KIM LIEN PAGODA

Kim Lien Pagoda with the pen name of "Thiên Phúc tự" (Thien Phuc Temple) which was later changed to "Kim Hoa tự" (Kim Hoa Temple) is located at 180, Group 1, Phuong Lien Ward, Dong Da District, Hanoi City. Under the Le dynasty, the pagoda was located in Kim Hoa ward, Tho Xuong district, the capital of Thang Long. By the middle of the 19th century, it belonged to Ta Nghiem (later changed to Kim Lien), Tho Xuong, Hoai Duc district, Hanoi province.

Legend has it that the pagoda was constructed very early and in the Revival Le dynasty, the pagoda was restored and expanded to become a famous landscape of the capital land. During the Tay Son period, the head monk ordered to cast the "Kim Hoa tự chung" (Bell of Kim Hoa Temple) bell and repaired the Buddha shrine. At the end of the Nguyen Dynasty, the pagoda was seriously degraded; the head monk together with the people and tourists from everywhere restored and innovated the pagoda to make it become spacious. The architectural scale today is the result of the restoration in 2009 with the work items of: Three-door gate, Front Hall and Main Hall, Patriarch house, Mother Goddess House, reception house and the auxiliary works.

The Three-door gate of Kim Lien pagoda is an architecture of 3 gates built with arches in the style of a stack of matchboxes with two floors and eight roofs creating a sense of elegance and flexibility. The roof top is decorated with pattern of young lion, the roof top is decorated with the pattern of flowers and a large copper bell is hung inside. On the gate, there are 3 Chinese characters of "Kim Hoa tự" (Kim Hoa Temple). The link between the three gates is a system of copper pillars decorated with the patterns of leaves and motifs; and the pillar body is installed with the parallel sentences in Chinese language.

The Front Hall is a house with 5 compartments built with a gable wall and traditional tiled roof. In the middle of the roof, there is a horizontal lacquered board with 3 Chinese characters "Kim Hoa tự" (Kim Hoa Temple), the side compartments open the door system in the style of "Bars on top and wooden flank at bottom”. The frame consists of 6 sets of wooden beams which are connected to each other in the style of "Overlaid beams and Gong hanging frame in upper and sculptured wooden boards in lower" on the ground of 4 rows of columns. The decoration is focused on the edges, kingposts with the topics of leaves, dragon, cloud etc. bearing the art style of the Nguyen Dynasty.

The Main Hall is a house with 4 compartments in the back that forms the “丁" shaped structure. The house is built with gable walls and traditional tiled roofs. The frame consists of 5 sets of wooden beams which are connected together in the style of “Upper beam and lower bracket system” combined with a wooden board on the foundation of two rows of columns. Close to the back wall, there are high brick platforms for displaying the layers of statues. At the top is the Tam Thế statue set, representing 3,000 Buddhas across the three times: past, present, and future. The second layer features the statues of Amitabha Buddha, Avalokiteshvara, and Mahasthamaprapta. Following that are the statues of Cundi Bodhisattva, Maitreya Buddha, Brahma, Indra, the Nine Dragons, Southern Star Deity, and Northern Star Deity. In the Front Hall, there are statues of Encouraging Goodness, Punishing Evil, Virtuous Elder, Saintly Monk, and others.

The Patriarch house is structured in the form of “丁" shape consisting of 5 compartments of Front Hall and 3 compartments of Harem. The sets of beams are structured in the style of "Overlaid beams and Gong hanging frame" and floors are treated with bricks. This is a place of worshiping Bo De Dat Ma and the head monks of the pagoda who were passed away.

The Mother Goddess House consists of 5 compartments, built in the style of gables with traditional tiled roofs, the sets of beams are connected together in the style of “Gong hanging frame in upper and sculptured wooden boards in lower” on the ground with three rows of columns. The central chamber is arranged with statues of the Three Mother Goddesses, Five Revered Lords, Seventh Prince of Bảo Hà, and Tenth Prince of Nghệ An. The two side chambers are dedicated to Lady of the Mountain and Saint Tran Hung Dao.

In addition to the main architectural area, Kim Lien Pagoda also has a stele house where 28 stone steles are kept with the dating from the Revival Le Hung Dynasty to the Nguyen Dynasty. Many steles are preserved quite well with clear handwriting, wavy patterns and rich in art. The contents of steles praises the beautiful scenery of the pagoda, praises the Buddha Dharma, records the restoration and repair times and the names of people who had contributed to renovate and embellish the ancient pagoda.

The pagoda still preserves a diverse and rich system of objects made of various materials and types, demonstrating the process of establishment, existence and development of the relic, including: 52 round art statues with the dating from 18th – 19th century, 4 bronze bells (from Tay Son to Nguyen dynasties), 01 pair of stone crocodiles with the art dating from 18th century, 28 stone steles dating from the Le to Nguyen dynasty and many horizontal lacquered boards, doors painting in fresco, parallel sentences, curved letter board, incense-table etc. In addition to historical - cultural, aesthetic, sculptural values, these objects are the souls of the relic, giving the sacred and ancient look for the pagoda.

Over time and after the changes of history, the presence of Kim Lien pagoda has affirmed the lasting vitality of the national cultural heritage. The value of the relic is created by the historical content, architectural-art value, landscape value, the environment and the rare objects belonging to the relic. The pagoda has entered our history as a pride of the Vietnamese culture.

Kim Lien Pagoda was ranked as a national-level architectural relic on January 9, 1990.

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