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After two decades of government suppression, the Vietnamese are beginning to return to their religious traditions. Those include not just influential imports like Buddhism and Taoism but also the animism and ancestor cults that preceded them. Evidence of these varied beliefs and rituals can be found in the many ceremonial structures that have survived centuries of colonialism and decades of war. In their slide-illustrated lecture, “Pagodas, Gods, and Spirits of Vietnam,” writer Ann Helen Unger and photographer Walter Unger discuss some of the more striking examples of Vietnamese religious architecture, which they surveyed for a recent book. At 8 p.m. at the Ripley Center Lecture Hall, 1100 Jefferson Dr. SW. $13. For reservations call (202) 357-3030. (Mark Jenkins)