Sacred Cờn Temple

(Baonghean.vn) - Cờn Temple is a famous and sacred temple in Nghe An province, known for the saying "First Cờn, second Quả, third Bạch Mã". In the early days of spring, many tourists from within and outside the province come to worship at Cờn Temple.

Cờn Temple is located in Phuong Can Village, Quynh Phuong Commune, Quynh Luu District, about 75km north of Vinh City and about 220km south of Hanoi. It is the most sacred of the four sacred temples in Nghe An Province: "First Cờn, second Quả, third Bạch Mã, fourth Chiêu Trưng". The Cờn Temple complex consists of two temples: Cờn Trong Temple and Cờn Ngoài Temple.

Cờn Trong Temple is located on Diệc Hill, facing the picturesque Mai Giang River, and is dedicated to the Four Holy Mothers of the South Sea, the Great Guardians of the Nation. Built during the Trần Dynasty, the temple expanded significantly during the Lê Dynasty and underwent numerous renovations during the Nguyễn Dynasty. Therefore, the site bears the distinct cultural style of the late Lê and early Nguyễn periods. Over time, only the main gate, the central hall, the middle hall, the lower hall, and the performance hall remain.

Passing through the temple gate into the courtyard, climbing 10 stone steps will lead you to the main gate. This is a grand, two-story building with eight roofs, shaped like the Chinese character "gong". Following it are the main hall, the middle hall, and the lower hall.The opera house, with its three main halls and two side halls, is also large, imposing, and features diverse decorative themes.

Although the Cờn Trong Temple is not large in scale, it embodies many unique cultural features, from the building materials to the carvings and sculptures… All of this demonstrates the skillful craftsmanship of the ancients. It also preserves 142 valuable artifacts. Besides various types of imperial decrees, couplets, large inscriptions, and ritual objects such as palanquins, canopies, ivory and bronze items, there is also a two-sided stone stele 1.6m high and 1.2m wide erected in 1665, a bronze bell cast in the Cảnh Hưng era (1752) weighing 300 kg, 28 stone statues, and many wooden statues from the Lê dynasty.

The 500-year-old banyan tree in front of the Cờn Trong temple gate has been recognized as a heritage tree, contributing to the beautification of the sacred temple's landscape.

Cờn Ngoài Temple is located about 1km from Cờn Trong Temple, situated on the Hùng Vương mountain range, near the Lạch Cờn estuary.

With its renowned sacredness, Cờn Temple attracts not only locals and tourists from within the province but also many visitors from northern provinces who come to the temple at the beginning of spring to perform rituals to ward off bad luck.

Offering prayers for a year of peace and happiness for the family.

Visiting Cờn Temple at the beginning of Spring, besides the spiritual aspect, the Quỳnh Phương coastal area also offers many delicious fresh seafood options for tourists to enjoy or buy as gifts, such as dried mackerel, dried anchovies, fish sauce, etc.

Tourists can freely learn about the traditional anchovy drying craft practiced by the local people in the coastal region.

Visit the fishing villages to learn about the net-mending craft of the local fishermen. Mr. Tran Van Hung (Phu Loi 2, Quynh Dy, Hoang Mai Town) said: "If tourists want to visit Hon Me Island, our fishermen's boats are ready to serve them."

Thanh Thủy - Thu Hương