The Mao Dien Temple of Literature Festival 2017 in Hai Duong province’s Cam Giang district was opened at a ceremony held on March 12.
The traditional festival is held annually from the 15th to 18th day of the 2nd lunar month, which falls on March 12-15 this year. The festival features a wide range of rituals, cultural activities and traditional sports.
On the occasion, the inauguration of 14 renovated stone steles took place, each stele clearly records the name, time and address of each passing ancient doctorate examinations. The literature temple was officially recognized as one of five largest education-promotion centers in the country.
Mao Dien temple historical site is the second largest Temple of Literature in Vietnam, after the temple in Hanoi. According to history, from the middle of the 15th century under King Le Thanh Tong Dynasty, the king built a series of schools (state schools), including Mao Dien Temple of Literature to bolster education and training for Confucian scholars and mandarins. With more than 500 years since its establishment, the temple honors 637 doctors in Hai Duong province, making it a symbol of the studious spirit of local people. The temple also honors Confucius and excellent Confucian scholars of the province. Apart from worshiping Confucius, the temple also has altars for national greats such as Nguyen Trai, Chu Van An, Mac Dinh Chi, Nguyen Binh Khiem, Pham Su Manh, Tue Tinh, Vu Huu and Nguyen Thi Due. Renovation of stone steles in the temple was started in 2002.
PTT
