From Truc Lam Yen Tu to Truc Lam Yen Thanh

(Baonghean) - 45 km north of Vinh City, 7 km west of National Highway 1A along Provincial Road 538, Yen Thanh district has an area of ​​over 54.2 thousand hectares, 39 communes and towns, nearly 280,000 people, located in the center of the Northeast region of Nghe An province.

In the past and present, Yen Thanh is the granary of Nghe An: "Yen Thanh is the mother and father; When hungry and in rags, come to Yen Thanh". Archaeological sites of stone axes in Bao Thanh commune show that: Yen Thanh is a cradle of the ancient Vietnamese people. As a "national fence", in the 10th century, Prince Le Ngan Tich, in the 11th century, Prince Ly Nhat Quang; in the 13th century, Duke Tran Quoc Khang, in the 16th century, Duke Mac Ngoc Lien, the most meritorious mandarins were sent by previous dynasties to guard; in the 19th century, Doctor Nguyen Xuan On and Vice-Chancellor Le Doan Nha used Vu Ky hill as the base of the Can Vuong uprising against the French.

This land has also produced many talented and strategic mandarins, military generals, and many famous scholars through the ages: King of the Sea, Hoang Ta Thon; "Hero of the Mountains" Nguyen Vinh Loc; Grand Tutor Lai Quoc Cong Phan Cong Tich; Comrade Phan Dang Luu, founder of the Tan Viet Revolutionary Party and an outstanding leader of our Party. From the Tran Dynasty to the Nguyen Dynasty, there were 4 first-class scholars, 3 third-class scholars, 3 third-class scholars, 7 doctors, and 4 vice-graduate scholars. First-class scholars Bach Lieu opened the examinations in Nghe An, first-class scholars Ho Tong Thoc, Ho Tong Don, Ho Tong Thanh, third-class scholars Phan Tat Thong, Phan Duy Thuc, Phan Thuc Truc... The people of Yen Thanh are honest, simple, loyal, hard-working, resilient in combat, patriotic, studious, and revolutionary.

Panoramic view of Chi Linh Pagoda (Xuan Thanh - Yen Thanh). Photo: Ho Cac

In the subconscious of Yen Thanh people, Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism blend together, deeply rooted in the flesh and blood, proving the density of historical and cultural relics. According to current statistics, the district has 520 famous relics, of which over 200 have been listed for management, with 21 relics ranked at the national level and 36 relics ranked at the provincial level... Tradition is very proud, but in a market economy, if you still rely only on agricultural production and are devoted to tradition, it is very difficult to get rich.

After many discussions, the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee, term XXV, came to the conclusion: To develop sustainably, we must awaken the natural potential, promote cultural identity, especially spiritual culture, through tourism to promote the image, landscape and people of Yen Thanh. The Standing Committee of the District Party Committee advocates building a cultural tourism area associated with spirituality and ecology to attract visitors from all over the world. The highlight of the solution is to take Ru Gam and Song Dinh - the symbol, prosperity, pride and honor of Yen Thanh as the core.

Located at the foot of the majestic Truong Son range, Ru Gam is a 269-meter high mountain also known as Thu Linh, Con Son, Phuong Son, Dong Nhon. Halfway up the eastern side of the mountain are two white rock cliffs: the big silver rock and the small silver rock. On the left of the big silver rock is a flat stone slab, 6 meters wide and 9 meters long like a chessboard. Standing on the top of the mountain on a nice day, you can observe the whole Northeast of Nghe An. Ru Gam is a primeval forest, with rich vegetation, many types of precious wood such as trac, trai, sua, gu, lim, sen, tram... many precious medicinal herbs such as hoai son, tuyet nhung, cao dang, fo-ti... there are still some gu trees with a circumference of 4 people embracing. Many precious animals such as civets, pythons, squirrels, foxes, parrots... Ru Gam has a temple to worship Bach Thach Than (white stone god) and Nha Ong temple to worship Ly Thien Cuong - a human god who called people to establish villages. Due to the sacred nature of these temples, Ru Gam still retains its ancient, pristine appearance.

