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As a complex of relics about the first university of our country, The Temple of Literature is not only a historical and cultural relic but also a place where many students and students come here to pray for luck in examinations and study. The Terrible Tour Guide Travel will introduce and share some experiences going to The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy in the most complete way for you to refer when visiting this famous monument in Hanoi.
The Temple of Literature is located in Dong Da district, Hanoi, right in the middle of 4 main streets: Nguyen Thai Hoc, Ton Duc Thang, The Temple of Literature and Imperial Academy. Traveling to Hanoi, a city of thousands of years of civilization, this is definitely the place you should visit.
If you depart from Ho Guom, you follow Le Thai To Street, turn right to Trang Thi Street, go to Cua Nam and Nguyen Khuyen and turn left to The Temple of Literature Street to arrive. Because there are a lot of one-way roads in Hanoi, especially around The Temple of Literature , remember to pay attention to avoid traffic violations.
If traveling by bus, you will take the following bus numbers, there will be bus stops near this area: 02, 23, 38, 25, 41.
Currently, tourists and people visiting the The Temple of Literature must buy tickets to enter. The ticket price is 20,000 VND for adults and 10,000 VND for children. This is quite cheap for both Vietnamese and foreign visitors.
The The Temple of Literature was built in 1070 under King Ly Thanh Tong, a place to worship Confucius, Chu Cong and Tu Phoi. In 1076, King Ly Nhan Tong established another Quoc Tu Giam next door to be a university dedicated to the kings and noble families. By the time of King Tran Thai Tong, Imperial Academy was renamed to National Academy and recruited children from normal background with excellent academic ability.
In the post-Le Dynasty, King Le Thanh Tong began to build stone steles of those who passed the doctorate. By the Nguyen Dynasty, Imperial Academy was established in Hue. Thang Long The Temple of Literature was renovated to only The Temple of Literature in Bac Thanh town, then changed to Hanoi Temple of Literature.
The complex of The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy relics is currently located within the precinct of 54331 m2, including many different small architectural works. Covering the campus is the mallet bricks. Through many remodeling, this complex of monuments includes Literature lake (Ho Van), Literature gate (Van Hieu Mon), The Great Middle gate ( Dai Trung Mon), Constellation of Literature pavilion (Khue Van pavilion), Well of Heavenly Clarity (Thien Quang well), Stelae of Doctors, Attained Talent gate( Dai Thanh Mon), Thai Hoc house.
The teaching buildings in the East and West are both divided into 14 compartments. Three rows of Classes, each one is divided into 25 compartments for 2 people. The entire architecture of the The Temple of Literature now is of the early Nguyen Dynasty. The complex of The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy architecture is arranged for each zone, each layer along the North-South axis, simulating the overall structure of the Temple worshiping Confucius in China, however, the scale here is more simple and still based on the traditional Vietnamese arts.
In front of the Temple, there is a large lake called Van Chuong Lake- The literature lake, its old name is Thai Ho. In the middle of the lake there is Kim Chau mound, previously there is a floor for sightseeing. At the main gate, there are four pillars, the left and right sides have Steles commanding horsemen to dismount, around the surrounding high-walled area. The gate of the The Temple of Literature is built in Tam quan style, there are 3 words “The Temple of Literature Mon” in ancient Chinese above. Inside the The Temple of Literature is divided into 5 distinct areas, each area has separated walls and gates connecting each other.
The main gate is constructed with Tam Quan style, above is three words “Van Hieu Mon” in ancient Chinese. Brick walls covers the whole complex, inside the Temple, walls also divide it into 5 zones with gates connecting each zone.
Begin with The Temple of Literature gate to Dai Trung gate, each side has a smaller gate, Thanh Duc Mon and Dat Tai Mon.
From Dai Trung Mon to Khue Van pavilion. Khue Van Pavilion is an architectural work which is not massive but harmonious and beautiful. The structure consists of 4 square brick pillars (85cm x 85cm) beneath the upper floor, there are very beautiful wood structures.
The upper floor has 4 circular doors, hand railings and flashing support the roof with simple wood. The double-layer stacked roof forms an 8-roof structure, roof edge and flat roof surface.
The upper floor is square with four sides of walls are round sun-shaped circular windows. The two sides of Khue Van Pavilion, left is Bi Van gate and right is Suc Van gate leading into two Doctorate stele houses.
Khue Van Pavilion in The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academyhas been recognized as a symbol of Hanoi city.
In the third courtyard is Thien Quang Tinh lake (sun light).On either side of the well stand two great halls which house the treasures of the temple: the steles of doctors. Each stele is made of stone, carved the names of every Trang nguyen, Bang nhan, Tham hoa, Hoang giap, Tien si. The steles are put on the backs of stone turtles. 82 steles remain to now from the exams between 1442 and 1779. These are the most valuable relics of the Temple.
As the central area and the main architecture of Temple of Literature, there are two big building in parallel and serial layout. The building outside is Bai Duong, the one inside is Thuong Cung. This is the area to worship Confucius and the Four Elements (Nhan Tu, Tang Tu, Tu Tu, Manh Tu).
This is the Thai Hoc area. During the reign of Nguyen, Quoc Tu Giam school in Hanoi, Thai Hoc was changed into Khai Thanh house, worshiping father and mother of Confucius. However, this block was destroyed during the resistance period against the French. The new Thai Hoc area was rebuilt in 1999 by the city of Hanoi. In this area, there is also Tien Duong – Hau Duong, which are the place to worship King Ly Thanh Tong, Ly Nhan Tong, Le Thanh Tong and Chu Van An, the rector of the imperial academy.
The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy is not only the first university of our country but also a candle that always burns, lighting the studious tradition of Vietnamese people. Coming to this place, you seem to be motivated by the bright yellow boards of our ancestors, loaded into a full energy source to be confident in the journey of learning and discovering human knowledge.
Besides, today, The The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy is also a place to organize poetry festivals, a place to praise excellent students and a famous sightseeing place to attract domestic and national tourists. when coming to Hanoi. At the same time, this is also a “lettering” rendezvous for the people of the capital during traditional Tet holidays with the hope of a peaceful new year; or during the important exam seasons of the country with the desire to pass with high colors of the students.
Through many ups and downs of time and many historical events, some of the structures here have been destroyed but The Temple of Literature – Imperial Academy is still considered the symbol of educational elite, cultural beauty of Ethnic Vietnam. Hopefully with the above information has helped you to have more knowledge about this meaningful – historic culture destination of the capital of Vietnam.
|Read more: Hanoi Highlights & Travel Guide