Explore the historical site of Lai Da village, the hometown of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

Lai Da village preserves intact the cultural space including the communal house worshiping Nguyen Hien, the first top scholar under the Tran dynasty; the temple worshiping the holy mother Tien Dung, who assisted Nguyen Hien and the Canh Phuc pagoda.

Lai Da Temple. (Source: Vietnam Buddhist Sangha)

Located along the Duong River, Lai Da village (Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh town, Hanoi ) is the hometown of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, who devoted his entire life to the country and people.

According to legend, Lai Da village appeared at the same time as Co Loa citadel. Up to now, despite the ups and downs of time, the village still retains many ancient features with constructions bearing the characteristics of the Northern Delta region.

Lai Da village still preserves intact the cultural space including the communal house worshiping Nguyen Hien, the first laureate under the Tran dynasty (1247), the temple worshiping the holy mother Tien Dung, who assisted Nguyen Hien and the pagoda named Canh Phuc.

On September 5, 1989, the Ministry of Culture and Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) ranked the Lai Da architectural and artistic relic cluster as a National Monument.

Let's explore the relics in Lai Da ancient village - the hometown of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Lai Da communal house, pagoda and temple

Lai Da Temple

Lai Da Communal House worships Nguyen Hien (1235-1256). Nguyen Hien was born on July 12, At Mui year (1235), in Vuong Mien village, Thuong Hien district (later changed to Thuong Nguyen, Thien Truong prefecture, Son Nam route), now Duong A village, Nam Thang commune, Nam Truc district, Nam Dinh province. Nguyen Hien was famous for being intelligent since childhood.

Passed the Imperial examination in the year of Dinh Mui, the 16th year of Thien Ung Chinh Binh (1247), under the reign of Tran Thai Tong, at the age of 13. Nguyen Hien was the youngest Imperial examination winner in the Vietnamese imperial examinations.

Nguyen Hien was an official with the title of "Minister of Public Works". During his years as an official in the court, he had many good strategies to help the king and the country. In the year At Hoi, our country was invaded by the Champa invaders. The king was very worried so he assigned the first-ranking scholar Nguyen Hien to fight and defend the country. Shortly after, the enemy army was defeated. The scholar Hien gathered his troops back to Vu Minh Son, held a feast to reward the troops, and reported to the king. The king was extremely happy and gave the scholar the title of "First-ranking noble mandarin". In agriculture, he built dikes along the Red River, developed production, and had successful harvests. In the military, he opened martial arts schools to train soldiers.

On August 14, Binh Ty year (1256), Nguyen Hien, the first-ranking scholar, fell seriously ill and passed away at the age of 21. The king mourned and posthumously conferred on him the title of “Dai Vuong Thanh Hoang” and honored him as a god in 32 places, including Lai Da communal house in Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi.

According to the genealogy, Lai Da communal house was built after 1276, at first called a temple, at the end of the 18th century it was converted into a communal house. The current communal house was built in 1853. This is an ancient and majestic structure, built in a continuous style, on a beautiful piece of land, the land of a tiger's crouching. In front of the communal house there are two round ponds called 2 lakes, in the middle there is a tiger's tongue rock, behind the communal house is a tiger's body and then a tiger's tail. The communal house door faces south, in front is a field, further away is the Duong River. Lai Da communal house has been renovated many times. The 2002-2003 renovation was the largest, with a budget of 1.5 billion VND invested by the State.

Lai Da Communal House is built with large pillars connected to the surrounding wall running parallel, on both sides connecting to the temple gate and the temple door. The main hall consists of 5 compartments, the wooden rafters are carved in the style of the Later Le Dynasty (18th century). In the rear palace, there is a wooden throne painted with red and gilded lacquer, a pair of 17th-century style unicorns and a statue of Nguyen Hien placed in the middle.

Lai Da Communal House still preserves 20 royal decrees, the earliest one is from the reign of Khanh Duc (Le Thanh Tong) March 19, Nham Thin year 1652, and the last one is from the reign of King Khai Dinh on July 25, 1924.

