'Sediment' of Dai Hue range

Peaceful life

On beautiful weekends, we often invite a few friends to temporarily leave Vinh city, go up Highway 46 and then turn onto the road running along the foot of the mountain.Dai Hue Mountainbelongs to Nam Dan district. The journey is about 20 km but contains many interesting things, enough to feel and find peaceful moments, to "live slowly" after days of worries and hustle and bustle.

For a very simple reason, coming here, to the villages of Nam Giang, Nam Anh, Nam Thanh, with the vast rice fields, the lush green vegetable fields, the fruit-laden gardens, listening to the ringing of the temple bells, all worries and sorrows seem to be washed away.

Dai Hue mountain range runs along the north of Nam Dan district. Photo: Quoc Dan

Coming here, meeting the gentle, simple people, their voices and smiles make us feel very familiar, like returning to relatives to share the joys and sorrows of life. Or to eat banh duc dipped in soy sauce, a rustic dish that has existed for generations, we feel like returning to the memories of a hard-working but also very pure and sweet childhood.

These days of late Autumn and early Winter, in the dry sunshine, many people are returning to the rose gardens at the foot of Dai Hue mountain range to enjoy the fragrance, sweet fruits and compete to check-in to get unique photos. Particularly,Nam Anh communeThere are more than 100 hectares of rose trees, which are now in full bloom. The rose gardens on the slopes of Dai Hue mountain are shimmering with yellow and red, evoking warmth, abundance and a joyful life.

Rose gardens on the slopes of Dai Hue mountain. Photo: Sach Nguyen

The soil here is suitable for persimmon trees. Since ancient times, this tree has always taken root and continuously grown and developed. This crispy, sweet persimmon has always been favored by people everywhere. There are ancient persimmon trees nearly a hundred years old, with rough trunks and moss-covered branches. In season, they are still full of ripe yellow fruit, contributing to life with stars...

The rose gardens have brought Nam Anh commune people a decent income at the end of the year. Recently, Nam Dan district has promoted tourism development associated with building a new model rural area, the beautiful rose gardens at the foot of Dai Hue mountain have become interesting destinations.

Tourists experience the rose garden in Nam Anh commune (Nam Dan). Photo: Sach Nguyen

Many groups of tourists come here with the desire to enjoy the original flavor, and more especially to capture beautiful moments on the journey of experience. Thanks to that, the people have a "double" source of income, both from harvesting fruit and from sightseeing services.

Nearly 10 years ago, we had the opportunity to meet Mr. Bui Danh Ba - a pre-uprising cadre in Nam Thanh commune (now deceased), and heard him tell a lot of information about Dai Hue mountain. In the memory of that old man, Dai Hue range was a dense, overlapping forest with many precious woods, many valuable animals, including precious birds such as peacocks and phoenixes. The hills, mountains, streams, and streams were the habitat of birds, storks, sedges, starlings, herons, etc.

At the foot of Dai Hue mountain, there are ancient persimmon trees that are dozens, even hundreds of years old. Photo: Sach Nguyen

Beneath the hill there is a laterite mine, a valuable building material, especially in the period when cement was extremely rare and expensive. These resources have helped the community along the foot of Dai Hue mountain to live and develop from generation to generation, for a prosperous and fulfilling life in the village.

Forever longing

Dai Hue Mountain is also known as a place that contains cultural "sediments" and converges the sacred energy of heaven, earth, mountains and rivers.Nam Danbecome a "spiritual land - talented people" countryside. Along the mountain range, there are famous pagodas such as Dai Tue Pagoda (Nam Anh), Vinh Phuc Pagoda (Nam Xuan) and Vien Quang Pagoda (Nam Thanh) where people can entrust their spiritual life and practice goodness.

The sound of temple bells ringing in the morning mist adds to the peaceful life, calms the heart, and allows the Buddha's compassion to shine forever and spread far and wide...

