Co Phap Pagoda

Bắc Ninh has one of the densest clusters of old pagodas in northern Vietnam. A Buddhist studies journal records that Luy Lâu was once an ancient center of economy, politics and religion here. Many pagodas in the province have kept their cultural values for a millennium. This is the Kinh Bắc region, home to Cổ Pháp Pagoda.

Cổ Pháp Pagoda stands in the village of Đông. The village lies in Khắc Niệm ward of Bắc Ninh city. For many generations it has been a place of religious and cultural life for Buddhists and local people. With the years the pagoda fell into disrepair. Then the community, the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and the local government held a groundbreaking ceremony to restore and renew it. The story is a familiar one, and it never grows old. Villagers across many generations gave their effort and their savings to keep the pagoda for their grandchildren.

The name Cổ Pháp raises a question. It is an old place name tied to the land where the Lý dynasty began. The Lý dynasty ruled Vietnam from 1009 to 1225. Several pagodas in the area share the name. Stories of Lý Công Uẩn are usually told of another pagoda of the same name, in Đình Bảng. The Zen masters of the Lý era are tied to that pagoda, or to the Từ Sơn area. Each pagoda called Cổ Pháp is a separate page in the Buddhist history of this land.

The pagoda at Khắc Niệm stands quietly, its tiled roof covered in moss, a bell sounding from the inner courtyard. The history books still leave much to be made clear. Yet this pagoda has long been where the people of Đông village light incense, bow, and entrust the most peaceful things in their lives. That needs no further proof.