Lai Da Pagoda. (Source: Vietnam Buddhist Sangha)

Lai Da Pagoda is located close to the east of the communal house, the pagoda's Chinese name is Canh Phuc Tu. Lai Da village pagoda was built long ago and has undergone many renovations. Based on the traces and some remaining relics, it can be guessed that the pagoda was built in the Later Le Dynasty; before that, there was a pagoda in the Tran Dynasty.

The pagoda is planned in two rows: the front row is the Tam Bao house, the back row is the rear worship house (also called Tu Hau Duong). The Tam Quan gate is located close to the entrance to the communal house, built in the 8th year of the Canh Thinh dynasty (1800). The Tam Bao house has been degraded due to its long existence.

With the approval of the local government, the villagers and the pagoda led by the abbot Dam Nguyen rebuilt the Patriarch's house in 2003 and rebuilt the Tam Bao in 2004 using socialized funding (donations from villagers and sponsors). The current pagoda is very large and impressive.

Lai Da Temple

Lai Da Temple, also known as the temple, is located in the west and right next to the village communal house. The temple worships the Holy Mother Tien Dung (an angel), who, according to legend, helped the first-ranking scholar Nguyen Hien defeat the invading army of Champa, and was appointed the Goddess of Fortune by the Tran Dynasty.

Lai Da Temple (Source: Buddhist Sangha)

The temple was built around 1276, after Nguyen Hien died. The old temple was small and narrow, but in the 10th year of Khai Dinh (1925), the temple was expanded. The temple is arranged in the shape of the letter "nhi", the back house is where the pedestal is located, with a shrine to the Holy Mother. Every year on the 11th day of the third lunar month, a team of female mandarins dressed in ceremonial costumes perform a ceremony at the temple.

The Lai Da communal house-pagoda-temple relic complex is located in a large area, with heritage architecture blending into the landscape of green trees and a charming feng shui lake. In the yard of the relic site is a 300-year-old Bodhi tree providing shade, making visitors feel very light and comfortable.

Lai Da communal house, pagoda and temple were ranked as historical and architectural relics by the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1989.

Hoi Phu Temple

Hoi Phu communal house and temple is located in Hoi Phu village, Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi. In the past, it was also called Cu Trinh village in Coi Giang region, later became Coi Hoi Phu commune.

Hoi Phu village is located next to Tien Hoi village, the land associated with the legend of King An Duong Vuong building Co Loa citadel. Coi commune land with many events and characters associated with the Hai Ba Trung uprising in the early years of the Christian era.

The Association is associated with the names of scholars such as: Chu Phong - Doctor of the Year of the Dragon, the 3rd year of the Hong Duc era (1472), Chu Thien Khai - Doctor of the Year of the Dog, the 5th year of the Canh Thong era (1502), Chu Su Dong - Doctor of the Year of the Dog, the 6th year of the Hong Thuan era (1514), Chu Su Van - Doctor of the Year of the Dragon, the 4th year of the Quang Hoa era (1544), Ngo The Tri - Doctor of the Year of the Goat, the 36th year of the Canh Hung era (1775). All of them have created a historical and cultural foundation of the village worthy of being the cultural land of Dong Ngan.

Temple of the Fathers

Hoi Phu Temple is a historical and religious relic worshiping Mr. Dao Ky and Mrs. Phuong Dung, two talented generals of Hai Ba Trung in the early days of defending the country and gaining independence for Vietnam. The achievements of the two men and women are passed down through folklore and Chinese historical sources still preserved in the relic.

The history and achievements of the two grandparents can be summarized as follows: At the beginning of the Common Era, our country was under the domination of the Han Dynasty, the people were extremely miserable, the greedy policies of To Dinh made the people miserable. At that time, there were two grandparents, Dao Minh and Tran Thi Te, from Thanh Hoa, who came to Coi Giang in Dong Ngan to live.

