VietNamNet Bridge – To many first-time visitors, Ha Noi seems to be a young city not only because of so many young people out on its streets, but also because of new buildings and supermarkets, shops and restaurants, colleges and libraries. Thousands of new buildings have sprung up in the past 20 to 30 years.

Piece of history: The original statue of the Viet people from 900 years ago. — VNS Photo Pham Hoang Van

Many people, particularly expatriates, find it hard to look into the 1,000-year-old history to find traces of the many dynasties that had their capitals up and down the Red River.

The architectural landmarks of distant dynasties, such as the Ly and Tran, are few and far between. So when a stone statue of Amitabha, the future Buddha, was declared a National Treasure, people jumped at the chance to see it.

The statue, which is housed at Ngo Xa Pagoda in Nam Dinh Province, is "said to be the oldest remaining complete stone statue of the Viet people from the Ly Dynasty", said history professor Tran Lam Bien.

“We found it in the 1960s when we went to examine a collection of Chuong Son relics,” he said. “The statue was originally up in the mountains, but people had carried it down to preserve it at the Ngo Xa Pagoda at the foot of the mountain.”

The Ly Dynasty started with founder Ly Cong Uan, who later became King Ly Thai To, who moved the royal capital from mountain-trapped Hoa Lu, to the flatland surrounding Dai La Citadel, where the Red River meets a busy residential and trading centre.

He named the new citadel Thang Long, the Ascending Dragon, and started a dynasty that lasted for more than 200 years, that was militarily powerful and economically successful. Religion and art also bloomed.

First phase: The original stone Amitabha Statue before it was gold-gilded. Photo courtesy of http://hoidonghuongnamdinhhcm.com

Buddhist religion

Ly Cong Uan grew up in a pagoda. During his life, Ly Thai To, as he was known, was an observant Buddhist. Buddhism flourished under the dynasty.

It was written in the Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu, the Complete History of Great Viet, that the king ordered thousands of Buddhas be chiselled, thousands painted and tens of thousands of religious banners made.

It is written on a stone stele at Quynh Lam Pagoda in Quang Ninh Province, that a monk, Thuong Duc, carved a Buddhist statue 1m80 tall.

Author Nguyen Tien Canh writes in The Arts of Ly Dynasty published in 1973, “Buddhist towers and pagodas played a vital role under the Ly Dynasty. Then, pagodas were built everywhere in the country. Where there was man, there was pagoda. At beautiful scenic mountains and landscapes, there would be a pagoda built.”

Other Ly kings, Ly Thai Tong and Ly Nhan Tong, both took care of Buddhist and State affairs. Buddhism was actively practised, the teachings were wide-spread. Historian Le Van Huu in the 13th century wrote that, “Over half of the population are monks and pagodas can be seen everywhere.”

Still standing: Old and rusty, the pagoda was built in the 17th century. — VNS Photo My Ha

Under the Ly Dynasty, a great number of pagodas and towers were built. Regent Queen Y Lan built a total of 100 pagodas in her lifetime.

The country’s most influential Buddhist landmarks were built in the period. They included One Pillar Pagoda, the Celestial Tower in Thang Long (now Ha Noi), Phat Tich Pagoda and tower in Bac Ninh Province and Chuong Son Tower in Ha Nam Province.

The glorious epoch of the Ly Dynasty was later followed by the illustrious Tran Dynasty, both pivotal to the Viet civilization.

In the 15th century, the Ming from China invaded Dai Viet, as then Viet Nam today was named, and placed it under Chinese rule for 20 years. During this time they destroyed all the important landmarks of the Viet people.

They literally pulled down the towers and pagodas, destroyed statues and pavilions. They also burnt all the books.

Of all the magnificent pagodas and towers, palaces and residence, only five statues of Amitabha, the original treasures of the Ly Dynasty, remain for us to see today.

Ancient motif: The Lotus petal bears a pair of dragons typical of Ly Dynasty. — VNS Photo My Ha

The oldest 

And of all these five statues, the one at Ngo Xa Pagoda is the most complete. It was listed as a National Treasure in 2013.

 “This is the most important statue, the Amitabha,” says historian Tran Lam Bien. “It is the oldest. It’s unique.”

This year marks the 900th anniversary of the completion of the Chuong Son Tower and we went to observe the statue, now preserved in the Ngo Xa Pagoda at the foot of Chuong Son Mountains.

Started in the early days of spring 1108, the tower took nine years to complete.

King Ly Nhan Tong visited the Chuong Son mountains in 1107, 1114 and 1117 — and each time a dragon is said to have appeared. According to Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu, or the Complete History of Great Viet Complete, “King Ly Nhan Tong ventured to Chuong Son Mountains to inaugurate the Sacred Tower Van Phong Thanh Thien.”

During his reign, King Ly Nhan Tong warded off northern invaders and pacified southern neighbours. He reinforced the royal exams to choose talented scholars for royal postings. He banned the killing of buffaloes for meat to maintain farming capacity for rice cultivation. He built nine towers including twin towers with white tops in front of the Dien Huu or One Pillar Pagoda in Ha Noi now.

But today, only the square stone foundation remains of the original Chuong Son Pagoda. One side measures 19m long.

The Amitabha statue was originally placed in a 100-compartment pagoda standing by the tower. The statue was taken downhill from the mountains and now rests in Ngo Xa Pagoda, which was built in the 17th century.

Located at the foot of the mountains and further out of the town centre, Ngo Xa Pagoda is quiet and solemn. It stands in a large yard under age-old trees facing a rice field.

The sitting statue at Ngo Xa rests on a three-level stone pedestal. The lowest level shows water waves, dragons and flowers. The lower half of this level shows water wave after wave, above which lively dragons fly in between daisy flower strings. These motifs are quite popular and typical of the decoration in the Ly Dynasty.

The next level features a pair of lions playing with a jade ball on top of an inverted lotus. The lions sport little flowers on their bodies. The lotus petals are carved with chrysanthemum flowers.

The top level features a lotus bed with two layers of petals. Each petal bears a pair of dragons beautifully and lively carved.

All the ornate decorations lead to the most important statue on top. The whole statue and pedestal stand at 2m16.

The statue had a removable headpiece but it was stolen from the pagoda in 2002.

A country-wide police search was announced and all border gates checked. Nearly a yearly later, the head was found wrapped in a red piece of cloth, left in the commune’s cemetery.

Now if you visit the pagoda, you’ll see the statue clad in gold.

Nguyen Van Vinh, 80, a long time guard at the pagoda explained that the gilded coat was to hide the cut at the throat of the statue. 

In a paper about Buddhism during the Ly Dynasty, historians Tran Lam Bien and Chu Quang Tru wrote that, “Only the statue at Ngo Xa Pagoda best represents the Buddhist human sculpture during the Ly Dynasty.”

The same paper also has it that, “The 100-compartment pagoda was beautifully carved with wood, but it was all gone.”

Pointing to a broken piece with water wave motifs, Nguyen Van Vinh says, “This is what is left of the border of the western hall at the 100-compartment pagoda up in the mountain.”

He then sighs, “It was huge.” 

Carved creatures: An image of lions playing with a jade ball, a popular image in the Ly Dynasty, not seen in later dynasties. — VNS Photo Pham Hoang Van Historic artifact: The Stone pedestal, the most complete to date from the Ly Dynasty. — VNS Photo Pham Hoang Van

Nguyen My Ha

VNS