VIETNAMESE
'S FAMOUS PAGODAS
Vo Van Tuong - Huynh Nhu Phuong
Translated by Tran Phuong
Lan, Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van
Nghe
Art Publisher - 1995
[Vietnamese
Version]
---o0o---
FORDWORD
By the Most Venerable
Thich Thien Sieu
In the long way history of Buddhism,
an ancient and profound religion which has been constantly developing and modernising,
Buddhist architecture has been changing increasingly both in form and content. From small
buts for some monks in early times, they have gradually become large monasteries or
Pagodas for a community of monks, together with dome-shaped or multi-faceted stupas
enshrining holy Buddhist relics, subordinate structures, stele houses, statues, religious
decorations and musical instruments….Today, one can see in a typical pagoda a
harmonious and original combination of various characteristic of Buddhist architecture.
Once Buddhism has taken root in any new
land, it makes its penetration into all aspects of life there. Take Vietnamese Buddhism
for instance, since its very beginning, it has been closely connected with the country for
over two thousand years, and Buddhist pagodas have witnessed the ups and downs of the
nation’s fortune, as well as the Vietnamese cultural and religious activities through
the ages.
Several research works on Buddhist Pagodas
that have been issued recently arouse interest both in the Vietnamese culture and Buddist
culture.
"45 Famous Pagodas In Vietnam
"edited by Messrs Vo Van Tuong an Huynh Nhu Phuong is a praiseworthy contribution to
that significant effort.
Through pictures and stories of those
famous pagodas, the two authors have made a particular attempt to present different ways
of living, patterns of behaviour and mental attitudes of several Buddhist scholars or
historical figures, and even personal feelings or the delicacy of distinguished men of
letters or skilful craftsman relating to folktales, songs and poems of the time, thus
creating a vivid panorama of Vietnamese history coloured with diverse traditional ways and
customs, now realistic, now romantic.
Despite their careful study of historical
documents, the authors do not intend to lay emphasis on scientific research, but they
merely aim at revealing the originality in Vietnamese sculptural and architectural designs
tinted with a touch of nostalgia.
Statistically there are more than 14,000
pagodas scattered all over the country. In fact, each of them more or less enhanced the
charm of natural scenery with its own attractiveness. The term "Danh lam thang
canh" is a popular Vietnamese expression in which celebrated pagodas and beauty-spots
go in pairs, suggesting that the beauty of pagodas is part of the beauties of nature and
vice versa.
Yet in a bustling city, the presence of a
pagoda can bring a sense of relief from the discomfort of the busy atmosphere or even the
superficiality of modern life.
In this sense, the authors are faced with
a difficult choice from such a wide variety of pagoda patterns.
But what has influenced them most in their
selection of these 45 pagodas ?
It is obvious that within the format
of this book, priority is given to pagodas which, to some extent, represent the
development of Vietnamese Buddhism and the growth of various Buddhist sects and also
special features of some local areas throughout the country.
The reader may not agree with the authors
about the matter preference because of its limitations. However, this selection conveys to
the reader their true attempt to give a general view of our Vietnamese cultural heritage
and in particular, their deep admiration for Vietnamese Buddhism, a religion of compassion
and wisdom which has long been invigorating the national life, but at the same time it has
been imbued with national vigour itself.
Altogether, I think this is a valuable
book which I highly recommend the reader.
Tu Dam Pagoda,
December 1993
Bhikkhu Thich Thien
Sieu
(Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan)
EDITORS' PREFACE
For a long time, many pagodas in Vietnam have been places where
values are preserved as part of the national heritage. A study of Vietnamese Pagodas
consists not only in learning about the development of Vietnamese Buddhism, but also in
exploring various aspects of the Vietnamese culture. All this will help us to intensify
our national pride and our sense of responsibility for preserving our worthy cultural
heritage handed down from earlier generations.
In the changing situation of our country, many pieces of research on
Vietnamese Pagodas have been published, contributing to the trend of restoring and
preserving our national culture. In editing "45 Famous Pagodas In Vietnam", a
modest contribution of ours to the trend, we hope to present a general survey of
Vietnamese history alongside traditional festivals, literary works, monastic architectural
and sculptural designs concerning the 45 famous pagodas scattered all over the country. In
our opinion, they are more or less symbols of the development of Vietnamese Buddhism, the
growth of different Buddhist sects and the main features of some well-known areas
throughout the country. Next too pieces of writing are photographs of diverse monastic
sculptural and architectural shapes. Of course, there are many other pagodas which we have
not been able to present to the reader on account of the limitations of our writing
material and the format of this book. We hope the reader will overlook any shortcomings
which may remain in our book.
In preparing the book, we have made use of historical or literary
documents about Vietnamese Buddhism gathered by previous researchers. In addition, the
facts we have found from our trips to many local areas have helped us to compare and
contrast all material to complete our pieces of writing.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
On the occasion of the publication of the book, we would like to
convey our sincere thanks to all Venerable Elders of the above-mentioned Pagodas and
Monasteries for their assistance in collecting documents necessary for our work.
+ We are greatly indebted to the authors of the book listed in the
bibliography for their useful references.
+ We wish to express our special appreciation to Messrs. Nguyen Thai
Hoa, Tran Tuan Man and Truong Ngoc Tuong for giving us their proper suggestions and
comments.
+ Above all, we would like to express our deep gratitude to the Most
Venerable Thich Thien Sieu, Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the V.B.S Executive
Council and Head of the Department of Monastic Education for his kindness in contributing
a delightful foreword to our book, our English Translators Messrs
Nguyen Van Nghe, Chau Van Thuan and the Poet Thuy Duong for their
translation of the first part of the book concerning 19 pagodas in North Vietnam and Mme
Tran Phuong Lan for her version of the second part covering 26 pagodas in Central and
South Vietnam.
And finally we extend our thanks to the Directorate of My Thuat
Publisher for providing favourable conditions for the publication of this book.
Ho Chi Minh City, December 1993
Vo Van Tuong - Huynh Nhu Phuong
(Translated by Tran Phuong Lan)
TRANSLATOR'S NOTE
This is our English version of "The 45 Famous Pagodas in
Vietnam" edited by Messrs.Vo Van Tuong and Huynh Nhu Phuong as a brief survey of the
Vietnamese Buddhist culture through pictures and stories.
A large number of these pieces of research are a mixture of prose and
verse. Since I undertake the task of translating Part II (Pagodas in Central and South
Vietnam), which contains numerous poems, odes and parallel sentences composed by
well-known Chinese or Vietnamese poets, kings and Ch'an Masters throughout nearly ten
centuries, I think that it is impossible to interpret the spirit and reproduce the beauty
of the original stanzas concerning Buddhism especially Ch'an (Dhyana) Buddhism, into a
prose translation. Moreover, it is extremely difficult to understand thee true feelings
conveyed in the verses uttered by Ch'an Masters and above all, Ch'an Patriarchs.
Before doing the time-consuming translation of these many poems, I have
consulted only the original Chinese texts and some Vietnamese versions without any
available English ones. Therefore, I have tried hard to offer the reader a fair rendering
of the authors' words and not to deviate from the time-honoured traditional interpretation
of Ch'an poetry.
Being fully aware of my limitations in languages as well as Buddhism,
in particular Ch'an Buddhism, I would like to say that this is but a modest attempt of
mine to present a prose translation of a number of Ch'an poems to those who cannot read
the original. In spite of all my efforts, there might still oversights and
misinterpretations in my work.
I sincerely hope to receive valuable suggestions from advanced scholars
and readers who will kindly help me to revise and improve my version for the next edition.
Tran Phuong Lan
(The Vietnamese Institute of Advanced Buddhist
Studies Ho Chi Minh City)
DAU PAGODA
(PHAP VAN PAGODA)
THANH KHUONG, THUAN
THANH, HA BAC PROVINCE
Traveller! Wherever you are going
Come back when you see the tower of Dau
Pagoda.
Among hundreds of trades whichever you are
doing
Don't fail to join the Dau Festival on the
eighth together!
The above popular verses evoke the memory
of a pagoda which is among the earliest temples of our country. Built in the beginning of
the third century, the temple was located in centre of the ancient capital Luy Lau, now
part of Khuong Tu hamlet, Thanh Khuong village, Thuan Thanh district, Ha Bac province, 30
km from Ha Noi. It is now the Dau pagoda or Phap Van Temple, which bore the name of Co
Chau in the Ly Dynasty, Thien Dinh in the Tran and Dien Ung in the Le.
During the early centuries of the
Christian era, the Dau pagoda already witnessed the development of a prosperous commercial
area around the crossing of the main roads of olden times, whose trace is now no more than
the ruin of Luy Lau lying on the Thuan Thanh crossroads (Ha Bac), joining the two
highways: One northward to Dong Trieu-Pha Lai, the other Southward to Khoai Chau-Hai Hung.
The history of the Dau pagoda was
associated with the mythical story of Man Nuong, a virgin from the Man Xa village lying on
the bank on the Duong river. Since the age of twelve, Man Nuong used to cross the river
from the south to north bank to receive religious teaching from Master Khau-Da-La, an
Indian bonze in Linh Quang Pagoda (Phat Tich village, Tien Son). Khau-Da-La was a Ch'an
Master who had associated the preaching of Tantraim (Buddhism in the Esoteric sect) with
local popular beliefs, thus crating a major influence on the population of Luy Lau. But
the religious pursuit of Man Nuong was unachieved since one day, while she was lying
asleep on the floor, Master Khau-Da-La, coming out from his worship hour, accidentally
stepped over her body. She then got pregnant and 14 months later, gave birth to a
baby-girl which she then returned to her master. Khau-Da-La carried the in his arm to the
century-old banian-tree by the river side. He said the incantation, then using his holy
struck at the lower part of the tree, which split open right away.
The baby was put in and the opening shut
up automatically, leaving a nice fragrance exhaling in the air . The last souvenir that
Man Nuong received from her Master was his holy stick.
On his recommendation, wherever came a
drought, as the soil was getting dry and likely to cause crop failures, Man Nuong would
plant the stick into the soil and say prayers…Then miracle would happen: heavy rains
would pour down. One stormy night, the old banian-tree wherein Man Nuong's baby-girl had
been confided, was suddenly beaten down, fell into the river and floated down streams to
the Dau village. The villagers gathered and tried to drag it out of the river, but their
efforts were in the vain. Fortunately, Man Nuong, by using her pink brassier ribbons was
able to pull the old tree up to the river bank . That night, in their dreams, the
villagers were advised by a deity to carve statues out of the wood of the banian tree for
worship. Thence came into existence four statues in adoration of the four goddesses of
Cloud, Rain, Thunder, Lightning, which were named as follows:
Phap Van (or Lady Dau adored in Thien Dinh
pagoda)
Phap Vu (or Lady Dau adored in Thanh Dao
pagoda)
Phap Loi (or Lady Tuong adored in Phi
Tuong pagoda)
Phap Dien (or Lady adored in Phuong Quang
pagoda)
The legend of Man Nuong, the virgin mother
who had become the Holy Mother of the four goddesses, has been commemorated every year on
the eighth day of the fourth lunar month. On this day, Buddhist monks and worshipers from
all parts come back to the Dau Pagoda to join the Festival as said in popular serves
mentioned above. The Dau Festival is an occasion for Buddhists not only to go on a
pilgrimage to the pagoda, but also to participate in the cultural and traditional
celebrations and performances of the agricultural inhabitants. The Festival is celebrated
all over the district with hilarious processions (comprising greeting procession,
welcoming procession and leave-taking procession). The statues of Lady Dau, Lady Tuong and
Lady Dan are "invited" to
come and meet with their eldest sister
Lady Dau at Dien Ung pagoda. After the ceremonies of water dance, water offering, stick
dance, the 4 statues are escorted to Man Xa pagoda to pay homage to their mother Man
Nuong. Also on this festival day, on the Dau pagoda terrace, one can watch dragon dances
"tortoise and crane" dance, drummer dance, wrestling, human chess (where the 32
chessmen are real beautiful young girls and handsome young boys).
Situated on a wide terrace near the Dau
river a branch of the Duong river-Phap Van pagoda has once been a famous Buddhist centre
well known to the whole, country, This very spot used to be the monastery and preaching
tribune of many famous Ch'an masters such as Vinitaruci (a south Indian bonze who came to
Vietnam in 580 and translated the set of canon, Mahayanist Dharanis), Phap Hien, Quan
Duyen, Tri Bat, Dinh Khong, Thien Hoi…The book Thien Uyen Tap Anh (The brilliant
Stars of The Ch'an Garden) has recorded the peculiar meeting with heart-to-heart
communication between Vinitaruci and Phap Hien at the Dau pagoda, marking the initial
appearance of Ch'an Buddhism in the cultural life of the Vietnamese people.
The Dau pagoda, formerly named Phap Van
was repaired and renovated many times: in the middle of the 12th in the Ly
period, in the late 13th century and the 14th century in the Tran,
in the 18th century in the Le, then in the late 19th century in the
Nguyen. Now the pagoda still bears many archicultural signs of the posterior Le. Mac Dinh
Chi made extensive renovation in 1313 as recorded in the Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chi. In the
Tran dynasty Mac Dinh Chi built a pagoda of a hundred compartments, a nine-storeyed tower
and a nine-spanned bridge whose foundations can still be seen nowadays. "the pagoda
was built in the particular style of". I - shaped interior shaped exterior, going
past a brickyard, with the Hoa Phong tower, in the middle, one arrives at the Great
worship. Hall and the Buddha shrine, the Back Hall at the rear. All are surrounded by four
rows of house forming the shape of the Chinese character. In the Buddha shrine, the
statues of Phap Van, of two meters in height was set on a lotus pedestal in the middle
compartment. Closely on both sides of the Buddha shrine are the statues of Kim Dong and
Ngoc Nu, each one 1m57 high, which bear the characteristic features of sculptural art of
the 17th- 18th centuries.
With regard to the architectural art of
the Dau pagoda, one could not overlook the Hoa Phong tower which rising from the brown
stilled roofs, emerges prominently in the sky and verdant bamboos' shades. Established by
Ch'an Master Phap Hien in the late 6th century to preserve the Buddhish relics,
it originally had 9 storeys, but through the destruction of time, now only 3 storeys
remain, with 17m in height, The base storey is of square shape of 7m each side, with thick
walls opening 4 vaulted doors. The two main doors facing the east and the other two facing
west all have flights of stairs in front. On either side of each flight are two stone
squirrels lying in the crawling position-a style very similar to the ancient sculptural of
Champa in the 13th-14th centuries and the animal symbolic sculpture
in the architecture of imperial tombs in the Tuy period. The Hoa Phong tower was renovated
in 1737 in the Le period. Inside the tower, there are the great bell cast in the Canh
Thinh reign and the big bronze gong cast in 1837 under the reign of King Minh Mang.
Built with plain bricks of large size, the
former Hoa Phong tower, with its original lofty height, stood high up as a stone pillar to
block up the karma current coming up from the unenlightened world.
Translated by
Thuy Duong and Nguyen
Van Nghe
PHAT TICH PAGODA
(VAN PHUC PAGODA)
PHUONG HOANG, TIEN SSON, HA BAC PROVINCE)
Phat Tich Pagoda or Van Phuc Pagoda originally named Thien Phuc Tu - is
situated on the side of Lan Kha mountain, Phat Tich village, Tien Du district, presently
Phuong Hoang village, Tien Son district, Ha Bac province.
Tourists from Ha Hoi who want to visit the pagoda can take either of
the two routes: the first one will take you along the left bank of the Duong river. Go
along the dyke for 15km, turn left and go on 1km further down the road you will reach the
pagoda. You may also take the other route by passing Mountain Lim. Then turn right and go
on for about 15km, you will arrive at Phat Tich village, looking out on the Duong river,
just about 1km from the dyke.
As recorded in the historical stele "Van Phuc Dai Thien Tu
bi" set up in the 7th Chinh Hoa year (1686) , "King Ly Thanh Tong(the
3rd king of the Ly dynasty) in the Long Thuy Thai Binh 4th year
(1057), built an exquisite tower of one hundred truong* in height, set up a gilded statue
6 thuoc ** high. He also granted over a hundred plots of rice field, built over a hundred
temples"
This recording stele also praised the beautiful sight of the pagoda:
"Let's watch the beautiful spot of Tien Du : the famous mountain of Phat Tich is
surrounded in the south by the Phuong Linh mountain (Phoenix mountain), on the left by the
Thanh Long (blue dragon) winding stream, on the right by the Bach Ho (white tiger)
mountain. On the summit there stands a stone table"
In 1071, King Ly Thanh Tong, on his visit to the pagoda, wrote himself
the Chinese character meaning :"Buddha" 6.44m long and had it engraved on a
stone stele to be set up in front of the pagoda. Next, in the Tran dynasty the pagoda was
renamed Van Phuc. King Tran Nghe Tong ordered to establish the Bao Hoa Buddha shrine and
the library Lan Kha near the pagoda. It was recorded in the "Dai Nam Nhat Thong
Chi" that in 1384, the King held the Examination "Thai hoc sinh" in this
pagoda to select bright scholars for the service of the country.
In the Chinh Hoa 7th year, under King Le Hy Tong's reign
(1686), the pagoda was rebuilt on an enormous scale and brought up to a high value of art.
This reconstruction owed its main support to Princess Tran Ngoc Am, the first royal maid
of Lord Thanh Do Vuong Trinh Trang, when she had left the imperial palace to become a nun
in this pagoda. The stele "Van Phuc Dai Thien Tu Bi" has recorded: "On the
mountain summit, stands a stone building as splendid ass glittering gem… On the front
veranda are displayed 10 animal statues. In the rear are wide ponds. High storeys are
adorned with painted images of phoenixes and twinkling bright stars and the Moon palace
embellished with colourful flowers…"
The pagoda was built in the shaped interior, shaped exterior"
model with over one hundred compartments. In front of it, stands the "cloud-reaching
tower" as described in the poem "Tien Du Van PhucTu" by Nguyen Xuong. In
the rear are stone houses which are used as lecture rooms. Close to the pagoda is the
Queen Fairy shrine for the worship of Lady Tran Ngoc Am, in which we can see a pair of
parallel sentences written to honour the lady's good deeds.
First imperial maid back to Buddha land
Thirteenth royal court lady to Fairy village
In the war against the French invasion, Van Phuc pagoda was
destroyed by the foreign invaders. The remains are now the ruined foundations of 3 floors
cut in the mountain side, of rectangular shapes, each one about 60m in length and 33m in
width. Here, by the years 1940-11941, archaeologists found large bricks with the dates of
Long Thuy Thai Binh 4th year (1057) and Chuong Thanh Gia Khanh 7th
year (1065) clearly inscribed on them. Among the remaining sculptural masterpieces were
found 5 pairs of animal statues: lion, rhinoceroses, elephants, buffaloes, horses, lying
on lotus pedestals carved out of large stones, slabs about 2m in height. There were also
wall stones, pedestals… with carved images of dragons, musicians, dancers…
The name of Phat Tich Pagoda was associated with the Buddha statue - a
famous sculptural masterpiece which is now worshipped in the small pagoda built
subsequently. A legend has it that once the tower of the pagoda suddenly collapsed and the
statue came out amid the ruin. Since then, Hoa Ke hamlet located by the side of the pagoda
was renamed Phat Tich Hamlet. This statue, carved out of stone, is 1.85m high, or 3m high
including the pedestal. The statue represents Buddha sitting in a meditation posture on a
lotus throne. The pedestal is adorned with, images of dragons, flowers and leaves. The
face of the statue has refined features with an air of serenity and compassion. The
fineness of the carving shows an excellent workmanship.
Translated by Thuy Duong and Nguyen van
Nghe
BUT THAP PAGODA
(NINH PHUC PAGODA)
DINH TO, THUAN THANH, HA BAC PROVINE
If you go across the Doung bridge and the along the dyke on the left
bank of the river or take a left turn at Phu Thuy railway station on the way to Hai -
Phong and then go on for about 15 km you will arrive at Dinh To village, Thuan Thanh
district, Ha Bac province - formerly A Lu hamlet, Nhan Thanp village, Sieu Loai district -
where But Thap Pagoda can be seen in the middle of the field, facing south. The pagoda has
another name - Ninh Phuc Tu (´ ) . When Ch'an Master Huyen
Quang first came to stay here, he began to build a nine-storeyed stone tower decorated
with lotus flower patterns. But this tower no longer exists today. The present Bao Nghiem
tower in shape of a huge writing brush rising high up in the sky as it is seen now, was
built in 1547 by Ch'an Master Minh-Hanh(1596-1659). In 1876, this tower was renamed But
Thap by King Tu Duc. Since then the pagoda was called But Thap pagoda. The tower was built
with adjoined stone, with 5 storeys, in octagonal shape, 113.05 m in height. The top has
the shape of a wint decanter, Between storeys are bent-up-edged roofs. The base storey is
3m wide each side, surrounded by two walls. Inside the base storey is the statue of Ch'an
Master Chuyet Cong (1590-1644), a Chinese bonze from Phuc Kien province who came to
Vietnam in 1633 and stayed as Head monk of the pagoda. Before passing away, in is last
minutes he read to his disciples his last poem as follows:
Thin bamboos and high pines are dropping fragrant dew
While fresh breezes and young moon cool the night
Who are the West High Land dwellers ? Anyone knew ?
Every sunset the bell resounds, chasing off twilight.
(Translated by Thuy Duong)
King Le Chan Tong then bestowed on Most Venerable Chuyet Cong the title
"Minh Viet Pho Giac Quang Te Dai Duc Thien Su".
Later on, the Queen Mother Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc, of Buddist name Phap
Tanh, from A Lu village, requested her father Lord Thanh Do vuong Trinh Trang to have But
Thap Pagoda in their native village renovated. She herself worked together with Ch'an
Master Minh Hanh in the renovation of the pagoda and after King Le Than Tong's decease,
she withdrew to stay and practice here religious beliefs as a nun in the pagoda.
The architectural style of the posterior Le period is manifested
clearly in the structure of But Thap pagoda. Built on the the " shaped interior,
shaped (2) exterior model like Dau Pagoda, But Thap Pagoda is an architectural complex
comprising the three-entrance gate, the bell tower, the front hall, the incense burning
house, the upper shrine, the stone bridge, the nine-staged lotus flower shrine (Tich Thien
Am), the middle hall, the worship hall and the rear hall. All of those ten buildings are
arranged along an axis of over 100m in length. On the left side of the pagoda are the
Patriarch house and the Bao Nghiem tower. Further in the back stands the Ton Duc tower.
Surrounding the upper shrine hall is the stone balcony consisting of 36 stone slabs
resignedly carved with beautiful landscapes of nature, with images of flying cranes over
lotus ponds, swimming fishes, water-buffalo tenders and other mythical creatures and
legends such as dragon-fish, the four sacred animals (dragon, unicorn, tortoise, phoenix),
the journey to India by the Tang Bonze in request for the Conan books.
Inside the Upper Shrine Hall, one could feel a strong impression of a
marvellous workmanship while standing before the famous sculptural masterpiece: the statue
of one-thousand-arm and one-thousand-eye Avalokitesvara. This statue is 3.70m high, made
of excellent wood covered with paint, carved by an artist named Truong in 1656. The statue
has 11 faces, 994 arms with 994 eyes - each eye resting on the palm of a hand. Under the
lotus flower hat, the main front face looks sedate and mild, on both cheeks are still two
other faces. In addition, on the top eight other small heads are piled up in a tower shape
with 3 storeys, on top of which is a small statue. In front of the chest, two arms are
joined; on the back 40 other arms are extending harmoniously like a lotus leaf. Outer are
952 other arms carrying 952 eyes forming a halo circle. On top of the statue stands a pair
of mythical birds with human heads, spreading their broad wings pressing against each
other. The statue is sitting on a lotus pedestal supported by the head of a dragon rising
from the water surface. In the 4 corners are 4 statue of athletes with strong bodies
trying to support the statue pedestal.
Through centuries, Avalokitesvara has been sitting here, with her
thousand eyes perceiving every misfortune of the world, and her thousand arms always ready
to save poor living creatures.
Contemplating the statue with reverence, on had the feeling that
Avalokitesvara Boddhisatva can hear all the living world's echoes and is transmitting to
man her compassion and leniency as well as peace in soul.
Translated by Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van
Nghe
THE TRAN QUOC PAGODA
(TRAN BAC PAGODA)
BA DINH, HANOI CITY
From the Botanical Garden, passing through Hoang Hoa Tham street, you
will come to one of the most romantic roads of the capital city of Ha Noi: Co Ngu street,
presently Thanh Nien Street, lying between two rows of trees and two lakes with tranquil
green wter. These two lakes were formerly only one, called by several names: Xac Cao, Kim
Nguu (Golden Buffalo) , Lang Bac (High Waves), Dam Dam (Foggy Pond). Four hundred years
ago, a road was built across the lake and given the name Co Ngu (which means "trying
to hold"). Later it was pronounced with slight deviation as Co Ngu. This road cut the
lake in two: the smaller part is Truc Bach lake, the large one os Tay lake.
With its area of 466 ha and its perimeter of 17km , and many temples
and beautiful landscapes in the surroundings, Tay lake has been a source of inspiration
for many poets. In the 17th century Nguyen Duc Quy had this nice poem to
describe Tay lake:
The boat embraces the moon palace, as bright
as snow.
The temple’s covered with flowers and leaves
so dampened with dew
Green lotuses wavered the moon through
bamboos’ shadow
Fresh apricot flowers are sending out their hight
perfume
(Translated by Thuy Duong)
Also, the description of Tay lake in the poetic essay "Phu Tung
Tay Ho" by Nguyen Huy Luong was a marvelous piece of literary prose, enriched with
the national cultural tradition and his own poetical inspiration, praising the heroic
spirit of the Tay Son dynasty, which mingled in his impression on the beautiful sight of
Tay lake.
Trinh Cong son, a music composer, by an autumn late afternoon in Ha
Noi, in the twilight on Tay lake has caught sight of " the golden water surface
wavering faraway from the other edge, calling up remote memories. Through the nostalgic
veil of mist, a flock of small cranes are flapping their wings under the fading
sun…..", thus composing a nice song.
From the Co Ngu road, there is a path leading to an islet close to the
edge of Tay lake. Having the shape of a tortoise, it was called Bai Rua (Tortoise
Terrace). It also had another name Kim Ngu terrace (Golden Fish terrace). On this very
islet, the kings of Ly dynasty built the Thuy Hoa palace (Palace of Beautiful Flowers)
where they could enjoy fresh air. Later, in the Tran dynasty, the Kings also established
the Ham Nguyen palace here where they could spend their time contemplating the beautiful
scenery, The foundations of these former palaces are now the very place where stands the
pagoda which is one of the oldest temples of our country : Tran Quoc pagoda.
