An Ha Pagoda

An Ha Pagoda is located in An Ha village, An Khanh commune, Hanoi city (previously belonging to An Ha village, An Thuong commune, Hoai Duc district, former Ha Tay province). From Hanoi capital, from the former Ha Dong town along National Highway 72A - Ha Dong - Quoc Oai, travel about 9 km, near Thanh Quang dike, right by the road, turn right and go about 500–600 m to reach An Ha Pagoda.

An Ha Pagoda has the Sino-Vietnamese name “An Lạc Tự”. Local people and those around the area habitually call the relic by the village name, that is, An Ha Pagoda.

An Ha Pagoda was built in the southwest of the village, right next to the village communal house.

An Ha Pagoda (An Lac Tu) was built long ago to worship Buddha according to the Mahayana sect. The pagoda was built near the communal house, becoming a complex of architecture, cultural activities, and festivals of local people. Since ancient times, Buddhist residents could conveniently go to the communal house and then into the pagoda.

An Ha Pagoda is a religious architectural relic. It is an ancient architectural work whose main pagoda building was built in the shape of the Chinese character dinh (T). In addition to the main pagoda system with the bai duong (ceremonial hall) and thuong dien (upper hall), An Ha Pagoda also has an ancestor house, guest house, and living quarters for nuns. The pagoda faces west; in front and on both sides are spacious areas including the pagoda garden, pond, and courtyard, with a system of shady trees.

Overall, this is a work that underwent major restoration during the Nguyen dynasty. The Bai Duong hall is 9.60 m long and 5.80 m wide, divided into three bays. The truss structure is of the chong ruong ke bay type. In carving, ancient artisans focused on details of the ke bay with familiar folk motifs such as lotus leaves and phoenix tree leaves. The interior also focuses on the cua vong curtains. An Ha Pagoda has two large cua vong, one in the middle bay of the bai duong and one in the middle of the thuong dien. The main themes in decorating these are the Four Sacred Creatures and Four Seasons. Both are embossed in wood, lacquered and gilded. Besides the two cua vong, the pagoda also has a large horizontal plaque with three embossed Chinese characters “An Lạc Tự”, meaning An Lac Pagoda—words in Buddhist sutras expressing the aspiration for peace and joy. In construction, overall the bai duong is solidly built, with closed gable ends, a signboard frame, and at the eave ends two square pillars. On the pillars are reliefs of lanterns, dragons and phoenixes, moldings... now covered with moss. On the roof are reliefs on the ridge and old ri tiles.

Adjoining the bai duong is the thuong dien. The thuong dien is 7.50 m long, 5.10 m wide, and is also divided into three bays. In architecture, like many other village pagodas, the thuong dien was built by the ancients with solid brick walls and an old ri-tiled roof. The carving focuses on the system of statue layers.

Vietnamese people regarded a pagoda as an independent economic unit, so the ancients planned here, in addition to the main pagoda system, other facilities serving the pagoda such as the ancestor house, guest house, and nuns' quarters. The pagoda gate is built in an ancient style, with four relief pillars and decorative motifs of scrolling clouds, couplets praising Buddha and the pagoda... Therefore, looking from the village road or from the communal house, visitors see the silhouette of an ancient work.

An Ha Pagoda still preserves a number of relics, namely: 42 statues, 4 incense burners, 8 trays, 1 bell, 1 gong, 1 wooden fish, 6 wooden candles, 1 throne set, 4 lục bình vases, 2 cua vong, 3 pairs of couplets, and 2 wooden incense holders.

In front of the pagoda is a stone stele recording the merit of the person who contributed funds and donated the field in front of the pagoda. Today, visitors entering through the pagoda gate and into the ancestor house courtyard also have an entrance to the main pagoda.

An Ha Pagoda, overall, the statue layers here were all carved during the Le dynasty (16th–17th centuries). The thuong dien consists of 4 main statue layers. At the top are three Tam The statues. The statues are carved from wood and are 0.96 m high. All three are carved seated on lotus thrones of fairly similar dimensions, with shoulders 0.34 m and knee width 0.57 m. The ancients carved these statues with beauty prescribed by sutras: the top of the head shows the flesh aperture, hair is curled, ears and arms are long, hands in the dhyana mudra. All three are lacquered and gilded, still very intact; clothing with soft, natural folds is carved directly onto the statue bodies.

Second layer: In the center is the Amitabha statue. This is the largest wooden statue compared with the other statues in the thuong dien. It is 1.19 m high, 0.39 m across the shoulders, and 0.60 m across the knees. The ancients depicted Amitabha seated, eyes looking down at sentient beings, with the character “Van” on his chest.

According to Buddhist doctrine, Amitabha Buddha means infinite life (living immeasurably long). On either side of Amitabha are statues of two Bodhisattvas seated on lotus thrones. The two statues are carved with the same dimensions: 1.17 m high, 0.38 m across the shoulders, and 0.56 m across the knees. It can be said these are two statues that are both balanced in form and beautiful in volume. The heads wear golden Buddha crowns, faces are gentle, hands hold treasures. Both are carved from wood, lacquered and gilded.

The third layer consists of three statues. In the center is the Jade Emperor. The statue is carved with clothing attached to the body in court dress style. On either side of the Jade Emperor are Nam Tao and Bac Dau, each 1.02 m high.

The fourth layer in the thuong dien. In the center is the statue of the infant Shakyamuni, with the Holy Monk and Dragon Spirit on either side. The Nine Dragons statue depicts the infant Shakyamuni standing beneath a canopy of four dragons spouting water. Beside the dragon bodies are statues of Buddhas, immortals, heavenly maidens, celestial musicians, vajra... totaling 18 small statues, with the infant Shakyamuni in the center, one hand pointing to heaven and one to earth. This is a beautiful Nine Dragons canopy that remains fairly complete. Beside the Nine Dragons canopy are the Holy Monk and Dragon Spirit statues. Each is 0.91 m high, shoulder width 0.33 m, knee width 0.43 m.

In the Bai Duong hall there are two main groups of statues: Earth Deity and Holy Monk, and the statues of Khuyen Thien (Encouraging Good) and Ac (Evil). These two statues were molded from earth by the ancients, in standing posture. Each is 2.54 m high. The art of carving, molding and painting is generally very vivid and harmonious.

An Ha Pagoda - An Lac Tu is a pagoda of a rural village built long ago, with a full system of Buddha statues in the main pagoda. In addition to the main Buddha statue system mentioned above, An Ha Pagoda also has an ancestor house with a system of Mother Goddess statues and posthumous steles to remember the merits of those who contributed to restoring the pagoda from the past to the present.

An Ha Pagoda was ranked as a National Relic under Decision No. 2233-QD/BT dated June 26, 1995 of the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1995.