Non Nuoc Pagoda – an architectural masterpiece in a Hanoi suburb

Located in Ve Tinh commune, Soc Son district, Hanoi, as part of the Soc temple complex, Non Nuoc pagoda and Vietnam Buddhist Academy are part of a monumental architectural work that has been in use for seven years.

VietNamNet Bridge - Located in Ve Tinh commune, Soc Son district, Hanoi, as part of the Soc temple complex, Non Nuoc pagoda and Vietnam Buddhist Academy are part of a monumental architectural work that has been in use for seven years. It is also a spiritual tourism address, increasingly attracting pilgrims.

According to legend, after defeating the An enemy on the road coming back to Soc mountain, Giong Saint stopped here and bathed in West lake.

When on the road, the Giong Saint forgot the iron rod broken in battle, whereupon residents built a temple to worship him.

The ancient documentation of the temple said that the master monk was Ngo Chan Luu (933 – 1011) fourth generation of Vo Ngon Thong Zen. In 971, Khuong Viet was Grand Master granted by the king Dinh Tien Hoang.

By the end of the Ly dynasty, the temple had two monks: Abbot Nguyen Truong (1110 – 1165) and Abbot Nguyen Hoc- 10th generation of Vo Ngon Thong sect.

The Non Nuoc pagoda is located in Soc temple complex 110 meters high.

The pagoda is placed in the middle of a "mountain" like a person sitting on a throne, looking down towards the blue lake and thriving villages of Ve Linh commune, Soc Son district, Hanoi.

In 2000, Monk Thich Thanh Quyet decided to rebuild the pagoda and cast a bronze statue of Buddha Shakyamuni that was the largest one in the country at that time.

The statue was cast by craftsman Vu Duy Thuan in Lam town, Y Yen district, Nam Dinh.

The statue was made during 18 months; with weight 20 tons of bronze, the lotus platform of 10 tons in weight, 1.35 in high; the stone pedestal 1.71 in high. If taking the stone monument into account, the statue has the height of 8.4 meters.

It was rebuilt on the slope of the mountain, the south of Nha Bia Mountain. The main hall has area of 260 square meters, 14 meters in high. Master monk Thich Thanh Quyet said that 30 tons of bronze were purchased from Singapore, 600m3 ironwood from Laos, and 30m3 of green stone from Thanh Hoa.

Over hundreds of years, with the ups and downs of history and nature, the pagoda’s foundation was accidentally discovered few years ago and the city People’s Committee decided to build on the former ground with the donation of Buddhist monks and nuns.

The temple is located on the back of the mountain, with a quiet campus amid a romantic landscape.

In 2004, the Buddhist Shangha of Vietnam held a groundbreaking ceremony to construct the Vietnam Buddhist Academy- a monk training center for the country.