A view of the Tien Te shrine in the inner city of Do Temple

Located in Dinh Bang Village in Tu Son District of Bac Ninh Province, 20 kilometers from Hanoi, Do Temple or Ly Bat De (Eight Kings of Ly Dynasty) Temple honoring the eight kings of the Ly Dynasty (1009–1225) in Vietnamese history has an important role in the spiritual life of Vietnamese people with its richness in Vietnamese culture.

In fact the Ly Dynasty has eight kings and one queen, but the queen, Ly Chieu Hoang, the last of the dynasty, was worshiped at Rong (Dragon) Temple, two kilometers west of Do Temple.

The Ly Dynasty originally originated in Dinh Bang (Co Phap) Village, one of the oldest villages in the north.

According to Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu, a famous book about Vietnamese history written by many generations of Vietnamese historians in the feudal time, Do Temple was built in 1019 by the first king of the Ly Dynasty, Ly Cong Uan or Ly Thai To and was enlarged by his son Ly Thai Tong in 1030. The temple was used by Ly Thai To to meet the people to ask about their opinions on plans to safeguard the country.

The Temple was built on an elevated area of land of 31,250 square meters. It is surrounded by high walls and more than 20 architectural works and is divided to two parts: inner city and outer city.

Access to the inner city is through the Ngu Long (five dragons) gate, which is skillfully carved, and then to Tien Te House, the shrine to worship the first king.

Hanging on the left side of the shrine is the royal proclamation of the moving of the capital city from Hoa Lu to Thang Long (Hanoi) of King Ly Cong Uan. The proclamation has 214 words corresponding to 214 years of rule by the eight Ly kings. The 180 square-meter Co Phap Dien shrine is the site of many relics including ancestral altars, the thrones and the statues of the eight kings and a shrine to worship the kings’ wives, among others.

In the outer city is a half–moon shaped lake with a floating pavilion and Van chi and Vo chi houses. The lake and the floating pavilion, on an area of 9,500 square meters, served as a place for the mandarins to watch water puppetry. An image of this architectural construction was printed on the banknotes of the Bank of Indochina. Van chi and Vo chi houses are places to worship the civil mandarins (van chi) and military mandarins (vo chi) who are greatly respected by the country.

A special tour guide works at Do Temple: Nguyen Duc Thin is a member of the management board of Do Temple, a son of Dinh Bang Village, a labor hero and people’s teacher. Thin has a strong attachment with his homeland and a thorough knowledge of the temple. He guides visitors to the antique and very precious stone stele recording the restoration of the temple by King Le Kinh Tong (1605) on the eastern side of Do Temple.

In 1952, the temple was destroyed by the French army and was restored in 1989 and Thin, who was at that time a member in the teenage guerilla army of Dinh Bang Village in the war against the French, witnessed the French using this stele as a shooting target.

Also on show are photographs taken by Thin and other tourists at Do Temple depicting a strange phenomenon of a cloud formation of a group of people at the head of the temple, which are believed by the locals as the manifestation of the Ly kings in the temple.

A traditional Do Temple festival annually celebrated by the locals on the 15th, 16th and 17th day of the third lunar month to commemorate the coronation of Ly Cong Uan attracts thousands of pilgrims every year.

Source: VietNamNet Bridge