Originally, this pagoda was a temple name Khai Quoc (Establishing the
Nation) which was first built during the reign of King Ly Nam De (544 – 548 AD). It
was located on a terrace near the Hong Ha river, north east of Yen Hoa ward –
presently Yen Phu, near Long Bien bridge. At this Khai Quoc Pagoda, in the Ly Nhan
Tong’s reign, Queen Y Lan once treated venerable bronzes to elaborate vegetarian
meals. She also frequented the pagoda to have religious talks with the bonzes.
During the reign of King Le Thanh Tong, (1434-1442) the pagoda was
renamed An Quoc (Pacifying the Nation). Every year, the Hong Ha river tide rose up, eroded
and and crumbled the terrace. Therefore in 1615, under King Le Kinh Tong’s reign, the
villagers of Yen Phu moved the pagoda to the Kim Ngu terrace. And it was not until King Le
Hy Tong’s reign (1767-1705) that the pagoda was renamed Tran Quoc (Defending the
Nation). The ornamental signed-board bearing the characters "Tran Quoc Tu" which
is presently hung in the main worship hall was made at that time. In the Le-Trinh period,
this beautiful sot was selected as Tran Quoc journey palace reserved for Kings and Lords
to have relaxations when they take walks on Tay lake area. In 1842, King Thieu Tri, on his
visit to the pagoda renamed it as Tran Bac. Still, people are used to calling the temple
by its old named: Tran Quoc pagoda.
The Tran Quoc Pagoda can be proud not only of being one of the oldest
pagodas, but also of the venerable bonzes and famous persons who have been associated with
the temple. In fact, this pagoda has been the monastary of many Ch’an Masters and
vererabled monks such as Van Phong, Khuong Viet, thao Duong, Thong Bien, Vien Hoc, Tinh
Khong, Tran Tu Uyen. In the year 580 AD, Ch’an Master Viitaruci from Indiam on his
journey to Vietnam, had a long stay in this pagoda.
In 1069, King Ly Thanh Tong led an attack upon Champa, captured the
Champa King Che Cu and a number of prisoners. Among the prisoners, there was a monk who
had a wide knowledge of Buddhist canon . Having discovered his identity, they revealed
that he was Ch’an Master Thao Duong. King Ly Thanh Tong then granted him the titled
Quoc Su (Nation’s Patriarch) and invited him to stay as Head of the Khai Quoc pagoda.
Thence opened the Thao Duong Ch’an school in our country. Also, the pagoda was the
Head Temple of the Tao Dong Ch;an school which was propagated in Vietnam in the Posterior
Le Period.
Since it was moved to the Golden Fish terrace, Tran Quoc pagoda has
been rebuilt and renovated many times. In 1624, under King Le Thanh Tong’s reign, the
Buddha shrine, the incense burning house and the front hall were built . In 1639, the
three-entrance gate, the rear hall and the two lateral corridors were added. On the left
of the main hall, still remains a stele was set up by Prime doctoral graduate Nguyen Xuan
Chinh.
After having been devastated by the war for a long time- as recorded in
the stele set up in 1815 by Doctor Pham Quy Thich- again Tran Quoc pagoda was subjected to
restoration from 1813 to 1815, carried out by the Head Bonze Khoan Nhan. This time, the
main hall, the incense burning house, the front hall, the corridors, the bell tower and
the rear hall were renovated. Also in the reconstruction, the Buddha statue and the great
bell were cast. Particularly Tran Quoc Pagoda is one of a very few temples in North that
has the gilded wooden statue of Sakyamuni entering Nirvana.
Right on the front gate, one could see a pair of parallel sentences
which read:
Resounding in the ears, horse carriages pass on worldly roads
Opening to the face, the river leads to Buddha gate.
Also, on both sides of the front door, another pair of parallel
sentences which read as follows:
Despite the ravages of rain and wind coming from different skies
The Heaven Pillar of Tran Quoc Pagoda still proudly stands high
Here one can live a carefree life in this pagoda over looking Tay lake
Simply with the pleasure of leading a secluded life seeking the
enlightenment way.
In the temple garden, among the luxuriant old trees spreading ample
shadows, there is a bodhi-tree grafted from the original bodhi-tree where 25 centuries
ago, Sakyamuni Buddha achieved complete enlightenment. This bodhi-tree was offered to Tran
Quoc Pagoda by President R. Prasat of India upon his visit to Vietnam in 1958.
The quiet natural scenery surrounding the pagoda in the lotus
blossoming season, with white and pink lotus flowers blooming on Tay lake, evokes in
visitors memorable things of the past…Ba Huyen Thanh Quan, a famous poetess in the Le
Dynasty, on her stopping over the pagoda had the following poem will known to almost every
Vietnamese:
Tran Bac journey palace looks abandoned among withered grass
Twisting the hearts of travellers while looking the past Lotus flowers
seem sending out imperial perfume
Five-coloured clouds recall the former royal costumes…..
Translated by
Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van Nghe
ONE-PILLAR PAGODA
(DIEN HUU PAGODA)
BA DINH, HA NOI CITY
One-Pillar Pagoda is located in the central of Ha Noi capital city. The
pagoda owes its existence to a nice dream of King Ly Thai Tong (1028-1054). A story goes
that one night in the year 1049, the King saw in his dream Kwan Yin led him to a lotus
shine…Walking up, he consulted his officials about the dream Among these officials,
there were Buddhist-monks who were highly cultivated and respectable.
A monk named Thien Tue advised the king to establish a pagoda by
building a stone pillar amidst a pond and settling the Buddha shrine on top of the pillar
as the king had seen in his dream.
The pagoda was built with only one hall called Lien Hoa Dai (Lotus
Flower Shrine), lying on top of a stone pillar in the middle of a small lake called Linh
Chieu lake. That is why it was named Nhat Tru Pagoda (One-Pillar Pagoda). A stele
recording this fact was found in Long Doi Pagoda (Nam Ha) with these inscription lines:
"The Linh Chieu lake was dug, in the middle rose a stone pillar, on top of which open
a thousand-petal lotus flower, on which was set up a green shrine. In the shrine the
statue of Kwan Yin adored. Surrounding the lake is lateral corridor. Another pond, Bich
Tri, was dug, with rainbow-shaped bridge joining two opposite sides. On the front platform
of the bridge, there were gem towers built on both sides."
The pagoda was located in the garden Tay Cam, Thach Bao hamlet, Vinh
Thuan district, Thang Long capital city. On the inauguration day, the bonzes organised a
ceremony wit vegetarian meals, recited prayers praying for the King’s longevity.
Therefore the pagoda had another name, Dien Huu (which means prolonged blessing days).
Every year, on the eighth of the fourth lunar month, the King came to
the pagoda to celebrate the ceremony of Buddha Bathing, was the ceremony of
life-liberation. The King, standing on a high shrine in front of the pagoda, released one
bird which flew away. Following him, the people tossed other birds which flew up, flapping
their wings among the joyful shouts of a festival day.
In 1105, King Ly Nhan Tong ordered renovation work on the pagoda. This
time, an exquisite tower was built in the front yard. In 1108, Queen Y Lan had a very big
bell cast. This bell weighed 12000 can (equivalent to 7200kg) and was named "Giac The
Chung" (the bell that awakens people in the world). It was considered one of Four
Most Precious Objects of our country at the time, which were: the Bao Nghiem tower, the
Quy Dien bell, the Pho Minh cauldron and the Quynh Lam statue. Upon inauguration,
"Giac The Chung" was too heavy to be hung up, and on the ground it didn’t
sound when struck. Finally they had to drop it tint a deep rice-field near the pagoda.
Later. They found many tortoises gathered in this rice-field. That is why the bell was
given the name "Quy Dien Chung" (Tortoise-field bell). In the 15th
century, the Ming invader troops attacked our country and took over the Dong Quan citadel
(Ha Noi).
In 1426, Le Loi leading the Lam Son revolutionary troops, rushed out
and immediately besieged the citadel. Lacking weapons and ammunition, the Ming General
Vuong Thong had the Quy Dien bell broken up to get the bonze. Finally, the Ming troops
were defeated, our country and peopled again rejoiced over peace and prosperity, yet Quy
Dien bell no longer existed.
The One-Pillar Pagoda was renovated in the years between 1840 and 1850,
then in 1922. The Lotus Flower Shrine as we see now was rebuilt in 1955. It is in square
shape, 3km each side, with bent up roofs, set up on top of a pillar 1m in height and 1.20m
in diameter. This pillar consists of two stone cylinders piled up one over the other and
jointed in one block. The upper floor consists of a strong wooden frame supporting the
shrine with tiled roofs bend up at four corners, on top of which is a pair of dragons
greeting the moon. The pagoda has the shape of a lotus flower emerging from a square pond
surrounded by an alley paved with green enamelled tiles. Followings a narrow passage paved
with bricks over the pond. You will come to a staircase leading up to the Buddha Shrine,
in front of which is a sigh bearing the Chinese characters read in Sino-Vietnamese
as Lien Hoa Sai (Lotus Flower Shrine).
Ch’an Master Huyen Quang had the following poem to describe the
sight of Dien Huu temple or One-Pillar pagoda:
The temple bell sounds fading away in autumn
night
Wavering water now quiets down under the
moonlight
Reversed birds’ images impressed on cold
water mirror
Doubled tower’s shape in silver moon looks
clearer
(Translated by Thuy Duong)
The lotus flower, upon blooming, already shows its "fruit"
and "seeds", which symbolises the doctrine of Buddhism *. Lotus flowers are also
a kind of pure flowers which, growing amidst the world, are not infected with worldly
troubles. The One-Pillar Pagoda is thus a symbol of the "untroubled" and
"unworried" world. Closely attached to the history of the capital city, the
pagoda is also a symbol of the one-thousand year cultured Ha Noi.
Translated by
Thuy Duong And Nguyen Van Nghe
Translator’s note:
* "seeds" symbolises the causes and
"fruits’ the consequences. The Buddhist doctrine reminds us that
"seed" and "fruits" are always linked, which makes an unbreakable
chain of causes and consequences-known as "karma". It is clear that bad seeds
never give good fruits.
LANG PAGODA
(CHIEU THIEN PAGODA)
LANG THUONG, DONG DA, HA NOI CITY
The history of Lang Pagoda was associated with the
legend of Tu Dao Hanh, a venerable bonze living during the reign of King Ly Nhan Tong. Dao
Hanh, of worldly name Tu Lo, was the son of a judicial mandarin, Tu Vinh, who, in his
early age, while following his studies, was lodging in Lang village - presently Yen Lang
village, Tu Liem district, Ha Noi. Tu Vinh married Tang Thi Lan who later gave birth to Tu
Lo. Due to some hostility, Duke Dien Thanh asked the wizard Dai Dien to beat Tu Vinh to
death. Making up his mind to revenge his father, Tu Lo withdrew to live a secluded life in
the rocky cave, Tri Son where he trained himself until one day, he knocked the wizard Sai
Dien out and got him ill to death.
To disengage himself from the fatal chain of enmity, Tu
Lo, with his religious name Tu Dao Hanh (1)
Concentrated upon his learning and training of Ch'an
Biddhism had two close religious friends, Ch'an Masters Minh Khong and Giac Hai; the three
of them all having many supernatural powers. Later on, Tu Dao Hanh came back to stay and
train himself at Thien Phuc Pagoda or Thay Pagoda on Saigon mountain. Another legend has
it that later Tu Dao Hanh had embodied his spirit in the reincarnation of the son of Duke
Sung Hien, whose real name is Duong Hoan-King Ly Nhan Tong's brother. Since King Ly Nhan
Tong was childless. Duong Hoan was established as crown prince and later became King Ly
Than Tong (1128-1138). Afterwards King Ly Anh Tong (1138-1175), who was soon of Ly Than
Tong ordered to establish the Lang Pagoda to worship his father King Ly Than Tong and also
his father's reincarnation Ch'an Master Tu Dao Hanh. In the pagoda, besides the statue of
King Ly Than Tong and the statue of Saint Tu Dao Hanh.
Lang Pagoda has its Sino-Vietnamese name "Chieu
Thien Tu". "Chieu", which means "clear", here implies that good
things appear very clearly here. Thien, which means Ch'an refers to the venerable Ch'an
Master who had become Saint in this pagoda.
The 7th day of the 3rd lunar
month, which was the birth day of Ch'an Master Tu Dao Hanh, has become the Festival day of
Lang Pagoda (and also the Festival day of Thay Pagoda)
The following popular verses remind us of the annual
Festival day:
Remember the seventh day of third month
Come back to Lang Festival or out to Thay Festival as
well.
Chieu Thien Tu is located about 7km from the centre of
Ha Noi to the west. Formerly it was built on a nice terrace amidst an immense field.
Surrounding were mango-trees and old banian-trees which made the sight of the pagoda more
tranquil and peaceful. The pagoda has been renovated many times.
The present pagoda owes its architectural design to the
renovation in the 19th century, with its ancient style of a famous temple
building still preserved from as far back as eight centuries ago.
The first particular feature that attracts tourists'
attention is the front gate whose architectural fashion is almost similar to that of the
gates of imperial palaces of olden times. It consists of 4 flower patterned pillars
aligned in a row with elegantly curved-up roofs. These roofs do not cover the tops of the
pillars but are fixed to the their walls, the central roof higher than the ones on either
side. The front yard, paved with Bat Trang tiles, joins the temple gate to the
three-entrance gate, which opens into a wide brick-paved passage, bordered with flower
walls. This passage leads to the Octagonal Hall where on festival days, the Saint statue
is placed for the villagers to come and pay their respect in the ceremony of flower
offering. The innermost part is the main temple comprising the front hall, the incense
burning house, the upper shrine, the veranda, the patriarch house, the bonzes' rooms and
supplementary compartments.
With the imposing sight of its global architecture, in
harmony with the vastness of the area, the Lang Pagoda has been considered the "first
rate pine-wood" west of the Thang Long ancient capital.
Translated by
Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van Nghe
___________________________
Translator's note: (1) Dao Hanh means religious virtue
QUAN SU PAGODA
73 QUAN SU, HOAN KIEM, HA NOI CITY
Quan Su Pagoda was built in the 15th century in An Tap
hamlet, Co Vu ward. Tien Nghiem village (later renamed Vinh Xuong village), Tho Xuong
district – presently Quan Su Street, Hoan Kiem district, Ha Noi.
Formerly this area had no pagoda. There were only a few cottages
gathering in the South corner, where the inhabitants would offer ceremonial gifts to god,
praying for peace and security. This area was called An Tap hamlet
As recorded in the "Hoang Le Nhat Thong Chi" book, under King
Le the Tong’s reign, the neighbouring countries Champ, Shiam, Laos usually sent
messengers or envoys to our country, offering tributes to the King. To welcome envoys and
messengers coming to the capital city of Thang Long, the King ordered to establish an
official building called Quan Su (the House for diplomatic envoys) for them to stay during
their visit. Since the envoys and messengers from these countries were devout Buddhists,
the King ordered to build a pagoda within the Quan Su area so that they could do their
usual worships. Now, time has effaced the traces of the former Quan Su areas, but the Quan
Su Pagoda still remains there.
In 1934, the general Association of Buddhists of North Vietnam was
founded and Quan Su Pagoda was chosen as central headquarters of the Association. In 1942,
the pagoda was rebuilt according to a plan designed by the two architects Nguyen Ngoc
Ngoan and Nguyen Xuan Tung, and approved by the Patriarch Vinh Nghiem. The architectural
are and decoration was the combination of all the fineness of famous temples in North
Vietnam. Quan Su Pagoda might be one of a very few pagodas whose names as well as many
parallel sentences are written in Quoc Ngu (the national Latinised script). Isn’t it
because the pagoda was rebuilt only in the middle of this century and has become ever
since the central headquarters of the General Association of Buddhists of North Vietnam
and presently headquarters of Vietnam Buddhist Sangha that it has become a national pagoda
for all Buddhists all over the country.
The three-entrance gate has three-staged roofs, with the bell story in
the middle. After going past a small courtyard paved with bricks, and up an eleven-stepped
staircase, you will arrive at the main hall. The Buddha shrine is solemnly decorated, the
statues are rather large and splendidly lacquered in red and gild paint. In the back part,
the three statues represent the Buddha’s. Trikaya are worshiped on the highest level
of the altar. On the next level, the statue of Amitabha Buddha is enshrined in the middle;
on both sides are the statue of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and Mahasthamaprapta
Bodhisattva. On the next lower level, the statues of Ananda and Kassapa. On the lowest
level, on the outer side is the Nine-Dragon shrine standing between the statues of Kwan
Yin and Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva. In the right compartment of the Buddha Shrine is
worshiped the statue of Ly Quoc Su (the Ly’s Imperial Adviser, namely Master Minh
Khong) with two guards of honour. In the left compartment are enshrined the three statues
of Duc Ong, Chau Xuong and Quan Binh.
All the main supplementary halls of Quan Su Pagoda are very spacious.
This place has once been the office of the Duoc Tue magazine, the Head office of the
General Association of Buddhists of North Vietnam. Presently, the pagoda has an
amphitheatre and a library and is housing the office of the Vietnam’s. Institute of
Buddhist studies and the office of the Asian Organisation of Buddhism for Peace in
Vietnam.
For half a century, Quan Su Pagoda has witnessed many important
landmarks of Vietnamese Buddhism, including the unification of Buddhist organisations
throughout the country and the affiliation of the Vietnamese Buddhism to International
Buddhism. At this very place, on 13/5/1951 (8/4 lunar calendar), for the first time the
International Buddhism flag, brought home from Colombo by Venerable To Lien, flew
in the sky of Hanoi.
Translated by
Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van Nghe
KIM LIEN PAGODA
(DAI BI PAGODA)
QUANG AN, TU LIEM, HA NOI, CITY
Kim Lien Pagoda was built on a trip of land along the north edge of
lake Tay, close to the foot of the Yen Phu dyke. Almost surrounded by lake water, this
area looks like a small island. Standing on the dyke, from the distance, one can see the
mossy grey roofs of the pagoda and towers rising up among green bamboo around the pagoda.
Two hundred years ago this scenery was described as follows by Pham
Dinh Ho in his book "Tang Thuong Ngau Luc": "The temple has its back on to
the Nhi Ha River. In front, lake Tay is spreading around its immense wavy surface blurred
with mist. Far away, water and sky seem to be of one colour. On the left, amidst blue
water, rise some small islets, with a brick tower standing beside wavering thin bamboos
and pines…"
The pagoda is located in Nghi Tam hamlet, Quang An village, Tu Liem
district, Ha Noi; therefore it is also called Nghi Tam Pagoda.
It was formerly the pagoda of Dong Long established in the Tran dynasty
(1225-1413) on the old foundation of Tu Hoa Palace, which had been built in the Ly
dynasty. Folk legends have it that once Princess Tu Hoa, daughter of King Ly Than Tong
(1128-1138) led a group of imperial maids to this area, where they started growing
mulberries and raising silkworms, soon opening a farm called Tam Tang (which means
silkworms and mulberries). Later it was remained Tich Ma and afterwards became Nghi Tam
hamlet. In 1630, under King Le Than Tong's rein, the temple was repaired and named Dai Bi
Pagoda (temple of Great Compassion). A stele on the left of the temple yard, compiled by
Ngo Don Phu, shows the large engraved characters "Trung Tu Dai Bi Tu" (
Renovation of Dai Bi Pagoda). Another stela set up on the left of the front hall also
confirm the former name Dai Bi of
the pagoda. Later, in the Le Du Tong's resign, of dynastic title Bao
Thai (1720-1728), a monk named Hue, who had been a eunuch of Lord Trinh Uy Vuong, came to
stay at the pagoda and this time it was renamed Kim Lien (Golden Lotus). This fact was
recorded on the stela set up by Phan Trong Phien, a civilian mandarin. In the year 1792,
again the the pagoda underwent renovation on a large scale, this time bearing the
characteristic signs of architectural art of the Tay Son periods. The latest renovation,.
Which lasted from 1983 to 1987, restored the pagoda to its original form of 200 years ago.
The Kiem Lien Pagoda is composed of three buildings: the lower temple,
the middle temple and the upper temple, arranged in three parallel lines forming the shape
of the Chinese character "tam" (three). Strong columns and beams were carved
with refined patterns, the walls built of thick ancient bricks without plastering.
The three-entrance gate is of a distinctive wooden structural design,
showing a distinguished air of ancient temples and royal palaces, with high relief images
of dragons and flowers on wood, of extremely refined carvings.
In the pagoda all the statues of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are well
preserved. Particularly there is a statue representing a man of middle age, with a
three-tufted beard, wearing a shiny satin gown and a crown, holding imperial power symbol,
in standing position. After Pham Dinh Ho, unofficial history said it was the statue of Uy
Nam Vuong Lord Trinh Giang.
Transtated by
Thuy Duong and Nguyen Van Nghe
THAY PAGODA
(THIEN PHUC PAGODA)
PHUONG CACH, QUOC OAI,
HA TAY PROVINCE
It Lang Pagoda had been associated with the earlier period of Ven. Tu
Dao Hanh's life, then Thay Pagoda witnessed the later part ending in disincarnation of the
112th generation's bonze of the Vinitaruci Ch'an School.
The Thay Pagoda leans against the southwester slope of a limestone
mountain which has many caves and grottos. It is the Thay Mountain or Sai Son Mountain,
located in Hoang Xa Hamlet, Phuong Cach Village, Quoc Oai District Ha Tay Province, about
30km from Ha Noi.
In his inscription on the mountain wall, Lord Trinh Can gave a sketch
of the pagoda sight as follows:
"….Like a pearl emerging among
gravels and stones,
Brightened with spring beams throughout four
seasons.
The upper grotto is a real fairyland,
The walls still printed with clouds' shading
colors.
Dragon pond leads to emancipating harbour,
Faairy bridges link Moon an Sun together.
Mountains stand like a high stone screen,
Rivers spread round like a nice silk belt…"
(Translated by Thuy Duong)
Originally, the Thay Pagoda was only a small temple named Huong Hai Am
(Sea Facing Temple), where Bonze Tu Dao Hanh practised his religious training.
King Ly Nhan Tong had it rebuilt into two separate pagodas: The Higher
pagoda or Dinh Son Tu (Mountain Summit Pagoda) built on the mountain; the Lower Pagoda
Thien Phuc Tu (Heaven Blessing Pagoda).
In the early 17th century, Duke Dinh and the Royal family
undertook the renovation of the pagoda. They established the Buddha shrine, the Saints'
altar, then the rear hall, the stele house, the bell tower. According to ancient
water-geomancy, the pagoda was built on a dragon-shaped land.
The left front looks out on the Long Dau Mountain. The right back leans
against the Sai Son Mountain. The Pagoda faces south. In front of it lying between Long
Dau and Sai Son Mountains is a wide pond named Long Chieu or Long Tri (Dragon Pond). The
front grass yard is the dragon's jaw. The Water-Hall rising amidst the Long Chieu pond,
where there are occasional water-puppet show, is the pearl on the dragon's head. The two
wells are the Dragon's eyes. The two ancient tile-roofed bridges built by First Doctoral
Graduate Phung Khac Khoan in 1602 are the dragon's canine-teeth: Nhat Tien bridge (Solar
Fairy bridge) on the left, looking on the Tam Phu Temple built on a small islet amidst the
pond; Nguyet Tien bridge (Lunar Fairy Bridge) on the right, leading to the way up to the
High-pagoda on the Mountain.
Facing the Water-Hall is the Lower Pagoda laid out in the shape of the
Chinese character "tam", comprising three parallel houses established on high
foundations made of green laterite. The outer is the front ceremonial hall, the middle is
the Budda shrine, the innermost is the altar of Chan Master Tu Ado Hahn. Here one can see
three statues representing the three reincarnations of Tu Ado Hahn: Bonze, King and Budda.
On the left is the whole body statue of the bonze carved from sandalwood with automatic
mechanical device for standing and sitting positions. This statue recalled his religious
training period at Huong Hai Am, where he used to make medicines for the treatment of
people's diseases also his invention of the water-puppet playing, which has become a
traditional popular entertainment . In the middle is the statue of Tu Dao Hanh when he has
become Budha, wearing a lotus flower hat and a golden brocade robe, his hands joined
before his chest, On the right is the statue representing his reincarnation as soon of
Duke Sung Hien to become King Ly Than Tong. The statue represents King Ly Than Tong wearing a crown and an
imperial costume, sitting on the royal throne.
In the pagoda there are still the statues of Tu Vinh and Tang Thi Loan
- Tu Dao Hanh's parents and also his two religious close friends Ch'an Masters Minh Khong
Giac Hai. On either side of the pagoda are long corridors in which the 18th
arhats are adored.
The way thorough Nguyen Tine Bridge leads to a stone-stepped path
coming up the mountain where stands the Higher pagoda. Originally, it was the Hien Thuy
temple (Temple of Glory Sleep), with another mane Dinh Son Tu (Mountain Summit Pagoda). On
the walls there are still the inscriptions of improvised poems by famous men of letters
such as Nguyen Truc, Nguyen Thuong Hien. A legend has it that the Phat Thich grotto
(grotto of Buddha's vestiges) at the back of the Pagoda is the place where Ch'an Master Tu
Dao Hanh disembodied himself. That is why it is also called the "Saint Disincarnation
Grotto".
From the Higher pagoda, there is a path leading up to a flat terrace
called "the Heaven Market" with many stones in shapes of tables, stools ,
shelves, wine glasses…. Among which there is a smooth stone plane called
"immortal's Chess - Board". Perhaps this place has been formerly frequented by
immortal or fairies exiled from Heaven, who came around to play chess , drink wine and
recite poems in the moonlight or to watch beautiful sights of nature as described in the
following Tang poem by Nguyen Khuyen, a famous poem in the 19th century:
The Heaven Market
For thousands of generations Creator has
been building
This beauty of spot Sai Son with the Heaven
Market opening
From dawn fresh breeze blow, at noon intense sun
shines
By sunset clouds gather, at night silver moon
smiles.
Flowers and fruits are displayed through out four
seasons
Rivers and Mountains spread out in all directions
Where are those sellers of interests and buyers
of titles?
Why don't they come up to bargain a little?
(Translated by Thuy Duong)
Following a trail along the Mountain edge, climbing up another few
dozen steps, you will come to the Cac Co cave, where in olden times , boys and girls would
meet on festival cays for their flirtations as mentioned in these popular verses:
Unmarried girls dream of Cac Co Cave
Single boys yearn for Thay festival day
From Cac Co cave, there is a path, whee grow many age-old trees,
leading up to the Upper temple. Near the Upper temple is the But Moc Cave with many
old-shaped weather-worn stones looking like Buddha statues. Next is the Cow Cave with a
gloomy entrance, then the Wind cave with the wind constantly blowing through both ends.
