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Yen Tu
The area of Yen Tu is
made up of a system of pagodas, shrines,
towers and forests, belonging to the
village of Thuong Yen Cong Commune, Uong
Bi Town. It is about 40 km from Ha Long
City and 14 km from Uong Bi Town.
Situated within the immense arched
mountain range of north-eastern Vietnam,
Yen Tu Mountain bears at its peak the
Đong Pagoda: at an altitude of 1,068 m
above sea level. The beauty of Yen Tu
consists in the majesty of its mountains
mingling with the ancient and solemn
quietness of its pagodas, shrines and
towers.
You can get to Hoa Yen Pagoda at the
altitude of 534 m by the cable car
system recently put into operation and
will see on this peak two 700-year-old
frangipane trees. From there, you will
continue walking up stairs to pagodas of
minor note lined up along the path
leading to Đong Pagoda. There you will
feel like walking on clouds. If the
weather is agreeable, from this summit
you can admire the dramatic landscape of
the northeast of Vietnam.
In spring, Yen Tu attracts a large
number of tourists going on pilgrimage
and sightseeing. Yen Tu festival begins
on the 10th day of the first lunar month
and lasts until the end of third lunar
month.
Under the Ly Dynasty, Yen Tu held the
Phu Van Pagoda, with Yen Ky Sinh as its
warden. But Yen Tu only really became a
Buddhism centre when Emperor Tran Nhan
Tong surrendered his throne to establish
a Buddhist sect called Thien Truc Lâm
and became the first progenitor with the
religious name Đieu Ngu Giac Hoang Tran
Nhan Tong (1258-1308). He ordered
building hundreds of constructions,
large and small on Yen Tu Mountain for
leading a religious life, sermonizing.
After his death, his successor, Phap Loa
Đong Kien Cuong (1284 - 1330) the second
progenitor of Thien Truc Lam, compiled a
set of book “Thach that ngon ngu” and
ordered the building of 800 pagodas,
shrines and towers with thousands of
value statues throughout 19 years of
religious life. Some famous pagodas are
Quynh Lam, Ho Thien. There is the third
progenitor of Thien Truc Lam, Huyen
Quang Ly Đao Tai (1254 - 1334), in the
sermonizing centre of Phap Loa.
Passing through to the Le and Nguyen
Dynasties, Yen Tu became the focal point
of Vietnamese Buddhism, and was often
subject to restorations. It is a meeting
place of different styles from various
historic periods: visible in the many
different designs and decorations that
ornate its constructions.
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