Chùa Cái Bầu is located near the tourist beach area of Bãi Dài – Quảng Ninh, making it an ideal choice for visitors on a Ha Long tour to visit Chùa Cái Bầu. This is a perfect option for those traveling to Ha Long during the hot summer days, offering a combination of spiritual tourism and a fun cooling vacation. In this article, Cuồng will provide you with some tips for a smooth and convenient trip to Ha Long, visiting Chùa Cái Bầu.
Firstly, about clothing
Like any other spiritual place, clothing is a top priority that you need to pay attention to when visiting Chùa Cái Bầu. Therefore, when visiting this Ha Long tourist destination, you should choose neat, minimalist colored clothing, avoiding short skirts, shorts, tank tops, or revealing outfits when entering the temple. Especially, inappropriate and excessively revealing clothing is strictly prohibited. Additionally, Cuồng advises you to wear low-heeled shoes or sandals for safe stair climbing. Why does Cuồng recommend this? Because Chùa Cái Bầu has many stairs, so if you want to explore all areas of the temple, you will need to move around a lot. Especially on rainy and windy days, wearing shoes is the best choice, as they are easy to walk in and prevent slipping when climbing stairs.
Secondly, about the ceremonial items to prepare when visiting Chùa Cái Bầu
This is essential for visitors to travel to Ha Long, when visiting Cai Bau Pagoda, you should know that the offering at Cai Bau Pagoda must be a vegetarian offering. Fruits, sticky rice, sweets, etc., are acceptable offerings when you visit the pagoda. Remember that salty offerings are absolutely not to be placed in the temple areas within the pagoda.
In addition, your offerings are not allowed to be placed in the main Buddha worship area but only offered at the Ancestral Altar, the Holy Mother, or the pre-hell or gold horse. Even real money, ceremonial money, or incense money should be put in the merit box, not placed as offerings. When it comes to the types of flowers offered to the pagoda, you should not choose wild or miscellaneous flowers. Instead, lotus flowers, peonies, or lilies are the best choices.
In addition to the above notes on offering items, visitors to Ha Long should also prepare prayers before visiting the pagoda, especially during festivals or Tet. In this regard, you can refer to prayers online, in books, or ask the monks to pray for peace and fulfillment for your family.
Third, the order of worship at the altars
Visitors to Ha Long who come from afar, when visiting Cai Bau Pagoda and wanting to make offerings at the pagoda, need to pay attention to the order of worship as follows:
First, you need to arrange the offerings on a tray or plate provided by the pagoda in the offering area before entering the pagoda. Then, light incense and worship the Ancestral Altar first. After placing the offerings at the Ancestral Altar, place the offerings on the main altar, light the candles. Next, go light incense at all other altars in the Bai Duong house. When lighting incense, there should be 3 or 5 offerings. If any pagoda has a worship area for the Mother, Four Palaces, then go there to place offerings, light incense, and pray as desired. Finally, worship at the Ancestral House. Another note for tourists visiting Cai Bau Pagoda is that at the end of the ceremony, after offering and lowering the offerings, you should visit the male guest house or reception room to inquire about the monks, abbots, and may participate in merit activities according to your wishes.
Fourth, considerations when receiving blessings
After completing the ceremony at Chua Cai Bau, many tourists visiting Ha Long from other provinces and cities will want to take blessings home to pray for luck and health for their families. However, how to take blessings correctly when visiting a temple is something not everyone knows. According to Cuong’s research, many people have the habit of bringing items from temples back home to place on their family altars, but this is completely not recommended. Once items have been offered, they cannot be offered again; moreover, many items contain negative energy, which can have a bad influence on your family altar. You only need to place money in the merit box, there is no need to take merit papers. If you do take them, do not place them on your family altar to report your merit. Additionally, do not take branches of blessings back home to place on your family altar because these branches contain a lot of negative energy, which is unfavorable for your ancestors and household spirits. You can take blessings in the form of cakes, candies, matchboxes, lighters, but be sure not to bring them back home to place on your family altar.
Thursday, preparing money for the temple visit to Chua Cai Bau
Before visiting Chua Cai Bau, you should prepare some small change at home to be able to sincerely contribute, as Cuong noticed that there is no money exchange service at Chua Cai Bau.
Also, when contributing money, make sure to put it in the merit boxes or on the merit donation table, avoid scattering it around, as it will disrupt the serenity of the place.
