Hung King Temple - Hung Temple in the minds of ancient and modern people

Hung King Temple, known to the people from ancient times to the present as Hung Temple, to worship the 18 Hung Kings, is located on Nghia Linh Mountain in the location that is said to be the ancient capital of Van Lang country.

Hung Temple. Photo: To Canh

The authors of the Dictionary of Vietnamese Cultural Relics (a synthesis of Han-Nom documents) said: After Hung Vuong died, the local people built a temple to worship him. According to the legend and the stele in the Temple, An Duong Vuong Thuc Phan was grateful for being given the throne by Hung Vuong, so when Hung Vuong died, he went to Nghia Linh mountain to build a temple. From below, going up, we first meet the Lower Temple, which is said to be the place where Au Co gave birth to the Hundred Eggs. Next is the Middle Temple, where Hung Vuong often discussed national affairs with Lac Hou (civil mandarins) and Lac Tuong (military mandarins). Above all is the Upper Temple, which is said to be the place where the 6th Hung Vuong set up an altar to pray to heaven for a heavenly general to come down to help fight the An invaders (later became the place to worship Thanh Giong). Here, there is a horizontal lacquered board with 5 Chinese characters: Van Co Thu Giang San (the last verse of the poem "Tung gia hoan kinh su" by General Thai Su Tran Quang Khai; translated: Those mountains and rivers will last forever).

On the right of the Upper Temple, there are two stone pillars, which are the remains of an ancient temple. Nearby is the Hung King's Mausoleum. The Gieng Temple is located in the southwest of Nghia Linh Mountain, with a stone well, which is said to be the place where the daughters of Hung Due Vuong (the 18th Hung King), Princess Ngoc Hoa and Tien Dung, often came to draw water to wash their hair. The remaining ancient temples are mainly architectural relics restored by the Governor of Tam Tuyen, Nguyen Ba Nghi, according to the royal decree, in the 27th year of Tu Duc (1874). In the 6th year of Duy Tan (1912), the Hung Temple was restored and rebuilt to its current architecture. In the 7th year of Khai Dinh (1922), the Hung King's Mausoleum was renovated. The old folk song:

No matter where you go,

Remember the death anniversary of the ancestors on the tenth of March.

has been memorized by the Vietnamese people, to refer to the annual event of opening the Festival - often called the Ancestor's Death Anniversary - on the 10th day of the third lunar month. The Hung Temple Festival is annually held on a national scale, on the 9th, 10th and 11th days of the third lunar month, to honor the Hung Kings from ancient times who had the merit of building the country. This lasting honor, in fact, is even more profound than that, because: "When the festival honors the honored characters, it also honors and encourages the values ​​of the community. Those characters are essentially the quintessence and aspirations of the whole community gathered in it!"

Hung Temple from the second half of the 20th century is still associated with the name of President Ho Chi Minh. Still remember on September 19, 1954, sitting on the slope of Nghia Linh mountain, under the roof of Hung Temple, Uncle Ho talked to the cadres and soldiers of the Vanguard Army who were preparing to return to take over the capital Hanoi. Here, he had a famous saying that went down in history and will forever remain with the country: "The Hung Kings have the merit of building the country, you and I must strive to protect the country!". In 1962, on the occasion of the August Revolution anniversary, he visited Hung Temple again, in the nostalgia of a great man...

In April 1962, Hung King Temple - Hung Temple was ranked by our State as a National Historical - Cultural Relic, to remind the local people of Phu Tho in particular, and the whole country in general, to preserve, embellish and promote the historical - cultural values ​​of a place, associated with a glorious era lasting more than 400 years, opening the period of nation building for all histories of the Vietnamese people!

Yen Nhi