something over 300 years old in the heart of the city
Located peacefully in Tien Tien commune (Hai Duong city), Dong Neo pagoda is one of the ancient Buddhist works, preserving many unique cultural and historical values. Built in 1699, the pagoda is over 300 years old and was ranked as a National Historical and Cultural Relic by the Ministry of Culture - Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) on December 31, 1997.
The pagoda has an international- too much- too-in-one architecture, a typical yet-famous mountainside house structure, with ancient tiled roofs, carved lines with elaborate and sophisticated patterns. This is a typical architectural style of the Later Le Dynasty, rare to remain intact to this day.
In the Three Jewels, there was still an extremely valuable Buddha statue dating back to the post -Le dynasty. The arrangement of the typical worship of the Northern temples and the combination of the three -year -old Tam Giao includes 3 Pho Tam The, Tam Thanh Tay Phuong, the statue of the Master Phuc Hoa Vi Tieu, the Maitreya statue, the Jade Emperor and the South Cao Bac Dau, the Cuu Long Court.
In addition to the Buddha statue system, the pagoda also preserves many ancient artifacts of special value, notably more than 100 reliefs on jackfruit wood including the Lang Nghiem and Vien Giac relics, which are still preserved intact.
In addition, the pagoda still has many valuable antiques that have been preserved for many generations such as: The stone water tank of King Le Hy Tong in the 23rd year of Chinh Hoa, the year Nham Ngo (1702). This ancient stone Thuong was offered by a Nguyen family as an official during the Le Dynasty.
The pagoda has an ancient bell made from the 21st Hau Le Chinh Hoa in 1700. For more than 300 years, the temple bell has always been attached to the villagers as well as the children living away from the countryside. Besides, the pagoda also preserved ancient stone steles: Dong Dong stele anchor 4 -sided tower engraved with the word since 1679; Linh Ung stone stele in 1895; Hau Buddha stele signed the fifth year of Duy Tan (1911) ...
Risk of collapse
After hundreds of years of sun and rain and war, Dong Neo Pagoda is now facing the risk of serious deterioration, especially in the Tam Bao area - the main center of the pagoda.
The iron -column system has been devastated by termites, many rotting and cracked wooden sections. Ms. Nguyen Thi Tan, a resident of the temple, often came to clean and shared: "I am attached to the pagoda since childhood. Every day I burn incense, clean, I am afraid of anything happening.
Mr. Nguyen Van Su, an elderly Buddhist in Tien Tien commune (Hai Duong city), said: "The pagoda is a sacred place, everyone respects it, but looking at the leaky roof and the rotten pillars, I feel heartbroken. During the rainy and stormy season, we have to stretch tarps and take buckets to collect water. The wood is so rotten that it can break at any time. Every time there is a big festival, villagers have to set up temporary trees and cover the area to avoid danger."
Ms. Le Thi Hop - Chairman of Tien Tien Commune People's Committee (Hai Duong City) expressed concern: "Dong Neo Pagoda is not only a place for religious activities of local people but also an important part of the cultural heritage of Hai Duong City. This is a rare ancient pagoda that still preserves the original architecture of the Later Le Dynasty along with many valuable relics.
However, the commune currently does not have enough funding to restore and preserve the pagoda. Mobilization is also facing difficulties due to large repair costs, exceeding the people's contribution capacity".
Ms. Hop also added: We hope that relevant departments, branches, cultural researchers, and philanthropists will join hands to contribute to save Dong Neo Pagoda. Without timely intervention, this pagoda of great historical and artistic value could collapse at any time, causing many rare artifacts to be damaged and lost forever".