Buddhists from near and far come to attend the important ceremony at Gam Pagoda. Photo: Thich Tue Minh

Around Ru Gam is a complex of historical and cultural relics: the temple of Princess Bach Y (Bach Y was the daughter of King Ho Quy Ly who built a pagoda and died here), Sung communal house (the capital of Hoan Chau during the Tang Dynasty in Lang Thanh commune), Duc Hoang temple (Phuc Thanh), the church of Sat Hai Dai Vuong Hoang Ta Thon (Long Thanh), the church of the first-ranking scholar Ho Tong Thoc (Tho Thanh), Ca temple, Bao Lam pagoda, the memorial area of ​​comrade Phan Dang Luu (Hoa Thanh), the relic area of ​​Uncle Ho's visit, Co Da temple (Vinh Thanh), the memorial area of ​​72 revolutionary soldiers executed by the French colonialists during the Nghe - Tinh Soviet movement (My Thanh)... Around Ru Gam is a complex of famous landscapes: Dinh River through the communes of Van Thanh, Hoa Thanh, Tang Thanh and Yen Thanh town, Stone church, Bao Nham stone mountain (Bao Thanh), Moon cave (Minh Thanh), Vu Ky cave... some man-made famous landscapes such as Vach Bac canal, Ve Vung dam, Ma To, Quan Comedy, Play house...

Gam Temple and Pagoda are the cultural and religious centers of a large residential area. Every year during the festival season, the people in the area organize a procession of gods from Ru Gam to the temple and pagoda for worship. Gam Temple and Pagoda are famous spiritual and cultural structures. The temple worships gods who have contributed to protecting the country and the people: Cao Son, Cao Cac, Sat Hai Dai Vuong, Tam Toa Dai Vuong and Tu Vi Thanh Nuong. Gam Pagoda (Chi Linh Tu) is an ancient architectural work worshiping Buddha, with high historical, cultural and artistic value. The sculptures and patterns are extremely sophisticated. It is also these sculptures that have determined that Buddhism at Gam Pagoda has long followed the Truc Lam sect, a sect that flourished under the Ly and Tran dynasties. At Gam Pagoda, there is a pair of parallel sentences like a prophecy:

"The East Palace is full of light and mist

Phoenix Mountain, west facing the bright hall"

To the East is the Dinh river, a dragon vein that makes crops lush and bountiful, to the West is the Gam mountain range, where dragons and tigers lie in wait, creating a charming landscape. It can also be understood that Gam mountain range will open up a bright development direction for Yen Thanh district.

The tourism potential is huge, but how to develop that potential is a difficult problem. According to the advice of some Buddhist scholars, King Tran Nhan Tong - a wise and benevolent king, after completing the historical mission of leading the people of the whole country to defeat the Yuan-Mongol invaders, firmly consolidating the independence and autonomy of the nation, abdicated the throne to his son and went to Yen Tu mountain to become a monk, establishing the Truc Lam Yen Tu sect. The Truc Lam Yen Tu sect was restored by Venerable Thich Thanh Tu at the end of the 20th century to restore the Buddhist ideology of King Tran Nhan Tong.

Religious activities at Gam Pagoda. Photo: Ho Cac

The Provincial Literature and Arts Association and Song Lam Magazine presented gifts to Gam Pagoda. Photo: Ho Cac

Poetry and music exchange about homeland. Photo: Ho Cac

The pastoral direction is to combine practice and meditation. The sect's policy is to train people with pure souls, a sincere lifestyle, self-sacrifice to save suffering beings, patient practice, and a deep understanding of Buddha and Buddhism. Practitioners of the Truc Lam Yen Tu sect practice and study without taking exams to get degrees, practice at home or practice in monasteries and meditation centers. The Truc Lam Yen Tu sect upholds the motto: "Buddhism, nation, socialism". Because its purpose, motto, and method of operation are in line with the people's wishes, the Truc Lam Yen Tu sect has been developing strongly, with a large number of monks, nuns, lay people, and male and female followers throughout the country and abroad. After the district leaders worked with the Most Venerable Thich Thanh Tu, the Most Venerable sent a special envoy to conduct a field survey, then agreed to appoint a monk to preside over Chi Linh Pagoda and direct the construction of Truc Lam Yen Thanh Zen Monastery.

At the end of 2010, the People's Committee of Nghe An province agreed in principle to allow the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district to establish a detailed plan for the construction of the Ru Gam ecological spiritual cultural tourism area. The People's Committee of the district coordinated with Hoang Dao Architectural Company of Professor Hoang Dao Kinh - one of the leading architectural companies in Vietnam to agree on the architectural plan.

