Visit Vu Lam Palace - Ninh Binh

 

With that vision of Thai Thuong Hoang Tran Thai Tong, Hanh Cung Vu Lam was not only a place to practice meditation, but also a solid base for the army and people of the Tran Dynasty, able to fight for a long time.

After the first resistance war against the Mongols (1258), 40-year-old King Tran Thai Tong ceded the throne to his son and returned to the Truong Yen mountains to establish a crown prince to practice, opening the construction of Vu Lam palace. . King Tran Thai Tong (1255 – 1258) built a small temple on the high ground near Hang Ca of the scenic area (Tam Coc) as a place to practice.

There is still a vestige of an area of ​​land about one acre wide, higher than the field called Vuon Am. The king built Thai Vi amphitheater here, recruited exiles to come to reclaim and establish hamlets, expand roads, embellish vital places, prepare for an emergency situation, in case of war. against the invaders broke out again. Many important meetings of the court, chaired by King Tran Thai Tong were held here. During the second resistance war against the Mongol invasion in 1285, the Vu Lam Hanh Cung area became a solid base for the Tran army and people.

On May 3, the year of the Rooster (May 7, 1285), two kings Tran Thanh Tong and Tran Nhan Tong defeated a part of the Mongol – Nguyen army here, “beheading the enemy unspeakably”. The battle of the Mongols and the Yuans took place in the Thien Duong limestone valley. In the middle of the above-mentioned Thien Duong limestone valley, there is a field “Cua Ma” and nearby there is a valley “Move” because there are many graves, so the locals call this valley “war ground”. The battle of the Mongols and the Yuans at Truong Yen on May 7, 1285 contributed to quickly wiping out the Mongols – Yuans out of Dai Viet, once again showing that Truong Yen is not only the imperial capital but also the land of the imperial capital. battlefield.

The current Vu Lam Hanh Cung relic is widely distributed in 4 communes: Ninh Hai, Ninh Thang, Ninh Xuan and Ninh Van, Hoa Lu district, in the southern area of ​​Trang An scenic complex. Like the ancient capital of Hoa Lu, Vu Lam Hanh Cung includes the mountains and caves of Trang An, which are embellished with historical relics. Spread over a fairly large area, the Vu Lam Hanh Cung relic site includes many historical sites such as: Cua Quan, Hanh Cung, Cong Rong, Tuan Cao, Vuon Kho, etc.

Today, the names of the land and villages in Van Lam land are still imprinted with historical imprints of that time. That is Truong Thi field where the drills are carried out, Ben Thanh is the wharf to gather marines, Thien Trao village (good at rowing), Ha Trao village (row guard) in Ninh Thang commune is the place to guard rowing when entering the Hanh Palace. That is Tuan Cao village, where the mandarins report to the king; Hanh Cung village, the residence of the King. Places like Thai Vi – Thung Nham (Ninh Hai commune); Hanh Cung – Kha Luong – Tuan Cao – Ha Trao (Ninh Thang commune) and Khe Dau, Bo head, and He Duong (Ninh Van commune) are all places directly related to the resistance war against the Nguyen invaders. year 1285.

The first attraction in the Vu Lam Hanh Cung relic complex is the temple of the Tran kings in the 13th century, one of the powerful and prosperous dynasties of the Vietnamese feudal system. With 175 years of existence and development, the Tran dynasty has made great achievements in many aspects, but the most outstanding is the glorious feat of defeating the Nguyen – Mong army three times. Temple of 6 kings of the Tran Dynasty, who once had their mark, retired here and used to come here to practice: 

King Tran Thai Tong

(ie Tran Canh) was born in 1218, died in 1277, became king at the age of 8 because Ly Chieu Hoang abdicated the throne in 1225, stayed on the throne for 33 years in 1258, was Thai Thuong Hoang for 19 years, and lived 59 years. Tran Thai Tong was the first king of the Tran Dynasty who was instrumental in stabilizing and bringing Vietnamese society into a prosperous period after the Ly Dynasty. He was also a brave king, studied both Confucianism and Buddhism, and was talented in poetry and literature. In particular, he raised the issue of building an exam regime, contributing to the expansion of learning in Vietnam. He was the leader who won the first duel with the Yuan-Mong invaders in 1258.

