My Cu Pagoda

My Cu Pagoda is considered the oldest pagoda in Thuy Nguyen and one of the oldest in the port city of Hai Phong.

Overview of My Cu Pagoda

My Cu Pagoda, also known as Linh Son, is located in My Cu village, Le Ich Moc Ward, Hai Phong City. The pagoda has a unique location, with its back leaning against a long, small mountain called “Dragon Mountain”. The overall pagoda is designed in 3 floors, gradually rising from the foot of the mountain.

This area, once reclaimed land by ancient Vietnamese people, has become a village community through clearing mountains and rocks, leveling hills, and filling valleys. After thousands of years of development with Vietnamese villages, this place owns a rich complex of historical, cultural, and religious relics, including 5 communal houses, 5 pagodas, and many ancient temples, shrines, and other places of worship.

According to the genealogy and oral tradition of the ancients, Linh Son Pagoda bears the mark of historical periods: ancient, modern, and contemporary.

It is said that in the past, the parents of King Le Dai Hanh (941 – 1005) came to this pagoda to pray for a child and then gave birth to him, the king who replaced the Dinh Dynasty and opened the Le Dynasty, with particularly important marks in the feudal history of Vietnam.

At My Cu Pagoda, there are still traces of the Duong Chan hermitage, along with other notable vestiges such as the Trang Hoc field, a stone well, and a washing bridge… In particular, My Cu Pagoda was also the base of the insurgent army in the peasant uprising led by Tran Cao, contributing to the collapse of the political system in the early Le Dynasty, leading to the birth of the Ly Dynasty.

Not only associated with feudal history, but My Cu Pagoda is also a landmark location in the history of the resistance war from 1930 to 1945. My Cu Pagoda was a place where patriotic monks met to discuss work and participate in the resistance zone, and by 1945, it became the revolutionary headquarters in the region.

According to the elders in the village, during the years of the resistance war against the French, in response to the call for national resistance, a number of monks at the pagoda joined the resistance. That is why in the pagoda garden today, there is a memorial area for monks who contributed to the resistance war against the French.

Unique of My Cu Pagoda

My Cu Pagoda is located at the site of the five sacred animals: phoenix, dragon, turtle, tiger, and elephant. In order from the foot to the middle of the mountain, the pagoda is arranged in the following order: upper, middle, lower. Surrounding the pagoda is a dense forest with pine and cypress trees; in front is an orchard, mainly lychee and longan. According to the pagoda’s abbot, the ancient trees surrounding the pagoda and the orchard here are also hundreds of years old.

In addition, My Cu Pagoda also has a special mark with Buddha statues; the most distinctive is the Amitabha Buddha statue, 2.3m high, with a lotus diameter of 1.4m, carved from ironwood growing in the pagoda, so this statue is very sturdy and cannot be moved.

The most impressive thing in the pagoda is the Buddha statues. In total, the dharma statues in the pagoda include 27, carved from wood and cast in bronze… At the foot of the mountain, in front of the main hall, is the ancient tower garden, including 2 stone towers and 8 brick towers. In the pagoda, there are still some ancient steles recording the times of restoration and renovation, the stone pillar of the Chinh Hoa era (1680 – 1705), the bronze bell of the Minh Mang era in 1836…

Today, when you come to My Cu Pagoda, you can not only admire the ancient beauty of this pagoda but also have the opportunity to participate in the festival. Every year on the 6th day of the first lunar month, My Cu Pagoda hosts a festival with a long-standing tradition, attracting many people in the area to participate.

After the ups and downs, the pagoda’s mark has not been lost but has been increasingly restored and renovated to reflect its history.

If you come to Hai Phong and want to find ancient spaces, My Cu Pagoda will definitely be a new experience for you. Visiting My Cu Pagoda, you will admire the unique, ancient beauty of a pagoda perched on a rocky mountain, along with the peaceful natural landscape that will help you have a memorable spiritual trip.

Source: collected by An

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