At the foot of Thay Mountain on the west side there is the Boi Am
Pagoda also called One-Roofed Pagoda, which has only one roof, the other roof is the vault
of the cave itself.
The distinctive features of the Thay Pagoda beauty spot lie in the
association of its uneven paths, its temple roofs rising high up in the sky, the beautiful
sight of the lakes spreading wide and the mythical aspects of the deep underground caves.
All those three dimensions of space gather in a natural assemblage of various
architectural designs and colours.
The annual festival at Thay Pagoda takes place from the 5th
to the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month. This is an occasion for
people to admire this beautiful landscape. On the Festival day, many Budhist monks and
nuns from all parts of the region come up to participate in the celebration in their
ceremonial costumes, holding each one a flowery stick, reciting prayers in the rhythmical
bass sounds of wooden gongs, The ceremony of Buddha worship and vegetarian food offerings
- a religious performance is realised in coordination with the performance of traditional
musical instruments.
However, the Festival of Thay Pagoda is not only a formal religious
celebration, but it also includes water puppet shows - a traditional popular entertainment
which has been much appreciated in foreign countries. Young men and young ladies from all
parts who find their way to Thay Pagoda festival still wish to satisfy their adventurous
desire while climbing up the mountain and also their yearning to express love in an open
atmosphere of a natural scenery. This has been expressed in the following poem by A Nam
Tarn Tuan Kai, a well-known poet of the early 20th century:
I took my dear friend to see the As Son
scenery
But who's got the stones wet, the road slippery?
O, mountain, tell me! Why do you keep silent?
Is it to somebody that you've got indifferent?
If nature didn't favour my sound yearning
The would you decline my faithful love, darling?
Come on, we'll help each other climb this harsh
way
How many stones the Mountain has our hearts will
equal its weight.
Translated by
Thuy Duong And Nguyen van Nghe
ONE-HUNDRED-COMPARTMENT PAGODA
(QUANG NGHIEM PAGODA)
TIEN PHUONG, HOAI DUC, HA TAY PROVINCE
There are two pagodas in North Vietnam bearing the same name of
One-Hundred-Compartment Pagoda: one in Ha Bac, the other in Ha Tay. Both of them are built
on mountain tops and each has its own original architectural style and extraordinary
scenery.
The One-Hundred-Compartment Pagoda in Ha Tay is particularly associated
with the legend of a venerable monk named Nguyen Lu (0r Nhu), of religious name Binh An,
from Boi Khe village, Thanh Oai district, Ha Tay province. He is popularly known as Saint
Boi.
The legend has it that, once in the Tran dynasty, a woman has a strange
dream in which she saw Buddha infant being born on the earth. She then got pregnant and
later gave berth to a baby-boy. When the child was 6 years old, his parents passed away
and he had to work as water buffalo tender. He has a strong devotion to Buddhsm and
usually made altars for worship, When he was 9, he left home to come and live at Dai Bi
Pagoda in village, where he started his religious training. At the age of 15, he travelled
around to many places. On arriving in Tien Lu hamlet, Tien Phuong village, Hoai Duc
district Ha Tay Province, he was attracted by the beautiful sight there, asked for an
audience with the patriarch in the pagoda on the mountain and was accepted to stay and
become disciple of the venerable monk/
After 10 years of religious training, the young monk mastered all
marvellous supernatural powers. His reputation spread up to the king, who then granted him
the title Most Venerable with the religious name Duc Minh and invited him to come and stay
as Head of a Pagoda in Truong An capital city.
After the decease of the patriarch in Tien Lu Pagoda, Nost venerable
Duc Minh aked for the King's permission to return and establish a new pagoda in his
village. It was said that the Nost Venerable Monk had the power to make appear delicious
vegetarian dinners for the workers who built the pagoda so they could have plenty to eat.
When the construction was completed, wearing wooden sabots he walked to and from the beams
as though he were walking on the ground. Everybody admired his supernatural powers.
At the age of 95, one day he sat in a wooden chest, bade farewell to
his disciples and liberated himself. One hundred days later, his disciples opened the
chest, from his remain exhaled a nice fragrance all over the area. The inhabitants
together with his disciples the built a tower to preserve the remains of the Most
Venerable Bonze and honoured him as Saint Boi.
The book "Linh Nam Chich Quai" has also recorded the legend
of Saint Boi who could make the rain fall and call up the wind. The legend also has it
that at the beginning of the 15th century, the Ming invading troops attacked
our country. Among them, there was a troop who, having heard of the Tien Lu pagoda's
divinity, set fire to the pagoda and damaged the statues. Aroused in anger, Saint Boi then
made a rain-storm lasting for three days and nights, with red water like blood rising up,
drowning those insolent invaders. Afterwards, a five-coloured cloud appeared in the sky,
peaceful life was restored and the pagoda remained untroubled as it had been before. The
inhabitants came to worship all year round. Every time there was a drought, they organised
a ceremony praying for rain at the pagoda and their plea was always granted. Other kings
of the Tran dynasty all honoured Saint Boi as "Thuong Dang Toi Linh Dai Thanh"
(First Grade Most Divine Great Saint).
Above is the history of the One-Hundred-Compartment Pagoda in Tien Lu
village. It has another name - Quang Nghiem Pagoda . According to many documents, the
pagoda was established in 1185 under Ly Cao Tong's reign. It was initially a small temple
with one compartment and two adjoining rooms built on a Mountain 50m, in height called Ma
Mountain. Surrounding are many age-old specious trees spreading ample shades covering the
roofs of the pagoda.
Through many times of renovation, the present pagoda is composed of 3
main groups of buildings with 1104 compartments in all (each four-corner-columned space
counts as one compartment).
The first group, situated near the entrance gate, comprises two tall
pillars with two houses on both sides. Formerly this was the place for humanchess games on
festivals. Next is the Imperial Tribune looing out on the lotus lake, where is placed the
Saint palanquin for watching the water-puppet shows.
The 2nd group is lying on the height of over one hundred
brick steps. Here there is a two-storeyed bell tower with 8 curved-up roofs bearing the
signs of architectural and sculptural art of the 16th -17th
centuries. The bell cast in 1794 bears an inscribed illustration of Phan Huy Ich, a man of
letters of the time.
To get up to the 3rd group of buildings, you have to climb
up 25 steps of green stones, reaching the upper yard, then up another 9 stepped staircase
with balustrades carved with serpentine dragon images. This is the main pagoda comprising
the worship hall, the incense burning house, the upper shrine, the two corridors, the
patriarch house and the drum storey. The pagoda has 3 main compartments for worship: one
is the Buddha shrine, the second is the Saint's alter, the third compartment is reserved
for the worship of Kwan Yin, the family of Admiral Dang Tien Dong and the four princes.
Admiral Dang Tien Dong, a general of King Quang Trung, himself undertook the renovation of
the pagoda.
Among 153 statues in the pagoda, mostly carved from wood, the most
noticeable ones, as regards history, are the statues of Admiral Dang Tien Dong and Saint
Boi, made of woven rattan frameworks covered with painted tissues, each one placed in a
wooden chest. Besides, the statues of Quan Am, Tuyet Son, the set of 18 Arahants statues
are also distinctive sculptural works.
Translated by
Thuy Duong And Nguyen van Nghe
MIA PAGODA
(SUNG NGHIEM TU)
SON TAY TOWN, HA TAY PROVINCE
In the 17th century, in Mia hamlet, present day Duong Lam
village, Son Tay town, Ha Tay province, there lived a women named Nguyen Thi Dong, alias
Nguyen Thi Ngoc Dieu, who was married to Lord Thanh Do Vuong Trinh Trang - hence her
nickname Lady Queen Mia. In 1632, she rendered a most distinguished service to her
homeland by taking the initiative in fully restoring Mia Pagoda a Sung Nghiem Tu (first
built during the Tran Dynasty).
Situated on a laterite hill, Mia Pagoda was originally composed of just
a gate and two parallel buildings (the Upper Hall and the Back Hall), reach of which
consisted of seven compartments. The pagoda was gradually renovated and perfected later in
the 18th and 19th centuries.
The pagoda grounds are partitioned roughly into three sections. In the
front stands are three entrance gate looking out over a wide spread of land adjoined by
Mia Market on one side. In the upper storey of the gate are hung a bronze bell cast in
1743 and a brass gong cast in 1846.
Going past the gate one can notice two adjacent yards separated by a
low wall with a brick gate. In the left-hand corner of the first yard there stands an old
banian-tree that has been there for hundreds of years. The second yard is laid out with
walks bordered with flower - beas. The Patriarch Hall is on the left together with the
Dining Hall. Located at a height of seven steps above the yard level, the main structure
complex of the pagoda consists of the Front Hall, the Central Shrine, the incense burning
house corridors and the Back Hall. The Front Hall is composed of five compartments and two
lean-tos. In the left-side compartment is placed a memorial stela set up in 1632. It
stands on the back of a tortoise and bears a carved text giving details of the work
undertaken by Lady Queen Mia for the building of the pagoda. The Central Shrine
communicates with the Back Hall by means of two corridors surrounding the incense burning
house which is disposed to join the shrine in the form of a mallet handle. The remarkable
art of sculpture in Mia Pagoda consists in the sophisticated carved lines made on the
roof, the rails and the consoles of the bell-tower/
The most precious part of the pagoda's heritage comprised 2287 statues
and statuettes, half of which are carved out of wood, the rest out of baked clay; all are
painted with vermilion and gilded.
Among them are the statues of two Dharma Guardians of such a height
that they almost teach the ceiling and those of the Vajras representing Eight Assemblies
made of baked clay depicting the characteristic appearance and countenance of dignified
and dauntless men ready to safeguard the Buddhist Dharma.
Another statue represents Sakyamuni Buddha of the time he led a
secluded and ascetic life in the Himalayas . It depicts the Holly Lord as a thin - man
with a bony body who still keeps his wits and a bright countenance though. Another
sculptural masterpiece is a statue of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva with an Infant (usually
called the Statue of Thi Kinh). This work of art, with lithe and vivid carved lines,
represents a gentle and kind-hearted Vietnamese woman carrying a baby in her arms. Her
face is tinted with melancholy, her downcast eyes imbued with great resignation but her
heart is overflowing with compassion for all human beings.
It is no surprise that the inhabitants of Mia
hamlet take great pride in this statue:
How famous Mia Pagoda in our hamlet is!
And it is of the statue of Avalokitesvara
Bodhisattva that comes all this glory.
And we think everyone else may as well share in
pride of the people of the Mia village.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen van Nghe
HUONG PAGODA
HUONG SON, MY DUC, HA TAY PROVINCE
There was formerly a young girl who, following her father on a
pilgrimage to Huong pagoda in spring, fell in love with a smart and handsome young man who
also took interest in her. Her shy confidence and candid words have been recorded in a
lovely poem written in five - word verses and greatly appreciated in the whole country in
the last few decades. Over the last fifty years Huong Son's scenery has been subject to
some changes but nowadays a pilgrimage to Huong Pagoda is still proved to be a journey
back to nature and our old heritage. Let's follow the path taken by the girl in that
romance to get to "the most beautiful cavern of the South", Huong Pagoda is
situated in Huong Son village, My Duc district, Ha Tay province, 60km from Ha Hoi. It does
not consist in a single pagoda but in fact, it is a system of pagoda, temples, caves and
grottos located in an area of land of about 6km2 with
Limestone mountains and tropical forests.
Folk legends go saying that this mountain region was discovered over
2000 hears ago and named Huong son after a mount in northern Tibet in the Himalayas, where
Lord Buddha sat practising asceticism for quite six years. During the reign of King Le
Thanh Tong (1460-1497) there existed a small temple enshrining Buddhas on the location of
Thien Tru Pagoda.
According to the book "Huong son Thien Tru Thien Phu", Huong
Pagoda was built during the reign of King Le Hy Tong (1680-1705). It is recorded on the
memorial stele of Thien Tru Pagoda that the work of building the terrace, stone steps and
Kim Dung Shrine was carried out in 1686 and that the main statue of the pagoda
representing Avalokitesvara Bodhivattsa- was originally cast in bronze in 1767.
Every year, the Huong Pagoda Festival takes place from the sixth to the
fifteenth of the first lunar month along the three main routes leading to Huong Tich Cave,
Tuyet Pagoda and Long Van Pagoda. In fact, during the first and the second months of the
lunar year, the pagoda offers a merry sight bustling with pilgrims who come here chiefly
by the route of Huong Tich Cave.
From Ha Noi, you can take the coach to the chief town of Ha Dong
province; then, after a 20km drive past Van Dinh townlet, you will arrive at Duc Landing
Place on the Day River. Here is the gateway to the beauty site packed with boats and
people who greet each other by putting their hand palms against each other and murmuring
"Namo Amitabha Buddha" instead of exchange common greetings. After a 1km walk
from Duc Landing, the tourists will reach another landing and get on a boat sailing down a
stream named Yen Vi (Swallow’s Tail)
After passing Duc Landing by boat
I met more and more people on the way
And I was too shy to say
"Namo Aamitabha Buddha!"
Tourist will be carried in their boats gliding by the side of
picturesque mountain such as the Elephant Mount, the Dragon Mount,. The sight of a bridge
in the distance evokes the scenery of the land of Buddhas and immortals.
Streams were winding and murmuring.
Bordered with Blue Mountains.
And a bridge appeared in the distance.
What a pictures landscape it was!
On arriving at Trinh Temple, the boat stop t a landing place to let the
tourists "present themselves" to the local mountain god before landing on the
world of Buddhas. Situated at the foot of a fie-peaked mountain named Ngu Nhac, the temple
is also called by another name Quan Lon (High-ranking Mandrin) built to worship a
subordinate general of King Hung.
After leaving Trinh Temple, tourists continue their journey to behold
the beautiful scenery on either side of the stream.
Having passed several picturesque mountains
teeming with monkeys.
We arrived at Voi Phuc Mountain
Shaped like a reclining elephant in full form
The boats then stop at Tro Landing-place for tourists to land on the
site of Thien Phu Pagoda (Heaven Kitchen), also called Ngoai Pagoda (Outer Pagoda) which,
formerly composed of a core of compartments surrounded by four Mountain walls, was damaged
by the recent war. Its gate, built during King Gia Long’s reign, was also kept in
ruins. There survives an ancient structure Vien Cong Tower, where was buried Ch’an
Master Vien Quang credited with the pagoda restoration after agelong devastation. View
from afar the tower is an impressive structure rising high in the sky. There can also be
seen Thien Thuy Tower a huge rock in upside down position yielding the shape of a natural
tower along which rain water will run from the mountain sides. In 1986 Thien Tru
Pagoda’s bell-tower was rebuilt and the building of the two-storeyed Hall of the
Triple Gem was completed in 1989.
At the beginning of 1994, Nam Thien Mon (Gate to the Southern skies)
was reconstructed, taking the duplicate from of the original structure.
Starting from Ngoai Pagoda, tourists can climb up rocky mountain slopes
to visit Tien Son Pagoda established inside the heart of a mount, where they can notice
four ruby statues, Next come Giai Oan Pagoda where exists a well with clear water called
"Thien Nhien Thanh Tri" (Natural Blue Pond) or Long Tuyen well. In front of the
pagoda, there is a nine sourced stream called Giai Oan Spring. Nearby
There are Tuyet Kinh Grotto and Phat Tich Temple, which as a legend
goes, still keeps Avalokitesvara Bodhisatta’s footprints. Not very far away, the
pilgrims will arrive at Chan Song Mountain to see Vong Temple.
The ultimate destination that all visitors wish to reach is Huong Tich
Cave located deep inside. After going past a large gate, they must go down broad stone
steps to enter the grotto whose opening looks like a dragon’s jaw bearing the Chinese
characters meaning "the most beautiful grotto of Southern Skies". These words
are believed to be King Tinh Do Vuong Trinh Sam’s autograph carved in stone in 1770.
The entrance to the cave is hidden under the luxuriant vegetation of two rows of old
banian trees. The sunlight coming in through the tree leaves casting a dim light over the
stone steps and the incense-smoke rising from inside the grotto create a mysterious
atmosphere which is exactly described by the well-known musician Hoang Quy in his popular
song "Huong Pagoda":
Huong Pagoda is filled with incense and
aquilaria
Smoke spiralling up in the dying sun.
It is the moment when one is held in deep reverie.
Once getting inside the grotto, visitors will admire the statues of
Avalokitesvara Buddha and Arahats. Stalactites hanging from the walls are of various forms
and changing colours.
On the ceiling juts out another one in the shape of nine dragon’s
heads named Nine-Dragon Seat, while watching these nature’s marvellous figures, the
girl in Nguyen Nhuoc Phap’s poem uttered these words:
Oh! Here we’re at Trong Pagoda (Inner
Pagoda)!
The grotto is hidden in green vegetation:
Its ceiling is embroidered with stalactites
Which look like pearls imbued with aquilaria perfume.
Another poem Chu Manh Trinh of the last century wrote the famous poem
entiled "the Delights of Huong Son":
Standing sky high in the land of Buddhas.
Huong Son is a real wonder we have long wished to see
With the sight of mountains covered with clouds
This is undoubtedly "The most beautiful grotto of all".
Looking up, we can notice a beautiful picture
Brocaded with sparkling stones rich in colours.
The cave is so deep, glittering in the moonlight.
The entrance path with abrupt turns is so high.
Beside Huong Tich Grotto, as it is said above, tourist can turn and get
to an apricot forest to visit Hinh Bong Pagoda, Then they can go down Tuyet Spring to
reach Mother Temple, Royal Barge Mountain, Phoenix Mountain, Lion-Head Mountain, Ky son
Rock /Wall before touching at Turet Son Landing to enter Bao Dai Pagoda.
After climbing up a mountain on their way to Bach Tuyet Gate and Co
Temple, they can also visit Tuyet Son Pagoda, otherwise called Ngoc Long Grotto where they
can see a stela engraved with a beautiful poem written in Sino-Vietnamese characters by
Lord Trinh Sam in 1770.
In another direction, tourists will be carried along a branch of Yen
Spring to Ong Su Ba Vai Mountain where, after disembarkation, they can visit Long Van
Pagoda before climbing up another mountain to reach Cay Khe Pagoda and Sung Sam Cave,
which is an archaeological site with age-old vestiges.
After leaving Huong Son beauty spot tourist can take back with them as
souvenirs a bamboo walking-stick they have used on their pilgrimage, son pieces of
apricot-tree bark to be mixed with their drinks, some apricot fruit with thick pulp and
tiny stones or a few batches of herbs to flavour their food with.
But the most precious gain for the pilgrims on their journey to Huong
Pagoda as a stated of mind freed from all earthly dust and filled with an ethereal joy of
having escaped from the worldly life and everlasting impression of Paradise existing right
here on this harsh world of ours.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen Van Nghe
TAY PHUONG PAGODA
(SUNG PHUC TU)
THACH XA, THACH THAT, HA
TAY PROVINCE
Thirty-seven kilometres west of Ha Noi, in
Yen hamlet, Thach That district, Ha Tay province there is a mountain of a height of around
50 metres located in a beautiful site : it stands, amidst the green and luxuriant
vegetation of a bamboo forest hiding from view a number of thatched cottages built on its
slopes.
The mountain is called Cau Lau . It is
stated in some record that the name originates from the fishhook-like shape of the
mountain But its etymology shows its origin from the archai pronunciation
"K-lau", meaning Buffalo Mountain, which has been recorded as Cau Lau in books
written in Chinese characters. This explanation has an adequate ground if the mountain is
viewed from afar. It is then seen joining up with several hills in Kim Quan region to make
up a long range which runs from the Ba Vi Mountain to the middle of the North delta and
looks like a herd of buffaloes whose mother Cau Lau Mountain, is turning its head to look
back at its offspring.
Let’s climb up the 239 laterite steps
from the foot of the mountain and we will find ourselves in front of the gate of
well-known pagoda, which is a typical example of Vietnamese architecture and sculpture,
The pagoda is called Tay Phuong Pagoda or Sung Phuc Tu, written in Chinese characters, Its
other named is Hoanh Son Thieu Lam Tu.
The pagoda was constructed in 1632 during
the reign of king Le Than Tong and composed of the Upper Hall with 3 compartments, the
Vack Hall with 20 compartments and corridors. In the years from 1657 to 1682 Lord Tay Do
Vuong Trinh Tac had it knocked down to build a new pagoda with a three-entrance gated . In
1794, during the Tay son dynasty extensive renovating were made and the pagoda was
remained unchanged until now.
The pagoda memorial stilled was set up in
1924, bearing a text which read, "Novice monk Thiet Tu, alias Thanh Ngoc, from Cao Xa
hamlet, Dan Phuong district, Ha Dong province, entered the monkhood since his early
childhood. In 1893 he came to live at Sung Phuc, Pagoda that is Tay Phong Pagoda, on Cau
Lau Mountain, This mountain region is a beauty spot potentially productive of the talented
and impregnated with heavenly atmosphere. Therefore; the hamlet authorities and notables
met and decided on a resolution to renovate and repair the three buildings of the
pagoda-extensively.
They also had some statues carved; the
statues of One-Hundred-arm Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and the goddess Thien Tai Long Nu,
as well as those of the Eight Groups of Vajraputras and the Eighteen Arahats. All of them
are resplendently lacquered with a vermilion and gild paint…."
The pagoda consists of 3 buildings made of
hard and solid iron wood, laid out in form of the Chinese word Tan: The Service Hall, the
Main Hall and the Back Hall, which stand at a distance of 1.60m from each other, forming a
structure complex in an extraordinary style. Thi windows are designed in such a way as to
let in bright light from outside, which gives the interior a heavenly atmosphere
harmonious with the Vuddhist philosophy of impermanence.
Each of the buildings has two –
levelled roofs, whose corners are modelled with up-bent knife shaped relief decorations
representing the images of flowers, leaves, dragons and phoenixes, The building materials
are chiefly the well-known sun-dried bricks of Bat Trang. All the wooden column rest upon
round blue stone blocks with engravings of lotus petals, The roof are covered with two
layers of tiles : the upper one consists in tiles moulded in banian-leaf shape. The under
layer which serves for a lining is composed of square tiles painted in five colours. All
the roof fringes are carved with elaborate decorations in form of rolled-up leaves.
Almost all the wood surface of everything
in the pagoda has carved figures with traditional sculptural motifs familiar to the
Vietnamese people: mulberry leaves, banian leaves, chrysanthemums, dragons , phoenixes,
tiger heads….
The tourists who visit Tay Phuong Pagoda
are not only amazed by the monumental beauty of this architectural triumph, but also
struck by great stupefaction when beholding the lively world of 72 wooden statues
lacquered with vermilion and gild paint, Nowhere else in Vietnam can be found such an
original exhibition hall, which shows a religious style of sculpture as well as the
characteristics of the Vietnamese people. The statues are all authentic works of art
depicting not only the lives and personalities but the spirits of Buddhas, Bodhivattsas
and Arahats as well.
The system of statues enshrined in the
pagoda includes:
- A set of the Trikaya with the There Buddhas of the Past,
the present and the Future, They are sitting in mediation postures wearing costumes with
simple creases.
- A set of the Three Amitabha Noble Ones: Amitbha Buddha
standing between Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and Mahasthana Boddhisattva.
- The "Snowy Mountain" statue depicting Skyamuni
Buddha in the period of his ascetic life. It is a dark brown statue representing a man
dressed in a thin frock, with skinny limbs and a bony chest; his face with hollow eyes is
deep in inward thoughts.
- The statue of Maitreya Buddha, symbolising the Vuddha of
the blissful future world. His stout body seated in a little backward posture expresses a
feeling of satisfaction and happiness
- The statue of Manju’sri Bodhisattva standing barefoot
with his toes clinging to the pedestal surface and his hand palms put against each other.
- The statue of Samanthbhadra Bodhisttva standing with his
hand palms put against each other on his chest. His shining face is of a broad shape on
his chest, His shining face is of a broad shape and his body fully dressed in a costume
with conspicuous creases.
- A set of the Eight Group s of Vajratupras displaying a high
level in art of making and arranging woodwork as well as the skill of showing the
movements of the armoured -clad human bodies in different postures of martial arts
execution.
- A set of the statues of sixteen Patriarchs carved in a
realistic style.
The word of statues in the pagoda interior
has been a source of inspiration for quite a few writers, poets and artists. In 1960, on
his visit to the pagoda, Huy Can, a famous poet, wrote vivid and expressive verses about
the images of those people who, after achieving Enlightenment , still keep on pondering on
the sufferings of human beings. These lively statues not only depict Buddhist themes but
also expose the spiritual world of the craftsmen who have created them. All the details
featuring on those statues clearly bear the imprint of the earthly world's sufferings:
protruding eyes, frowning eyebrows, deeply wrinkled foreheads, lips curved in a bitter
manner, hands with twisted fingers, big ears which are so long as to reach the knees and
able to hear all human stories.
All the five senses seem to be fully
strained through every grain of wood:
They are sitting hear, in silent, but can
hear every storm and thunder roaring everywhere.
It seems that, from chasms in the earth's
depths, there has risen a black wind
Just like the darkness which
Bursts out and covers the human life.
From various expressions of pain from life
and compassion for mankind, the poet has pointed out a common characteristic appearing on
these statues, that is the ever-lasting concern over life and death, a harassing anxiety
in searching for a meaning and a direction for man's life.
This query weighs heavily on their minds
because they don't mean to search for their own deliverance but always try to find it for
all beings.
Looking down, sideways or turning round
All are looking out in eight directions
There has raised a most important question
But no answer can be given
That query not only obsesses those who are
living in the last remaining years of this century, full of sorrows and sufferings but
also causes a harassing anxiety to people who are on their way to quest for the Truth, the
God and the Beauty.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen
Van Nghe
CON SON PAGODA
(TU PHUC PAGODA)
CON SON, CHI LINH, HAI
HUNG PROVINCE
During the Tran dynasty, there existed in
Vietnam such centres of Buddhism as Yen Tu, Con Son, Quynh Lam and Vinh Nghiem. In the
Patriarch House at Con Son Pagoda are still enshrined the statues of the Three Truc Lam
patriarchs, who were King Tran Nhan Tong (1258-1308), Ch'an Masters Phap Loa (1284-1330)
and Huyen Quang (1254-1334).