Dai Tue Pagoda (Nam Dan) is located on Dai Hue mountain range. Photo: Le Quang Dung

Dai Tue Pagoda is located on the top of Dai Hue Mountain and is associated with many generations of kings of the Southern country, starting with King Mai Hac De. According to legend, Dai Tue Pagoda was built by King Mai to thank Buddha and Saints for their efforts in repelling the Northern invaders. At the beginning of the 15th century, the Ho Dynasty restored the pagoda to thank Buddha Mother Dai Tue.

In 1788, when the army marched to the North to fight against the Qing army, the hero Nguyen Hue stopped at Dai Hue mountain range and went to Dai Tue pagoda to offer incense and pray. Later, when he won the battle and ascended the throne, King Quang Trung went to the pagoda to give thanks and ordered its restoration.Dai Tue Pagoda.

Poet Bui Huy Bich (1744-1818) was a famous scholar of Ha Thanh, held the position of Tham Tung under the reign of King Le - Lord Trinh, served as Hiep Tran Nghe An and concurrently held the position of Tham Chinh and wrote the work "Nghe An Thi Tap".

During his years working in Nghe An, he used to go up Dai Hue mountain for a walk, visit Dai Tue pagoda and compose poems about this famous landscape: "Small stones are arranged in a circle to the peak/The sky and earth are so vast and ecstatic/The sky stretches out mountain ranges as if spreading its wings/The earth shapes the river like a curved hook/The mountain road passes through trees, the lion despises the tiger/Bamboo whip carries grass, children herd buffalo/I love the stone well that is always full of water/It is only as deep as a jar, it cannot be scooped up".

Tourists visit the tomb of Mrs. Hoang Thi Loan on Dong Tranh mountain. Photo: Quoc Dan

Bui Huy Bich's poems depict the pristine beauty and sacredness of Dai Hue mountain. The vast, majestic landscape and poetic beauty appear like a watercolor painting, next to the familiar rhythm of daily life with children, buffalo herds, and wells. The landscape and people intertwine and blend together, making the picture of Dai Hue mountain brighter and warmer.

Today, Dai Tue Pagoda has been restored and built majestically, becoming a prominent spiritual tourist destination of Nghe An. In 2013, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung visited Myanmar and was given Buddha's relics. He asked the Government's permission to invite the relics to be enshrined and worshiped at Dai Tue Pagoda. The ancient pagoda on the sacred peak of Dai Hue received this precious treasure, creating a favorable opportunity for Buddhists in and outside the province to make pilgrimages to pay homage.

In 2017, Dai Tue Pagoda welcomed the Jade Buddha of World Peace to be displayed and worshipped for more than 30 days for believers, Buddhists, people and tourists to admire. At the beginning of the year, the pagoda held the Opening Writing Ceremony, an activity to honor wisdom and studiousness, attracting tens of thousands of visitors.

Another special thing affirming the sacredness of Dai Hue mountain is that this place became the resting place of Mrs. Hoang Thi Loan, mother of President Ho Chi Minh. After passing away and being buried in Hue, in 1922, Mrs. Hoang Thi Loan was brought back by her daughter Nguyen Thi Thanh to be buried in Lang Sen (Kim Lien); in 1942, her eldest son Nguyen Sinh Khiem brought her to be buried in Dong Tranh mountain, a mountain in Dai Hue range.

Tourists visit Dai Hue mountain. Photo: Sach Nguyen

The tomb is located halfway up the mountain range, from here you can see a vast area of ​​rivers, mountains, fields, beaches and villages of the homeland.Tomb of Mrs. Hoang Thi Loanwas built spaciously, becoming a place of sightseeing, remembrance and gratitude for people from all over the country on their pilgrimage to President Ho Chi Minh's homeland.

It can be said that Dai Hue range is like a massive wall blocking the North of Nam Dan district, making the natural landscape more majestic and beautiful, creating favorable conditions for agricultural and forestry development. At the same time, it contains layers of traditional culture and sacred features, contributing to creating a source of culture for this land.