How did people create the 'golden lotus on the sacred peak of Yen Tu'?

This is considered a 'unique' wonder of Vietnamese Buddhism in the early 21st century .

Where is Dong Pagoda located? Whom to worship?

There is a parallel poem that you can hear when you come to Yen Tu, which is:

'Hundreds of years of accumulating virtue and practice.

Haven't returned to Yen Tu yet, can't bear to practice.

This is an extremely famous verse when referring to this ancestral land of Vietnamese Buddhism.

Dong Pagoda, also known as Thien Truc Tu, is located on the top of the Yen Tu range at an altitude of 1068m above sea level, in Nam Mau village, Thuong Yen Cong commune, Uong Bi city, Quang Ninh province.

In the past, Yen Tu was called Bach Van Son (white cloud mountain) and was listed as a famous mountain. Yen Tu Pagoda was chosen by Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong as a place of practice after ascending the throne and establishing the Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen sect.

Looking up from below, you will see the pagoda covered by clouds and fog, looking like a fairyland. (Photo: MIA)

Dong Pagoda has a Dinh (丁) shaped structure following the shape of a blooming lotus. In the pagoda, there is a statue of Sakyamuni Buddha and 3 statues of Tam Patriarch Truc Lam. Statue of Shakyamuni wearing a robe, meditating in the lotus position. The three Patriarch statues all sit on lotus stands, decorated with patterns of lotus, chrysanthemum, and water waves: The middle worships King Tran Nhan Tong, the two sides worship Venerable Phap Loa and Huyen Quang.

Dong Yen Tu Pagoda is located about 130km from Hanoi. And with this distance, you can choose many means of departure to Yen Tu, such as passenger cars or personal vehicles:

Traveling by personal vehicle (car, motorbike): Follow Chuong Duong bridge through Nguyen Van Cu, follow National Highway 18 to Bac Ninh. From here, you go straight, when you see Trinh pagoda, turn left, go about 10km and you will reach Yen Tu.

Travel to Yen Tu mountain tourist area by bus: From Hanoi, you take buses to Cam Pha, Uong Bi, Ha Long to get to Yen Tu spiritual tourist area. When the car reaches Trinh Pagoda section on Highway 18, you get off the bus. From here, you take the bus to Yen Tu.

Dong Yen Tu Pagoda is about 130km from Hanoi. (Photo: Google Maps)

History of Dong Pagoda formation

Originally, Dong Pagoda was named Thien Truc Tu (Thien Truc Pagoda) named after the country of Buddha Tathagata Shakyamuni: 'Thien Truc Country' . The pagoda was cast in bronze, initially it was just a small prison that one person could not fit through.

According to information from Tri Thuc and Life newspaper, based on the book Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chi, the pagoda was built by Lord Trinh's wife, and in the year of Canh Than (1740), it was stolen by thieves, leaving only the perforated pillar holes remaining. deep into the bedrock. The book "Viem Giao Giao Co Ky" writes : 'Dong Pagoda was built by the Trinh family, the roof was completely covered with bronze tiles, and bronze statues were cast. During the Canh Hung dynasty of the Le dynasty, the pagoda remains remained .

In 1930, Ms. Bui Thi My recreated the Dong Pagoda with bronze-reinforced concrete on a square stone taller than a person's head at the old Dong Pagoda's location.

In 1993, Mr. Nguyen Son Nam, an overseas Vietnamese in the US, and other overseas Buddhists were determined to recast a new pagoda with 'Dinh' shaped architecture in the shape of a blooming lotus placed right next to the Dong pagoda. made of concrete in the early 20th century.

In 2006, Venerable Thich Thanh Quyet (Venerable Thich Thanh Quyet) and the Dong Pagoda Project Management Board chaired the groundbreaking ceremony to cast the pagoda based on the design of architect Tran Quoc Tuan. The pagoda was officially completed in 2007. The two old pagodas were moved to the exhibition house of the Monuments Management Board.

Unique architecture of Dong Pagoda

According to the People's Army newspaper, the Bronze Pagoda weighs 60 tons, the bronze pagoda's area is 16.55m2, the highest bronze pillar is more than 3m, the lowest bronze pillar is 2m60, and 2m20, in total the pagoda includes 16 bronze pillars, diameter Copper columns from 20cm to 30cm.

This is the largest bronze temple in Asia. (Photo: MIA).

Dong Yen Tu Pagoda is famous not only for its sacredness but also for its unique architecture. The pagoda's terrain is shaped like a giant lotus . On each side of the rock is a blooming lotus petal. Dong Pagoda is located in the middle of the lotus platform. The pagoda's four sword heads are shaped like dragon heads in the architectural style of the Tran Dynasty. The roof extends out in all directions to form a porch. Below the wall is decorated with leaf-shaped strip patterns. The front porch has bamboo-shaped railings.

Pagoda tiles shaped like funny noses, partition wall panels, fence posts, cranes, couplets, and dragon reliefs are all vividly cast. The altar used to place a bronze statue weighing 4 tons and floor tiles weighing 13kg.

Dong Pagoda is permanently placed on a concrete foundation floor (5m long x 4m wide). This floor is placed on concrete columns more than 2 meters long, molded directly into the foundation floor and embedded deep into the mountain.

How did the construction process of Dong Pagoda take place?

The entire Dong Pagoda project was cast using traditional manual methods by a union of workers from Y Yen bronze casting village (Nam Dinh).

According to the People's Army newspaper, those who directly constructed and assembled the bronze pagoda on the top of Yen Tu mountain said: "The entire pagoda frame such as supporting columns, horizontal beams, and longitudinal bronze beams were cast in bronze by a group of Italian artisans. Yen-Nam Dinh, cast right at the foot of Yen Tu mountain. We then test-assembled the pagoda frame at the foot of the mountain, then disassembled it, used cables and winches to transport all the bronze columns and beams from the foot of the mountain. up to the top of the mountain. When we got there, we assembled the pagoda frame according to the pagoda model drawing."

Inside the temple, the architecture is simple but still impressive because the interior is mostly made of bronze. (Photo: MIA)

Tien Phong newspaper analyzed this process more closely, saying that the construction workers created a space about 20 square meters wide ^to build the foundation to support the pagoda. The hard rock base has been weathered for many years, and mountain drilling machines are very limited in their ability to work, so crushing rocks by hand is common.

The entire transportation route of Dong Pagoda is 3,500m towards an altitude of 1,068m above sea level. How can the pagoda details be transferred from the ground to the top of the mountain and reassembled? Transport options by road, pulley cables, even helicopters were considered. Finally, the option of transporting by pulley cable was considered the most feasible option. Accordingly, the construction unit drove piles at 6 points along the road from Giai Oan Pagoda to Dong Pagoda and then installed a winch cable system to transport raw materials and casting details.

Bricks, stones, sand, gravel, and cement to build items such as merit-recording houses, ceremony grounds, shrines, foundations, and pagoda yards. are almost all transported by road. The local labor force who is familiar with mountain roads must carry materials from the foot of the mountain to the top. During peak construction times, there are up to 80-90 people hired to carry the load with a wage of 3,000 VND/kg, Inspectorate newspaper added.

After nearly 360 days of continuous construction, the record-breaking bronze pagoda was inaugurated on December 12, 2006 (lunar calendar).

Dong Pagoda currently holds many records in Vietnam and Asia:

1. The largest bronze temple on top of a mountain in Asia in 2012
2. The largest pagoda made of bronze is recognized by the Vietnam Record Book Center
3. The temple is located at the highest position in Vietnam
4. The temple is known as the 'newest wonder'

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