It was not by chance that Ch'an Master
Phap Loa established Bach Van Temple at Con Son Pagoda and that Ch'an Master Huyen Quang
chose this place to spend the last years of his life as a Buddhist monk. Con Son (15km
from Hai Duong provincial town, in present-day Cong Hoa Village, Chi Linh district, Hai
Hung province) is the name of a mountain about 200m high above sea level, which has three
peaks in the shape of kneeling unicorns-hence its other name of Lan Son (Unicorn
Mountain). From a top the mountain, after climbing up 600 stone steps, we will see appear
in front of us "the vegetation of an area filled with eternal rejoicing, an infinite
expanse of mountains and rivers which charm our eyes" as written by King Le Thanh
Tong.
Neither did King Tran Nghe Tong
groundlessly give the name of Thanh Hu Dong (the Cave of Pure Nothingness) to that area
where exist a few houses along the banks of a stream in the Con Son ravine and large rocks
with even surfaces lying on a grassy, flowery mountain scattered with bamboo thickets and
crowned with smoke: it is a quiet and deserted place of abode similar to a fairy land
floating in the void. As Head of this pagoda, Ch'an Master Phap Loa found inspiration in
this pure landscape to write these verses:
My mind is completely freed from life's
worries.
I sit on a bamboo bed by myself all the
year round
Without any need for a calendar to find
the date,
I can guess the autumn's arrival when
noticing the chrysanthemums start to bloom.
Located at the southern mountain foot,
Con Son pagoda or otherwise called Tu Phuc Tu (written in Chinese characters), was built
during the Ly dynasty and popularly known as well Hun Pagoda (charcoal-burning ground).
Legend has it that King Tran Thai Tong (1225-1228) himself once called at the pagoda. In
the time of the Le dynasty, while Ch'an Master Mai Tri Ban, alias Phap Nhan was Head, it
was renovated and enlarged to comprise 83 compartments including the three entrance gate,
the Upper Hall, the Lower Hall, the bell-tower and the drum tower…
Having been destroyed by wars, Hun Pagoda
is now reduced to a small temple scarcely visible under the mass of green foliage of some
age-old trees, namely pines, frangipanes and aaloes.
In front, quite near the gateway there is
a stone stele standing on the back of a tortoise and bearing three engraved words
"Thanh Hu Dong" (Cave of Pure Nothingness) which were King Tran Nghe Tong's
autograph. On the left-hand side, we can see the old memorial house built in 1608 with a
stele whose text is entitled "Con son Tu Phuc Thien Tu Bi" telling about the
renovation work on the pagoda.
Off the rad leading to the shady mountain
top behind the Pagoda lies the area of tomb stupa, the most outstanding of which is Dang
Minh stupa, made of blue stone. It is a structure of 3 storeys in which a statue of Ch'an
Master Huyen Quang and his relic are enshrined.
Con Son Pagoda was once eyewitness to a
span of life as well as the tragedy of Nguyen Trai, a national hero and cultural
celebrity. Thanh Hu Dong is the very retreat of his maternal grandfather Tran Nguyen Dan,
alias Bang Ho, King's first minister. The few old pine-trees which have been standing
there for more than six centuries were planted by Tran Nguyen Dan himself as recorded in
his verses:
Spring sunshine glitters on the flowers in
morning.
Autumn wind blows gently, flaming cry in
the eventide.
The threshold of Luu Quang Temple is
covered with green moss.
The tall trees planted by the same man
support the blue autumn sky.
Nguyen Trai spent part of his childhood,
between 5 and 10, with his maternal grandfather. After having taken part in the court
political affairs for some years, Nguyen Trai retreated into Con Son again.
The Con Son stream once reflected the
poet's figure seated on the rock surface during this time of his secluded life. The
beautiful Con Son scenery inspired him to write a great number of poems included in his
<Quoc Am Thi Tap> (Collection of Poems in National language) and poems in Chinese
characters:
Con Son has aa stream murmuring day and
night.
It sounds to me as if there were music
being played nearby
Con son has mossy rocks clean washed by
rain,
Just like soft beds for me to sit on by
myself.
But a historical tragedy prevented him
from spending his old age peacefully in the shade of the pine-trees and having time to
declaim his leisure poetry. The Case of Le Chi Garden which was related to King Le Thai
Tong's sudden death resulted in a verdict meaning the extermination of all the members
belonging to three ancestral lines of Nguyen Trai, who was the eminent builder of the Le
dynasty.
For the worship of Tran Nguyen Dan, Nguyen
Trai and Nguyen Thi Lo, the locals have had their statues carved, and placed them in the
Holy Shrine beside those of Amitabha Buddha and the Three Patriarchs of Truc Lam Sect.
Nguyen Trai's disciples brought him back
and buried him on Giap Son Mountain, north-east of Con Son Mountain. Not far away, we can
see the tomb of Nguyen Phi Khanh, who was Nguyen Trai's father.
On coming to Con Son, Tran Dang Khoa, a
poet, once awoke at midnight to perceive Nguyen Trai's venerated soul still mingling with
the natural world:
The sound of a bell was heard in mid air.
A strong wind made the ancient forest
rustle.
The water of the stream was spurting out
impetuously.
The pine forest was sparkling in the
moonlight.
It seemed to me as if Nguyen Trai's came
back for a visit to the place.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen
Van Nghe
DU HANG PAGODA
(PHUC LAM PAGPDA)
121 DU HANG, LE CHAN,
HAI PHONG CITY
Located in Du Hang street, Ho Nam ward, Le
Chan district, Du Hang is a well-known ancient pagoda in Hai Phong City.
The pagoda, whose other name is Phuc Lam
Tu, was originally built of bamboos and covered with thatch. Legends have it that, in the
time of the Tran dynasty, King Tran Nhan Tong and Ch'an Master Huyen Quang usually came to
preach Buddha's teachings at this place. In 1672, during the reign of King Le Gia Tong,
Nguyen Dinh Sach, the court commander-in chief, who had resigned from office to enter the
monkhood under the religious name of Chan Huyen, noticed the pagoda left in ruins; so he
mobilised the local people to repair the pagoda. In the days of King Thanh Thai, Most
Venerable Thong Hanh, alias Phuc Nguyen, of Vinh Nghiem sect, had it restored and enlarged
and a bell-tower was built as well. In 1917, the pagoda was renovated once more on a large
scale and it took the form as it is seen today.
Du Hang Pagoda is laid out in the form of
the Chinese word Dinh preceded by a three entrance gate with a lofty three-tiered roof. A
large bell is hung in a two-storeyed bell tower having 5 compartments and a bent-up roof.
Past the bell tower, one can see a large yard, where are placed a large urn and the statue
of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. The Front Hall consists of 7 compartments.
On the right-hand side stand the 5
compartmented patriarch house, the dining-hall and the annexe. On the left we can see the
Back Hall composed of 5 compartments.
The five-compartmented Upper Hall is also
made of wood and its rafters are decorated with sophisticated carvings.
In the Main Hall we can notice a number of
ingeniously-carved statues such as those of Lord Buddha, Dharma Guardians and the Three
Truc Lam Patriarchs along with symmetrical sentences which were subtly engraved in the
artistic style of the Nguyen dynasty. The resplendent carving in high relief, painted in
vermilion and gilded, which we can see in the Main Hall, was made by craftmen from Ha Nam
Ninh province in the early 19th century. In the pagoda are still kept many
precious relics such as bronze urns, brass gongs, incense-burners and sculptured
cupboards.
In the pagoda garden sand nine tombs
stupas among which are those of the Three Truc Lam Patriarchs, Ch'an Master Chan Huyen
Nguyen Dinh Sach and other veteran bonzes of high virtues who were Heads of the Pagoda.
Phuc Lam Tu is worthy of being a
prestigious relic of national ancient architecture and a famed beauty spot of Hai Phong
Port City.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen
Van Nghe
THAP PAGODA
( PHO MINH PAGODA )
LOC VUONG, NAM DINH,
NAM HA PROVINCE
The Tran dynasty was a reign that brought
great credit to the history of Vietnam by winning three major victories over the yuan
Mogulian invaders in the 13th century. The Tran Kings were descends, in fact, from
fishermen who earned their living on the Chau River, within the limits of Nam Dinh. On the
right riverbank, was established at the time a village named Tuc Mac (present - day Loc
Vuong village, 5 km from the town of Nam Dinh), which were the native place of Hero Tran
Quoc Tuan as well as the ancestral land of the Tran dynasty.
No sooner had King Tran Thai Tong ascended
the throne than he transformed Tuc Mac village into a large construction site. Since 1239,
workmen were recruited to work together with an army of corvee-bound labourers over many
scores of years on end in order to build castles, palace temples and pagodas on this land.
In the spring of 1262, King Tran Thanh Tong, on an inspection tour to Tuc Mac village,
granted a big banquet, gave handsome rewards to the village’s elders and changed Tuc
Mac village into the district of Thien Truong, Two impressive magnificent palaces were
built in the district, going by the names of Trung Quang and Trung Hoa, the later being a
residence for the King on the throne to stay at on his visit to his father. Those palaces
were destroyed by wars, yet akk the places - names in the areas still have connections
with the far remote history; There exist the vestiges of the one - time backyard of the
palace, the field where in the old days were detained the prisoners utilised for
thebuilding work.
Nowadays, we can see such hamlets as Lieu
Nhai which was a willow garden in the days of old text "Pho Minh Dinh Tu ". In
addition, there used to be a large cauldron considered to be one of the " Four Great
Precious Objects " of Vietnam
Behind the upper hall, and separated from
it by a small yard we can see a ten-compartmented building laid out in a straight line,
The five middle compartments serve as the patriarch house, the other three on the left as
living-rooms and the ones on the right constitute the Holy Shrine. In the pachiarch house,
there is a statue of Queen Mac, who used to live as nun in the pagoda. The statue was
carved out of white stone, sitting on a lotus pedestal with her back leaning against a
wall decorated with a halo and three words " Thuong Tich Quang " ( Eternal
light)
Two corridors on both sides links the
Front Hall with the 11 -compartmented house,thus forming a square frame like the outer
part of the Chinese character "Quoc" ( ) . Behind the patriarch house is the
pagoda garden where stands the stupa made of baked clay of Queen Mac’s tomb.
The most valuable structure which was
constructed in the aisle well preserved style of the Tran’s time and in its original
form is Pho Minh Tower-hence Pho Minh Pagoda is also called Thap Pagoda (Tower Pagoda).
The tower was built around the year 1305, the thirteenth Hung Long year during the rule of
King Tran Anh Tong . It is about 21m high, composed of 14 storeys, established on a
pyramidal 12-stepped brick terrace and stopped with a pointed finial in the form of a
many-faceted wine gourd. The first storey and the foundation base are decorated with
figures of flowers and leaves water waves and whirling clouds. All the upper storeys have
domed doors facing the four main directions In the beginning the uppermost thirteen
storeys were built of plain red bricks, but later a believer paid in his own money to have
them plastered with mortar. The altar is placed in the middle of the first storey provided
with a door so that monks and pilgrims may easily come in and out to burn josstics. The
decorations on the outside of the tower are simple but very attractive with such figures
as lotus petals, string designs bordering the tower door, dragons whirling playfully with
clouds engraved on the facing bricks.
Rising in the middle of a low-lying area
of rice fields together with a prestigious pagoda and luxuriant age-old trees, Pho Minh
tower, which weighs nearly 700tons and has remained intact for seven centuries, does help
to create the imposing and ethereal beauty of the scenery. King Tran Nhan Tong praised
this beauty spot as one of "fairy abodes" existing in Vietnam;
The bonzes having returned to their
Monastery, no prayers are heard
The inn by the river lies asleep in the
moonlight
The tower standing high resembles thirty
fairy abodes.
Thousands of worlds of Buddhas resound
with the rising tide,
It is said that King Tran Nhan
Tong’s relics have been kept in Pho Minh Pagoda . The fourteen kings of the Tran
dynasty have been worshipped in Thien Truong Temple, also called Tran Temple located near
Pho Minh Pagoda. Beside Thien Truong Temple is Co Trach Temple for the worship of the
national hero Tran Hung Dao. The harmonious combination of religion and secular power on
the ancestral land of an illustrious line of descent has justified such positive statement
as it referred to in an old folk song:
This land of Tuc Mac hamlet or Thien
Truong District
Has alway been famous since time
immemorial.
Bui Huy Bich (1744 - 1818) a poet wrote
his poem " Du Pho Minh Tu " (visit to Pho Minh Pagoda) as follows;
I returned to Pho Ming - after the war
to see a profusion of flowers and grass
under the blue sky.
Smoke and clouds dirtily blur the damaged
memorial stele.
Buddha’s eyes are dipped with sadness
day and night.
The magic of Buddhism is so great
everywhere
This land has always been said to be a
holy ground.
Where is the old urn now, who knows?
It is true that that the invisible always
gains the upper hand over the visible
Translated by
Chau van Thuan and Nguyen
Van Nghe.
HOA YEN PAGODA
( HOA YEN TU )
YEN TU MOUNTAIN, QUANG
NINH PROVINCE
It wasn’t a rare occurrence for kings
of Vietnam to resign from their throne in order to enter the Buddhism monkhood. But King
Tran Nhan Ton (1258 - 1308) was unique in his religious pursuit who, after having twice
led the people to fight against and drive the Chinese Yuang invaders out of the country,
started to give his whole mind to Buddhist sutras, sought for a place to practise dhamma
and founded a sect of Ch’an Buddhism of his own.
As a matter of fact, even while being
still the crown prince, he once escaped from the royal citadel with the intention of
staying as a monk in Yen Tu Mountain, but his father, King Tran Thanh Tong, send out a
party to take him back. After ruling over the country for some years, King Tran Nhan Tong
handed his throne over to his son, whereupon he retreated freely into Yen Tu Mountain in
1299.
It was not the first time for this
mountain to welcome such a king that came to enter the monkhood at this place. Sixty three
years before, King Tran Thai Tong, the founder of the Tran dynasty, who felt depressed
over the country’s hard times and was harassed by personal matter, had abdicated of
his own free will and escaped to Yen Tu Mountain. But he failed to carry out this plan to
enter the monkhood that time, for Tran Thu Do ordered of party of mandarins to fetch him
back to the royal citadel.
It is probably true that, only with a
strong determination and thanks to a special predestined affinity, can one reach Yen Tu
Mountain.
Bordered on three sides by the former
provinces of Hai Duong, Bac Giang and Quang Yen and located at a distance of about 15 km
northwest of Uong Bi provincial town ( Quang Ninh province), Yen Tu is the highest and the
least accessible Mountain in the one-time Hai Dong region. Its topis crowned all the
timely clouds - hence it was previously named Bach Van Son (the Mountain of white clouds).
Viewed from altar, it takes the shape of an elephant, so it is also called a Tuong Son
(Elephant Mountain). Legend has it that, in the 10th century, there was a Taoism hermit
named Yen Ky Sinh living in the mountain for the practice of his religion. He was
petrified later into a 25 meter-high statue which is still standing at the site of the
path leading to the mountain top, (at a height of 824 m) and which we can catch sight of
when going past Cua Troi (Heaven’s Door). The mountain is likely to owe its name to
that myth.
Actually, the name of Yen Tu refers to a
system of pagodas and scenic spots to be seen by the pilgrims on their 30 km - long route
from the mountain foot to its lofty top. At the mountain foot, appears Cam Thuc Pagoda,
also called Linh Nham Tu standing by Cam Spring and Lan Pagoda otherwise named Long Dong
Tu. By the side of Giai Oan spring formerly called Ho Khe, we can see Giai Oan Pagoda. A
legend goes like this;
As King Tran Nhan Tong his father, entered
the mountain, Tran Anh Tong, who was the King on the throne sent out a party of ladies -
in - waiting in order tabuest the former to come back, but the king father refused the
request, being determined to enter the monkhood. All the ladies - in -waiting threw
themselves into the spring. Some of them were rescued from the death and then decided to
settle outside the pagoda. The king celebrated a mass fot the peace of those who had died
from drowning, ordered to build Giai Oan Pagoda where the statues of the Ladies - in -
waiting have been enshrined and worshipped
Going past Voi Xo Hill one can see Ha Kieu
Mountain, where the king on the throne and mandarins would have to get off their
palanquins and walk on to request an audience with King Tran Nhan Tong. Along the road
shaded from the sun by secular conifers of several kinds, we can see Hon Ngoc, then Hue
Quang Kim Thap, Which is a stupa complex including the Patriarch’s Tower dedicated to
Long Dieu Ngu Giac Hoang (alias of King Tran Nhan Tong). This stone structure is 10 m high
and composed of 6 storeys. At the other side of a brick wall stands the cluster of 44
stupas enshrining the relics of the bronzes who had lived there.
Located at mid - mountain side at a height
of 516 m, Oh Yen Pagoda is the largest and most beautiful one, therefore it is also called
Ca Pagoda (the Greatest Pagoda) It was built during the Ly dynasty and was named Phu Van,
later renamed Van Yen in Tran times.
During the Le dynasty, King Le Thanh Tong
on an excursion to the pagoda noticed the green vegetation of the location and gave it the
name of Hoa Yen.
The winding road to the mountaintop links
Hoa Yen Pagoda with such others as Mot Mai, Bao Sai, Van Tieu and Thien Truc or Dong
Pagoda (at a height of 1068 m). Dong Pagoda was once damaged yet a 3-metre-high stone
stele still remains at the back, bearing on its front side the inscription Thien Truc Tu
and the word "Phat" on the opposite side. It has been restored lately thanks to
the contributions of a number of Buddhist disciples.
The grounds of Hoa Yen Pagoda create a
strong impression chiefly with an age-old frangipani and rows of conifers which has been
surviving over the last five or six century. The image of the moon shining through the
intervals between the branches of the century-old tree was dealt with more than once in
Huyen Quang poetry;
The night cold air is coming through the
veranda blinds
The trees in the yard rustle to announce
the autumn’s arrival
The pomegranates have stopped sending out
their fragrance around the bamboo hall
The bright moon is shining through the net
of pine branches.
Nguyen Trai, on a visit to the pagoda, was
seized by the transitional minutes between the newly dissipated night and the dawning day;
On the top of lofty Yen Tu Mountain
The broad daylight comes just at the end
of the fifth watch of the night
The large sea can be seen in the distance
People are talking and laughing admist
blue clouds
Bamboo-trees grow up straight like long
handled spears.
Big rocks have large sides resembling
dropping curtains
King Nhan Tong’s traces can still be
seen everywhere here.
His royal face appears, conspicuous in the
broad daylight
Oh well, King Nhan Tong’s keep
remaining along with other vestiges of the olden times; Thien Dinh Pagoda, where the King
used chant prayers and pray under his breath to Buddha; Mot Mai Pagoda where he would read
to research into the doctrine of Ch’an Buddhism.
Hoa Yen Pagoda, which together with the
whole system of Yen Tu complex, stand in harmony with a majestic natural world is a sound
proof of the Vietnamese people’s combination of religion and worldly life.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and
Nguyen Van Nghe
KEO
PAGODA
( THAN QUANG PAGODA )
DUY NHAT, VU THU ,
THAI BINH PROVINCE
Every year, on the 4th day of the 1st
lunar month, the people of Keo hamlet (Duy Nhat, Village, Vu Thu district, Thai Binh
province), organise the Spring Festival just in the pagoda which bears the name of the
hamlet itself.
More than nine months later on the 13th,
14th and 15th days of the ninth lunar month, Keo Pagoda holds the Autumn Festival, which
is the main even to commemorate the 100th day after the death of Ch’an Master Khong
Lo (1016-1094) the founder of the pagoda who died on 3rd day of the 6th lunar month.
During the Festival, we can see
processions of palanquins, incense-tables, dragon-shaped boats and small-sized urns. On
the banks of the Tra Linh River flowing past the pagoda before reaching the Red River, a
great number of visitors come to watch competitions of canoe rowing, drum beating, musical
wind instruments boat racing as well as a performance of traditional dancing style, Inside
the pagoda, visitors can watch a lively literacy contest in which the contenders have to
read out their creations on six subjects; joss-ticks, lamps flowers, tea, fruit and
foodstuff.
Although I may be chastised by father or
mother.
I will never fail to come to the Keo
Pagoda Festival on the 15th day of month
If you get a chance to visit Keo Pagoda,
you tourist should come on the Autumn Festival days.
After leaving Nam Dinh City , take a
ferryboat at Tan De landing; then turn right . Go about 10 km along the Red River dyke and
you will arrive at the pagoda. Standing at the foot of the Red River dyke, in the middle
of the plain bare of mountains, Keo Pagoda with a bell tower shaped like a lotus flower
rising high above sea of green rice plants nourished by the alluvial soil carried from the
Red River by the Tra Linh tributary.
Keo Pagoda is named Than Quang Tu written
in Chinese characters. It was built in the years from 1630 to 1632, in the architectural
style of the Le epoch, thanks to the initiatives of Madam Lai Thi Ngoc, Marquis Tuan Tho
Hau Hoang Nhan Dung’s wife, and Queen consort Dong Cung Vuong Phi Trinh Thi Ngoc Tho,
but the history of the pagoda dates back to nine centuries ago. According to the book
" Khong Lo Thien su ky ngu luc " (Legend of Master Khong Lo), Master Khong Lo
had Nghiem Quang Pagoda built in Giao Thuy village (popularly called Keo village) on the
right bank of the Red River. After his death, Nghiem Quang Pagoda was renamed Than Quang
Tu. As time went by, the pagoda foundation terrace was gradually eroded by the river water
and in 1611, the entire village as well as the pagoda was washed away by a heavy flood.
The inhabitants of the KO village had to leave their fatherland; half of them moved to a
south-eastern area on the right bank of the Red River, where they later built a pagoda
named KO-Hahn Thien (present - day Nam Ha province); the rest of them crossed the river to
settle in a north- western region on the left bank, where they built the present Keo- Thai
Binh Pagoda.
On the memorial stele and in the land
register of Keo Pagoda, it has been recorded that the whole pagoda structure used to have
a surface area of 58,000 m2. At present, there remain only 17 constructions including 128
compartments laid out in the form of " py I - shaped interior, - shaped exterior
" .
From the 25-metre-high parashorea flagpole
straight as a narrow at the front edge of the pagoda, visitors have to cross a stone-
paved court before reaching the outer three-entrance gate. Then, they can see a lotus pond
and the inner three-entrance gate with a set of doors decorated with dragon carvings
executed in the style of the 17th century. Behind gate is the Buddha’s Temple
consisting of three houses in succession, followed by the Holy Shrine where Master Khong
Lo is enshrined and worshipped at the stand the tower bell, the patriarch house and the
dwelling area for monks.
The Keo Pagoda bell tower is an original
artistic wooden construction symbolising the ancient architecture of Vietnam in the Hau Le
times (16th-17th centuries) .It rests upon a square brick base, measuring 11.04 m in
height and comprising three roofed - storeys structured with superimposed consoles.
Timbers connected to each other by concealed tenons supporting twelve high decorated with
graceful bent-up scimitar-shaped ornaments form the tower framework. In the first storeys
are hung a 120-meter - high stone gong and a brass bell measuring 1. 30 m in height and 1
m in diameter, cast in the time of King Le Hy Tong (1686); in the two upper storeys are
hung two small bells cast in 1796, each of which is 0 62 m high and 0,69 m in diameter.
Standing by a pond in the middle of a
large open space and reflecting the structure in the calm water, Keo Pagoda has been
treasuring not only valuable relics but also mysterious legends associated with Master
Khong Lo’s life. According to the book " Trung San Than Quang Tu Phat To ban
hanh thien uyen ngu luc tap yeu " Master Khong Lo had been born into a family of
fishermen of the surname Duong and later followed Ch’an Master Loi Ha Trach into the
monkhood. Master Khong Lo wrote the following poem, in praise of the pleasures of fishing;
The river is immense and blue, so is the
sky
The hamlet is crowned with smoke and
clouds and planted with mulberries and ramies.
After a sound sleep, without anyone
calling him, the fisherman wakes up to find his boat
Over -flooded with snow.
Legend has it that, after achieving
enlightenment, Master Khong Lo could fly in the air, walk on the surface of water and tame
snakes and tigers. Another myth goes that before he passed away he metamorphosed into a
piece of aquaria, which turned out to be a statue after a garment was put on. This sacred
statue is still enshrined in the sanctuary closed to the public all the year round.
Once every twelve years, Keo village
nominates a man as ritual master and four assistants to perform the ceremony for the
decoration of the sacred statue. Those men having to go on a vegetarian diet and wear new
clothes, take it respectfully out of the sanctuary, bathe it in pomelo - flavoured coconut
- milk and repaint it in vermilion.
This job must be done through a strictly -
defined ritual that all of the assistants have to keep an absolute secret about what they
have seen while dressing the statue up.
On visiting the pagoda, tourists can
notice valuable requisites of worship, which, as legend has it , where Master Khong
Lo’s belongings such as a string of ivory beads, a large lime pot and three golden
snail shells which were said to have been collected by Master Khong Lo himself and kept as
his drinking vessels during his monkhood.
Translated by
Chau Van Thuan and Nguyen
Van Nghe
THIEN MU
PAGODA
( LINH MU PAGODA)
HUONG LONG HAMLET,
THUA THIEN -HUE PROVINCE
As drooping bamboo branches are dangling
in the gentle breeze,
The sounds of Linh Mu Bell are echoing,
and the Tho Xuong night watch is making an announcement with drumbeats.
It is the age-old folk-song that has given
a lovely image of the romantic pagoda to the inhabitants of Hue as well as to visitors who
come from all over the country.
The pagoda is located on Hill Ha-Khe,
Huong Long Hamlet in Hue, and the ancient capital of Vietnam
According to "O Chau Can Luc"
(Modern Records of O Province) written under the Mac Reign, Linh Mu Pagoda was built by
order of Lord Nguyen Hoang at the beginning of the 17th century (1601).
A legend said that in 1601, Lord Nguyen
Hoang made a sight-seeing tour to this wonderful scenery, where he was told about a
hoary-headed lady in a red robe and blue trousers, sitting on a hill top, saying; "A
righteous Lord will come here someway to build a pagoda on this holy place as the solid
foundation of his reign."Then the old lady disappeared. The hill was later called
Mount Thien Mu (Mount Holy Lady)
Lord Nguyen Hoang had the pagoda rebuilt
and named it Thien Mu Pagoda (Under King Tu Duc, it was renamed Linh Mu Pagoda, the Holy
Lady’s Pagoda)
In its early days, it was but a simple
structure without any artistic works. In 1665, Lord Nguyen Phuc Tan had it rebuilt on a
small scale.
In 1695, Ch’an Master Thach Liem,
also called Thich Dai San, a Chinese monk of Chief Tay Origin, a member of the Tsao Tung
Sect, was requested by Ch’an Master Nguyen Thieu on behalf of Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu to
celebrate higher ordination ceremony in Viet Nam.
