Ponagar Tower in Nha Trang, seen from above
Ponagar Tower, also known as Lady Tower, is located on Cu Lao hill, on Cai river, on 2/4 street, Nha Trang city (Khanh Hoa).
Many people come to Ponagar Tower to visit, admire the ancient architecture and take photos to save memories.
In late September, the weather in Nha Trang was hot. Mr. Nguyen Gia Hang, 47 years old, went to the ticket counter to buy tickets and took his wife and children to visit Ponagar Tower. During their stay in the coastal city, Mr. Hang's family experienced SUP paddling to see Nha Trang Bay, wander around the islands, eat and rest. Mr. Hang lives in Ho Chi Minh City and has traveled to Nha Trang many times. Every time they come to the coastal city, he and his wife and two children stop by to visit Ponagar Tower. The children were excited to hear the explanation about the history of the tower. "The architecture here looks beautiful and mysterious. I want my children to understand more about the relics so they can gain more knowledge," Mr. Ha said.
Ponagar Tower relic in Nha Trang with ancient architecture over a thousand years old.
The structure is a complex of Cham towers built from the 8th to the 13th century. According to legend, under the Panduranga dynasty, the temple complex was built to worship the goddess Ponagar, the Mother of the Cham people (called Ponagar Tower). The temple complex has a particularly important position in the spiritual and religious life of the Cham people.
Ponagar Tower is a large architectural complex, distributed on 3 levels including the Gate Tower, Mandapa and the temple tower area.
In 1653, when the Vietnamese came to live together in the land of Dinh Thai Khang (now Khanh Hoa province), they adopted Cham culture and considered the goddess Ponagar as the Holy Mother Thien YA Na in the spiritual and cultural life of the Vietnamese people. According to legend, the Holy Mother Thien YA Na was a fairy who descended to earth and taught people to grow rice, weave cloth, raise silkworms, etc. Ponagar Tower is a large architectural complex, distributed on 3 levels: Gate Tower, Mandapa and temple tower area. Over thousands of years, due to historical fluctuations, the relic site currently has 5 architectural works on two levels: Mandapa (the vestibule - the place where the Cham people prepare offerings before offering) and the temple tower area above.
The Mandapa area (vestibule) has large rows of brick pillars, including 10 large pillars inside and 12 small octagonal pillars outside.
In particular, the Mandapa area has 4 rows of large pillars built of baked bricks, including 10 large pillars inside and 12 small octagonal pillars outside. This location was built to serve as a waiting room before going up to the tower area to perform ceremonies on important occasions of the Cham Pa community at that time.
Many foreigners learn about the relic
The temple tower area was built at the highest point of Cu Lao hill, consisting of 4 structures, built in Cham style, entirely of bricks. The tower is hollow to the top, the tower door faces East. The outside of the tower has many ledges and pillars. Among them, there is the Northeast tower (Main tower); Southeast tower (ancient tower); South tower (Ong tower) and Northwest tower (Co Cau tower).
Architectural remains made of bricks, artistic decoration of stone and ceramic materials
The main tower is about 23m high, worshiping the goddess Ponagar - the soul of the ancient tower cluster. The tower has 4 floors, each floor has a door, a stone statue of a god in the shape of an animal, at the 4 corners there are 4 small towers. Along with that, on the body of the tower there are many statues and reliefs made of terracotta, including images of fairies, mascots, geese, goats, elephants..., on the door of the tower there is a relief of the god Shiva. The statue of the goddess Ponagar is a masterpiece of Champa sculpture, a harmonious combination of round statue and embossed techniques.
A stone carving of goddess Durga dancing with two musicians on the main tower gate.
The remaining three towers include the South Tower worshiping the god Siva, one of the three supreme gods of Hinduism, the Southeast Tower worshiping the god Skandha and the Northwest Tower worshiping the god Ganesha, the two sons of the god Siva. The architectural complex still retains many of the oldest inscriptions of the Cham people, recording praises to the goddess Ponagar, listing tributes to build the tower along with land offerings...
Mr. Dang Xuan Ky (30 years old, Kadhar dignitary - also Cham artisan in Ninh Phuoc district, Ninh Thuan) was playing the Saranai trumpet in the Ponagar tower, attracting visitors. Mr. Ky has been playing this instrument for 10 years, this is an important instrument in the spiritual life of the Cham people, so when attending the ceremony, he played it at the tower.
Ponagar Tower is a unique and distinctive architectural complex of the Cham people, ranked as a national historical relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) in 1979. The relic is considered one of the largest remaining Cham tower clusters in the Central region, which is being preserved.
A Cham cultural performance in the relic
Mr. Lo Phu Bao, a Cham man from Ninh Thuan province, smiled happily after performing a ritual at Ponagar Tower. Every year, he goes to Nha Trang to perform the ritual.
Ponagar Tower is a place chosen by locals, domestic and foreign tourists to visit when coming to Nha Trang. People come here to admire the ancient architecture, learn about the spiritual life and culture of the ancient Cham people. Every year, on the 20th-23rd of the third lunar month, the Ponagar Tower Festival takes place here, which is also a national intangible cultural heritage. Here, there are also ancient trees surrounding the relic and Cham art performances every day to serve tourists.
Thousands of people from all over the country bring many offerings to this relic to attend the Ponagar Tower festival to commemorate Lady Thien Y Ana.
According to the Khanh Hoa Provincial Monuments Conservation Center, on average, the Ponagar Tower relic welcomes about 3,000-4,000 domestic and foreign tourists every day.