Bach Ma Temple

In the noisiest part of the Hanoi Old Quarter, on Hàng Buồm Street, stands a temple more than a thousand years old.

From the gate at number 76, no one could guess what lies behind it. Outside are motorbikes, tourists and shops. Inside it is dim and quiet, with curved tile roofs, carved wooden pillars and the smoke of incense. Two worlds lie a single gate apart.

By tradition, The history of Bạch Mã Temple begins around the year 866, when the Tang dynasty of China ruled Vietnam. The general Cao Biền was then building the citadel of Đại La, the forerunner of Hanoi. The temple was already standing on this spot. So when Emperor Lý Thái Tổ moved the capital to Đại La in 1010, the temple had been there for more than 140 years.

The temple honors the god Long Đỗ. The name means "Dragon's Navel." In East Asian feng shui, every region has a "dragon vein," the path along which a dragon runs through the land. The "dragon's navel" is the central point where the energy of that region gathers. Hanoi lies between the Red River and the Tô Lịch River, and it is thought to have a strong dragon's navel. In every age, Long Đỗ has been the guardian spirit of the whole land. It was called Đại La, then Thăng Long, then Hanoi.

The name Bạch Mã is tied to two legends from two different centuries.

The first legend belongs to the 9th century. When Cao Biền was building Đại La, he planned, so the legend goes, to lay a magic spell on the land. In a dream, the god Long Đỗ came down from the sky on a white horse and said: "I am the god Long Đỗ, and I have lived here for a long time. I heard that you were building a citadel, so I came to meet you. Why should there be a spell?" Cao Biền was afraid. He did not dare cast the spell and had a temple built for Long Đỗ. That was the beginning of Bạch Mã Temple.

The second legend belongs to the year 1010. That year Emperor Lý Thái Tổ moved the capital from Hoa Lư. The new site was Đại La, and he renamed it Thăng Long. That is the city now called Hanoi. He had a new citadel built, but each time the walls were raised, they fell down. The emperor sent men to pray at the temple of Long Đỗ. A white horse walked out, circled from east to west, and left its hoofprints. Then it returned and vanished. The emperor built the citadel exactly along the hoofprints of the white horse. This time the walls stood firm. When the work was done, he honored Long Đỗ with the title "Great King, Guardian Spirit of the Capital of Thăng Long."

Both legends have a white horse. That is why the temple is called Bạch Mã, white horse. In the innermost sanctuary today stand a statue of a white horse, a dragon throne and a spirit tablet for Long Đỗ. They are the two legends made visible.

Bạch Mã is the eastern guardian among the Four Guardian Temples of Thăng Long. These four temples have protected the capital since the Lý dynasty. On January 18, 2022, Bạch Mã was ranked a Special National Monument, together with the other three. They are Quán Thánh, Voi Phục and Kim Liên.

The present temple dates mostly from the Nguyễn dynasty, in the early 19th century. The path runs inward from the outer gate, called Nghi Môn. Next comes Phương Đình, the square ceremonial courtyard. Then Đại Bái, where the offerings are made. After that comes Thiên Hương, a hall in between. Deepest of all is Cung Cấm, the innermost sanctuary. The tile roofs curve sharply upward. Horizontal boards and paired verses in Chinese characters praise Long Đỗ and the history of Thăng Long.

The main festival falls on the 12th and 13th days of the second lunar month every year. It brings a palanquin procession, ceremonies, traditional singing and folk games.

Hàng Buồm Street, in front of the temple, was once a street of overseas Chinese merchants. Nearby stand the Guangdong Assembly Hall and the Fujian Assembly Hall as well. They are traces of cultural exchange between China and Vietnam over many centuries.

Stand in Đại Bái and look toward Cung Cấm, and you look into more than a thousand years of faith among the people of Hanoi. The depth is not in the boards and paired verses or the tile roofs. It is in all the generations who stood here before, looked the same way and prayed.