away, in 1909, his disciple, Venerable Ngộ Tánh Phước Huệ, came from Hải Đức Pagoda in Huế to succeed as abbot and decided to undertake a major restoration of the tổ đình (ancestral temple). Since then, Hải Đức Tổ Đình – Nha Trang became a well-regulated major monastic centre, gathering hundreds of monks and devotees from everywhere to study and practise, and was officially granted the title "Sắc Tứ Hải Đức Tự" by the Southern Court government.

In 1938, the Venerable entrusted the abbotship to monk Bích Không. At that time, Thượng tọa (Venerable) Bích Không realised that Nha Trang had developed into a bustling urban area, and the noisy city environment was no longer suitable for monastic life, so he moved the pagoda up to Trại Thủy hill during the period from 1943 to 1945, building the pagoda in East Asian architectural style. In 1956, the pagoda was donated to become the main facility of the Central Vietnam Institute of Buddhist Studies, with Venerable Thích Giác Nhiên as the Institute Head and Venerable Thích Trí Thủ as the director.