A famous monk scholar, he was appointed
Abbot of Thein Mu Pagoda by the Lord. Before leaving Vietnam in July 1696, he granted the
Lord the Bodhisattva Vow together with the religious title Thien Tung the Pious,
recognising him as a member of the 30th generation of the orthodox Txao Tung Sect. From
Thien Mu Pagoda and Khanh Van Pagoda in Hue, Ch’an Master Thach Liem set out on his
preaching tour throughout the South in later years.
In 1710, Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu had a great
bell cast. With 3285-can* weight, the bell is indeed an invaluable work of art which has
since aroused deep feelings in the heart of the inhabitants of Hue, and has become a
particular source of inspiration for countless men of letters;
The Thien Mu Bell Sounds
By King Thieu Tri.
On the high hill stands the Pagoda
safeguarding the river in front,
Meanwhile in the permanent heaven reigns
the full- orbed moon.
The one hundred and eight "bell
sounds seem to dispel troubles and worries of human bondage,
And awaken all sentient beings in the
three- thousand Worlds - System to the cause of their existences in the past, the present
and the future.
The world veiled in the dark vibrates, as
the bell is truck at noontide,
And the sounds of sutra recitation the
morning convey the wonderful qualities of the Nobble Path.
The Budda’s blessing and
king’ merits are indeed all - pervading.
For "good begets good" is the
universal law...
In 1714, Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu ordred a
large-scale pagoda reconstruction comprising various stately building such as the Triple
Gate, the Shrine to the Four Heavenly Kings, the Shrine to the Emperor of Jade, the Shrine
to the Ten Kings of the Netherworld (the Yama world), the Preaching Hall, the Treasury for
Holy Textbooks, the Bell Tower, the Drum tower, the Van Thuy House, the Tri-Vi House, the
Meditation Hall, the Great Mercy Shrine, the Healing Master Shrine, and the chambers for
monks... Furthermore, the monks there were allowed to spend a three-months summer retreat
at Ty Da Park and later some of them were sent to China to make a request for over 1000
volumes of the Mahayana Tripitaka * (the Holy Scriptures of Developing Buddhism) which
were brought back and preserved in the Canon Treasury.
In the early 19th century, King Gia Long
and King Minh Mang had the pagoda repaired in such places as the Great Hero **Shrine, the
Maitreya Shrine, the Avalokitesvara (Great Mercy) Shrine, the Canon Tresury and the Shrine
to the Netherworld’s Ten Kings.
In 1844, King Thieu Tri had Tu Nhan Stupa
erected (and later renamed it Phuoc Duyen). It is a brick seven-level tower, 21 metres
high, each level of which contains a Buddha Statue for 150 years now, the stupa has
reflected its image in the Perfume River, evoking indescribable feeling to many a visitor.
In front of the Stupa was the Huong Nguyen
Three-Fold Pavilion with a skilfully-carved wooden framework On both sides are the stele
houses where the details of the erection of Phuoc Duyen Stupa and the Huong Nguyen
Pavilion as well as several poems composed by King Thieu Tri were recorded.
In the early 20th century, the famous
pagoda was seriously damaged by the Giap Thin Storm in 1904 and was restored by the order
of King Thanh Thai in 1907 . The Most Venerable Abbot Thich Don Hau and countless other
monks, nuns and lay Buddhists have since participated in the reconstruction of the pagoda
which, though smaller in size, retains its magnificence and stateliness.
Today, visitors can see Phuoc Duyen Stupa
and the stone - paved floor of what used to be the Huong Nguyen Pavilion right after
climbing up 15 steps leading to the Triple Gate. There remain the two stele houses and on
both sides of Phuoc Duyen Stupa, a stele house and a bell house built under Lord Nguyen
Phuc Chu.
Then, through the Nghi Mon Gate, visitors
can come to an enclosure inside a stone wall where attend the Great Hero Shrine, the Earth
Store (Kshitigarbha) Shrine, the Great Mercy Shrine, the refectory, the reception room,
the flower garden and in the far end, the Most Venerable Abbot Thich Don Hau’s Stupa
amidst the pine grove.
The Great Hero Shrine is simply decorated
with the Buddha Maitreya’s statue in the forefront, flanked by a bell and a stone
gong. In the central altar, ornately - carved, brilliantly gilded and vermilion-painted,
are the three statues of the Buddha’s Trikaya (three-fold Body) namely, Dharma Kaya (
Essence or the Substance of the Dharma) , Sambhoga Kaya (Potantiality or Buddha nature)
and Nirmara Kaya (Manifestation or Created Body) . In front are the Buddha
Sakyamuni’s Statue and a low table with a bell and a wooden fish! On both sides are
altars to the Bodhisattva Majusri*and the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra (the Universal Sage)
** .All the statues enshrined there are placed in glass cases.
Before leaving, many visitors willingly
turn to the left of Phuoc Duyen Stupa to see a stele erected in 1715 with the inscription
of a eulogy from Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu to the most famous ancient pagoda to Hue.
How beautiful is the landscape in South
Vietnam today
How magnificent is the pagoda on the gate
of which reflects the sunlight,
As nature is calm and pure, water is
murmuring out of spring.
Now that the country is peaceful, life is
easy and carefree everywhere.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
BAO QUOC
PAGODA
( RORAL - CHARTERED
PAGODA )
DUC QUARTER, THUA
THIEN - HUE PROVINCE
Here is the water from Well Ham Long
clear and sweet,
And here is, o sweetheart, my love true
toey, witnessed by the Holy one...
Stopping at the foot of Hill Ham Long
for a while to refresh oneself with sockets of cool water drawn from a depth of over two
fathoms, one will feel easier while climbing up many steps leading to Bao Quoc Pagoda on
Hill Ham Long.
The pagoda is located on Bao Quoc street
Phuong Duc (Casting Quarter) in Hue, the ancient capital of Vietnam.
It was, originally named Thien Tho Pagoda
on Mount Ham Long, Built by Ch’ani Master Giac Phong at the end of the 17th century,
under Lord Nguyen Phuc Tan, in 1747, Lord Nguyen Phuc Khoat granted it a gilded board
inscribed " Bao Quoc Pagoda chartered by King Tu Te the Pious ".
The Pagoda was under constant repair
during the Nguyen Dynasty, In 1808, Queen Hieu-Khuong had the Triple Gate erected, a big
bell and a rare gong cast ... And then she renamed it Thien Tho Pagoda, appointing
Ch’an Master Pho Tinh Abbot of the pagoda.
In 1824, on a visit to the pagoda, King
Minh Mang officially named it Bao Quoc Pagoda, where he ordered the celebration of a great
ordination ceremony on the occasion of his 40th Birthday Anniversary in 1830.
In 1858, King Tu Duc and his mother Queen
Tu Du granted a large sum of money for the restoration of its main hall and many other
buildings. The reconstruction of this Pagoda Continued until the end of the 19th century.
In the 20th century, this pagoda took an
active part in the training of a new generation of well-qualified monks and nuns for the
Restoration of Vietnamese Buddhist in the 1930’s. With the Basic School of Buddhist
Studies opened in 1936 and the School of Higher Buddhist Studies in 1940, it has since
become a monastic training centre in Hue.
In 1957, the Thua Thien Buddhist Sangha
and the Bao Quoc Governing Board started an extensive reconstruction of the pagoda. The
Most Venerable Abbot Thich Tri Thu, Director of the School of Higher Buddhist Studies,
played the lead both in the Buddhist Restoration and the reconstruction that gave this
stately patriarchal house its traditional features.
It was designed as a mouth-shaped ( -
shaped) structure located within a site of about 2 ha,. Crossing its enormous
old-fashioned Triple Gate and a large front yard, one comes to a fenced enclosure where
stand lines of pine trees beside various bonsai shrubs. On the left is the Parchiarchal
Stupa area, the oldest of which is the Most Venerable Giac Phong’s 3,3 metre-high
Stupa. In front of the main hall are four pillars carved with dragon base-reliefs in
addition to the walls of the stairway meticulous sly decorated with multi-coloured ceramic
fragments and a pair of dragon carvings.
The main hall is arranged in a majestic
way with all Buddhist Statues in glass cases.
In the centre is the highest altar
dedicated to the Buddha’s Trikaya (Three-fold Bodyzzz0 and two collections of the
Mahayanist Canon, in front of which is the precious stupa like casket of the Buddha’s
Relic. On the lower altar is the Buddha Sakyamuni’s Statue flanked by the Venerable
Elder Ananda’s and the Venerable Elder Kassapa’s Statues. On the foremost altar
is a volume of the Saddharma Pundarika Sutra (The Lotus Sutra) together with a small bell
and a wooden fish. On both sides are altars to the Buddha Bhaishajyaguru (the Buddha of
Medicine) and the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara (the seeing-World-Voice Bodhisattva).
This style of altar decoration was
designed by the Most Venerable Phuoc Hau, who was officially appointed Abbot of Bao Quoc
Pagoda in 1939’s all monastic decorations in Hue had been subject to the great
influence of the trend towards the unity of the Three Religions ( Buddhist, Confucianism
and Taoism) prevalent in North and central Vietnam.
In 1959, The Ham Long Primary School was
established within the site of Bao Quoc Pagoda under the supervision of the Venerable
Master Thien An.
In the school year 1961-1962, secondary
education was supplied under Mr.. Than Trong Hy. His successors were Mr.. Truong Nhu
Thung, the Venerable Elders Thich Phuoc Hai, Thich Thien Hanh, Thich Duc Thanh and Thich
Hai An.
It was originally named the Ham Long
Primary-Secondary Private school and later was renamed the Ham Long Bodhi School remains a
sweet memory to all Buddhists in Hue because of its former contribution to the monastic
education in Central Vietnam.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
QUOC AN PAGODA
( ROYAL - CHARTERED
PAGODA )
TRUONG AN QUARTER,
THUA THIEN - HUE PROVINCE.
* " It looked as though clouds were
floating over the palm leaf manuscripts while the Ch’an Master made his daily sutra
recital for the welfare of all beings.
And it looked as though raindrops soaked
into the robes of the holy monk, who devoted himself to the cause of religious prosperity,
"
* " Eight precious stones twinkled on
the golden beams whenever the bright sunshine reflected on the gate, inspiring admiration
for both the virtuous man and the delightful surrounding, And the columns of jade emitted
raibow-bued, rays when spring light spread on his couch, bringing an inexhaustible joy to
all. "
The about verses are eulogies in form of
parallel sentences composed by Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu extolling Ch’an Master Nguyen
Thieu, founder of Quoc An pagoda. They are inscribed on two pairs of gilded boards hanging
upright in the main hall of the pagoda located on a low hillslope at Truong An quarter in
Hue . From Nguyen Truong To street one can go there by crossing Phu Cam Bridge over the An
Cuu River and going about a mile on the farther bank
Quoc An Pagoda, originally named Vinh An
Pagoda, was founded by Ch’an Master Nguyen Thieu in about 1682-1685 under King Le Hy
Tong. Ch’an Master Nguyen Thieu (1648-1728), whose original Dharma name was Sieu Bach
and Whose Dharma title was Hoan Bich, received higher ordination and religious education
from the Most Venerable Master Khoang Vien in the province of Kwang Tung, China In 1667,
he made a sea voyage to Vietnam and later founded Thap Thap Di Da Pagoda in Binh Dinh
province.
From that pagoda, he set out on his
preaching tour, founding Ha Trung Pagoda at Vinh Ha, Phu Vang District and Vinh An pagoda
near Mount Ngu (The Royal Peak) in Thua Thien province.
In 1689,Lord Nguyen Phuc Tran renamed it
Quoc An, granting it a gilded board inscribed " Quoc An Royal - Chartered Pagoda
" and approving tax exemptions for its farming land.
The founder of one of the most celebrated
Pachiarchal Houses in Central Vietnam, Ch’an Master Nguyen Thieu, who belonged to the
33rd generation of the Chinese Lin-Chi Sect, brought into Vietnam the following verses
making the inheritance of his lineage;
Here is the first stanza:
The Pachiarch has said that the earnest
cultivation of moral conduct and concentration. Leads to perfect understanding and full
realisation of emptiness as absolute Truth. Just as the eternal sunlight gives
forth-universal benefits,
The blessing, which results from the
fragrance of faith, will unceasingly develop loving kindness among men.
And the second stanza;
The achievement of the Noble Path leading
to Enlightenment,
Is as radiant as the magnificent glowing
sun in mid-heaven.
All -pervading and profitable to develop
loving kindness everywhere is indeed the sacred source of religion,
And thus hangs the light of Truth
illumining the world of ever.
As a rule, each generation of the Lin Chi
Sect is to be named after each word in the verses and even today, most of Buddhists in
Central and South Vietnam are members of that Ch’an sect.
Just before his passing away, Abbot Nguyen
Thieu uttered his farewell stanza to his disciples;
A calm mirror is void of all images,
And a glittering gem holdsnothing
Hence, all clear to vision Form is really
noForm,
And void is really no Void.
Afterwards, Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu granted
him the posthumous epithet Ch’an Master Hanh Doan ( Ch’an Master the Virtuous)
In its beginning, Quoc An Pagoda was but a
modest thatched hermitage that was in constant repair under the Nguyen Reign. In 1805, its
condition was improved due to a sum donated by Princess Long Thanh, King Gia Long ‘s
Sister. In 1822, King Minh Mang assigned the Most Venerable Master Mat Hoang, the official
Abbot of Linh Mu pagoda, to the task of reconstructing Quoc An Pagoda. In 1825, When Abbot
Mat Hoang passed away, a stupa in his honour was erected over his tomb within the
pagoda’s site. Many year later, between 1846 and 1863, the task resumed with the
building of the Triple Gate and two small shrines dedicated to the goddest of Five
Elements (a Taoist Golddest) and Holy Lady Y Ana (a Champ goddess).
The pagoda is a mouth-shaped, ( )
structure with its antechamber and main hall in front, its Patriarchal House in the rear,
its abbot’s chamber and monks’ chambers on both sides.
Until now, the pagoda has maintainedits
traditional worship style on the uppermost central altar are the statues of the
Buddha’s Trikaya (Triple Body), on the lower altar are the statues of the Buddha
Sakyamuni, Gotama the Infant, and the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara Cundi. On the left are
the statues of Quan Cong, Chau Xuong and Quan Binh (ancient Chinese Confucianists). On the
right are the Indian Patriarch Bodhidharma’s statues. In front is a small altar
dedicated to the Emperor of Jade escorted by two gods of the North and South
Constellations. Outside are altars to a Dharma guardian and his companions (one for Good
and another against Evils) on the left, and the Netherworld’s Ten Kings (the Yama
Kings) on the right.
Here and there hang numerous verticals and
horizontal parallel boards meticulously inscribed with Chinese calligraphy and adorned
with exquisite carving.
In the front yard is a stele with
inscription of a eulogy poem composed by Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu in honour of the virtuous
Founding Master of Quoc An Pagoda;
Sublime was thy wisdom,
And righteous was thy Brahma - faring.
Thou didst take delight in nature’s
beauty,
Living in seclusion and holding thyself
upright,
Well-disciplined, tranquil, resolute,
Seing voidness in all form
Thou propagated the Dharma for the benefit
of all beings,
Just like an auspicious cloud spreading
far and wide,
Or the sun of wisdom illumining the world,
The more we contemplate thee,
The greater is our reverence for thee
O Virtuous One, thou art truly the lofty
Thai Son Peak!
For over 300 years in Hue, a romantic and
charming landscape with very severe weather, 26 successive abbots and governors of the
pagoda as well as many other monks, nuns and lay Buddhists have taken part in preserving
it as an elegant place of worship for the Lin Chi Sect in South Vietnam
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
TU DAM PAGODA
TRUONG AN QUARTER
, THUA THIEN- HUE PROVINCE
In Central Vietnam, my homeland,
The bell sounds echo gently in early
morning and in late evening.
How majestic is Tu Dam Pagoda,
From which springs the compassionate
source of religion...
The sweet music of a song entitled
"Tu Dam, my Homeland" reminds many visitiors in Hue of the unforgettable quiet
and peaceful hours that they have spent at the renowned pagoda on Hill Long Son, Tu Dam
Street, Truong an Quarter in Hue.
In was founded by Ch’an Master Minh
Hoang- Tu Dung, a member of the 34th generation of the Lin Chi Sect by the end pf 17th
century, under King Le Hy Tong.
It was originally named An Ton and was
granted a gilded board insribed "An Ton Royal Chartered Pagoda" by Lord Nguyen
Phuc Chu in 1703. But in the first year of king Thieu Tri’s Reign (1841), it was
renamed Tu Dam in order to avoid the violation of the King’s forbidden name, i.e. his
personal name Mien Tong !
For nearly 200 years now, the pagoda has
been closely connected with the spiritual life of Hue dwellers, especially Hue Buddhists
as well as domestic and foreign visitors:
Through the ups and downs of life,
I remain attached to the beloved place
From which arises the source of
religion...
The ancient pagoda, which has
undergone various storms sweeping over the poetic ancient Capital, has been restored
continously by the Most Venerable Abbot Thiet Vinh and Master Te Ngu, Master Minh Hoang -
Tu Dung’s successors. In the 19th century, the Most Venerable Abbot Dao Trung and
Master Tu Van took the lead in the reconstructing it and casting its big bell.
In the early 20th century, the Venerable
Abbess Dieu Khong was assigned to take charge of Tu Dam Pagoda and turn it into a Buddhist
nunnery (1932). Several years later, it served as the office of the Central Vietnam
Buddhist Association, who remodeled its main hall into an auditorium of a typical pagoda
"for associations".
In 1939, Mrs Karpeless, Madam Chairman of
the Phnom-Penh Buddhist Association, paid a visit to the pagoda, offering it a graft cut
from the original Bodhi Tree in India, where the Buddha Sakyamuni had attained
Enlightenment, and she planted the young cutting in the front yard.
For over 50 years now, the Bodhi tree has
enhanced the pagoda’s stateliness and given its gigantic shade to millions of
Buddhists and visitors.
How inposing is Tu Dam Pagoda,
Where the North and the South are united
into one...
In 1951, the pagoda hosted 51 Buddhist
representatives attending a preliminary conference for the unification of all Buddhist
Associations. Thereupon the Most Venerable Thich Tinh Khiet was elected President of the
conference and the world buddhist flag was raised at Tu dam Pagoda for the frist time.
In 1961, the Most Venerable Thich Thien
Sieu and the Central Vietnam Buddhist Association played the lead in building the
subordinate parts of the pagoda. In spite of its modern architectural design since then,
it has maintained the traditional features of a typical pagoda for associations.
Here is my home land,
Where the fragrance of incense is wafted
gently along the breeze every morning and every evening,
And the echoes of sultra recitation still
linger in the air,
O Tu Dam, how cherished is your image in
my mind
The melodious notes of the song
uttered from the lips of some devout Buddhist are still resonant deep down in the heart of
those who have visited the beloved pagoda and have been apart from it.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
THUYEN TON PAGODA
(THIEN THAI THUYEN TON
PAGODA)
THUY AN VILLAGE, THUA THIEN
- HUE PROVINCE
The fallen Udumbara flower keeps its
remaining perfume.
The perfume of an Udumbara flower
lasts forever just like the ever-shining virtue of Ch’an Master Lieu Quan. That is a
eulogy inscribed on the Gate of the stupa in honour of the founder of Thuyen Ton Pagoda.
The stupa was erected on what had been a thatched cottage built y the Ch’an Master.
Master Lieu Quan, originally named Thiet
Dieu, was a native of Song Cau (Phu yen Province) who move to Thuan Hoa (Hue) by the end
of the 17th century and founded Thuyen Ton Pagoda in about 1708. The following poem was
composed by the Master to mark the inheritance of his lineage:
Great is the Path of Truth,
Pure is the nature of the sea,
All-pervading is the source of mind,
And the root of virtue gives rise to
loving kindness.
The cultivation of Moral Conduct,
Concentration and Wisdom leads to the perfect understanding of Mind Essence.
Being fully aware of the exalted fruit of
wisdom.
One should embrace the wonderful doctrine
and propagate the righteous Way;
Henceforth the harmony of theory and
practice results in the realisation of absolute Void.
Thuyen Ton Pagoda is located at Ngu
Tay Hamlet, Thuy An Village in Thua Thien Province on the left of Mount Thien Thai, hence
it is also called Thien Thai Thuyen Ton (the Ch’an Pagoda in the Fairlyland).
In the middle of 18th century, Eunuch
General Mai Van Hoan collected donations for building a large pagoda about a mile from the
old thatched hermitage. a big bell was cast then with the insciption of the 17th Canh Hung
year (1747). In 1803, the pagoda was repaired thenks to a voluntary contribution from
Madam Le Thi Ta.
Master Lien Quan’s first successors
were Master Te Hiep and Master Te Man. next to them were Dai Hue, Dai Nghia, Dao Tam.
According to the order of inheritance handed downed by Patriarch Lieu Quan, Abbots Dao
Tai, Tanh Thien, Hai Nhuan, Thenh Liem, Thanh Duc were his successive disciples.
In 1937, Abbot Trung Thuy - Giac Nhien
took the lead in restoring the pagoda. He also played an active part in theBuddhist
Restoration at the early 20th century and was appointed Sanga President in 1973 and
finally he passed away in 1979 at the age of 102 !
Thuyen ton Pagoda has maintained its
traditional architectural design and worship style:
On the central altar of the main hall are
the three statues of the Buddha’s Trikaya (Three - Fold Body) placed behind the
Buddha Sakyamuni’s Statue.
On the forefront altar is the Bodhisattva
Cundi’s statue flanked by the images of the Bodhisattva Mansjuri and the Bodhisattva
Samatabhadra. Next comes a table with a small bell and a wooden fish.
On the left altar is the Bodhisattva
Avalokitesvara’s statue flanked by the Venerable Elder Siriputta’s and the
Venerable Elder Kassapas’s statues. On the right altar is the Boddhisattva
Kshitigarbha’s statue. Close to the walls on both sides are two altars to the Ten
Kings of Yama world (the Netherworld). Ouside are altars to a Dharma guardian and Quan
Cong (an ancient Chinese Confucianist).
On the right of the Triple Gate remains
the late Abbot Giac Nhien’s chamber, where his calm portrait has evoked lofty
feelings and boundless revence in visitors. From the chamber door, they can have a
sweeping view of the stupa, the pagoda and Mount Thien Thai, which arouses a vague sense
of nostalgia for the past.
Once on a visit to the Pagoda, Nguyen Du,
the greatest Vietnamese poet, experienced the same feeling as he uttered the following
stanza:
Shrouded in yellow autums leaves is now
the ancient pagoda,
Where the figure of the aged Master of the
former reign used to be seen among white clouds,
It is a pity that myself and old white -
haired man burdened with troubles,
Have failed to fulfi my pledge to the blue
mountain.
Today, visitors can enjoy the
picuresque scenery deeply permeated with uniquely Buddhist flavour, the flavour of
liberation:
The regular beats on a rare wooden fish
resound
As the green water is flwing endlessly in
front of the gate,
And the Dharmabody becomes manifest
While the sage still remains there, ca;mly
contemplating the blue mountain.
Transalated by Tran
Phuong Lan
LINH UNG
PAGODA
HOA HAI HAMLET,
HOA VANG DISTRICT,
QUANG NAM - DA NANG PROVINCE
From the centre of Da Nang, you can cross
the bridge over the Han river and go about five miles on a plain of Hoa Hai Hamlet, Hoa
Vang District before reaching Ngu hanh Mountains (the Five-Element Mountains) by the shore
of the East Sea. This celebrates beauty-spot in Quang Nam-Da Nang Province consists of
numerous Mountain Peaks stading in sharp relief against the wonderland, namely, the Water
Mountain in the North East, the Wood Mountain in the South, the Gold Mountain and the Soil
Mountain in the West, the Solar Heat Mountain and the Lunar Heat Mountain in te South
West. In all directions, strong winds from the river and the boundless Sea blow all year
round; hence the Mountains are generally called "Non Nuoc" or the Mountain-and
Water Peaks.
In my native land, there are the Han
River,
The Mountain-and-Water Peaks and the Son
Tra Cave (The Cave of Wild Camellias)
The Mountains have been known to the
Europeans as "the Marble Mountains" because they are possessed of a kind of
valuable marble used as material for building, scupture and handicraft.
Within this area, on a gentle slope of the
Water Mountain neaby, lie Tam Thai Pagoda and Linh Ung Pagoda in perfect harmony with the
natural surroundings: you have to climb up to 156 stone steps leading to Tam Thai Pagoda
on the Southern Slope and 108 steps to Linh Ung Pagoda on the Eastern slope.
Near Tam Thai Pagoda is a River
Observatory, from which you can admire the meandering Han River among villages and fields.
Far away are the Hai Van Pass (the Pass of Clouds over the Sea) and the Truong Son Range
(the Long Mountain Range) rising ridge after ridge int the West. Next to Linh Ung Pagoda
is a Sea Observatory from which you can watch the immense East Sea and the tiny Champa
Isle in the dim distance.
According to a legend, Linh Ung Pagoda was
built in the 16th century by a holy sage who founded the Khai Dong village and then lived
in seclusion at Tang Chon cavern. It was originally called the Tang Chon Hermitage, and
was later renamed the Duong Chon House. Under Kinh Minh Mang’s Reign, it was reformed
into a pagoda named Ung Chon Pagoda headed by Abbot Quang Chanh, whose religious title was
Master Bao Dai. Under King Thanh Thai, it was officially renamed Linh Ung Pagoda.
Today at Linh Ung Pagoda, there is a set
of Eighteen Arahants’ Statues made of invaluable marble from the Five-Element
Mountains after the model of those enshrined at Phuoc Lam Pagoda in Hoi An town. Each
Statue is 0.34 metre high, the knees width being 0.23 metres, and its pedestal 0.04 metre
high.
Being Tang Chon Pagoda is a path leading
to the Tam Thanh Cavern, the Champa Cavern and the Windy Cavern. Nearby is the Cavern of
Cereals: Stalactite and stalacmite formations there look like fingered citrus fruits (the
Buddha’s hands), patatoes, cabbages. sesame seekds and various kinds of beans. It is
popularly known as the Cavern of Laterns because of its countless latern-shaped
stalactites hanging about everuwhere.
In front of the Triple Gate is Well Tien
(the Fairy Well). On the way downwards, you will go pass the Am Phu Cavern (the Underworld
Cavern) which tunnels through to the East Sea.
Linh Ung Pagoda has been seriously damaged
and repaired several time for over four centuries. Its latest restoration tool place in
1993, including various artistic creations in front such as the 10-metre high statue of
the Buddha Sakyamuni on the Lotus Throne, the statue itself being 7.5 metres high, then
carved images illustrating the Buddha’s life and the 5-metre high shrine to the
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara...