On October 28, 2012, Yen Thanh District People's Committee solemnly held a ceremony to announce the Decision of the Provincial People's Committee approving the detailed planning for the construction of Ru Gam Ecological and Spiritual Tourism Area. According to this Decision, the total planning area is over 316 hectares, divided into 5 functional areas:

Original relic site: Including Chi Linh temple, pagoda, hall, parking lot serving tourists and Buddhists coming to the pagoda, the campus has been expanded, upgraded, restored, and embellished, area 19.6 hectares, construction density 30%;

Spiritual - festival area: Located on the eastern slope of Ru Gam, area 100.2 hectares. In which, the Zen monastery is the place to preach and guide meditation for male students, located at Gam temple, in front of the Hon Da Bac Lon scenic spot, including 40 pagoda-like houses with a construction area of ​​nearly 9.8 hectares, of which the largest house (To Dinh) has an area of ​​700m2, construction density 30%; The Zen monastery for nuns to preach and guide meditation for female students is located on the northeastern slope of the Hon Da Bac Lon area, including 29 pagoda-like houses, construction area of ​​nearly 4.85 hectares, construction density 30%; The tower garden includes the top of the mountain is the statue of Buddha Sakyamuni, halfway up the mountain in the southeast are the shrines of Bodhisattva, Maitreya and the gardens of Lumbini, Bodhi, Bao Thap..., construction area 0.78 hectares;

Bach Y Temple Area: Located in the North of the spiritual - festival area, worshiping Bach Y Princess, Tam Toa Thanh Mau, Duc Thanh Tran, Buddha Quan Am..., total area of ​​7.89 hectares;

Martyrs' cemetery area: In the northeast of the spiritual - festival area, including the following works: Martyrs' shrine and museum, Monument house, green garden and martyrs' cemetery, area of ​​6.8 hectares, construction density of 20%;

Ecological resort and comprehensive service area: Northwest of the spiritual - festival area, area of ​​157.75 hectares, has 3 functional areas: Ecological resort at Xuan Nguyen lake including hotel, lakeside villas, Bungalow, restaurant and entertainment service system, other auxiliary works, area of ​​27.91 hectares; Comprehensive tourist area located at the top of the mountain to the west to the edge of Xuan Nguyen lake, including works such as traditional cuisine house, refreshment shop, sightseeing hut, sculpture garden, swimming pool..., land area of ​​4.06 hectares; Thematic park area located in the south of the comprehensive tourist area, including works such as biosphere museum, sightseeing hut, restaurant, entertainment works and other auxiliary works, land area of ​​0.82 hectares.

At the workshop to approve the design project organized by the Provincial People's Committee in February 2012, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Comrade Ho Duc Phoc (now Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee) concluded: The capital source for building the spiritual tourism area includes the original relic area, the spiritual - festival area, Bach Y temple area and internal roads connecting the temple, pagoda with the Zen monastery, between the components of the Zen monastery undertaken by the Truc Lam sect. The province and district will call on organizations and individuals inside and outside the province to invest in building the eco-tourism area. The martyrs' temple will be funded by the district and called for contributions from the community.

Although the project has a very large construction scale, it does not destroy the environmental landscape. The spiritual works are all located under the canopy of the special-use forest that has been approved by the General Department of Forestry to plan the project. The District People's Committee is implementing the construction and protection of the Ru Gam special-use forest planning project. The feasibility of the project is very high, but to put the project into practice, there are still many difficulties, requiring support, assistance, and cooperation from many levels, sectors, localities, many organizations and individuals, especially the great efforts of the Party Committee and people of Yen Thanh.

The project to build Ru Gam Eco-Cultural Spiritual Tourism Area will open up a new future and appearance for Yen Thanh district. Every year, it attracts a large number of domestic and foreign tourists, creating many jobs for workers; improving infrastructure; educating people's morality towards truth, goodness and beauty; overcoming and repelling social evils, gradually restoring cultural and spiritual values.

From Truc Lam Yen Tu to Truc Lam Yen Thanh, the first stage leaves a strong mark of sustainable development and Vietnamese cultural and spiritual imprints in every citizen of the heroic rice district.

Nguyen Tien Loi

(Chairman of Yen Thanh District People's Committee)