97 mysterious ancient characters in Bi Ky cave in Phong Nha

In addition, the national language inscriptions carved on the cave walls show that Bi Ky cave was formerly a shelter for forces on duty on Route 20 during the resistance war against the US to save the country.

Many documents still preserved about the discovery and survey of Phong Nha Cave (Bo Trach, Quang Binh) show that, at the end of the 19th century, French priest Lesopold Cadière once came to this Bi Ky cave for the purpose of research and survey. Going 600m deep into the cave, he discovered a branch of this cave and found in the branch the remains of an altar, a small Buddhist statue and 97 characters carved on the cliff, so he named the branch of the cave Bi Ky.

Another Frenchman named Pavis also came to survey and research Phong Nha Cave and wrote down what he witnessed: On the right side of the cave entrance, there was a brick altar of the Champa people plastered by the Annamese. There was a stone statue on the altar, its legs crossed in the shape of a swastika on its chest, a turban covering its neck. He believed that Phong Nha Cave was once a sacred place of worship, so it was also called Hang Pagoda. He also read one of the 97 inscriptions as "Capimala".

The way to Bi Ky cave.

97 ancient characters were written on the walls and ceiling of the cave.

The ancient characters cannot be translated to understand their full meaning.

The late Professor Tran Quoc Vuong - a giant of Vietnamese history once said, if "Capimala" is correct, it determines the nature of Buddhism. Because "Capimala" is the name of an Arhat, the 13th patriarch of Buddhism. Many professors of history and linguistics at home and abroad have come here with the effort to translate the entire meaning of these 97 characters, but up to now, no scholar has succeeded.

During the period from 1965 to 1972, this place and this underground river were also the place where ferries, boats, canoes, food, weapons and people were hidden... to be ready to support the Southern battlefield during the years of resistance against the US to save the country. It can be affirmed that Phong Nha Cave is a relic belonging to the historical relic system of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

The characters in Vietnamese written on the walls of Bi Ky cave prove the presence of soldiers and frontline workers who once lived here.

Mr. Hoang Minh Thang, Director of Phong Nha - Ke Bang Tourism Center said: Phong Nha Cave is still an endless mystery that cannot be fully discovered, so we have just introduced a new experiential tourism program, "Discovering the mysterious depths of Phong Nha Cave at night".

"When this program was implemented, many groups of tourists were interested in exploring the mysteries of Bi Ky cave and had experiences learning and discovering the beauty of the cave, the mysteries that exist in the caves in Phong Nha - Ke Bang such as kayaking to explore the cave, admiring the magical sparkling stalactites, the ancient Cham characters carved on the cliffs, ancient jars, historical relics from the anti-American resistance period," said Mr. Thang.