King Tran Thanh Tong

(ie Tran Hoang) born in 1240 and died in 1290 was the second Emperor of the Tran Dynasty, reigning from 1258 to 1278 and serving as Thai emperor from 1278 until his death. He was a talented Emperor who had great merit in building Dai Viet to flourish. Under his reign, Dai Viet Thai Binh and Nguyen Mong troops temporarily stopped invading, creating favorable conditions for the development of powerful forces. He was famous as an Emperor who loved the people and was very good at poetry and literature, and was also very devoted to Buddhism. During his time as Crown Prince, he, along with his son Tran Nhan Tong, led his troops to victory in the last two wars against the Yuan army. In 1282 – 1283, when the Nguyen Mong army pulled 500,000 great soldiers to try to weed the South for the second time, the whole Vu Lam, He Duong, Tam Coc, Bich Dong,

King Tran Nhan Tong

(ie Tran Kham) is the 3rd king of the Tran dynasty. He was born in 1258, and died in 1308, aged 42. At the age of 21, he was handed the throne by his father and reigned for 15 years (1278 – 1293). Because he was a wise man with great economic talent, he had great merit in leading the entire people to fight against the Mongols to victory for the second and third times, building a prosperous country. Besides being a talented emperor, he was also known as an excellent poet. When he was a teenager, Tran Kham (later King Tran Nhan Tong) followed his grandfather to Vu Lam and listened to him passionately about the life of the Buddha. In 1282 – 1283, before the Yuan Mong army pulled 500,000 great troops to plan to weed the South country for the second time, King Tran Nhan Tong and the court generals returned to Vu Lam Palace to discuss the plan to defend the country and establish enemy lines. In the seventh month of the Year of the Horse (1294),

King Tran Anh Tong

(ie Tran Thuyen) was born in 1276 and died in 1320, the fourth emperor. He reigned for 21 years (1293 – 1314) and was Crown Prince for 6 years. Mr. Tong was a wise man, his study expanded widely. Besides being an excellent politician, he was also a good poet. His poetry is simple, pure, emotional, and elaborate in words.

King Tran Minh Tong 

(ie Tran Manh) born in 1300, died in 1357, was the fifth emperor of the Tran Dynasty. He reigned for 15 years (1314-1329) and served as Crown Prince for 28 years. Although the successor to the throne was still young, but the capital of intelligence and intelligence, the prosperity of the country continued to expand, brightening the industry of the Tran Dynasty, a talented monarch. Because he knew how to respect the scholar, under his command there were many sages such as Pham Ngu Lao, Truong Han Sieu, Nguyen Trung Ngan, and Chu Van An to help, the prosperous time was spread when he died in 1357. In previous kings, Minh Tong often composed poetry and literature.

King Tran Nghe Tong 

(ie Nghe Hoang), born in 1321, died in 1394, was the 8th emperor. He stayed on the throne for 2 years (1370 – 1372), and stayed on the throne for more than 20 years (1372 – 1394). Tran Nghe Tong was the last supreme power emperor of the Tran royal family, the merits of overthrowing Duong Nhat Le and restoring the fortunes of the Tran dynasty brought him a lifetime of fame. However, he was also responsible for the fact that the Tran royal family fell into the hands of his maternal uncle, Ho Quy Ly, his maternal cousin, because during his lifetime he tolerated Quy Ly and killed the Tran family. Shortly after ascending the throne, Tran Nghe Tong ascended to the throne in 1372, ceding the throne to his younger brother, Tran Due Tong.

