Inadequacies at the Ma Nhai Stele relic

(Baonghean) - The Ma Nhai stele - "The heroic writing on the rocky mountain" in Chi Khe commune, Con Cuong district has been recognized as a national historical relic by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. However, up to now, the work of preserving the relic still has limitations and shortcomings.

From historical issues

According to history, Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van is a stele composed by the Royal Doctor Nguyen Trung Ngan, under the order of the Retired Emperor Tran Minh Tong, and engraved on a stone mountain to commemorate the victory over the Ai Lao army in the year At Hoi (1335), the 7th year of Khai Huu reign, at the foot of Thanh Nam mountain in Chi Khe commune, Con Cuong district. This is considered one of the most unique stele in the country in many aspects, especially in terms of history when many studies have shown that this is the oldest Ma Nhai stele in Vietnam up to this point.

Since July 2011, the Ma Nhai Stele relic has been recognized as a National Historical Relic and has been invested in and preserved by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Nghe An as well as the People's Committee of Con Cuong district, in order to promote the historical and cultural values ​​that the stele carries. Located about 120m from National Highway 7A, compared to before it was discovered, the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van relic is now more spacious, and the road to the stele is also clear. On the section of National Highway 7A, where it passes through the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van relic, the People's Committee of Con Cuong district has erected a signboard introducing and guiding the way to the relic. However, on the signboard, there is only the phrase "Ma Nhai Stele - National Historical Relic....". The point to discuss here is that the name of "Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van" has been shortened to "Ma Nhai Stele"?

Ma Nhai Stele - National historical relic.

Talking to Mr. Dao Tam Tinh, Director of the Provincial Library, he said: “The Ma Nhai stele has been recorded in many historical books. The book “Understanding the Han Nom Book Collection” (Social Sciences Publishing House, 2003) clearly stated that this stele originally had no title, but it was named Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van by later generations. And up to now, in related research documents, this relic has been called Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van. Thus, the introduction board only stating “Ma Nhai Stele” is not enough. Mr. Dao Tam Tinh also gave some other arguments that the name “Ma Nhai Stele” is just a general name for a type of stele polished on a stone mountain (ma: grinding; nhai: mountain); in our country, there are also many different Ma Nhai stele in different provinces and cities, so Ma Nhai Stele cannot be the name of a specific place like Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van!

In addition to the name issue, the citation of the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van placed right at the relic also has some historical errors. The first sentence of the citation reads: "The Ma Nhai stele was carved into a mountain rock by Nguyen Trung Ngan in December of the year At Dau 1335 at Thanh Nam mountain...", while many historical studies on the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van all indicate that this stele was written in the year At Hoi (1335), not the year At Dau as written in the citation.

To the difficulties in conservation work

Right at the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van relic, we witnessed many shortcomings in the work of preserving the relic. First, the relic still does not have a specific plan for the area and scale, so there has been a situation where the livestock of the surrounding people are let loose in the relic area, spoiling the beauty and risking the relic being destroyed. At the relic area, there is no one on duty to protect it!?

Next is the situation of people burning incense and worshiping at the relic site. According to Mr. Vo Xuan Khanh, in Chi Khe commune, since it was certified as a national historical relic, some local people and people from neighboring areas often come to burn incense and worship, almost every day the incense smoke is billowing at the relic site. The burning of incense by people can easily lead to forest fires because the relic site is located right at the foot of Thanh Nam mountain.

Local people's pets "invade" the relic site.

Mr. Nguyen Huy Chuong, Head of the Department of Culture and Information of Con Cuong district, the unit directly responsible for managing the relic, said: "The district People's Committee has also received some feedback from people and tourists about the recent shortcomings at the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van relic site. We will accept the errors and mistakes in the name as well as the timelines and will correct them in the near future. On March 4, the Department of Culture and Information submitted a report to the Con Cuong district People's Committee requesting permission to establish a planning and construction plan for the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van historical relic site". According to Mr. Chuong, in the immediate future, the Department of Culture and Information will carry out specific tasks such as proposing management personnel, establishing a relic protection team, and after receiving permission to plan, construct and restore the relic site, the Department of Culture and Information will coordinate with functional departments to invest in building a fence system, a guard house, a visitor reception house, and bringing electricity and water systems to the relic site...

It is recommended that the People's Committee of Con Cuong district and relevant management levels soon take measures to limit the shortcomings, in order to restore the Ma Nhai Ky Cong Bi Van relic to its inherent values ​​and become an attractive destination for tourists.

Article and photos: Thai Anh