2 royal poems about famous landscapes of Nghe An by King Thieu Tri

(Baonghean) -King Thieu Tri (real name Nguyen Phuc Mien Tong), reign name Thieu Tri was the third king of the Nguyen Dynasty. Not only was he famous for being a benevolent king with his subjects and diligent in politics, he was also a very talented writer, having traveled to many places and composed many famous works that are still passed down to this day. Among them, we must mention two royal poems engraved on stone steles praising the beauty of the mountains and rivers of Nghe An during a tour to the North...

On the day of Giap Than, February of the year of Nham Dan, the second year of Thieu Tri's reign, during his "Royal Northern Tour", King Thieu Tri sailed from Dai Nai River and passed Hong Linh Mountain. Seeing the beautiful and poetic scenery of the mountains and rivers, he summoned the Ha Tinh Province official Vu Duc Nhu to ask about this famous place. After hearing the legend of Hong Mountain, the king composed the poem "Hong Linh" and had a stele carved and erected at the foot of Hong Mountain in Tiep Vu Commune, Can Loc District, now Hong Linh Town, Ha Tinh Province.

This stele measures 120cm x 64cm, inside the stele is engraved a seven-word eight-line poem in Tang Dynasty poetry mixed with other small lines of text that are notes about the legend of Huong Tich Pagoda, as well as the origin of the name of Hong Linh Mountain. The last part is the year name that tells us the date the stele was established. The entire stele text consists of 11 lines, 189 words. The original text is in Chinese, and the poem is roughly translated as follows:

Hong Linh

Ninety-nine high peaks are well placed.
Layer upon layer of towering clouds
The ancient Huong Tich Pagoda is still there today.
How many people know about Trang Vuong's career?
Wild cranes are said to live on the mountain.
The red bird spreads its wings and comes here
Majestic mountains embrace the blue sky
A strip of blue a strip of clouds
Good day in December, 2nd year of Thieu Tri reign
Composed a poem. Respectfully engraved.
(Translated by Tran Tu Quang)

Pink Mountain, Lam River

After completing the coronation ceremony in Hanoi, King Thieu Tri and his courtiers returned to the capital Hue. When passing through the Iron Canal in Dien An Commune, Dien Chau District, Nghe An Province today, seeing the charming scenery, the King composed the poem "Iron Port" praising the beauty of the Iron Canal, as well as recalling the mysterious story related to the birth of this canal. The poem was engraved on a stone stele placed on the East bank of the Iron Canal, in Tap Phuc Commune, Dong Thanh District, now Dien An Commune, Dien Chau District.

After 171 years, with many ups and downs and changes of history, this stele fell into oblivion and is only preserved in history books. In 2007, during a field trip, the Nghe An Han - Nom Club found this stele lying at the foot of So mountain, only about 10m from the edge of National Highway 1A. The entire stele was covered by thorny bushes so it was not affected by the outside environment and remained completely intact as before. The stele measures 63 x 106cm.

Because this is the king's royal stele, it is carved extremely delicately, the decorative art is much higher than other stele. The forehead of the stele is carved with the face of the demon La Hau, surrounded by clouds and rain. The border of the stele is carved with flowers and leaves, looking very graceful and elegant. In our opinion, the Thiet Cang stele is the most beautiful and intact stele in Nghe An province today. Similar to the "Hong Linh" stele, the "Thiet Cang" stele is engraved with a seven-word eight-line poem in Tang Dynasty mixed with notes about related events. The poem is engraved in large letters while the notes are engraved in small letters.

The first part consists of 2 introductory sentences and 2 actual sentences, followed by a note about the formation and origin of the name of the Iron Canal. Part 2 consists of 2 argumentative sentences and a note about the current state of the canal. Part 3 consists of 2 concluding sentences and the last sentence of the note. The last part records the time of the stele's establishment in the 2nd year of Thieu Tri (1842) and the note states that the stele was composed by Emperor Hien To Chuong himself. The entire stele consists of 14 lines, 286 words. The meaning is roughly translated as follows:

Iron Canal

Embrace the mountains flowing around
It is said that in ancient times, creation
Iron Mine, Stone Melting Cliff
The mighty sky temporarily opened the channel.
The mysterious and difficult to explain
The calmer the more confident the world is.
The mountains of Lung Thuc are incomparable.
But leveling is really scary.
Good day in December, 2nd year of Thieu Tri reign
Composed a poem. Respectfully engraved.
(Translated by Bui Van Chat)

After 171 years, the two steles are the clearest mark of Emperor Hien To Chuong’s tour, and also the pride of a cultural land with many famous landscapes. These are very valuable works of literature, history as well as sculpture, and are the royal works of a famous king. Nghe An is proud to be a place with precious heritages that not every locality has.

Currently, the stele has been moved and is protected by a spacious, solid stele house located not far from the old location, right next to National Highway 1A.

Tran Tu Quang (Nghe An Provincial Library)