To the left of the temple of the Tran kings is a statue worshiping the spirit of the country’s mother, Tran Thi Dung. She is the son of Mr. Tran Ly in Luu Giang village, now Luu Xa commune, Hung Nhan district, Thai Binh province. Crown Prince Sam, son of King Ly Cao Tong, 15 years old, ran away here to marry Tran Thi Dung. Tran Ly recruited troops from surrounding communes to support King Ly Cao Tong to retake Thang Long. At the end of 1209, the Tran family brought King Ly Cao Tong to the capital. In 1210, King Ly Cao Tong died. In 1211, 17-year-old Crown Prince Sam ascended the throne as King Ly Hue Tong, establishing Tran Thi Dung as a former concubine. In 1216, Tran Thi Dung gave birth to her first daughter, Princess Thuan Thien. Two years later (1218) she gave birth to a second daughter, Princess Chieu Thanh. Mrs. Tran Thi Dung is honored as the Queen. In 1226, King Ly Hue Tong died at Chan Giao pagoda because Tran Thu Do forced him to die. Later, she married Thai monk Tran Thu Do. She has great merit in reconciling Tran Lieu with Tran Canh. (Tran Lieu and Tran Canh are Tran Thua’s children. Tran Thua is Tran Thi Dung’s biological brother. Tran Lieu married Princess Thuan Thien. Tran Canh married Princess Chieu Thanh).

For more than 10 years living with Tran Canh (King Tran Thai Tong), Empress Chieu Thanh still did not give birth, so Tran Thu Do forced King Tran Thai Tong to leave Queen Chieu Thanh and marry Thuan Thien because of Thuan Thien at that time. are pregnant. It was the year of the Rooster (1237), so Tran Lieu (who was Tran Hung Dao’s father) rebelled against King Tran Thai Tong and rebelled. Thanks to Mrs. Tran Thi Dung, Tran Lieu and Tran Canh resolved the discord. She kept the Tran family’s business in peace. In the spring of 1259 (Ky Mui), Mrs. Tran Thi Dung died. King Tran named her “Linh Tu Quoc Mau”. Historian Ngo Si Lien in the Dai Viet History of Toan Thu praised her: “Helping the Tran Dynasty’s internal affairs, Linh Tu had many great merits… that’s why I knew that God gave birth to Linh Tu in order to open the Tran Dynasty”. Legend has it that when she followed the Tran court to Vu Lam to establish Hanh Cung, she taught the people of Van Lam village, Ninh Hai commune, the profession of embroidery.

The right side of the temple worships General Tran Quang Khai, he belongs to the noble lineage of the Tran Dynasty. He was born in the year of the New Ox 1241 and died in the year of the Horse in 1294, at the age of 53. Famous general, poet of the Tran dynasty, the third son of King Tran Thai Tong (Tran Canh), younger brother of Tran Thanh Tong (Tran Hoang) alias Lac Dao, native of Tuc Mac village, Thien Truong palace, Nam Dinh province. He studied a lot, knew a lot, had literary talent, was good at military work. At a young age, he was conferred the title of Chieu Minh Vuong, in 1371 he held the position of General of the State Thai Lieutenant under King Tran Thanh Tong, then promoted to Thai monk under King Tran Nhan Tong.

In the fight against the invading Nguyen – Mong army, he, Tran Quoc Tuan and his comrades achieved a glorious victory. The triumphant poem Tung Gia Hoang Kinh Su is an epic of the nation:

Mastering the flute Chuong Duong,

Hold Ham Tu Quan lake.

Taiping tu makes efforts,

Van ancient try Giang san.

Pandemic:

Chuong Duong robbed the enemy’s spear,

Ham Tu captured the military god.

Peace should strive,

Non-water that thousand autumn.

The second attraction in the Vu Lam Hanh Palace relic complex is the temple of Hung Dao Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan – a famous general of the Tran Dynasty as well as the history of our country. Tran Hung Dao  (1228-1300) was an outstanding celebrity of the nation as well as an ancient military celebrity of the world. In his life, he experienced a transformation, 3 times of water disaster.

