HANOI, Vietnam: Vietnamese authorities have ordered monks at a popular Buddhist pagoda to stop “soul summoning” and “bad karma eviction” ceremonies after an investigation found the rituals were a scam.

Tens of thousands of worshippers had been paying the 18th century Ba Vang pagoda in northern Quang Ninh province between 1 million and several hundred million dong ($45 to $13,500) to have their bad karma vanquished, according to the state-run Lao Dong (Labor) newspaper.