It is regretted that due to the careless
digging for building material, the whole landscape has been subject to alarming
destruction for many year now. It is neccesary for us to preserve this natural ensemble in
good condition so that our future generations can see it not only through images, in works
of art or literature but also as it really is today.
Translated by Tran Phuong
Lan
CHUC THANH PAGODA
CAM PHO HAMLET, HOI AN
TOWN,
QUANG NAM - DA NANG
PROVINCE
Hoi An has long been known as one of the
few exceptional ancient towns that have maintained its original architectural features.
According to a map of the Hong Duc Reign in the 15th century, at first it was
named The Great Champa Port, a seaport of the Champa Kingdom. Later, on a Dai Viet map
published by Alexandre de Rhodes in 1653, its was known as "Hai Pho", a coast
town of Vietnam, which was gradually changed into FAIFO in the European pronunciation.
The ancient town is located on the West
bank of the Thu Bon River, about 16miles frm Da Nang in the South East and only 3 miles
away from the East Sea, From Da Nang, you can reach past the Five - Element Mountain and
Dien Ngoc Hamlet.
Chuc Thanh Pagoda, one of 20 ancient
pagoda and buildings for societies in Hoi An, was set up at Cam Pho Hamlet and officially
recognised as a historical and cultural relic in 19/10/91.
According to "Viet Nam Phat Giao Su
Luan" (A Commentary on the History of Vietnamese Buddhism) by Nguyen Lang, it was
founded by Ch'an Master Minh Hai - Phap Bao in the 17th century. A Chinese monk
of Phuc Kien origin, he was invited by Ch'an Master Nguyen Thieu to visit Vietnam under
Lord Nguyen Phuc Tran (1687-1691)..
Having attended the great ordination
ceremony celebrated at Linh Mu Pagoda, he made his way to Hoi an, where he founded Chuc
Thanh Pagoda, which gradually became a great Patriarchal House in Central and South
Vietnam.
Chief among his discriples were Master
Chanh Hien and Master An Triem, to whom he handed down a poem marking the inheritance of
his lineage:
When one is enlightened as to absolute
Truth,
The Dhama Seal of "Suchness"
(Tathaba) * is all clear to vision,
May the righteous Lord live long **,
May the Kingdom be everlasting
The first priority should be given to the
observance of right discipline,
Thereupon the perfect agreement of the
theory and the practice of the way taught by the Patriarch
Will result in the blossoming of the Bodhi
tree (the tree of Enlightenment).
The fragrance of which will permeate
through the world of Gods and men.
Chuc Thanh Pagoda was restored many times
in 1845, 11849,1892,1894…Standing behind the Triple Gate is a simple and modest
structure the roof of which is covered with concave and convex tiles. On its summit are
carvings of a pair of dragons in attendance on the moon. One of the invaluable objects
preserved until nowadays is a set of Eighteen Arahants' terracotta statues placed on 0.165
metre high lotus pedestals. Each statue is 0.45 high, the knees' width being 0.28m.
Within the pagoda site is the stupa in
honour of Patriarch Minh Hai-Phap Bao. At present, the pagoda is governed by the Most
Venerable Abbot Thich Tri Nhan.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
____________________________________
- Suchness (Tathata ) ; reality, things as they really
are
- There is a play on the word "Chuc Thanh" in this
sentence: Chuc Thanh has two different meanings. It may either means "Chuc Thanh
Pagoda" or "May the Lord…"
THIEN AN PAGODA
TINH AN HAMLET, SON TINH
DISTRICT,
QUANG NGI PROVINCE
Thien An Niem Ha (A Heavenly Seal stamped
on the River) is foremost among ten beauty-spots of Quang Ngai. Located on the West bank
of the Tra Khuc River, the mountain is the symbol for the eternity of this land, as
expressed in the following lines by Bich Khe, a contemporary Vietnamese poet of Quang Ngai
origin:
For ever there lies Mount Thien An, all
bare
And flow's the Tra Khuc in its dark blue
stream.
From the foot of the twenty-span Tra Khuc
Bridge, you can go about a miles on the road to the Ancient Fortress (of the Nguyen Lords)
to find the path leading up to Thien An Pagoda on the mountain.
Mount Thien An (the Heavenly Seal
Mountain), originally called Mount Ho, belongs to Tinh An Hamlet, Son Tinh District. It is
about 105 metres high, with a ten-hectare flat top. In the East appears any of its sides
in the form of a symmetrical trapezium that looks like a seal stamped on the river. At the
Southern foot of the mountain is a knoll called the Trien Hillock. Right to the East is
Mount Tam Thai, to the North is Mount La Vong and to the West is Mount Long Dau.
Formerly at Mount Thien An, there was a
kind of vermillion cinnabar used to mark papers written in Chinese characters. The path
leading up to the mountain, though not quite smooth, has been expanded for cars to reach
the pagoda at the mountain top.
On account of its geographical feature,
the mountain's image was carved on one of the nine urns in front of the Royal Palace (in
the Citadel of Hue in the 11th Minh Mang year 1830). The Mountain was then
classified among famous beautiful sceneries in the 3rd Tu Duc Year (1850).
Thien An Pagoda was founded by Ch'an
Master Phap Hoa, a Chinese monk of Phuc Kien origin, whose personal name was Le Diet, and
whose religious title was Minh Hai-Phat Bao. Born in 1670, he became a Ch'an Master who
took charge of the pagoda for 60 years until hes death in 1754.
Near the pagoda is a 12-fathom* - deep
well with cool fresh water, which was indeed a feat performed by the Master after four
years of labour and patience through lack of tools for digging in such a rocky mountain.
One day appeared an unknown young monk who pledged to join the master in digging the well.
After three month hard work, they succeeded in moving an enormous rock that stood in their
way, from which has sprung a source water. Since than thereupon the young monk went out of
sight and a legend about the well has been handed down in a folk song:
The young monk who had dug the well on
the rocky mountain
Disappeared as soon as the source of water
came out.
Closely linked with the pagoda is also the
legend of its sacred big bell. The bell was originally cast by the country folk for their
pagoda at Chi Tuong Village (Present Duc Hiep Hamlet, Mo Duc District, Quang Ngai
Province). But it did not make sounds when struck. In 1845, while absorbed in
concentration, Ch'an Master Bao An, the Third Patriarch of the pagoda, saw a Dharma
guardian who requested him to bring the bell to the pagoda.
Having emerged from concentration, Master
Bao An sent Master Dien Toa to the village to ask for the bell on his behalf.
On the occasion of the bell-oening
ceeremony, after saying prayers, Maste Bao An stroke the bell, making it resound far and
wide around the countryside. The bell still hangs on the left of the main hall until now
adays.
The Thien An Patriarchal House received a
board of royal charter from King Le Du Tpng (1727). Today beneath the shady foliage of an
ancient banyan tree near the pagoda are the stupas in honour of Ch'an Master Phap Hoa and
his five successors, namely, Masters Khanh Van , Bao An, Giac Tinh, Hoang Phuc and Dieu
Quang. Before the pagoda there is a memorial tombstone to Huynh Thuc Khang, a Vietnamese
patriot and scholar, (1876-1947) erected by local people in 1947.
In the same year, Thien An Pagoda was
totally collapsed after a bomb attack from the French colonialists' aircraft. Later, in
1945, the Quang Ngai Buddhist Sangha made a plan for the reconstruction of the pagoda,
Under the supervision of Masters Huyen Tan and Hong An, the construction was started in
1959 and inaugurated on the 8th day of the first lunar month in Tan Suu year,
the Year of the Buffalo (1961).
A famous beauty spot in our country, Thien
An has long been a literary topic for many a man of letters. Among the best known poems
inspired by the pagoda is "An Ode to Thien An Niem Ha" composed by Nguyen Cu
Trinh, a great Vietnamese scholar and patriot (1716-1767), one of the dynasty- founding
countries under the Nguyen reign:
An ode to Thien An Niem Ha
(A Heavenly Seal Stamped on the River).
What a spectacular sight here,
Stamped on the river is a Heavenly Seal.
The divine symmetrical mark still
maintains its original shape
From which one can survey the beautiful
landscape
Imprinted with the outline of the ancient
pagoda,
Nature remains true to the sacred bell
sounds;
Over there at the foot of the mountain
lies vermillion cinnabar for ever awaiting
Royal Decrees issued from the palace
behind the splendid citadel.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
THAP THAP PAGODA
(ROYAL - CHARTERED
THAP - THAP DI - DA PAGODA)
STRICNHON THANH VILLAGE, AN
NHON DIT, BINH DINH PROVINCE
Thap Thap Di - Da Pagoda is closely linked
with the name of its founder, Patriarch Nguyen Thieu - Tho Ton, whose family name is Ta,
whose original Dharma name is Sieu Bach and whose Dharma title is Hoan Bich, A native of
Trinh Hung District, Trieu Chau Chief Town, Kwang Tung Province (China), he made a sea
voyage to Vietnam on a merchant ship in 1677 and stayed at Quy Son Chief Town (in modern
Binh Dinh Province), about 25kilometres from Qui Nhon, where, on Hill Long Bich right at
the rear of Do Ban Citadel, in modern Van Thuan Hamlet, Nhon Thanh village, An Nhon
District, have scattered Ten Champ Stupas popularly known as Thap Thap (the Ten Stupas).
Later, Master Nguyen Thieu built a hermitage there as a shrine to the Buddha Amitabha .
Aamitabha in Sanskrit meaning Immeasurable Light, is the epithet of the Lord Buddha
reigning the West Pure Land of Bliss; it is also the symbol of the Buddha - nature in all
sentient beings.
Hence, the name of this Patriarchal House
is a compound of the words Thap Thap (the Ten Stupas) and Di- Da (Amitabha) meaning
Amitabha) Pagoda in the Ten - Stupas Area.
From Dap Dachief town, along Route IA to
the left of Van Thuan Bridge, there is a small path leading to the site of Thap Thap
Pagoda adorned with a lotus pond in front.
Its gate consists of two high pillars
topped with images of two alligators. The pagoda is a mouth-shaped structure comprising
the main hall, the Western house, the Eastern house and the abbot's chamber.
Each of them is composed of three
apartments and two wings made of brick and laterite, the roof of which is covered with
concave and convex tiles, the columns of which are made of valuable wood and the rafters,
of hope and mango wood.
In 1691, the Pagoda was granted by Lord
Nguyen Phuc Chu a board of royal charter and a pair of parallel sentences. In 1749, the
Most Venerable Abbot Lieu Triet had its main hall renovated and encircle with a long
corridor. Inside is the altar to the Buddhas of the past, the present and the future, i.e,
Amitabha, Sakyamuni aand Maitreya escorted by the Elder Ananda and the Elder Kassapa the
Great. On both sides are altars to the Eighteen Arahants and the Ten Kings of the
Netherworld (the Yama Kings).
Behind the main hall are a stele set up in
1876 with an inscrition entitled "The Inscription of Eulogy to the Royal-chartered
Thap Thap Di Da Pagoda" and another one with the Thap Thap Pagoda's Record made by
the Royal Commentator Vo Khac Trien in 1928.
For 328 years now, this Patriarch House
has belongs to the direct lineage of the Lin Chi Sect through 15 generations of successors
to its founder. One of those patriarchs, Abbot Phuoc Hue, was consecrated National
Teacher. He was invited by the Nguyen Kings to expound the Buddhist Scriptures at the
royal palace from the reign of King Thanh Thai to that of King Bao Dai. Moreover, he
propagated the Buddha's teachings to the monks at Truc Lam and Tay Thien Buddhist Schools
from 1935 onwards.
Today the stupa in honour of Abbot Phuoc
Hue can be found among those of other patriarchs within the pagoda site.
'Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
PHUOC SON PAGODA
ROYAL - CHARTERED
DONG XUAN DISTRICT, PHU YEN
PROVINCE
Among well-known patriarchal houses in Phu Yne such as Bao
Tinh pagoda, Kim Cang Pagoda, Ho Son Pagoda, in tuy Hoa district, bat Nha Pagoda, tu Quang
Pagoda, Vien Quang Pagoda… in Tuy An district, Trieu Ton Pagoda in Song Cau district,
Phuoc Son Pagoda, popularly known as Phuoc Son Dong Tron, is located at Tan Phuoc hamlet,
Xuan Son Bac village, Dong Xuan district.
You can get to the pagoda either by following the way to
Trieu Ton Pagoda at Xuan Tho hamlet 2, Song Cau district (near the Lime-Kiln Bridge) and
going on about 6km, or you can start from Chi Thanh chief town, and then turn to Bao Son
Pagoda at An Dinh Hamlet, Tuy An District, before going on to Phuoc Son Pagoda, which was
founded in the first Gia Long year (1802) by Patriarch Lieu Nang, whose religious title is
Duc Chat.
It is Phuoc Son Pagoda, and later Trieu Ton Pagoda and Bao
Son Pagoda, set up in the second Gia Long year (1803) by his fellow monks, Patriarchs Lieu
Nang and Lieu Dieu, which form the renowned trinity of Phuoc Son, Trieu Ton and Bao Son
Pagodas of the Chuc Thanh Branch of the orthodox Lin-chi Sect in Phu Yen.
Standing on Mount Phu My, Phuoc Son Pagoda faces South,
overlooking immense rice fields and a large river flowing from Lahai to the Ngan Son
bridge, thus creating a picturesque scenery that enhances the ancient pagoda's
attractiveness.
For nearly 200 years now, six generations of successors to
the Patriarch have taken part in transforming the early thatch-roofed cottage into the
modern impressive pagoda. They all are such eminent Masters as Abbots Lieu Nang, Quang
Thien, Hue Nhan, Phap Tang, Thien Phuong…and present Abbot Phuoc Tri, who has
governed it since 1950.
Abbot Phuoc Chi had it rebuilt of split stones joined
together with concrete in 1960, but it was burned down in 1965. After 1975, the Abbot
played the lead in renovating it and the pagoda inauguration was celebrated on 26
September, 1993.
Outstanding in the middle of the airy main hall is the
stately shrine to the Buddha Sakyamuni in concentration on the lotus throne. In front is
the Amitabha Holy Trinity consisting of Amitabha (the Buddha of Immeasurable Light),
Avalokitesvara (the World Voice - Seeing Bodhisattva) and Mahasthamaprapta, (The Great
Power Obtainer) escorted by two Dharma-guardians. The right and left altars are dedicated
to the Bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara Cundi and Kshitigarbha (the Earth Store). Behind the
Buddha shrine is the place of worship for Patrarch Bodhidharma and other patriarchs'
dragon-carved tablets.
While standing in the year-round windswept spacious area
before the Triple Gate, Buddhists and visitors alike fell exquisitely light-hearted and
recall the merits of the previous abbots and masters who have successively contributed to
the pagoda building and reconstructing. On the left along the mountain slope appear the
two ancient stupas to the founding Patriarch Lieu Nang and Master Thien Phuong. By the
right of the way to the pagoda are the stupas to Masters Hue Nhan, Quang Thien and Phap
Tang.
In addition to the five stupas, which have been kept
intact through time, many precious things granted by the Nguyen Kings on six special
occasions have been preserved as the pagoda's treasures. They are:
Firstly, two pieces of brocade named "Desirable
Longevity" granted in the 34th Tu Duc year (188881)
Secondly, on pair of crimson festive robes, a Kwan-Yin cap
and a Golden Coin inscribed "Triple Longevity" in the 8th Thanh Thai
year.
Thirdly, A big bell, a pair of parasols, a festive robe
and a Kwan-Yin cap offered in the 9th Thanh Thai year (1897).
Fourthly, A Golden late inscribed "Respect to
This" and a Golden Coin in the 10th Thanh Thai year (1898).
Fifthly, Silver Coin in the 13th Thanh Thai
year (1901).
And finally, A gilded Royal-Charter Board in the 14th
Bao Dai year (1939).
May visitors and Buddhists who make a pilgrimage to the
Lieu Quan Patriarchal House in Phu Yen not miss the chance of paying a visit to the
Royal-Chartered Phuoc Son Pagoda, a celebrated beauty spot of Vietnam our beloved country.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
________________________________
*Respect to This (Kham Tai): the formula used at the end of a royal decree.
LONG SON PAGODA
PHUONG SON QUARTER, NHA
TRANG,
KHANH HOA PROVINCE.
The pagoda was formerly called Dang Long Pagoda, located
at number 22, 23rd October street, Phuong Lan Quarter at the foot of Mount Trai
Thuy in Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province. In this area, there are two famous Pagodas, the
lower is of which Long Son and the upper, Hai Duc.
Long Son was once built on the mountain top in 1886 by the
Most Vrnerable Abbot Thich Ngo Chi (1856-1935). A native of Vinh Xuong District, Khanh Hoa
Province, he had been engaged in the war of resistence against the French Colonialists
before he renounced the world and entered upon a religious life. In Canh Ty year, the Year
of the Mouse (1900), the pagoda was moved cownwards to its present location after a heavy
storm. In 1936, it was used by the Local Buddhist Association as the seat of the Khanh Hoa
Buddhist Sangha (Order of monks).
In 1940, Mr Ton That Quyen, Chairman of the K.H Buddhist
Association and Mr. Vi Dinh Thuy, a lay Buddhist, played the lead in renovating the pagoda
and then in 1968, its roof was ruined again by war. In 1971, the Venerable Thich Thien
Binh took charge of the reconstruction of the pagoda, but only 60% of the building plan
drawn up bu the Architect Vo Binh Diep was carried out until early 1975.
Since its beginning up to now, the pagoda has been
governed by its founder, the Most Venerable Abbot Thich Chanh Hoa (1036 - 1975) and the
Venerable Thi tin (from 1975 onwards).
From Long Son Pagoda, there is a fairly large road leading
up to Hai Duc Pagoda on hillslope and to the Statue of the Buddha's Golden-Hued body on
the hill top. The concrete Statue was set up on whart used to be the ground of Long Son
Pagoda. The statue casting was started in 1964 and completed in 1965 by the Venerable
Thich Duc Minh, the then Chairman of Khanh Hoa Buddhist Association, and the Scilptor Kin
Dien. As a whole, the Statue is 24 metres high from the ground, and 21 metres high from
its pedestal, the statue itself being 14 metres high, its lotus pedestal, 7 metres high,
and the lotus diameter, 10 metres high. Around the pedestal are the images of the Seven
Buddhist Martyrs. In front are a pair of dragons, 7.2 metres long. Nothbound and
Southbound passengers, whether by car or by train, can watch the majestic statue of the
Buddha with a calm smile on his benevolent face.
The beautiful scenery of the Long Son Pagoda complex and
its favourable position are very attractive to visitors. Though near a bustling street, it
remains tranquil and secluded on an airy high spacious ground covered with verdant shady
trees. It is the Buddhist Institute, its offices, and the monastery together with the
imposing pagoda that form a well-integrated ensemble hidden under the giant foliage of the
lines of big Bodhi trees (a kind of fig tree) and orchards around. From the pagoda yard,
one can admire the vivid colourful picture of nature intermingled with the urban like in
Nha Trang, forming a network of houses, streets, crossroads, orchards and coconut groves
along the river bank and far away, the immense sea extending to the horizon.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
LINH SON PAGODA
No 120 NGUYEN VAN TROL
STREET, DA LAT
LAM DONG PROVINCE
Linh Son Pagoda is located at No 120
Nguyen Van Troi Street on a hill, about 700 metres North West from the centre of Da Lat.
It was built from 1938 to 1940 through the merits of carious donors, devout lay-Buddhists,
especially the generous contribution from Messrs Vo Dinh Dung and Nguyen Van Tien.
Today, tourists can walk to the pagoda
along lines of lofty pine, eucalyptus and hopea tress. In the front yard stands the
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara's Statue on a lotus pedestal. On the left is a three-level
octagonal tile -toofed stupa, 14 metres high. On the right amidst the evergreen grass lies
a pond of clear water dotted with gorgeous showy nympacaceous flowers (water lilies) and
goldfish swimming freely.
Here and there scatter rock works and
magnificent bonsai shrubs. Along the sides of 12 steps leading to the main hall are two
open-mouthed dragons symbolic of the Naga Gods *, Dharmaguardians.
The pagoda's oriental design is simple and
harmonious. On both sides of its roof are images of a pair f dragons in attendance on the
moon fixed at the peak. In the antechamber hang such parallel sentences inbued with
Buddhist flavour as:
The mountain loses its colour,
following those who enter the Pagoda,
And the pines remain silent, listening to
dharma talks amoung Ch' and Guests.
At the centre of the magestic altar is
the Buddha Sakyamuni's bronze statue on the lotus throne, 1250 kg in weight, cast in 1952
and the statue unauguration was celebrated under the auspices of the Most Venerable Elder
Thich Tinh Khiet.
For more than half a century, the pagoda
has been under the supervision of the following Abbots: the most Venerable Thich Tri Thu
(1940), the Most Venerable Thich Dieu Hoang (1940 -1947) the Most Venerable Thich Tu Man
(1947 - 1952) the Most Venerable Bich Nguyen (1952 -1964) and the Most Venerable Thich Tu
Man (from 1964 onwards).
At present, the pagoda serves as the seat
of the Executive Committee of the Lam Dong Buddhist Sangha. Since its beginning in the mid
-20th century, it has become celebrated for its lovely surroundings pervaded by
religious features. Every year, especially in Spring, it receives innumerable visitors and
Buddhists who come to do the Buddha homage and to have a wonderful time at such a pleasant
spot.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
TRUC LAM BUDDHIST
MEDIATION INSTITUTE
(BAMBOO GROVE BUDDHIST
MEDIATION INSTITUTE)
DA LAT, LAM DONG PROVINCE
If you take the route from the Hoa Binh
Area in the centres of Da Lat to the middle of the Prenn Pass, you will turn right and go
on about ten kilometres to reach Lake Tuyen Lam (Bamboo Grove) Buddhist Meditation
Institute.
From afar on the way around the mountain
leading to the pagoda, you can see its bell tower and the roof of its main hall half
hidden amidst immense pine woods. Then you either turn right into the asphalted road and
enter its side gate after climbing up 61 steps or go strait to Lake Tuyen Lam, where you
have to ascend 222 steps to the Triple Gate and the front yard.
The Truc Lam site is located on the Eagle
Peak (Phuong Hoang Peak) covering 24 hectares in which the two-hectare building area
comprises the Outer Institute and the Inner Institute.
The Inner Institute is subdivided into two
separate structures: a monastery and a nunnery. There are two dwelling-houses, a
meditation hall, a refectory, a kitchen and a storehouse each. This restricted area, which
is not fully open to guests, is now the residence for 50 monks and 50 nuns who devote
themselves to the practice of Buddhist meditation (dhyana) or mental cultivation.
The Outer Institute is situated on a large
and even lot at the height of 1,300 metres above the sea level facing the extending
Benhuit Range and the wide green Lake Tuyen Lam. Here are a number of buildings typical of
the Truc Lam Institute designed by the Architects Ngo Viet Thu and Nguyen Tin, and later
performed by the Venerable Manager Thich Thong tang together with countless monks, nuns
and lay Buddhists. The inauguration ceremony was celebrated on 19 March, 1994.
In the centre is the stately main hall, on
the right are the consulting house and the bell tower, on the left are the parlour, the
kitchen and the storehouse. In front of the parlour is a beautiful flower garden and on
the slope leading to the gate is an artificial pool where a 15,000 cubic metre volume of
water is available for use.
The main hall decoration is simple and
dignified with the Buddha Sakyamuni in concentration on the lotus throne flanked by the
images of the Bodhisattva Manjusri, the symbol of Greek Wisdom and the Bodhisattva
Samantabhadra, the symbol of Great Virtue.
The Consulting House is the place where
the Most Venerable Rector discusses various meditation matters with his disciples twice a
month on the 14th and the 15th Days of lunar months, the Buddhist
Observance Days (Uposatha Days).
The Truc Lam Institute's objective is to
revive the Truc Lam Buddhist Chan Sect under the Tran dynasty in the 13th and
14th centuries. This is the original way of practising the Buddha's teachings
initiated by King Tran Nhan Tong, founder of the Truc Lam Chan Sect. It was the King Tran
Nhan Tong who, having twice defeated the Mongols (Yuang Meng), resigned from his throne
and then became a monk entitled Truc Lam the Austere at Mount Yen Yu, where he founded the
first Vietnamese Chan sect. Under his leadership the three Chan Sects: Vinitaruci, Wu Tung
(Speechless Understanding) and Tsao Tang (Hermitage) introduced from India and China were
unified into one Vietnamese Chan Sect and he was consecrated the First Patriarach of the
Truc Lam Chan Sect of Vietnam. He led a very active life of a Chan Master engaged in
ruling the country and after his voluntary resignation, he set out on his preaching tours
with his disciples all over the country. That was the time when numerious Vietnamese Chan
Masters took part in building and protecting their country; however, they remained aloof
from worldly life. They laid special emphasis on mental cultivation in whatever condition
one might live. It is a mind-oriented training for every Buddhist, whether a monk or a lay
follower. This inward self-purification is the way to peace of mind or detachment from the
world, hence the real nature manifests itself. The mental security that is to be won
within oneself, not in the bliss of the Western Pure Land, is beautifully described in a
calm and serene utterance by The First Truc Lam Partiarch before "The Fading
Spring" (Xuan Van).
The Fading Spring
It was though not understanding the
nature of Form and Void
That my heart used to be attached to
hundreds of flowers in the Spring time,
Now that I have found out the Crown
Prince's real face,
I am detached, sitting cross-legged on a
grass-couch, watching the falling petals of the roses.
Above all, this way of practising the
Dharma, the mental culture, is the best expressed in a hymn entitled "Cu Tran Lac
Dao" (Taking Delight in Religion while Dwelling in the world) by Truc Lam the
Austere, who concluded his hymn with the following reputable verse:
Let's take delight in religion in
whatever condition we may live,
Lets eat when hungry and sleep when tired.
Within ourselves lies the gem, so let's
give up searching elsewhere,
When out mind is detached from the
surroundings, there is no more question of concentration.
The first Truc Lam Patriarch set a
brilliant example of a virtuous and wise man who, having performed the duty of a heroic
King, became a calm mediator and Dharma-master well-versed in the Buddhist Hoy Scriptures.
