Thien Mu pagoda (also known as Linh Mu pagoda) was built in 1601 under Lord Nguyen Hoang’s reign after he had been sent to Thuan Hoa (present-day Central Vietnam) to rule the area.
For the past 420 years, the pagoda has preserved many Buddhist cultural values and old antiques left by the Nguyen Lords and Nguyen Kings.
Dr. Phan Thanh Hải, Director of Culture and Sport Department in Thua Thien Hue province informed that Thien Mu pagoda has been upgraded for several times: It was renovated in 1665 by Lord Nguyen Phuc Tan; in 1710, Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu casted a great bell called Dai Hong Chung which is 3,285 kg of weigh; in 1714, he rebuilt the pagoda with a great scale.
The new pagoda included palaces of Thien Vuong, Ngoc Hoang, Dai Hung, Thap Vuong, Dai Bi, and Duoc Su, Buddhist teaching hall, Tang Kinh pavilion, bell tower, houses for monks’ accommodations and meditation etc. These constructions were built and later restored with a unique architectural style of the Nguyen dynasty's royal architecture, such as Phuoc Duyen tower (also known as Tu Nhan tower) comprising of seven stories built by King Thieu Tri in 1844. The tower is now considered as a cultural symbol in Hue city.
The pagoda currently keeps many precious treasures and rare relics of Buddhist culture as well as precious artifacts under the Nguyen Lords and Nguyen Kings, including the bronze gong cast in 1677, the wooden gilded board with Lord Nguyen Phuc Chu’s inscriptions in 1714 and the Great Bell in 1710. The Great Bell has been recognized as the Vietnam National Treasure in 2013. In addition, a car of the late Most Venerable Thich Quang Duc who burned himself to death to protest the persecution of Buddhists under the Ngo Dinh Diem administration in 1963 has been kept and displayed at the pagoda.
According to the Hue Monuments Conservation Center, from 2003-2006, the Center has restored 18 work items of Thien Mu pagoda with a total budget of more than 26 billion VND such as Phuoc Duyen town, Huong Nguyen communal house, Dai Hung palace, triple gate, bell tower, etc. Currently, the Center also regularly surveys, and renovates landscapes surrounding the pagoda, contributing to preserve and promote cultural and natural values of the pagoda
PH (vanhoa.vn)
