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Ha Noi is the capital
of Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Ha Noi
lies in Red River Delta and is situated in a
tropical area having a strong monsoon
influence. The name of Ha Noi (Interior side
of a river) has been derived from an ancient
language which is literally known as a land
area located in the inner side of Red River.
It does not mean that the city is inside the
river, but it is embraced by about 100 km of
the Red River dykes. Ha Noi has nine inner
precincts (Hoan Kiem, Ba Dinh, Hai Ba Trung,
Dong Da, Cau Giay, Tay Ho, Thanh Xuan, Long
Bien, Hoang Mai) and five suburban districts
(Tu Liem, Thanh Tri, Gia Lam, Dong Anh and
Soc Son).
One- Pillar Pagoda
Chua mot cot (One-pillar Pagoda) : Its
original name was Dien Huu (long-lasting
happiness and good luck). Legend has it that
King Lý Thai Tong was very old and had no
son of his own. Therefore, he often went to
pagodas to pray for Buddha's blessing so
that he might have a son. One night, he had
a dream that he was granted a private
audience with Buddha with a male baby in his
hands. Buddha, sitting on a lotus flower in
a square-shaped lotus pond in the western
side of Thang Long Citadel, gave the king
the baby. Months later, the queen got
pregnant and gave birth to a male child*. To
repay gift from Buddha, the king ordered the
construction of a pagoda which was supported
by only one pillar resembling a lotus seat
on which Buddha had been seated. The pagoda
was dedicated to Buddha.
Quoc Tu Giam (Temple of Literature) was
built in 1070 as a dedication to the founder
of Confucianism. Six years later, Quoc Tu
Giam - the first university of Vietnam - was
built in the premises of Van Mieu. Quoc Tu
Giam was the first school for princes and
children of royal family members. In 1482,
King Le Thanh Tong ordered the erection of
steles with inscription of all the names,
birth dates and birth places of doctors and
other excellent graduates who took part in
examinations since 1442. Each stela is
placed on the back of a turtle representing
the nation's longevity. During Nha Nguyen
(Nguyen Dynasty), Temple of Literature was
moved to Phu Xuan (Hue Royal City).
Golden Lotus Pagoda (Kim Lien
Pagoga).
* Chua Kim Lien (Kim Lien Pagoda) : Legend
has it that in the 12th century, Princess Tu
Hoa, daughter of King Lý Than Ton , led her
ladies-in-waiting to this area. They
cultivated mulberry and silkworms to make
silk. Later, a pagoda was built right on the
site and by 1771, it was named Kim Lien
(Golden Lotus).
Quan Su Pagoda
*Chua Quan Su (Quan Su Pagoda) was built in
the 17th century. It is located in the
street of the same name. Since 1958, Vietnam
Buddhism Association has used this pagoda as
its head office.
Quan Thanh Temple
* Den Quan Thanh (Quan Thanh Temple) : The
three ancient Chinese characters which are
still seen today on the top of the entrance
to the temple mean Tran Vu Quan. Literally,
the temple is dedicated to Saint Tran Vu.
Temples are places for worshipping saints
while pagodas are dedicated to Buddha and
faithful disciplines. Saint Tran Vu was a
legendary figure which was a combination
between a legendary character in Vietnam's
legend and a mystic character derived from
China's legend. In Vietnam's legend, he was
a saint who had earned the merits of
assisting Thuc Phan (future King An Duong
Vuong) in getting rid of ghost spirit during
the construction of CoLoa Citadel. An Duong
Vuong Temple in CoLoa Citadel (Dong Anh
district) is also named Thuong Temple.
Inside it, there are An Duong Vuong's bronze
statue (cast in 1897) and a big arbalest
symbolizing the magic arbalest in the old
days. In China's legend, Saint Tran Vu was a
saint who had made many contributions in
safeguarding the northern border. Quan Th¸nh
Temple was built during the reign of King
LýThai To (1010-1028). Special attention
should be paid to the black bronze statue of
Saint Tran Vu. Another object of no less
significance is a smaller black bronze
statue of Old Trong, a chief artisan of the
bronze casting team who had made the giant
statue of Saint Tran Vu and the great bell
on top of the entrance.
