Sacred Choọng Temple

(Baonghean)Amidst the vast forests, the Muong Choong valley resembles a wide open field. Rising in the center of the Muong Choong valley is Pu Den. Pu Den, in the Thai language, means Temple Mountain. Like the vast forests of Muong Choong, Pu Den is lush with vegetation year-round, the only difference being that the remnants of the ancient Choong Temple still remain on its summit. In this place where mountains meet and waters converge, there is a beautiful legend passed down through generations by the local people – the legend of Nang Phom Hom (the girl with fragrant hair).

Choọng Temple is a spiritual destination for tourists.

The story goes that in the 15th century, a general of the Lam Son rebel army fell in love with and pledged his love to marry a beautiful and virtuous Thai girl named Nang Phom Hom - the girl with fragrant hair. From birth, she possessed extraordinary intelligence and quick wit, and her hair always carried the subtle fragrance of forest flowers. Entrusted with important responsibilities by the rebel army, she went from house to house guiding the villagers in producing abundant rice and weaving fabrics to support the rebel army's long-term resistance.

The general and his army fought long and arduous battles… Following news of the army's victories, she and the villagers worked even harder cultivating crops, raising silkworms, and weaving cloth, fulfilling their role as the great rear base. One afternoon, in her intense longing for the general on the battlefield, while washing her hair, she absentmindedly dropped her comb. Reaching for it, she was swept away by the water into a deep ravine…

Choọng Temple has been restored in a magnificent manner right on its original foundation.

Upon hearing of her death, the general immediately returned with his soldiers and the people of Muong Choong, searching for her day and night. But the ravine was too deep; even after digging up the earth along the banks of the Nam Choong River and piling it up into a mountain, they could not find her, only her fragrant hair. Out of love and longing for her, the people of Muong Choong erected a temple on Pu Den mountain – that temple is called Choong Temple. Nang Phom Hom is a beautiful symbol of the virtues of a Thai woman, embodying the solidarity between the lowlands and the highlands.

Having weathered many historical ups and downs, the old Choọng Temple no longer exists, but its cultural and spiritual significance, the imprint of a historical period, remains. To demonstrate the national tradition of remembering one's roots and to fulfill the wishes of the local ethnic communities, in 2013, the Party Committee, government, businesses, and people of Qùy Hợp district decided to restore and rebuild the Choọng Temple right on Pu Đên mountain.

The Choọng Temple was restored and rebuilt on its original site, covering an area of ​​over 9 hectares. The complex includes the following components: the main hall, lower hall, left and right wings, triple gate, four-pillar gate, courtyard, access roads to the upper and lower halls; bridges, roads, grounds, and other auxiliary structures. The project was technically designed by the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Preservation Joint Stock Company with an investment of over 50 billion VND. Thanks to the efforts of the local government and benefactors, the Choọng Temple has been restored and transformed into an architectural complex worthy of being a cultural, spiritual, and historical landmark of the district.

The starting point of Choọng Temple is the ceremonial gate, consisting of two pillars made of solid granite, each side intricately and skillfully carved with dragons, mythical creatures, turtles, and phoenixes. Beside the two pillars are two statues of elephants made of solid granite. Beyond the ceremonial gate is the Mountain God Shrine, also made of solid granite.

What's special is that right to the left of the main temple is an exhibition area preserving the original relics of the ancient Choọng Temple: 16 ancient stones that served as bases for the temple's pillars. The main temple is designed majestically and imposingly, both ancient and solemn, typical of the traditional architecture of Vietnamese temples and pagodas, while also bearing the unique characteristics of the ancient Thai folk culture.

The main temple is arranged into three shrines, with the central shrine dedicated to Nang Phom Hom and the sacred rice grain. The statue of Nang Phom Hom is cast in bronze, modeled after a Thai ethnic woman in traditional attire, wearing a headscarf, a blouse with two rows of buttons in the middle, and a skirt engraved with traditional Thai patterns from Muong Choong.

On August 16, 2015, Choọng Temple was recognized as a provincial-level historical relic by the People's Committee of Nghe An province. Since its inauguration, Choọng Temple has fulfilled the aspirations of the people of various ethnic groups in the district and province, as well as the people of Muong Choọng and visitors from all over, for religious activities and spiritual tourism during festivals and the Lunar New Year; especially on the anniversary of the death of Nàng Tóc Thơm on the 15th day of the 6th lunar month every year.

Huy Nham