In 1257, the Nguyen army invaded our country for the first time, he was sent to lead the army to guard the northern border. Thirty years later, during the second two wars against the Mongols (1285) and the third (1287-1288), he was again promoted to be the commander of the whole army and won a glorious victory. He was the one who offered the “garden without empty house” plan, retreated from Thang Long citadel to Vu Lam Palace to avoid great losses for the Tran Dynasty, and created an opportunity to break the enemy’s forces. He was a general of all talents and virtues, not only a public servant of the Tran Dynasty but also a great hero of the nation. Tran Hung Dao is also one of the ten talented generals of the world at the British royal history museum printed in the book “The famous people of the world”.

After Tran Hung Dao’s death, in the Vietnamese mind, he went from a historical figure, a national hero who was canonized, to become a divine person. Over 700 years, legends and rituals and festivals of worshiping Saint Tran have formed all over Vietnam. conserve; has a profound influence on the spiritual life of Vietnamese people. Surrounding Saint Tran are not only existing cultural heritages but also a dense and colorful intangible cultural heritage treasure.

The song “August Father’s death anniversary, Mother’s death anniversary in March” has long been ingrained in the Vietnamese mind. The first basis leading to this integration and interlacing is about the type of both being a combination of indigenous beliefs (ancestor worship, meritorious people) with influences of folk religion. In addition, in the Vietnamese folk mind, Saint Tran or Holy Mother Lieu Hanh are all gods sent by the Jade Emperor to earth to eliminate evil spirits, epidemics, save sentient beings, and protect the country. social rules.

Thus, the beliefs of Mother Goddess worship and Saint Tran worship together have many values ​​in terms of world awareness and human life, consolidation and enhancement of patriotism, culture and art through the custom of assimilation of the gods. saints, through festivals and customs, through architecture and sculpture.

Pham Ngu Lao (1255–1320)

was a general of the Tran Dynasty. He is from Phu Ung village, Duong Hao district, Hai Duong (now An Thi district, Hung Yen province). As a guest of Tran Hung Dao, he was married by Tran Hung Dao to his daughter, Princess Anh Nguyen. In two wars against the invaders of the Yuan Dynasty (1285 – 1288) he achieved many victories. Pham Ngu Lao sent his army three times to punish the invasion and harassment of the Ai Lao army in 1294, 1297 and 1301; Twice Nam Chinh defeated the Champa army in 1312. Not only was he talented in military skills, but he also left behind many poems about chi boys and patriotism.

Yet Kieu (1242-1301)

was the subordinate of the Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan. His real name is  Pham Huu The . Born in Ha Bi village, Gia Phuc district (now Ha Bi village, Yet Kieu commune, Gia Loc district, Hai Duong province). He has a talent for swimming and diving like a aquatic species. In the wars against the Yuan army in the 13th century, he specialized in using his diving skills to penetrate deep into the enemy formations to pierce and sink warships, bringing about many resounding feats, making great contributions to the wars. . Also with his swimming and diving skills, he has repeatedly stormed into the front and middle of the enemy squad to save and protect the general .  Yet Kieu is very trusted and respected by Hung Dao Dai Vuong. He was conferred by King Tran: “Tran Dynasty, the first general of the navy, the Marquis of the Emperor”. 

Truong Han Sieu (?-1354)

was a mandarin, a cultural celebrity of the Tran dynasty, with extensive education, and was always honored by the Tran kings as “Master” and not by his name. He was born in Phuc Am village, Yen Ninh district, Truong Yen road (now Phuc Thanh ward, Ninh Binh city). According to the official history, Truong Han Sieu was originally from Tran Quoc Tuan’s guest, his character was resolute, his education was profound. He made many merits in the 2nd and 3rd resistance wars against the Mongols.

