Vietnamese Buddhist Center

Architecturally I love this place much better than the Taiwanese Fo Gong Shan in Tamarac, as it has beautiful buddhas and Kwan Yin statues that the other lacks. I especially love the Kwan Yin statue, to the left of the temple, in its beautiful, peaceful and majestic presence, on a platform with an altar and praying mat. It’s great standing there offering an incense and saying a prayer.
If you have a chance to partake their meals, you’re in luck! Better Vietnamese food than what you’d find in restaurants. Like the Chinese, Vietnamese Buddhism encourages vegetarianism so all dishes are meatless, but delicious they are!
And oh if you go, set your GPS on. It’s on unpaved dirt road so you may have made a u-​turn before you reach the destination.

I’m deeply in love with a beautiful Asian woman. Her hair is black like the new moon, her radiance like a 1000 sun’s, her touch heals and her gaze enlivens my spirit
I met her a few years ago while on a business trip to China at The Jing’an Temple in Shanghai. From the moment I first set my eyes upon her the ecstasy of her love penetrated my being. I decided at that moment to serve this woman for as long as I breathe on this planet.
This woman named KwanYin is no longer embodied and has not re-​incarnated into the physical earth plane in the last 3000 years. According to Daoist she is an Immortal, and to the Buddhist she is known as the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
KwanYin is the most revered being in Asia, even more so than the Buddha if you combine the number of Buddhists with Daoist & adherents of Chinese traditional beliefs.
She is known as the Goddess/​Bodhisattva of unconditional love and compassion, protector of women and children, a fertility goddess, the champion of the unfortunate, the sick, the disabled, the poor, and those in trouble. She is also known as the protector of people who are out at sea.
When I returned to Florida from China I did random online searches to find local Mahayanist Buddhist temples. Why Mahayanist? Because Theravada Buddhists do not rever nor recognize KwanYin.
Eventually I found the Vietnamese Buddhist Center, which was only about 10 minutes away from my house.
When I first arrived at the temple about two years ago they had just started building it, but they also had a nearly completed KwanYin shrine on the south side of the main temple complex.
One and a half years later the temple is now complete minus a few minor renovations to the KwanYin shrine.


When I first prayed at this KwanYin shrine I was shocked to feel KwanYin’s presence there. I say this because of the few temples I visited in Shanghai only Jing’an Temple possessed KwanYin’s presence.
So how ever improbable and unbelievable, her presence is indeed at this humble shrine in the Vietnamese Buddhist Center.
I try to pass by once a week to leave fruit offering and to pray with incense. Every time I go I always leave with a powerful presence of peace around me, I feel as if I’m being levitated within the clouds.
Whats interesting about this temple is most of the monks here are women, and the highest ranking monk is a woman named Goku.
Last week one of the temple patrons named Vivianne asked me to join them for their Sunday chanting. At first I had no intention of going, but she was insistent, and exclaimed that it was a powerful experience. I had doubts about that but I decided to go anyway.
The following Sunday I popped in but I arrived about 20 minutes late, I quietly entered the main temple and sat in back and participated in the function. It was really interesting as I’ve never done anything like this before.
Vivianne was right it indeed was a powerful experience.

Periodically the lead monk Goku who’s very personable comes and talks to me when I go to the KwanYIn shrine, she is somewhat fascinated with me because she’s never seen a westerner devoted to KwanYin before.

Love this place they are growing everyday and they are so open to anyone who would like to learn how to meditate. English is alittle obstacle but I’m sure they will have more and more English speakers soon.

Right now they only hold one service a month in English. The other services offered are in Vietnamese and are held several times a week. They are currently building up their new temple and once it is complete they are going to start holding more English services.