Kim Son Cave Pagoda

North of the city of Thái Nguyên, three mountains stand side by side, and inside them is an old pagoda with no roof of its own, because the cave itself is the roof.

This is Chùa Hang. Local sources give its full name as Chùa Hang, Kim Sơn Tự. Sometimes it is also called Tiên Lữ Phật Động. Three names, one place. The scenic area lies within three large mountains. The middle peak is called Huyền Vũ. On either side stand Thanh Long and Bạch Hổ. A saddle-shaped ridge about 1,000 meters long joins the three, and the land at their foot covers about 2.7 hectares. The Cầu River winds past in front.

According to the Linh Sơn ward authorities, the pagoda has been part of the religious life of local people since the 11th century, in the time of the Lý dynasty. The Lý dynasty ruled Vietnam from 1009 to 1225. In 1999, the pagoda was ranked as a national scenic site. In 2011, it was added to a collection of 100 representative pagodas of Vietnam.

Pass through the Tam Quan gate and you enter the space of a pagoda whose walls and ceiling are natural stone. Local sources record a guardian statue, stalactites on the vault of the cave, many large stone pillars, and many nooks that lead into one another. On the cave walls are inscriptions and poems in Chinese characters, carved into the rock. They are a true layer of historical record. Someone, at some time, stood in this cave and decided to carve words into the stone to leave a mark.

Many folk tales are tied to Chùa Hang. They tell of fairies who came down to earth, and of a dream of Emperor Lý Thánh Tông and Consort Ỷ Lan. Beautiful and engaging, these tales are the shared memory of the local community, passed on by word of mouth through many generations.

The pagoda is liveliest in early spring. The Thái Nguyên Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism records that the Chùa Hang festival is held every year from the 19th to the 21st day of the first lunar month. The ceremony includes offering incense, carrying a palanquin in procession, and giving thanks to the spirits of the land, the river and the streams. The celebration has folk games.

Bowing the head to enter a cave of stone brings a particular feeling: people have worshipped here for nearly a thousand years. Oil lamps have given way to electric light. A dirt path has become a stone floor. But the act of bowing, joining the hands and offering incense is the same.