Sacred Choong Temple

(Baonghean) -Amidst the vast forests, Muong Choong valley is like a vast field. Rising in the center of Muong Choong valley is Pu Den. Pu Den, in Thai, means Temple Mountain. Like the vast forests of Muong Choong, Pu Den is lush with trees all year round, except that on the top of Pu Den mountain, there are still traces of the ancient Choong Temple. In the place where "mountains gather and water gathers", there is a beautiful legend that has been passed down by the locals for generations - the legend of Nang Phom Hom (Fragrant Hair Girl).

Choong Temple is a spiritual destination for tourists.

The story goes that in the 15th century, a general of the Lam Son army fell in love and promised to marry a beautiful Thai girl named Nang Phom Hom - the girl with fragrant hair. Right from birth, she was intelligent and quick-witted, especially her hair always had a faint scent of wild flowers. Trusted by the army to take on a great responsibility, she went to each house to guide the people in the area to produce a lot of rice and weave many pieces of cloth to serve the army in the long-term resistance.

The general and the insurgents fought long distances… Following the news of the insurgents’ victory, she and the villagers worked even harder to cultivate, grow silk, and weave cloth to fulfill their role as the great rear base. One afternoon, while missing the general in the battlefield, while washing her hair, she absentmindedly dropped her comb, reached out to grab it, and was swept away into the abyss…

Choong Temple has been restored neatly on the old foundation.

Upon receiving the news of her death, the general immediately returned with his soldiers and the people of Muong Choong, trying day and night to find her. But the abyss was too deep, the soil along the Nam Choong river was dug up and piled up into mountains, but she was nowhere to be found, only strands of fragrant hair were found. Missing her, the people of Muong Choong built a temple on Pu Den mountain - that temple was called Choong temple. Nang Phom Hom is a beautiful symbol of the virtues, beauty, speech and conduct of a Thai girl, a symbol of the crystallization of solidarity between the lowlands and the highlands.

After many historical ups and downs, the ancient Choong Temple no longer exists, but the cultural and spiritual imprints, the imprints of a historical period, will forever remain. To express the nation's morality of remembering the source of water when drinking water and following the wishes of the ethnic people here, in 2013, the Party Committee, government, businesses and people of Quy Hop district decided to restore the Choong Temple right at Pu Den mountain.

Choong Temple was renovated and restored on the old foundation with an area of ​​over 9 hectares, including the following items: Upper temple, lower temple, left wing, right wing, three-door gate, four-pillar gate, yard, road to lower temple, upper temple; Bridge, road, yard and other auxiliary works. The project was technically designed by Viet Cultural Heritage Conservation Joint Stock Company with an investment capital of over 50 billion VND. With the efforts of local authorities and philanthropists, Choong Temple was renovated and restored to become an architectural complex, worthy of being a cultural, spiritual and historical work of the district.

The starting point of Choong Temple is Nghi Mon, which is composed of two pillars made of solid granite, with four sides carved with dragons, unicorns, turtles, and phoenixes very elaborately and delicately. Next to the two pillars are two elephant statues made of solid granite. Through Nghi Mon is the Son Than Temple made of solid granite.

What is special is that right to the left of the main temple is the exhibition area, preserving the original relics of the ancient Choong temple: 16 ancient stones used as the base for the temple pillars. The main temple is designed majestically, imposingly, both ancient and solemn, typical of the traditional architecture of Vietnamese temples, and has the very unique appearance of ancient Thai folk culture.

The main temple is arranged with three worshiping areas, in which the central area is where Nang Phom Hom and the sacred rice grain are worshiped. The statue of Nang Phom Hom is cast in bronze in the form of a Thai ethnic woman in traditional costume, wearing a scarf, a com shirt with two rows of buttons in the middle, and a skirt carved with traditional patterns of the Thai people in Muong Choong.

On August 16, 2015, the People's Committee of Nghe An province decided to recognize Choong Temple as a provincial historical relic. Since its inauguration, Choong Temple has met the expectations of the people of all ethnic groups in the district, the province, the Muong Choong people and visitors from all over the country for religious activities as well as spiritual tourism during festivals and New Year, Spring; especially the death anniversary of Nang Toc Thom on the 15th day of the 6th lunar month every year.

Huy Nham