vắng như chùa Bà Đanh

• vắng tanh như chùa Bà Đanh

Literally, “to be as desolate as the temple of Lady Đanh”.

According to folklore, Bà Đanh temple is regarded as so sacred, that while visiting or passing by the temple, if one commits any action entailing disrespect, such as laughing, one will be cursed with bad luck. As such, visitors often avoid the temple, resulting in it being desolate.^[1]

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [vaŋ˧˦ ɲɨ˧˧ t͡ɕuə˨˩ ʔɓaː˨˩ ʔɗajŋ̟˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [vaŋ˦˧˥ ɲɨ˧˧ t͡ɕuə˦˩ ʔɓaː˦˩ ʔɗɛɲ˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [vaŋ˦˥ ɲɨ˧˧ cuə˨˩ ʔɓaː˨˩ ʔɗan˧˧] ~ [jaŋ˦˥ ɲɨ˧˧ cuə˨˩ ʔɓaː˨˩ ʔɗan˧˧]

vắng như chùa Bà Đanh

1. (idiomatic, of a place) completely desolate, devoid of people's visitations