In the campus of the 600-year-old temple, the beautiful white lotus flowers bloom to attract tourists to visit and worship.

Boi Khe Pagoda (Tam Hung Commune, Thanh Oai District, Hanoi) has undergone 600 years of history and is recognized as a special national relic. This is one of the most important relics of Hanoi, along with Huong Pagoda, Thay Pagoda, Tay Phuong Pagoda, Dau Pagoda… The most special thing is that there are three beautiful lotus flowers in the temple grounds. , with unique pure white flowers, rare in Vietnam. 

Boi Khe Pagoda is located in Tam Hung Commune, Thanh Oai District, Hanoi.

Ground lotus petals are white, pistil yellow.

Referring to Boi Khe pagoda, people refer to the earth lotus. The ground lotus is not like other lotuses grown under the lagoon, this flower has a pure white color, and the scent is ecstatic. The ground lotus tree has a bare stem, the leaves are glossy green on the upper surface, and the lower surface has fine brown hairs. The ground lotus from the time it blooms to the time its wings are released has a very similar shape to a water lotus. The flower only has yellow pistil, not a lotus mirror like a water lotus, but when the petals dry, it still leaves a fragrance.

In Vietnamese folklore, there is a folk song “Yesterday slap the head of the house / Forgot the shirt on the lotus branch”. Many people believe that there is no “lotus flower branch”, it is just a product of rich imagination to add poetry to the folk song, but the people of Boi Khe village insist that “lotus flower branch” is mentioned there. is the branch of the lotus tree in the temple grounds.

According to Ms. Pham Thi Quyet, a resident of Boi Khe village, these precious lotus trees have existed for hundreds of years in the temple grounds. Villagers also call it dry lotus. Previously, the pagoda had two lotus trees about 5m high, but one of them died because of insects. Currently, there are only three lotus trees in the temple grounds. Two young lotus trees about 2.5m high, planted in front of the three jewels, are extracted from the lotus tree nest next to the harem. 

Ground lotus tree in the campus of Boi Khe pagoda.

As soon as entering the temple grounds, visitors can smell the gentle, very pleasant aroma of the earth lotus. The lotus season blooms from late spring to early summer, the flowers bloom for 1-2 weeks before they fade and are fragrant. Also according to Ms. Pham Thi Quyet, lotus is grown in some places in the North of our country, but rarely blooms. In Boi Khe pagoda, land lotus blooms every year, each tree only blooms about ten flowers. Perhaps for that reason, this place has attracted many tourists to visit the temple and admire this rare flower.