Following the guideline "Meditation Practice and Sutra Studies must go in
pairs", he ordered his Dhama heir, Phap Loa, the Second Truc Lam Patriarch, to carry
out the task of engraving the Buddhist Canon which lasted 24 years (1295-1319) under the
auspices of King Tran Anh Tong, together with the support from all other Buddhist
devotees.. That was the greatest achievement of the Truc Lam Patriarchs, making over 5,000
engravings of Buddhist scriptures which were later preserved at Quynh Lam Pagoda. Next to
Phap Loa was Huyen Quang, thus forming the Trinity of the Truc Lam Patriarchs, the symbol
of the Buddhist Golden Age under the Tran Reign. Master Huyen quang, a great monk scholar
and poet, led a secluded life at Mount Con Son after 20 years of serving the court and
assisting the First Patriarch in propagating the Dharma and compiling various pieces of
writing about Vietnamese Ch'an Buddhism. Living amidst natural conditions, he experienced
the joy and the tranquality of a person who really merged with everything around, in all
his postures. Whether walking, standing, lying or sitting, he felt light-hearted at all
times and and uttered such wonderful stanzas as those in "an Ode to the
Chrysanthemum":
An ode to the Chrysanthemum
(Vinh Cuc Hoa)
The flowers are in the court and the
man is on the upper floor.
Sitting alone, carefree, contemplating the
incense smoke pervading everywhere,
There is no more discrimination between
the subject and the object
Just as a flower bud among them bursts
open.
The daily routine of a Truc Lam Buddhist
practitioner who pursues self-purification is regulated by the Six-fold Repentance Rites
laid down by King Tran Thai Tong, founder of the Tran Dynasty and great Buddhist scholar.
Unlike the Chinese Repentance Ritual which asks for the forgiveness of sins, the uniquely
Vietnamese Six-fold Repentance Rites aim to purify oneself leading to freedom of mind,
awakening. From dawn, the Buddhist cultivator begins an auspicious day by chanting such
simple and lofty hymns that enhance his devotion as:
An Incense-Offering Hymn:
(Bai ke Dang huong)
Pervading the Forest of Concentration
is the fragrance of the incense
Made from the Sandal well grown in the
Park of Wisdom,
It is keenly trimmed by the Sword of
Discipline* into the shape of a peak
And is burned at the Heart Brazier to
worship the Buddhas.
And:
A Flower-Offering Hymn:
(Bai ke dang hoa)
The open blossoms illuminating the
Heart Soil
Are far sweeter than the celestial coral
flowers scattering from the sky
May I pick them, one by one, to offer to
the Buddhas.
May the wind of my long-lasting Evil Karma
fail to shake them all.
This practical way of self-awakening
in accordance with the Three-fold Training of Discipline (Sila), Concentration (Samadhi)
and Wisdom (Paiia) in the Original Buddhism, which was handed down by the Truc Lam
Tradition in the Buddhist Golden Age of Vietnam through centuries is now restored by Abbot
Thich Thanh Tu and preserved at Truc Lam Institute as a special feature of Vietnamese
Buddhists.
In order to make the above method more
effective, Abbot Thanh Tu exhorts his disciples to apply the Six-harmony Principle laid
down by the Buddha himself in the Brahma-faring (the holy life), that is, to perform
bodily, vocal and mental actions in perfect harmony with those of their fellow
Brahma-fares, to observe rules of the moral code (Vinaya), to uphold common lofty views
leading upwards and to have equal share in offerings accepted lawfully.
In the spirit of Truc Lam the Austere, the
practitioners should earnestly develop the three qualities, namely, diligent striving for
awakening, strong determination to overcome difficulties and obstacles, and self
contentment with a frugal life, avoiding all luxuries.
At the top of the Truc Lam Institute's
organisational structure is the Most Venerable Abbot Thich Thanh Tu as Rector, next come
the Venerable Thich Nhat Quang as Vice Rector, the Venerable Thich Thong Phuong as Monks'
Manager and Venerable Thich Nu Nhu Tam as Nuns' Manager.
On reaching the Truc Lam Institute,
Buddhist devotees and visitors alike seem to ignore the constant icy cold of Da Lat, the
land of peach flowers, in order to enjoy the open air of its natural sceneries, to admire
the beauty and the originality of many new architectural designs deeply coloured with
national features, and above all, to spend peaceful hours when they feel as if they were
lost in their quiet imagination of the past world where the Truc Lam Patriarchs lived on
the lofty Yen Tu Mountain.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
GIAC LAM PAGODA
No 118, LAC LONG QUAN
STREET,
TAN BINH DISTRICT, HO
CHI MINH CITY
Giac Lam Pagoda, a modest structure in an important
position, is one of the most ancient pagodas in Ho Chi Minh City, which was officially
recognised as a historical and cultural relic by the Ministry of Culture's Decision dated
16 Nov, 1988/
It is situated at Lac Long Quan street, quarter 23, Tan
Binh District in the Phu Tho Hoa area, which used to be Hill Cam Son or Cam Dem Son Can.
Its founder was Ly Thuy Long, a lay-Buddhist of Chinese origin, who had collected gifts
from various donors for the pagoda building in Giap Ty Year 1744, under lord Nguyen Phuc
Khoat. In "Gia Dinh Province's Records " by Trinh Hoai Duc, the area was
describes as "a three-hectare lot covered with a grove of tall trees and wild
flowers, everywhere. Though small, it is indeed a pleasant spot where tourists and men of
letters usually come together on the Pure Light Holiday (in the third luna month) or the
Ninth Day of the Ninth Lunar month to enjoy themselves admiring flowers, drinking liquor,
reciting poems or watching a bustling market in the distance".
In 1772, the Most Venerable Vien Quang, who belonged to
the Linh Chi Sect, was appointed Abbot of the Pagoda and renamed it Giac Lam/
The pagoda was under repair several times. The most
Venerable Abbot Vien Quang had it rebuilt for the first time during the years from
1799-1804. A century later, from 11906, to 1009, the Most Venerable Hong Hung played the
lead in restoring it with the help of the Most Venerable Nhu Phong. All these events were
recorded in the inaugural parallel sentences inscribed on a pair of boards which still
hang in the main hall until nowadays.
The large site of the pagoda is surrounded with walls
which separated it from the crowded streets outside. In the front yard behind the gate
stands the Boddhisattva Avalokitesssvaaara's Statue under the green foliage of the Boddhi
tree, which has been growing from a cutting offered and planted by the Venerable Elder
Narada, who came from Sri Lanka on 18 June 1953. Moreover, on this auspicious occasion,
the Elder offered the pagoda a portion of the Buddha's Relic. On 17 June, 1994, The
Vietnam Buddhist Sangha celebrated the Inauguration ceremony of the Relic Stupa and the
reception of the Buddha's Telic to the stupa from Long Van Pagoda in Binh Thanh District,
where it had been enshrined in the main hall, all through 1953 -1994. The construction of
the hexagonal seven-storey tower, with eaves and openings each, was carried out after the
plan drawn by the architect Vinh Hoang from 1970 to 1975, when it was postponed until
1993.
The 32 metre-high stupa, facing East, is really one of the
most distinguished towers of our city.
The rectangular structure of the pagoda is 65 metres long,
22 metres wide, consisting of three main buildings: the Central Hall, the Preaching Hall
and the Refectory with the exception of side parts. There are 98 wooden columns in all,
many of which are bigger than the size of an (arm's) embrace.
On the columns are 86 successive parallel sentences
inscribed in gilded Chinese calligraphy bordered with elaborately wrought frames. All the
rafter ends are dragons head-shaped.
The main hall is adorned with solid altars made of
valuable wood and three netlike panel; the first one is carved with flowers symbolic of
the Four Seasons (the Apricot, the Orchid, the Chrysanthemum and the Bamboo), the second
one with the Four Sacred Animals (the Dragon, the Unicorn, the Tortoise and the Phoenix),
and the last one with the Nine Dragons.
Apart from seven bronze statues, there are 113 ancient
gilded jack wood statues among which the Buddha Sakyamuni's statue on the lotus throne
0.65 metre high, the knee's width being 0.38m, enshrined in the preaching hall is the
oldest one the dates from the 18th century.
All the statues, netlike panels, furniture, stupas and
tombs there are exquisitely carved.
The Nine-Dragon statue cast in bronze, which illustrates
the story of the Buddha's Birth, is enshrined in the main hall.
In particular, Buddha sculpture is highly expressed in two
sets of 18 Arahant Statues.
The minor set of 18 statuettes, 0.57m high each, including
the pedestal (each statuette being 0.50 m high and its pedestal 0.07m high) were carved in
the early part of the 19th century.
The major set of 18 statues, 0.95 m high each, (each
statue being 0.80 m high and its pedestal 0.15m high) were carved in the early part of the
20th century. The two sets are placed on both sides of the main hall.
On the left of the pagoda site are the stupas in honour of
the following Patriarchs and Abbots Vien Quang, Hai Tinh, Minh Vi, Minh Khiem, Nhu Loi,
Nhu Phong, and especially Patriarch Phat Y, Patriarch Vien Quang's Master, former Abbot of
Tu An Royal-Chartered Pagoda, whose relics were transferred to Giac Lam Pagoda in 1923.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
AN QUANG
PAGODA
No 243, MASTER VAN HANH
STREET,
DIST. 10, HO CHI MINH
CITY.
The An Quang Patriarchal House, though
young in years, plays a very particular role in the history of the V.N Buddhist Sangha.
The pagoda has witnessed many historical
events in the ups and downs of the Buddhist growth in South VN. It was once the seat of
both the South VN School of Buddhist Studies, and the South VN Buddhist Sangha (1950-1963)
and then the office of the Dharma Propagation Institute and the Sangha Presidency
(1967-1980). At present, it serves as the Head quarters of the Municipal Executive
Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Buddhist Sangha.
It was originally a small thatch-roofed
named Ung Quang Pagoda, set up at No 243 Su Van Hanh Street, District 10 in 1948 by the
Most Venerable Tri Huu, who had come from Linh Ung pagoda at Ngu Hanh Son (the
Five-Element Mountains) in Quang Nam Province.
In 1950, he transferred the management of
his hermitage to the Nost Venerable Thich Thien Hoa (1907-1978), a member of the Lin-Chi
43rd generation, who returned to Saigon after ten years of studying the Dharma
(the Buddhist Holy Scriptures) and the Vinaya (the Code of Discipline) at the Tay Thien
School of Buddhist Studies, the Bao Quoc School of Buddhist Studies (in Hue) and Quan Su
Pagoda (in Ha Noi).
The Most Venerable Abbot Thien Hoa had the
main hall built after Tu Dam pagoda's model.
Since then for more than twenty years,
Abbot Thien Hoa devoted himself to the pagoda reconstruction and the establishment of
schools of Buddhist Studies in South VN.
In early 1951, he persuaded such Buddhist
school as Lien Hai, Mai Son, Sung Duc and Ung Quang to integrate themselves into the South
Vietnam School of Buddhist Studies. Later, Ung Quang pagoda, which was then renamed An
Quang, became the seat of the School of Buddhist Studies under Abbot Thien Hoa as Director
General.
In 1955, a two-storey building was set up
as the An Quang Patriarch House and refectory. In the next two years, appeared the Sen
Vang (Golden Lotus) Printing House, the Bodhi Incense Factory, the Library and the Huong
Dao (Buddhist Fragrance), Publishing House. The two-storey auditorium was rebuilt in 1959.
The main hall was renovated in 1966 and in
the following year, the monastery and the refectory were rebuilt after the design drawn by
the Architect Nguyen Huu Thien. Moreover, the interior of the hall is decorated with
Patriarch Bodhiharma's Statue and the Bodhisattvas Avalokitestvara's, Manjusri's and
Samantabhadra's lacquered paintings produced by reverend Minh Tinh, also called Truong Van
Thanh the Crafunan.
In 1974, when Abbot Thien Hoa fell gravely
ill, a nine-member administrative Council headed by the Most Venerable Thich Hue Hung was
elected to take charge of the religious affairs at the An Quang Patriarchal House until
the Abbot's passing away in 1978. Abbot Thien Hoa's reputation is not only closely
associated with An Quang Pagoda's growth, but also with the training of hundreds of Dharma
teachers and thousands of monk and nun students as the Buddha's messengers who go forth to
disseminate the Buddha's teachings throughout the South.
Translated by Tran Phuong
Lan
XA LOI
PAGODA
(THE BUDDHA'S RELIC PAGODA)
No 89 Mme HUYEN THANH QUAN
STREET
DISTRICT 3, HO CHI MINH
CITY.
Xa Loi Pagoda is situated in a 2500 square metre lot
surrounded by calm street. Its main gate faces Mme Huyen Thanh Quan Street, and its side
gate, Monk Thien Chieu street. Its building plan drawn by the two Architects, Messrs Tran
Van Duong and Do Ba Vinh, was started on 5 August, 1956, under the supervision of the two
engineers, Messrs Du Ngoc Anh and Ha To Thuan and was inaugurated on 2-3-4 May, 1958. The
pagoda construction was then greatly indebted to Buddhists from 21 Southern provinces for
their contribution under the patronage of the South VN Buddhist Association.
It is commonly said that during the construction, there
appeared a board saying: "the Construction of the Buddha's Relic Pagoda" Hence,
it was popularly known as the Buddha's Relic Pagoda. On its inauguration Day, it received
that popular name at the Most Venerable Abbot Khanh Anh's suggestion.
The pagoda structure consists of the main hall, the
preaching hall, the library, the office, the council-chamber, the meeting room, the
reception room, the monastery and the funeral parlour. The first-floor main hall, 31m long
and 15m wide, enshrines only the Buddha Sakymuni's statue of pink stone powder carved by
the Bien Hoa School of Fine Arts in 1958. On the walls hang a series of paintings
depicting the Buddha's life from his Birth (Buddha Jayanti) until his Great Decease
(Parinirvana) produced by the Artist Nguyen Van Long in the years from 1959 to 1960.
On the left of the triple gate facing Mme Huyen Thanh
Quang street stands a seven-level bell tower initiated on 15th December, 1960
and completed on 23rd December, 1961. The great bell, which was cast again
after the first unsuccessful attempt, was deposited in the tower on 17 October, 1961 under
the recognition of the Most Venerable Elder Thich Tinh Khiet.
While An Quang Pagoda is connected with the establishment
and activities of the South VN Schools of Buddhist Studies, Xa Loi Pagoda is closely
related to the history of the South VN Buddhist Association, which was founded in 1951 in
Sai Gon and was successively headed by Dr. Nguyen Van Khoe, Master Quang Minh and Sir
Chanh Tri Mai Tho Truyen. This Association used to have its various branches in almost
every town of South VN with Tu Quang Magazines as its regular forum for the exchange of
public information and opinions.
A Loi Pagoda was once the seat of the Dharma-Protecting
Committee of the United Buddhist Sects in 1963 and the Conference for the founding of the
United VN Buddhist Sangha held from 30 December 1963 to 1 January 1964. Moreover, it was
at Xa Loi Pagoda that the ceremony of receiving and publishing the first two volumes of
the Vietnamese Tripitaka was celebrated on 31 August,91.
From 1981 to May 1993, it served as the VBS. Second Office
in the South - (on the fullmoon day the 4th Lunar month of Qui Dau year (the
year of the Cock), 1993, the office was shifted to Quang Duc Buddhist Institute at No 294
Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Street, District 3).
Xa Loi Pagoda, with its important position in the VN
Buddhist Sangha and its considerable contribution to the Dharma propagation since its
early days, receives a large number of Buddhist delegations and visitors, home and foreign
alike, all round.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
VINH NGHIEM
PAGODA
No 390 NAM KY KHOI NGHIA
STREET.
DIST. 3, HO CHI MINH
CITY
On the way from Tan Son Nhat Airport to the centre of Ho
Chi Minh City, after crossing Cong Ly on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia street, visitors can see the
stupa of Vinh Nghiem Pagoda stand out in sharp relief against the sky.
At present, this pagoda is one of the most majestic
Buddhist structures in Vietnam. It was named Vinh Nghiem after a Buddhist centre under the
Tran Dynasty in former Bac Giang Province, (modern Ha Bac province). Vinh Nghiem is also
the religious title of Patriarch Thanh Hanh (1838 - 1936), a dignified Ch'an Master, who
was formerly consecrated North V.N Sangha President. According to the charter of the
previous Unified V.N Buddhist Sangha, all Buddhist monks, nuns, and lay-followers of
Northern origin, who have been living in South V.N, belong to the Vinh Nghiem Buddhist
Community seated at this pagoda.
The pagoda construction was initiated in 1964 and
completed in 1971 after the design drawn by the Architect Nguyen Ba Lang in collaboration
with his two colleagues, the Architects Le Tan Chuyen and Co Van Hau. It is a I shaped
two-storey structure with an oriental style double roof.
The ground floor is composed of the library, the
auditorium, many offices and monks' chambers.
On the left of the upper ten-wide courtyard stands the
seven-level Avalokitesvara Stupa with eaves each, and on the right is the tower where
hangs the great bell offered by the Japanese Buddhist Sangha. The main hall is a
magnificent shrine 22 metres wide, 35 metres long and 15 metres high abounding in wooden
netlike panels carved with images of the Four Sacred Animals, the Nine Dragons… and
particularly, altars adored with famous Asian pagoda reliefs.
The central altar is arranged in an imposing manner with
the Buddha Sakyamuni's statue flanked by the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra's, the symbol of
virtues and Bodhisattva Manjusri's, the symbol of wisdom.
In the main hall stand only Six Arahant carvings (in the
set 18 pieces) illustrating the Learner-Admonishing Arahants, the Dharma-Preaching and
Hearing Arahants, the Sinner-Saving Arahants in the Swod Mountain Purgatory, the
Gift-offering Arahants, the Alms-Giving Arahants and the Sinner-Saving Arahants in the Icy
Purgatory escorted by Yakshas bearing candles in honour of the Buddha. Those Arahant wood
carvings are the imitations of the Japanese Pure Land School's originals. On both sides of
the corridor before the main hall are Vajra God statues of large size.
The curved roof ends are typical of the Northern Pagoda
style with a double front roof surrounded by a Dharma-wheel. All the roof ends are phoenix
head - shaped/
Apart from the bell tower, there are two other dominant
tower within the pagoda site: the Avaalokitesvaara Stupa and the Public Relics Stupa.
The Avalokitescara Stpa covering 200 square metres on the
left of the upstairs court yard is a seven-level square tower with projecting roofs each,
35 metres high from the ground. Each roof edge on the first level os 7 metres long, and on
both sides of the entrance are 2 Vajaragods' relief sculptures 1.48 metres high and 0.74
metre wide. Along the walls of each level rum 25 relief sculptures of the Seven Previous
Buddhas and numerous Dharma Patriarchs bordered with square frames the side of which is
1.05m each.
In back of the pagoda is the Public Relics Stupa initiated
in 1982 and completed in 1984. This 25 metre high four-level tower typical of Vietnamese
architectural design is the place of worship to the relics of lay-Buddhists among whom are
such well-known men of letters as Che Lan Vien, Vu Hoang Chuong…
At present, Vinh Nghiem Pagoda is the seat for the Basic
school of Buddhist Studies in Ho Chi Minh City.
Translated by Tran Phuong Lan
CENTRAL
MONASTERY
7 NGUYEN TRUNG TRUC
STREET
HO CHI MINH CITY.
Central Monastery, located at 7 Nguyen
Trung Truc street, Binh Thanh district in Ho Chi Minh city, belongs to the Vietnamese
Buddhist Mendicant Sect foounded in 1944 by Patriarch Minh Dang Quang, whose lay name is
Nguyen Thanh Dat, a native of Phu Hau village, Binh Phu, Tam Binh district in Vinh Long
province. The founding Master originally made the following vow which has become the
tradition of his lineage:
Propagating the Buddha's teachings
Is the goal of the Vietnamese Buddhist Mendicant Sect.
He drew up the guideline on practising the
religion, the is, to live together under the training of the Order. He encouraged all his
disciples to lead a good and happy life on earth by working out the following formula:
Learning how to read and write.
Learning the moral code by heart.
Doing good and avoiding evil.
This is the duty of everybody.
He pledged to live the holy life of a
bhikkhu (a Buddhist mendicant) taught by the Buddha to his Holy Disciples in former times
through the wayfarer's image:
Taking a bowl and seeking almsfood from
house to house.
The solitary mendicant passes his days
Wandering on the long way
For the sake of the end of rebirth round.
The monastery construction lasted 10 years
from 1965 to 1975 on a 5490 square-metre lot offered by the clerk Nguyen Van Cha's wife, a
lay-Buddhist, whose religious name is Dieu Kien. At first, it consisted of the main hall,
the house to ancestor veneration (including ancestors and descendants through many lives),
monks' chambers and cells. Later it became the Headquarters of the Vietnamese Buddhist
Mendicant Sect from 1966 to 1980.
In November 1980, the Venerable Abbot Giac
Toan and the Venerable Elder Giac Phuc, a dignitary of the Sect, played the lead in
reconstructing the monastery into a two-storey building. In the main hall stands the
octagonal stupa designed by the Architect Nguyen Huu Thien. The 4.4 metre-high stupa, the
side of which is 2.25 metres each, is surrounded by a 13-level top representing the 13
stages of all beings' spiritual progress (viz the 6 worldlings, the 4 saints and the
Exalted Ones of the Holy Trinity). It is made of sandal wood adorned with lotus carvings
illustrating the Buddha's life. The achievement of the stupa enshrining the Buddha's
Sakyamuni Statue was performed from 1982 to 1984 by Mr. Thien Ngo and various craftsmen of
the School of Fine Art in Long 'An province.
Along the walls run 8 reliefs 2.2 metres
high and 4.5 metres long each, narrating the Buddha's lifeee through the carvings made by
the Sculptors Minh Dung and Hai Long.
Behind the main hall is the stupa to the
Bodhisattva Kshitigarbha surrounded by ancestral altars. In the front yard stands the
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara's Statue 9 metres high on a 3 metre high lotus pedestal.
Before 1975, about 300 monasteries
scattered all over the South belonged to the Vietnamese Buddhist Mendicant Sect, whose
head office was place at this Central Monastery and whose leadership consisted of the
Venerable Elder Giac Chanh as Sangha President, and the Venerable Elder Giac Nhien as
Executive General or Head of the Dharma Practice Institute.
Patriarch Minh Dang Quang's disciples,
following his example, organised the order of mendicant practitioners into 6 groups of
monks and 3 groups of nuns. These Buddhist mendicants dressed in yellow, taking a bowl and
a robe, wandered barefooted and bareheaded throughout the South. Wherever they went, the
tried their best to teach the Dharma, build monasteries, collect alms and raise relief
funds to help war victims and those who suffered from natural disasters.
On his wayfaring, Tran Que Huong, a
mendicant monk and poet, was inspired by such livelihood to compose many lovely poems that
can be found in his collection entitled "The Stream to the Flower-Adorned
Realm"
From My Tho, my home town, my motherland,
I made my first regular steps on my round,
Taking a bowl, seeking alms from house to house,
And forever hearing in mind the parental
love
Stooping overnight at An Duc Monastery
By the small river flowing gently.
While the hyacinth's fragrance wafted
through the night air,
I was deeply absorbed in the ecstasy of
concentration surpassing the Heaven World.
It was from My Tho in 1946 that the
Venerable Master Minh Dang Quang, accompanied by his disciples, set out on his preaching
tour around the South, after a two-year residence at Linh Buu Pagoda. Since 1976 until
now, his disciples have been following in his footsteps leading a calm life, undergoing
the training and the mendicant practices at their own monasteries under the torchlight of
the Patriarch's fundamental teachings and the supervision of his vivid image enshrined at
this Central Monastery and other mendicant monasteries alike.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
VAN HANH
BUDDHIST INSTITUTE
716 NGUYEN KIEM
STREET,
PHU NHUAN DIST., HO
CHI MINH CITY
On the way from Phu Nhuan District to Go
Vap District, visitors can see the stately Tripple Gate of Van Hanh Buddhist Institute at
716 Nguyen Kiem Street.
Before 1975, the Institute used to be the
seat of the Applied Sciences Department of Van Hanh University headed by the most
Venerable Rector Thich Minh Chau. Since 1976, he has converted it into a monastery and the
Buddhist Research Institute.
Located on an area of one hectare, it
comprises the main hall, the Patriarchal House, the Institute of Advanced Buddhist
Studies, and the office building of the Vietnam Buddhist Research Institute and the
Vietnamese Tipitaka (Triple Canon) Translating and Publishing Council, monks' chambers and
the refectory.
The traditional Triple Gate was erected in
1990 under the care of two craftmen, the Venerable Tam Doan and the Ven Tinh Quang.
The ground floor of the two-storey central
building enshrines the Buddha Sakyamuni's ivory statue on the lotus throne. The style of
interior decoration is very simple but imposing. On both sides are the reading rooms of
the VBRI library abounding in valuable Buddhist text books.
The upper floor serves as the Abbot's
reception room and chamber.
The Patriarchal House is also a two-storey
building. The upper floor is the shrine to the Buddha Sakyamuni and the Patriarch Thich
Tinh Khiet, former VN Unified Sangha President. On the ground floor is the auditorium
where lectures on Dhamma, and Dhamma classes, or seminars and symposiums are held all year
round.
Van Hanh Buddhist Institute plays an
important part in the Dhamma propagation and Buddhist Reasearch Institute founded in 1989.
The VBRI leadership consists of the Most Venerable Doctor Thich Thien Sieu as Vice Rector
in charge of Vietnamese Buddhism and the Most Venerable Doctor Thich Thien Chau (at Truc
Lam Buddhist Institute Paris, France) as Vice Rector in charge of World Buddhism.
The Institute is composed of various
departments: the Department of Vietnamese Buddhism, the Department of World Buddhism, the
Department of Buddhist Specialists, the Department of Printing and Publishing, and
especially, the Vietnamese Tipitaka Translating and Publishing Council. During the last 14
years, many collections of the Buddhist Tipitka (Triple Cannon) such as Digha Nikaya (the
Long Dialogues, 2 volumes), Majjhhima Nikaya (the Middle Length of Sayings, 3 volumes)
Samyutta Nikaya (the Kindred Sayings, 5 volumes) translated from the original Pali Texts
into Vietnamese by the most Venerable Doctor Thich Minh Chau have been published side by
side with many collections translaed from Chinese versions sof the original Sanskrit texts
by other monk scholars such as Digha Agama (2 volumes), Madhya Agama (3 volumes), Samyukta
Agama (2 volumes).
The printing and publication of the
Vietnamese Triple Canon marks an important event in the history of Vietnamese Buddhism and
the cultural life of our nation as well.
Van Hanh Buddhist Institute is also the
sear of the Vietnam Institute is also the seat of the Vietnam Institute of Advanced
Buddhist Studies, in South VN. The VIABS leadership (Course III, Office term III,
1993-1997) consists of:
Rector: the Most Venerable Doctor
Thich Minh Chau
Vice Rector: the Most Venerable
Thich Thien Sieu
Vice Rector: The Vernable Thich Giac Toan
Vice Rector: Mr Tong Ho Cam
Secretary General: Mr Tran Tuan Man
Office Chief: The Venerable Thich Dat Dao
Since 1984, this Buddhist training centre
has admitted full-time monk and nun students through an entrance examination. After a
compete four-year course, the graduate students get a degree equivalent to a B.A's in
Buddhism. For over ten years, nearly 400 monk and nun students have been trained during
the three courses.
