The Ba Linh Son Thanh Mau worship festival, a significant religious event in Southern Vietnam, will unfold over four days from 18-21/6, corresponding to the 4th-7th day of the 5th lunar month. Each year, thousands of pilgrims from Tay Ninh and neighboring provinces journey to Ba Den mountain to offer prayers and seek peace. This year, the festival introduces new cultural highlights, promising a richer experience for visitors.
A new highlight of this year's festival is the Fruit Shaping Artisans' Festival, held for the first time on the peak of Ba Den mountain. This unique event gathers artisans from Tay Ninh and other localities, showcasing artworks crafted from specialty fruits of various regions. With the theme "Van Phap Tu Linh Son" (All Dharmas Converge at Linh Son), the artworks draw inspiration from Buddhist culture and the spiritual structures on Ba Den mountain, including the Tay Bo Da Son Buddha statue, the Maitreya Bodhisattva statue, and the Kaundinya Buddha statue. Visitors can explore the exhibition, savor local fruits, interact with the artisans, and enjoy artistic programs throughout the festival.
 |
Fruit shaping artworks created by local artisans will be displayed throughout all four days of the festival. Photo: Sun Group
Another distinctive experience offered is an art road depicting the legend of Linh Son Thanh Mau Bodhisattva. This exhibition road features 20 large-format paintings recounting the life of Ly Thi Thien Huong, a figure linked to the legend of Ba Den. Through each artwork, visitors can trace familiar milestones in the Southern Vietnamese folk tale of Ba Den. Artistic brushstrokes vividly recreate the image of the young woman who often went to the mountain to worship Buddha, the incident that led her to throw herself from the mountain to preserve her chastity, and her miraculous appearances aiding Nguyen Anh, eventually leading to her being bestowed the title Linh Son Thanh Mau by Emperor Gia Long.
 |
The Linh Son Thanh Mau art road at Ba Den mountain. Photo: Sun Group
According to the organizing committee, many artists and cultural experts created these paintings, contributing to recreating one of Tay Ninh's most famous legends through contemporary art. The exhibition space on the mountain peak also offers a fresh perspective on the history of the Ba Den worship belief, a hundred-year-old cultural feature closely tied to the lives of many Southern Vietnamese people.
Traditional rituals will take place at Linh Son Tien Thach Tu Pagoda and Dien Ba Temple, located mid-mountain. These include the bathing ritual for Ba, the cao yet ceremony, noon offerings, Buddhist chanting, and other offerings, all organized according to ancient traditions. Throughout the four-day festival, the Ba Pagoda area will also host lion and dragon dances, golden tray dances, Cai Luong (reformed opera) performances, and classical theater, recreating the characteristic folk festival atmosphere of Southern Vietnam.
 |
Ba Pagoda is where a series of activities for the Ba Linh Son Thanh Mau worship festival season will take place throughout the four days from 18-21/6 (corresponding to the 4th-7th day of the 5th lunar month). Photo: Sun Group
Beyond the cultural activities, the lantern offering ritual continues to be a significant highlight of the worship festival season. On the evening of 20/6, thousands of lanterns will illuminate the Tay Bo Da Son square, located at the foot of the Tay Bo Da Son Buddha statue. This lantern offering ceremony is a weekly event held every Saturday evening at the peak of Ba Den mountain, where thousands of Buddhists and visitors light lanterns and send prayers for peace, health, and good fortune. The glow from these thousands of lanterns enhances the night view on one of the highest mountains in Southern Vietnam.
 |
The lantern offering ceremony will be held on 20/6 at Tay Bo Da Son square. Photo: Sun Group
In recent years, Ba Den mountain has become a prominent spiritual destination in the Southern region, thanks to its system of cultural and spiritual structures on the mountain peak and festival activities held year-round. This year's Ba worship festival provides an opportunity for people to worship Linh Son Thanh Mau while contributing to preserving the religious values, folk art, and indigenous culture of Tay Ninh.
On the occasion of the worship festival, Sun World Ba Den Mountain offers a cable car ticket promotion from 18-26/6. Tickets to Ba Pagoda cost 125,000 VND; a combo ticket for Ba Pagoda and the mountain peak is 450,000 VND for adults and 350,000 VND for children.
Thy An