See more: Cheap Ha Long Travel With 10 Most Beautiful Ha Long Tourist Destinations
Friday, principles of entering and leaving the temple
Tourists visiting Ha Long, when visiting Chua Cai Bau, should pay attention to the principles of entering and leaving the temple to avoid offending the higher authorities. When passing through the Three Gates into the temple, you should enter through the False Gate (on the right) and exit through the No Gate (on the left). The Middle Gate is only for the Celestial Beings, high-ranking monks, and scholars to enter and exit through. After that, tourists can meet the abbot, as the temple is managed by the abbot, with monks, nuns, and the temple being preserved and Buddhism being transmitted.
Saturday, food at Chua Cai Bau
Tourists visiting Ha Long, when visiting Chua Cai Bau, should note that there are no food or souvenir stalls at Chua Cai Bau. Therefore, if you are visiting Ha Long for the day, bring along light snacks like bread, sausages, milk, and drinks. You can also request vegetarian meals and drinks from the temple, everything is completely free. If you are on a full-package Ha Long tour, the meals are already taken care of by the tour company, so you can rest assured.
Speaking of vegetarian meals, Cuong must remind you that when visiting Ha Long, visiting Chua Cai Bau, you must try the vegetarian dishes at this Ha Long tourist destination. The vegetarian meal at Chua Cai Bau is very simple, besides rice, soup, and salt-roasted peanuts, there are vegetables, pickles, and a mock meat dish made from fruits and vegetables that are elaborately processed. The vegetarian dish is made from cabbage, broccoli, peanuts, carrots, bananas… simple but very delicious. However, remember to queue up and wash your dishes after finishing your meal.
If you are traveling to Ha Long in a large group, you can enjoy some delicious and affordable seafood at restaurants in Van Don with a variety of seafood such as squid, abalone, grilled oysters…
Sunday, cultural etiquette at the temple
The temple is a place of solemnity and serenity, so when visiting Chua Cai Bau, tourists should behave with proper manners, politeness, and strictly avoid using vulgar language, swearing, or any uncivilized behavior. Many temples have regulations and penalties for violations of behavioral rules and uttering vulgarities at the temple, with light penalties being warnings and severe penalties being administrative fines. Therefore, if you want to avoid trouble, pay attention to this.
Monday, about souvenirs
As Cuong mentioned earlier, there are no souvenir shops at Chua Cai Bau, so tourists on a Ha Long tour from Den Cua Ong – Chua Cai Bau – Chua Ba Vang, if you don’t want to leave empty-handed, you should shop at Den Cua Ong first. Because the other two locations do not have anything to buy as souvenirs.
Furthermore, to buy quality and reputable products, first-time Ha Long tourists visiting Chua Cai Bau should seek advice from local residents to know the reliable shopping addresses to avoid falling victim to overpriced and dishonest establishments.
See more: Ha Long Travel Experience, Visit Chua Ba Vang in Detail
Tuesday, seafood as gifts
When visiting a coastal tourist destination like Ha Long, famous for its fresh and delicious seafood, it’s inevitable to buy some seafood as gifts, right? But how do you choose quality seafood without being ripped off? Let’s go through the following tips with Cuong to select the freshest and best seafood at the Quang Ninh seafood market!
Where to buy seafood?
Quang Ninh seafood is very diverse in types and quantities, and there are many places to buy seafood, but you can refer to a few addresses below:
– Ha Long Fish Market: this location is right inside Ha Long city, behind Bai Tho Mountain. This can be said to be the place with the most Quang Ninh seafood. The market is open from early morning until evening, so tourists can conveniently arrange their time to visit the market. The seafood prices at Ha Long Fish Market are quite cheap, however, if you are a Ha Long tourist from afar, you should take a tour of the market before deciding what to buy because there will be many attractive seafood options and you should compare prices at different stores before making a decision.
– Hon Gai Seafood Market: this is also a paradise for Quang Ninh seafood that many Ha Long tourists visit. Hon Gai seafood market is only open from early morning until 9 a.m. The market is very close to the sea, so many fishing boats will stop by after fishing to sell their catch, ensuring the freshest and best quality seafood.
– Seafood Market Cai Dam – Bai Chay: located at Vuon Dao Street, Bai Chay, about 1 km from the Halong travel pier. There are over 300 seafood businesses here with a wide variety of products at reasonable prices.
Some tips for choosing fresh and delicious seafood when traveling to Halong:
Tourists in Ha Long may be overwhelmed and amazed when stepping into the Quang Ninh seafood market, so learn a few tips below for the best choices.