The school curriculum covers both
Canonical and non-canonical subjects which have been taught by monk scholars of the NV
Buddhist Sangha and many other university professors and lecturers.
A great monk scholar who has translated
the Five Collections of the Original Pali Tipitaka (the Buddhist Triple Canon) into
Vietnamese, the Most Venerable Doctor Thich Minh Chau has been elected Chairman of the
Vietnamese Tipitaka Translating and Publishing Council. Moreover, he is Vice President and
Secretary General of the VBS Executive Council and Head of the VBRI World Buddhism
Department. He is also the Vice President of the ABCP National Centre. For many years now,
he has attended and hosted different conferences, seminars and symposiums at home and
abroad.
As it is an important cultural Buddhist
centre, Can Hanh Buddhist Institute constantly welcomes numerous world Buddhist
Delegations and distinguished foreign guests who come on their working visits and sight
-seeing tours alike.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
BUU PHONG
PAGODA
TAN BUU VILLAGE, BIEN HOA,
DONG NAI PROVINCE
Buu Long Pagoda is not only a well-known
pagoda of Dong Nai province but also of the southern region. It is situated on mount Buu
Long, Binh Dien Hamlet, Tan Buu village about 4 kilometres from Bien Hoa, hence it is
called Binh Dien pagoda.
It was originally a small Buddhist leaf
but set up by the Most Venerable Buu Phong in the 17th century.According to " the
Records of Unified Dai Nam" Mount Buu Phong is 13 miles South of Phuoc Chanh
province, overlooking a big river in the west and safeguarding Mount Long An in the rear.
On the mountain lies Buu Phong Pagoda hidden among wandering clouds and the dense foliage
of tall trees; it is indeed the foremost beautiful scenery in the province. There used to
be a Buddhist monk named Buu Phong, who erected a leaf hermitage on the mountain, which
has been popularly known as Mount Buu Phong.
By the end of the 18th century, a large
number of Chinese immigrants settled in that area. Among them are pious Buddhists who
build a new brick-and-tile pagoda there. Next they requested Ch’an Master Thanh Chi,
whose religious name is Phap Thong-Thien Hi, a member of the T"sao Tung 36th
generation, to take charge of the pagoda and consecrated him its First Patriarch. He was
also the founder of Long An Pagoda on Mount Long An in front of Mt Buu Phong.
Today his hexagonal stupa can be found
among the sepulchral monuments within the pagoda site
According to Mr. Nguyen Hien Duc’s
reference in "Vietnamese Ch’an Masters"by the Most Venerable Thich Thanh
Tu, because the Most Venerable Phap Thong had no Dharma heir, Ch’an Master Vien
Quang, a Chinese member of the Lin-chi 36th generation, was appointed Abbot, who restored
the pagoda in 1760.
In Ky Suu year (1829,the Year of the
Buffalo), it was rebuilt and enlarged into a stone structure thanks to the voluntary
donations from the Counsellor General Nguyen Van Hiep and the village Treasurer Nguyen Van
Tam It was under constant repair in the late 19th century and recent years
On a sightseeing tour to the pagoda, to
day’s visitors are deeply impressed by its architectural design. After climbing up
120 steps, they come to the pagoda fade composed of a big Triple Archway flanked by 2
pairs of small Arches. The fade’s upper part is elaborator decorated with multi-
coloured ceramic fragments. In front is the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara’s statue
performed by Master Thien Giao in 1963.
The two parallel sentences on the main
columns convey the meaning of the pagoda’s name:
Here the notes sound as melodious as those
at the Vulture’s Peak (Gijjbakuta) *
And the natural scenery is as lovely as
Jetagrove (Jetavana) **
In the main hall are the Buddha
Amitabba’s ancient statue, the Buddha Sakyamuni’s rich-adorned altar and the
Buddha’s Relic enshrined in the stupalike casket behind the altar.
The Buu Long area has become an ensemble
of natural sceneries in Dong Nai province. Visitors who come to Dong Nai will not miss the
chance of watching the superb panorama of Mount Buu Long also called Mt. Binh Dien and the
Long River, that is, the Dong Nai river:
In the back stands Mount Binh Dien as if
protecting the territory,
And in front is the Long River meandering
around.
Scattered about the area are ancient
stupas and such open-air statues as those of Gotama the Infant, the Buddhain Samadhi
(Concentration) and the Buddha’s Parinirvana (Great Decease).
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
HOI KHANH PAGODA
35 YERSIN STREET, THU DAU MOT,
SONG BE PROVINCE
Hoi Khanh Pagoda was founded by Ch’an
Master Dai Ngan, a member of the Lin-Chi Sect, in the second Canh Hung year , under king
Le Du Ton (1741). It was originally built on a high hill but was totally destroyed by war
in the 14th Tu Duc year (1861). Seven years later (1868), the Most Venerable Abbot Chanh
Dac had it rebuilt at the foot, about 100 metres southwards from the old one. Its present
address is 35 Dr. Yersin Street, Phu Cuong Quarter, Thu Dau Mot chief town, Song Be
province, 25 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City.
It is located 150 metres from the highway.
Behind the old - style dragon - carved Triple gate is the poetic and peaceful setting
covered with the dense foliage of shady trees; among them are four lofty
over-a-century-old trees which have been growing since the early days of the pagoda.
Undergoing constant repair, the pagoda structure has still preserved its traditional
features. The preaching Hall and the East Wing were rebuilt in 1917, the West Wing, in
1984, and the Main Hall, through 1990-1991. And recently on 29th February, 1992, the Hoi
khanh Song Be Buddhist Sangha Executive Committee inaugurated the Restoration of Hoi khanh
Pagoda.
The whole area of the main hall, the
preaching hall, the East wing and the West wing covers 700m2. In the main hall there are
gilded and vermilion- painted statues of the Buddha Sakyamuni, the Bodhisattvas
Kshitigarbha and Cundi surrounded by three netlike panels elaborately carved with
highly-valued images of the Four Sacred Animal, the Four Seasons, the Nine Dragons and the
set of the Eighteen Arahants. All these wooden reliefs were made in the late 19th century
and the early 20th century by a group of skilful carves in Thu Dau Mot.
For over 250 years now, Hoi Khanh Pagoda
has been governed by Abbots of ten generations, nine of whom are deceased, namely Abbots
ai Ngan, Chan Kinh, Chanh Dac, Tri Tap, Thien Quoi, Tu Van, An Buu, Thien Huong, and Quang
Vien. In the front yard there are stupas in honour of the late Abbots.
The present Abbot is the Venerable Thich
Hue Thong, Secretary General of the Song Be Buddhist Sangha Executive Commitee.
Hoi Khanh Pagada was one a traditional
Buddhist centre of the Binh An Area. Later it became a training centre of learned men in
Binh An and Thu Dau Mot. As they were teachers of Chinese characters, the monks at Hoi
Khanh Pagoda took part in training many generations of monks who would govern many other
pagodas in this region. Among them was the Most Venerable Thich Tu Van, Who was considered
the South VN Sangha President and was then request to go to Marseilles (France) to
celebrate a prayer service for the Departed and give a Dharma talk in 1920. It was the
Sangha President who, accompanied by a group of Vietnamese craftsmen, brought the
Buddha’s statues to France for the sake of constructing a Hoi Khanh Pagoda there.
In the years from 1923 to 1926, there was
an Honorary Patriotic Association founded by a number of scholars who undertook the task
of treating diseases and propagating the Dharma Among them was Sir Nguyen Sinh Sac,
President Ho’s father, who stayed and worked there for a time.
After 1945, Hoi Khanh Pagoda was the place
where Buddhists from forty other pagodas in Thu Dau Mot gathered and established the
Country - Saving Buddhist Association headed by the Venerable Minh Tinh
On account of its age-long contribution to
the growth of Buddhism in the South, Hoi Khanh Pagoda has been chosen as the seat of the
Song Be Buddhist Sangha Executive Committee and it is classified by the Ministry of
Cultural Relics.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
VINH TRANG
PAGODA
MY PHONG, MY THO, TIEN GIANG
PROVINCE
It will not be satisfactory if you make a
trip to My Tho without going to see Vinh Trang Pagoda, a celebrated ancient pagoda
representing Southern monastic architecture, located in a two-hectare orchard of My Hoa
village (Present My Phong) by the ever sweet and peaceful Bao Dinh Canal.
In the early part of the 19th century, it
was but a small leaf hermitage erected by District Chief Bui Cong Dat, who pledged to live
in seclusion after his retirement from his office. Then he requested the Most Venerable Tu
Lam from Buu Lam Pagoda to take charge of the hermitage.
After Mr.Bui’s death, the Most
Venerable Abbot Hue Dang encouraged devout Buddhists to build a great pagoda named Vinh
Trang, Which was inaugurated in Canh Tuat year, the Year of the Dog (1850).
Later the pagoda was seriously damaged
during the French Colonialists’ attract on Dinh Tuong The Most Venerable Thien De,
the abott’s successor, continued the pagoda restoration then. But after his passing
away, the Pagoda was in a state of total neglect until 1890, when the Most Venerable Chanh
Hau came from the Royal-Chartered Linh Thuu Pagoda to take charge of it at the request of
local Buddhists. A native of My Tho, he was a pupil of the Most Venerable Minh
Phuoc’s, a member of the Buu Lam Patriarchal House.
In 1895, Abbot Chanh Hau, together with
his followers, carried out the total restoration of the Pagoda; however, it was ruined
again by a terrible storm in 1904 and three years later, it was rebuilt once more.
Abbot Chanh Hau passed away after 33 years
of managing the Pagoda91890-1923). His successor, Abbot Minh Dan, whose Dharma name was
Tam Lieu, had the Triple Gate, the facade, the main hall and the Patriarchal House
contracted then.
The magnificent Triple Gate was completed
in 1933 by a group of craftsmen from Hue thanks to Messrs, Huynh Tri Phu’s and Ly Van
Quang’s financial support, On both sides of the main iron gate which has been
constantly closed are two lesser reinforced concrete gates rising upwards like two ancient
towers. The originality of the Triple Gate manifests itself in the skilful combination of
multi-coloured ceramic fragments into harmonious pictures illustrating Buddhist stories,
folk tales and such popular motifs as the Four Season, the Four Sacred Animal, and various
beautiful flowers etc.
On the Triple Gate’s upper storey is
a wide arch enshrining Abbot Chanh Hau’s statue on the right and Abbot Minh
Dan’s on the left. Both the life-size concrete statues are made by the Sculptor
Nguyen Phi Hoanh.
The Vinh Trang facade is a combination of
oriental and occidental architectural features. Remarkable among them are
Renaissance-style ornaments, Romanarches French grilles, Japanese ceramic tiles, and an
exhibition of classic Chinese and Gothic Vietnamese calligraphy. From afar the Vinh Trang
facade resembles a five-tower Angkor Temple. It is often said that Abbot Minh Dan and
Mr.Huynh, who had once been to Cambodia, the country of Buddhist Pagodas and stupas, were
so keenly aware of the beauty of Khmer architecture that they succeeded in drawing up the
Vinh Trang struture after the Khmer model combined with various occidental features.
The main hall is decorated with
elaborately carved netlike panels including the relief’s of the Eight Fairies Riding
Sacred Animals performed in about 1907 by some local craftsmen. On the main altar are
statues of the Buddha Amitabha, the Buddha Sakyamuni, numerous Arahants and his successor,
Abbot Minh Dan, who belonged to the Lin Chi Ch’an Sect as well as Abbot Hue Dang
The most ancient statues among them are
the Amitabha . Holy Trinity in bronze consisting of Amitabha, Avalokitesvara statue had
long been lost and was later replaced by a wooden one to complete the set by order of
Abbot Chanh Hau.
The life-size statue of the Emperor of
Jade is modelled on a Dharma guardian’s sculpture at Buu Lam Pagoda. Unlike the
traditional Emperor of Jade, the King of Gods here is not escorted by two gods of the
South and North Constellations who carry the list of the departed, but by one god for Good
and another against Evil instead.
Along the wall of the main hall are altars
to the Netherworld’s Ten kings and the unique set of the Eighteen Arahants, an
original work of art in wood relief created in 1807 by a group of craftsmen under the
guidance of Abbot Chanh Hau. The statues are made of valuable wood, about 0,80m high each,
the knees’ width being 0,58m, and placed on both sides of the Buddha’s altar.
Each Arrant is possessed of his own asset representing one of the six sense-organs which
are called the six faculties in Buddhist terms, namely, The eye, the ear, the tongue, the
nose, the body, the mind in the three periods of time; the Past, the Present and the
Future, These Arahant statues are well-proportioned, vivid, each riding on such an animal
as a buffalo, an ox, a horse, a camel, a hippopotamus, a rhinoceros etc..
In the pagoda site, there are numerous
well-cared bonsai shrubs and artificialrock works together with abbot Chanh Hau’s
imposing stupa and his family’s tombs standing under shady trees enclosed by a fence.
Generally speaking, the beauty of Vinh
Trang Pagoda lies in the art of creating forms. One may think that the Vinh Trang pagoda
structure is a brief survey of the history of Tien Giang’s Fine Arts.
At present, Vinh Trang Pagoda is the seat
of the Tien Giang Buddhist Sangha Executive Committee and the Tien Giang Basic School of
Buddhist Studies. Moreover, it has become a main resort for countless tourists and
Buddhist pilgrims who come and go everyday. Among them is the poet Xuan Thuy who paid a
brief visit to the Pagoda once at springtime in the year of the Cock (1982) and offered it
the following stanza;
How compassionate is the Buddha.
Hence Eternity is the name of the Pagoda,
And patriotic indeed are the Buddhist
monks
Whose generous hearties like the immense
Tien River.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
KH’LEANG
PAGODA
71 MAU THAN STREET, SOC TRANG
PROVINCE
Kh’ Leang Pagoda, the most ancient
among numerous pagodas in Soc Trang, is a special structure deeply imprinted by Khmer
Culture.
Situated on a 3,5 hectare lot covered with
many shady trees, it was originally a wooden leaf-roofed house which gradually changed
into a tile-roofedone Since its early days in 1533 until now, it has been under constant
repair and the latest once took place over 80 years ago. Twenty-one generations of abbots
have successively governed the pagoda from the first Patriarch Thach Soc to the Present
Abbot Tang No.
Visitors can enter the pagoda either by
the Main Gate at No71 Mau Than Street or by the side gate on Nguyen Chi Thanh street. The
pagoda base is about 1 metre higher than the road surface and the yard is composed of
three levels, each of which surrounded by a brick fence with four entrances is so
elaborate that it looks like the main gate itself.
Rising upwards at the centre of the pagoda
is the main hall covering 200m2 (9,20m wide*20,8m long).
The three-level wooden roof frame divided
into nine folds is supported by twelve big Corinthian columns, the diameter of which is
1.10 metres each jet black lacquered, and gorgeously decorated with golden curling dragon
and fish images. Two gilded and vermilion-painted netlike panels reaching the ceiling hang
before the altar to the Sakyamuni statue on the pedestal measuring 6,8m, the statue alone
being 2,70 metres high. Behind the statue is stele with the inscription in Khmer
characters saying: "The statue was built in 2460 Buddhist Era by the Venerable Lieu
Duong, a member of the Khmer 17th generation, thanks to the donation from the Lum Sum
family ".
It should be noted that the following
conceptions and images in the architectural features of Kh’Leang Pagoda are closely
connected with Khmer Culture:
-Ho- Cheang is the name of the two
ornately decorated gables with symmetrical motifs.
-Krud or Garuda**is a legendary bird with
a human body and a bird’s head, two feet and two golden wings, its beak holding a
ruby. It is the serpent’s eternal deadly foe; hence images of the serpent’s long
curling tail are carved on the roof front ends while the krud’s carvings are at the
place where the pillar ends and the roof back ends meet.
-Yeak (Yaksa or Demon) in Khmer Legends is
a symbol of evil, which brings harms to man. Yeak is depicted as a ferocious figure in
armour, with a pointed helmet on his head, a wide mouth, long canines, swollen eyes and
slanting eyebrows, holding a long stick in his hand. In Khmer monastic decoration, Yeaks
are converted into Dharma Guardians and places on both sides of the steps to the Main Hall
-The images of Reach Cha Sei, the animal
on which a heavenly nymph and a yeak used to fight each other, are carved on panels of the
doors of the main hall.
-The images of Reahu***, a fierce figure
ready to swallow the sun or the moon which he seizes in his hands, are also carved on
panels of the doors.
- Salas are rows of large houses on stilts
set up on both sides of the main hall and used as the meeting places of Buddhists on
holidays and also the places where food offerings are made to monks.
In the pagoda ground there are 6 stupas
for Buddhist relics. On 27th April, 1990, Kh’leang Pagoda was recognised by the
Ministry of Culture as "a historical and cultural relic "of Soc Trang.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
TAY AN
PAGODA
MOUNT SAM, CHAU DOC,
AN GIANG PROVINCE
One of the most ancient pagodas in
the South famous for its historical and architectural values Tay An Pagoda was built by
Doan Uan, Governor of An Giang Province, in 1847, on the crossroads of Mount Sam, about
five kilometres from Chau Doc
According to "The Records of Unified
Dai Nam, "the Pagoda was erected by the Former General Trung Tin Tu Doan Uan in Vinh
Te Hamlet, Tay Xuyen Distric, in Thieu Tri Year (1847). Standing on a mountain overlooking
the town, leaning against a mountain range in the rear and surrounded by dense ancient
trees, the pagoda is indeed a beauty spot amidst nature"
The pagoda has undergone various
renovations for nearly 150 years. The first extensive restoration happened in 1861, when
the main hall and the Patriarchal House were renovated by order of the Most Venerable Nhat
Thua. The second one happened in 1958, when the Most Venerable Buu Tho play the lead in
collecting donations from both Buddhists and laymen for the construction of the three
old-style towers, the pagoda fasade and the main repair. Today the pagoda architecture is
a combination of Hindu and Islamic arts coloured by Vietnamese national features.
At the Triple Gate is the Statue of the
Holy Lady Thi Kinh carrying Thi Mau ‘s Infant.
On the veranda stand two elephant statues
in attendance, a black two-tusked one and a white six -tusked one.
In the main hall, there are about 200
statues of Buddhas, Bodhisa ttvas, Arahants,Gods and Fairie Most of these wooden satues
are highly-valued works of art, each of which represents a Buddhist philosophical
attitude. The most lively ones are the Four Celestial Kings’Statue, namely,
Dhatarattha, King of the East, Virupakkha, King of the West, Kuvera, King of the North,
Virulhaka, King of the South, and a set of the Eight Vajras (the Diamond Gods),
Dharma-Guardians. Besides, there are many gilded and vermillion-painted horizontal panels
with elaborate carvings and vertical ones with parallel sentences engraved by expert
craftsmen from An Giang and Dong Thap in the 19th century.
The most remarkable among the stupa behind
the Pagoda is that of the Tay An Holy Master The Master, whose lay name is Doan Minh Huyen
of Tong Son (Sa Dec) origin, was born in the year of the Cat (1807) and died in the year
of the Dragon (1856) A progressive Buddhist monk, in 1849, he set out on his preaching
tour propagating the Dharma and treating countless patients around the countryside and
became very popular since then, Finally he lived in seclusion at Tay An Pagoda, where he
was so much admired for his virtue and talent that he became well-known as the Tay An Holy
Master.
Every year, these main holidays are
celebrated at Tay An Pagoda: the Full moon Day of the First lunar month, the Full moon day
of the Tenth lunar Month, and the Death Anniversary of the Tay An Holy Master on the
Twelfth Day of Eighth Lunar Month Countless pilgrims from different towns and cities come
to visit the pagoda on these occasions and attend the Mount Sam Festivals lasting from the
First lunar Month to the Fourth lunar Month in Chau Doc.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
ROYAL-CHARTERED
TAM BAO PAGODA
(TRIPLE THE ROYAL-CHARTERED GEM PAGODA)
NO 6 THICH THIENAN STREET,
RACH GIA, KIEN GIANG PROVINCE
There are two famous pagodas named Tam Bao
in Kien Giang province, the one in Rach Gia was originally the place where Mme Duong Thi
Can alias Mme Hoang led a religious life. She was a benefactress of King Gia Long ‘s
in his flight from the Tay Son’s army and hence the pagoda was granted a royal
charter after his coronation in 1802.
The pagoda is situated at No 6. Thich
Thien An street, Rach Gia. From Nguyen Trung Truc Street you can see its gilded board
entitled the Royal Chartered Tam Bao Pagoda Its main hall is designed after the model of
*an upper storey on a lower veranda".
On the veranda facade is a three -storey
tower symbolising the Nine-Level lotus flower. In the 14,5 metre-wide and 22 metre-long
hall, there are five gilded and well-carved net-like panels before the well-arranged
altars to the Buddha Amitabha, the Buddha Sakyamuni and the Bodhisattvas.
The East Wing serves as the reception
room, and the Abbot’s working office. The West Wing and the Preaching hall serveas
the Tue Tinh House, where medical treatment is free.
The Royal-Chartered Tam Bao Pagoda’s
history is closely connected with name of the most Venerable Abbot Thich Tri Thien, whose
lay name is Nguyen Van Dong. He was born in 1882 and died in 1943. It was the Abbot who
undertook the charge of reconstructing the present pagoda in 1917. Moreover, he himself
founded the South Association, then seated at Linh Son pagoda No149 Donaumont street
(Present Co Giang street) in Sai Gon, published the Tu Bi Am magazine) for Dharma
propagation and established a Ddharma quarter where they carried out research into the
Chinese Buddhist Triple Canon.
Afterwards, the Most Venerable Tri Thien
and Master Thien Chieu, on their return to Rach Gia, founded a Buddhist Association, which
aimed to preach the Dharma and to participate in social activities as well.
After the South Uprising, Tam Bao pagoda
became the place where a group of Viet Minh cadres prepared hand grenades for the second
uprising. When they were found out by the French police, the most Venerable Tri Thien, who
bravely took full responsibility for their plot, was later sent to Con Dao in exile and
died there in 1943. A disciple of his, the young monk Thien An, on being arrested,
heroically sacrificed himself by causing a grenade explosion to kill French secret agents.
All these patriotic deeds have been recorded in a book of poetry entitled "Viet
Nam’s Heroes" by the most Venerable Abbot Thich Bon Chau. The Royal-Chartered
Tam Bao Pagoda was recognised as a historical and cultural relic by the Culture
Ministry’s Decision dated 23 March 1988.
Today, it is the seat of the Kien Giang
Buddhist Sangha Executive-Committee.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan
THE BUDDHA
SAKYA MUNI SHRINE
VUNG TAU BA RIA -
VUNG TAU PROVINCE
Visitors who come to Vung Tau Seaport will
not miss the chance of seeing the Buddha Sakyamuni Shrine, a famous beauty spot on the
North West Slope of the Big Mountain. This monastic structure was erected by the Thevarada
School (The Southern School of the Elders) in 1951 and completed in 1963.
The five-hectare lot consists of Thien Lam
pagoda (the Buddhist Pagoda in the Wood) on the lower part and the Buddha Sakyamuni Shrine
on the upper part. At first, Thien Lam Pagoda was only a small brick house built in 1957
by a retired official of Vung Tau origin. In 1961, the Orthodox Theravada Buddhist Sangha
played the lead in renovating the pagoda and constructing the Buddha Sakyamuni Shrine on
the mountain slope. Besides, they set up a new lodging for Buddhist pilgrims nearby.
Turning left from Ben Dinh Market in Vung
Tau, you can go on about 1km before reaching the foot of the Big Mountain. Close to the
road stands the high Triple gate with its four solid and delicate columns rising upwards.
Behind the gate, you can climb up the steps along the mountain slope with a smooth cliff
on one side and a deep precipice extending to the sea.
As you draw near the mountain top, you
feel as if you were entering a wood clearing resonant with birds' twittering under the
foliage.
Following the paved steps, you can
contemplate statues scattered on the mountain slope depicting the Buddha's stories such as
the Buddha's Jayanti (Birth), the Buddha's Great Renunciation, the Buddha's Enlightenment,
Nibbana, the Buddha's Setting the Dharma Wheel in Motion or the Turning of the Wheel of
the Truth, and the Buddha's MahaParinibbana (Great Decease). The Fruit-Offering to the
Buddha by Elephants and Monkeys… nearby is a park abundant in flowering plants and
bonsai trees all year round, encircling an octagonal house representing the Deer Park (in
Isipatana, near Benares), where the Buddha set the Dhamma Wheel in motion and first
preached the Doctrine to his First Five Disciples, his old companions, namely, the
Venerable Kondanna, Bhaddhiya, Vappa, Mahanama and Assaji.
Standing on the way to the mountain is the
evergreen Bodhi tree which has been growing from a cutting of the Big Bodhi tree (a kind
of fig tree under which the Ascetic Gotama attained Supreme Enlightenment) offered by the
Great Elder Narada from Srilanka on November 2, 1960.
The road leading to the Buddha Shrine is
extended by means of a big stairway decorated with six curling dragons' on either side.
Rising high on the dragons tails are two big lions symbolizing the Great Hero (an epithet
of the Buddha) and his Great Power.
Next comes a large paved courtyard where
stand an octagonal 19 metre high Stupa to the Buddha's Relic in the center and four big
urns at the four corners. Each of them contains an amount of soiled gathered from the four
holy places in India, namely, Lumbini Park, where the Buddha was born, Bodhigaya, where
the Buddha set the Wheel of Truth in motion, and the Sala Grove in Kusinara, where the
Buddha attained Maha parinibbana (the Great Demise, the Final Passing Away).
On the left is the Buddha Sakyamuni statue
sitting cross-legged on the lotus throne. This 10, 20 metre-high statue, the throne
diameter being 6 metres, was inaugurated on March 10, 1963. Both the Buddha Statue and the
Relic Stupa painted in white stand in sharp relief against the blue sky and the green
leaves.
From the Buddha Shrine overlooking the sea
all around the Big Mountain Slope, you can catch sight of the Can Gio Cape, the Long Son
Isle and the oil-rig complex far away. Because of its geographical position and its
spectacular scenery, the Buddha Shrine Area has become celebrated cultural tourist spot
that attracts numerous visitors who come from everywhere on earth.
Translated by Tran
Phuong Lan.
- The End -
[Vietnamese
Version]
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