Ngoc Son Temple is on Hoan Kiem
Lake, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. Hoan Kiem Lake was already considered the most
beautiful lake in Hanoi when Ngoc Son Temple was built on an island in the 19th
century. Initially, the temple was called Ngoc Son Pagoda and was later renamed
Ngoc Son Temple, since temples are dedicated to saints.
Saint Van Xuong, considered to be
one of the brightest stars in Vietnam's literary and intellectual circles, was
worshipped there. National hero Tran Hung Dao is also worshipped after he led
the Vietnamese people to victory over the Yuan aggressors.
The temple as it is today is the
result of renovations made by Nguyen Van Sieu in 1864. A Confucian scholar,
Nguyen Van Sieu had a large pen-shaped tower built at the entrance of the
temple. On the upper section of the tower, also called Thap But, are three
Chinese characters Ta Thanh Thien, which literally means "to write on the
blue sky” is to imply the height of a genuine and righteous person's
determination and will; Dai Nghien, meaning "ink stand", is carved
from stone resembling a peach placed on the back of the three frogs on top of
the gate to the temple; and The Huc, meaning "where rays of morning
sunshine touch".
On the way to the temple there
are several parallel sentences (cau doi), written on the walls. These cau doi
were part of traditional word puzzles played by educated individuals
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