How to choose sea prawns: The first criterion for choosing prawns should be live ones, even those that are still lively and able to “jump around”. However, if the prawns are no longer swimming, pay attention to selecting those that are not missing legs, have clustered legs, the meat and shell are still tightly attached, the prawn body is soft and still elastic, lying straight, not curled in a C shape. These are the freshest and most delicious prawns.
How to choose delicious razor clams: There are many types of razor clams such as flower razor clams, red razor clams, spotted razor clams… but green razor clams are the sweetest and firmest. When choosing razor clams, you should hold the clam in your hand to feel its weight, it should be as heavy as a human hand, gently press the neck of the clam, if it doesn’t sink, then it is a good clam, firm and solid. Usually, male razor clams have more meat and taste better. According to the experience that Cuong knows, you should buy razor clams according to the tide, at the beginning or end of the lunar month is the time when razor clams are firm and delicious. Avoid buying them in the middle of the month, especially from the 10th to the 15th of each month, as the razor clams are shedding their shells, the meat will be bland and the clams will be less meaty.
How to choose fresh squid: There are 2 types of squid, the cuttlefish and the squid, the way to choose them is different:
+ Squid: choose the type with a light-colored meat layer, slightly pink, with firm tentacles tightly attached to the body, the ink sac is not broken
+ Cuttlefish: choose a large, slender, opaque white, with a brown membrane around it, not torn. When touching the cuttlefish, it should feel firm, press it firmly, the tentacles should be intact, not broken or damaged.
How to choose blood cockles: Blood cockles are a very nutritious dish with lots of iron and calcium, blood cockles are chosen by many tourists traveling to Ha Long to buy and enjoy as gifts. To choose good blood cockles, we need to pay attention to choosing live ones, which can still spit and retract their tongues when touched. Do not choose blood cockles that are too large, choose ones that are just the right size for consumption to avoid wastage during cooking and do not choose ones that are too large as they will be tough. If the cockle is closed, you can smell it to test, if it smells bad, the cockle is dead, do not buy this type of cockle.
After choosing the seafood you want to buy, the next step is how to transport it back? Cuong will share with you how to hand-carry seafood back while keeping it fresh. After buying seafood at the market, ask the seller to put it in a foam box with ice to prevent it from spoiling. Make sure it is securely packed to ensure the quantity. Additionally, if you want to avoid cumbersome transportation, you can choose to buy dried foods like dried squid, squid sausage as gifts, which are also delicious to eat.
In addition to the 10 points Cuong mentioned above, when visiting Cai Bau Pagoda, a spiritual and solemn place in Ha Long tourism, you should absolutely not do the following:
- Do not run around, talk loudly, criticize, sit or lie down in the Buddha hall. Do not sneeze, blow your nose, spit, etc., around the Buddha hall and the Three Jewels.
- Do not make noise or speak disrespectfully to the Buddha, Saints, and do not show disrespect such as pointing fingers at Buddha statues.
- When entering the Buddha hall and the Three Jewels, do not wear shoes, chew betel nut, or smoke. The Three Jewels are solemn places with incense rules, chanting rules, walking rules, requiring discipline to nurture purity, absolutely no noise or disturbance.
- Do not bring hats, clothes, scarves, bags, sticks, gloves… into the Three Jewels to worship the Buddha. If you place such items on the table, mat, or in the corner of the Three Jewels to worship the Buddha, all the merits will dissipate. When going to the temple, it is best not to bring personal items into the Three Jewels. In front of the Buddha statue, be respectful, do not look around, bow or kneel in front of the Three Jewels. If you want to admire the Buddha statue, stand outside to observe.
- Do not take photos or videos casually in the temple. Temples are sacred places for worshiping Buddha and other deities, and may be frequented by wandering spirits. Temples also have many ceremonies to relieve suffering souls, many wandering spirits unable to escape will come to the temple for refuge, following the incense smoke. If you accidentally capture a bad spirit in a photo, it’s like inviting it home, which could be troublesome. Therefore, it’s best not to take photos in the temple.
- Absolutely do not take or use any items from the temple for personal use. Also, do not bring temple items back to place on your home altar. Once items are offered, they cannot be re-offered; moreover, many items contain negative energy that can affect your home altar negatively.
Visiting temples is a beautiful tradition in Vietnamese culture, but doing it correctly to bring luck and avoid taboos is something you should pay attention to. Hopefully, with the tips Cuong shared above, you will have a smooth and convenient trip to Ha Long tourism, visiting Cai Bau Pagoda.
