Unique historical and cultural destination in the heart of Hanoi

In the middle of the bustling streets of the capital, there is a quiet and peaceful riverside temple. The strange thing is that the temple is called “Forest Temple”, reminding us of remote places, having to go up and down rapids or remote and sparsely populated ethnic minorities.

The temple is associated with the sacred legend of the Lord of the Upper Realm's healing and saving people. Legend has it that Mr. Le Van Nam (year of birth unknown) was a fisherman from Gia Thuong village and his wife Pham Thi Gai (1887-1947) lived on the banks of the Red River. Mrs. Gai was often sickly. One day, while cutting grass on the high land along the river, she got lost in the fairyland of the Upper Realm and was cured of her illness by the gods. In gratitude, the couple and the people erected a statue of the Lord of the Upper Realm to worship at the temple by the river. Over time, the Lord of the Upper Realm has appeared many times, granting health, prosperity, and peace to the people.

Gate to the Forest Temple.

Over the years and many renovations, the Rung Temple now includes unique architectural works: the main temple, Son Trang palace, Quan De Tam palace, Ban Mau ban thien, To house, guest house, auxiliary works, garden. The relic currently preserves 91 typical artifacts of historical and scientific value such as Tho Ha ceramic incense bowls, bronze statues of two goddesses; Linh Lang Dai Vuong statue... Every year, during the Spring and Autumn period and festivals, Gia Thuong villagers hold ceremonies to pray for blessings, good harvests, or when there are epidemics or natural disasters, the villagers' prayers are very effective.

The path from the Red River to the Forest Temple.

Rung Temple, with one side facing the Red River and cool breeze all year round, attracts many tourists today. Foreign tourists who are interested in learning have spread the word to visit and enjoy the temple's scenery. Not far from Hanoi's Old Quarter, the temple has a beautiful location, a spacious parking lot... are great advantages for the temple to attract tourists. The temple also preserves many heritage trees such as longan trees, sanh trees, and banyan trees. But more than that is the unique cultural feature of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity recognized by UNESCO, the Vietnamese Mother Goddess worship. Visitors here have the opportunity to experience and learn more about folk culture through activities such as lion dance, Van singing, and folk game performances on each traditional festival occasion...

Promoting the value of relics

One day in early April, Mr. Hoang Xuan Mai, the head of the Rung Temple, and his colleagues at the Rung Temple Relic Management Board were busy preparing for the ceremony to receive the certificate of recognition as a historical relic from Hanoi City. In one place, a set of tables and chairs was added so that visitors to the temple could rest and drink a sip of green tea; in another place, bamboo curtains were hung to protect against the rain and sun, and also to bring a sense of comfort to visitors. On the river side, the temple planted more trees and planned to widen the path down to the river wharf... to facilitate visitors.

Peaceful scene in the temple.

Despite his busy schedule, when introducing the temple to us, Mr. Hoang Xuan Mai did not forget to express his wish and concern for how to make Rung Temple a place for young people to visit and learn about the culture and beliefs of Mother Goddess worship. “I believe that Mother Goddess worship not only has spiritual values but also contains profound lessons about connection, gratitude and humanity. Therefore, these values need to be spread further among young people according to their true and original values, which is to express sincere gratitude to ancestors, roots, and those who have contributed to building the country, blessing the country with favorable weather, peaceful and prosperous country. That is the beauty of Vietnamese cultural beliefs, of Mother Goddess worship, which we need to preserve and develop together,” Mr. Hoang Xuan Mai expressed.

Practice Mother Goddess worship ritual at Rung temple.

Because of this belief, a few years ago, Mr. Hoang Xuan Mai came up with the idea of using votive papers in the bronze altars. As a master of incense and having performed many traditional rituals, Mr. Mai and his disciples burned a lot of votive papers. But when the Central Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha recommended not to use too much votive papers in worship, both to save money and protect the environment, he thought a lot and thought that it was necessary to support this policy because the most important thing to do when worshipping a medium must come from the heart and real values. But how, because not everyone can easily accept a custom that has "deep roots"? He tried to think of a 3D design to replace votive papers, horses, hats and clothes with paper and called it "votive papers". Votive papers help reduce the burning of votive papers after each bronze altar when normally, a bronze altar costs at least 20 million VND, but now it only costs 1.2 million VND. Thanks to civilization while still preserving traditional customs, the idea of votive papers is supported by many people.

In addition, to preserve tradition, Mr. Mai is also a pioneer in wearing Ao Dai at the relic. Visitors are encouraged to wear Ao Dai here. The relic also issued many civilized regulations such as public and transparent donation money, eliminating superstition... Mr. Mai was honored to receive many certificates and awards, including the title "Good person, good deeds" in 2022, 2023 recognized by the City People's Committee, Ngoc Thuy Ward People's Committee; Certificate of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for excellent performing artist at the National Hat Van and Chau Van Festival in 2021; Certificate of Merit from the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports; Long Bien District People's Committee, Thang Long Cultural Heritage Association for achievements in preserving and promoting the value of intangible cultural heritage, performing Chau Van rituals of Vietnamese people...

In the current context of rapid technological development, Mr. Hoang Xuan Mai also takes advantage of social networks to promote and spread the relics and traditional Mother Goddess worship beliefs. His social network tiktok "Thu incense of the Forest Temple" attracts many viewers and followers. He said: "Young people access technology and spread it quickly if we catch the right rhythm. I hope that my work will bring young people the right view of the ritual of Hau Dong, so that they "believe" but not "love". In addition, I also hope that the connection of the Forest Temple can be connected with relics and destinations along the Red River to extend the cultural space, spread and promote the value of the worship of the Mother Goddess of the Three Palaces, an intangible cultural heritage of humanity to many friends around the world".

According to People's Army

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/den-rung-linh-thieng-ven-song-hong-a418252.html