In Vietnamese temples and pagodas, idols of Taoism are quite common, typically the Ngoc Hoang – Nam Tao – Bac Dau trio, or the Nam Tao – Bac Dau duo. Therefore, in the temple of Hung Dao Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan, on the left and right sides, there are worshiping two gods Nam Tao and Bac Dau. Bac Dau with a strict face considers “Death”, Nam Cao with a gentle face considers “Birth” in the world, Nam Cao on the left means the South, Bac Dau on the right means the North. The two gods Nam Cao and Bac Dau, in addition to looking after mankind, from birth to death, also determine the fate of rich and poor, rich and poor, good and bad, and after death what life should be reincarnated. The fates of animals are also recorded by these two gods.

The third point in your journey to visit Vu Lam Palace is Ang La Pagoda, built on a giant lotus, with modern architecture, construction materials are mainly monolithic stone and precious wood. In front of the pagoda, there is a phoenix-shaped mountain, especially in the back, there is a mountain of the image of Amitabha Buddha sitting in meditation facing the west for the peace of the nation, protecting the people’s peace.

During the resistance war against the Nguyen Mong invaders, King Tran withdrew his troops here in a short time, with the foundation of a very Buddhist dynasty, so he built this Khai Phuc temple. Currently, Xuan Truong construction enterprise has rebuilt on the old foundation. Usually entering temples and pagodas will follow the right-to-left rule, which is to go in the direction of translation from yang to yin to make good roots. You will perform the ceremony from the statue of the deity promoting good, worshiping Duc Ong first, because Monsignor is the one who looks after the temple, then comes the Tam Bao, Duc Thanh Hien. The outer ring on both sides is a statue of two gods promoting good and punishing evil. This is also the place where the Buddha Emperor Tran Nhan Tong first ordained as a monk, around July 12, 1294, before he went to Yen Tu to establish Truc Lam Zen sect, a Zen lineage imbued with Vietnamese identity. .

The fourth attraction is the Mother Temple (Three Sees of the Holy Mother). Vietnamese Mother Goddess Worship is an indigenous belief with foreign influences from Taoism, which takes the worship of Mother (Mother) as an idol with the powers of reproduction and protection for people. The creed in which it has been sexed takes the form of the Mother.

On the left outside of the Mausoleum, you will see 11 steles placed on the back of a turtle to record the great merits of heroes and martyrs who have made great contributions to the construction and defense of the country, because turtles are an important part of the country. Amphibians fast fast, symbolizing longevity, so turtles are often chosen to carry cranes and carry beer.

The fifth final attraction is the communal temple of the generals of the Dinh dynasty in the past. This is also a temple to commemorate the great merits for the sacrifices in the construction and defense of the country of the heroes and soldiers. Because in the past, the main means of transportation for generals was horses, so in the temple on both sides there were red and white horses, symbolizing yin and yang, red being yang and white being yin.

Kayaking in Trang An

Kayaking in Trang An  will take visitors to experience one of two routes.

The first route starts from Marina, goes through Trinh Temple, to Tam Quan Gate, Dark Cave Gate, Quy Hau Cave Gate, Ngoc Mountain.

On this route, visitors can check-in on the boat, the tree stump under the Tam Quan gate.

Go and burn incense in Trinh temple. The length of this route both going and returning is about 8km.

The second route departs from the Marina and goes to Kong Island Wharf to Thuy Dinh, Vu Lam Hanh Cung.

On this route, visitors can check-in on the boat, Thuy Dinh and learn the history of Hanh Cung Vu Lam…

The length of this route both going and returning is about 5km.

• See more: Ninh Binh travel experience

Price list for kayaking Trang An

Boat type/hour	Rent cost
KAYAK SINGLE 2 HOUR TICKET TICKET :	250,000 VND/WOMEN’S BOAT
3-HOUR KAYAK SINGLE TICKET TICKETS:	300,000 VND/WOMEN’S BOAT
KAYAK DOUBLE BOOK TICKETS 2 HOURS:	VND 350,000/Women’s boat
KAYAK DOUBLE 3-HOUR TICKET TICKET:	400,000 VND/WOMEN’S BOAT