Here, they gave birth to a son named Dao Ky, who grew up to be a good student and talented in martial arts. At the same time, in Luong Tai district, Vinh Te village, Thuan An prefecture, Kinh Bac region, there was a family of Mr. Nguyen Trat, his wife was Truong Thi Nghia, who gave birth to 3 sons and 1 daughter named Phuong Dung, who was virtuous, well-behaved, and talented in both literature and martial arts.

The two met, loved each other for their virtues, respected each other for their talents, and were united in their hearts, working together to avenge their families and repay their country's debt. When the Trung Sisters raised their army, the couple Dao Ky and Phuong Dung brought more than 100 of their family members to pay their respects and join the army. They, along with a large army, defeated To Dinh and won.

The country was at peace, Trung Vuong sent them to look after the Dong Ngan region. Three years later, Ma Vien invaded our country, the couple and many other generals were sent to Lang Son to defend. The enemy was strong, the Two Ladies sacrificed, Dao Ky and his wife got separated, Dao Ky was slashed in the neck but still held his head and ran back to Coi Giang through Co Loa area, then he collapsed from exhaustion, the knots formed a grave.

Phuong Dung later escaped the siege and returned to Dong Ngan. Through Co Loa, she saw a termite grave rising up. She asked the old woman selling water on the roadside and found out who her husband was. She then pulled out her sword and committed suicide. Later, the termites rose up again to form a double grave with Dao Ky's, that was on the 16th day of the 7th lunar month.

Hoi Phu Communal House

Hoi Phu Communal House is a place for cultural exchange and meetings of the people during local holidays. The communal house worships Viet King Trieu Quang Phuc, who had great merit in helping Ly Nam De defeat the Liang army. After Ly Nam De died, he succeeded to the throne for 23 years before passing away.

According to folk legend, Hoi Phu was once the headquarters of Trieu Quang Phuc, where he raised troops to fight against the Liang Dynasty's invaders. Later, he also ordered the granting of fields to the people of Hoi Phu and the people asked to build a temple to pay their respects to him and to honor him as the village's tutelary god, worshiping him along with Mr. and Mrs. Dao Ky - Phuong Dung.

Hoi Phu Temple and Communal House are religious structures serving the spiritual needs of the people. The temple was formerly a shrine built on the private residence of Mr. and Mrs. Dao Ky-Phuong Dung to worship after their death. The temple has a "two" structure including the Front Hall and the Back Hall. The architecture is small but still retains the ancient traditional features with a solemn and ancient look.

The communal house was formerly called Cu Trinh, and was the largest communal house in Coi commune. After many renovations, the communal house still retains the original Tien Te house, also known as Phuong Dinh, with a 2-storey, 8-roofed structure, 8 flower-shaped corners with dragon-shaped leaves. On the roof are the sun and two ends of the clamps with decorative themes of dragons, unicorns, turtles, phoenixes, dragons on the top, and leaves on the top... decorating the architecture with embossed and carved panels in the style of 19th-century art.

The majestic communal house has 7 spacious rooms including the main hall and the rear palace. The surrounding communal house is covered with wooden planks in the upper and lower panels. In front, the entire system of panel doors creates a solemn space for the religious building.

The communal house still preserves a number of valuable relics such as the royal decree, the throne, the tablet, the palanquin and many other worship objects dating from the 18th-19th century.

Every year, the people hold a festival on the 15th day of the third lunar month. The Association and 6 villages worship Dao Ky - Phuong Dung and organize a procession at Phuc Tho village, Mai Lam commune to celebrate the saint. The festival demonstrates the solidarity of the community and cultural exchange of the entire Coi commune.

With its historical and architectural values, Hoi Phu Communal House and Temple were ranked as National Historical and Architectural Relics by the Ministry of Culture and Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) in 1996.

TH (Vietnam+)

Source: https://baophutho.vn/kham-pha-di-tich-lich-su-lang-lai-da-que-huong-cua-tong-bi-thu-nguyen-phu-trong-215953.htm