Ngoc Son Temple
* Den Ngoc Son (Ngoc Son Temple) :
Initially, the temple was called Ngoc Son
Pagoda. Later, it was renamed as Ngoc Son
Temple, because it was dedicated to the
saints. Saint Van Xuong was a person
considered the brightest star in Vietnam's
literature and intellectual circles. Tran
Hung Dao was worshipped because he was the
national hero who led the Vietnamese people
to a resounding victory over the Mongol
aggression. The temple as it is seen today
was attributable to the restoration efforts
of Nguyen Van Sieu, a great Hanoian writer.
He had a large pen-shaped tower (Thap But)
built at the entrance to the temple
On the upper section of Thap But, there are
three Chinese characters Ta Thanh Thien
which mean literally that to write on the
blue sky is to imply the height of a genuine
and righteous person's determination and
will. Behind Thap But is Dai Nghien (Ink
Stand). The Ink Stand is carved from stone
resembling a peach, which is placed on the
back of three frogs on top of the gate to
the temple. Passing through Dai Nghien,
visitors will tread on the wooden bridge
called The Huc. The Huc is literally
understood as the place where beams of
morning sunshine are touching.
Besides, Ha Noi has such attractions as Ho
Chi Minh's Mausoleum, Ho Chi Minh Museum,
History Museum, Revolution Museum, Army
Museum, Fine Arts Museum, Palace of
Friendship....
Festival Hai Ba Trung
Den Hai Ba Trung (Hai Ba Trung Temple) is
also called Dong Nhan Temple, because it is
located in Dong Nhan village, Hai Ba Trung
precinct. Built in 1142 under the reign of
King Lý Anh Ton, it is dedicated to the two
Vietnamese heroines Trung Trac and Trung
Nhi. On the 5th and 6th days of the lunar
second month , there is a grand festival at
this temple to commemorate the two national
heroines.
West Lake
HoTay (West Lake) &Duong Thanh Nien (Youth
Road) : Youth Road can be compared to a
beautiful bridge spanning across the two
large bodies of water - West Lake to the
northwest and Truc Bach Lake to the
southeast. Covering an area of nearly 500
hectares, Ho Tay was also called Dam Dam
(Misty Pond), Lang Bac (White Waves)...
.Oral tradition has it that HoTay derived
from a low-lying area upturned by a golden
buffalo, so the stream derived from Ho Tay
was named Song Kim Nguu (Golden Buffalo
River). As for Truc Bach Lake, legend has it
that in the old days, Truc Bach Lake was
where lived the abandoned ladies-in-waiting
who were forced to weave silk. Therefore,
beautiful silk was called Truc Bach (Silk of
the Truc village). As the biggest lake in
the city, HoTay is surrounded by many areas
reputed for their traditional occupations
:Yen Phu and Nghi Tam (silkworm-breeding and
silk-weaving villages in the past), Quang
Ba, Nhat Tan (peach-growing village), Buoi
(paper-making village). In Tay Son times,
Nguyen Huy Luong wrote Tông Tay Ho Phó
(Eulogy for West Lake) so as to highlight
the landscapes of the West Lake and Nguyen
Hue (future Quang Trung)'s glorious
merits. Now, Ho Tay has been earmarked for
the city's major tourism development center.
Hoan Kiem Lake
* Ho Hoan Kiem (Lake of Restored Sword) :
The name of this lake is derived from a
legend having it that a fisherman named
LeThan caught a sword blade when drawing the
fish-net. Than decided to offer it to his
commanding general Le Loi (future Le Thai
To). Afterwards, LeLoi found a hilt fitting
that blade very well. This sword had always
been on his side during 10 years of
resistance against Ming aggressors. After
winning over the foreign aggression, King Le
Thai To returned to Thang Long Citadel .One
day, aboard a royal boat, he took a cruise
in the Luc Thuy lake. Suddenly, a giant
turtle emerged and came towards him. The
king withdrew his sword, and pinpointed with
the sword the direction of the coming turtle
for his soldiers' attention.
All of a sudden, the turtle caught the sword
between its teeth from the king's hand and
submerged. The king thought that during the
resistance against Ming aggressors, the
genius had offered him this sword to help
him defeat the enemy. At that time, the
peace was returning, and the genius appeared
to take back the sword. Consequently, King
Le Thai To decided to name the Luc Thuy lake
Ho Hoan Kiem (Lake of Restored Sword). In
the middle of the lake is Thap Rua (Turtle
Tower). The lake abounds in big turtles aged
five or six hundred. When there are the
changes in weather, they often emerge or
expose themselves at the foot of the Turtle
Temple. |
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