Liep Mai Pagoda

Liep Mai Pagoda was ranked under Decision No. 47/QD-UB dated 10/01/2023 of the People's Committee of former Ha Tay Province, now the People's Committee of Hanoi City

Liep Mai Pagoda exists to meet the religious and spiritual needs of the Liep Mai village community. It is a Buddhist architectural work dedicated to Buddha according to the Mahayana school. Therefore, Liep Mai Pagoda is an artistic architectural relic of the pagoda type.

Based on the four stone bases supporting lotus-carved column feet from the Early Le period (15th century) and the two truss sets of the inner bays in the Upper Hall with a rather low row of main columns, we can see that the original Liep Mai Pagoda was an ancient pagoda with a layout of one main bay and two small side bays—a layout commonly found in pagodas dating from the Mac period or earlier, such as Na Pagoda (Ba Vi), Tu Am Pagoda (Thanh Oai)... Later, through repairs, the pagoda was enhanced and expanded more broadly in the Later Le and Nguyen periods; however, the architecture remained modest and simple, harmonizing with the overall landscape and other architectural works of the village.

At present, the main pagoda is built facing south with a layout of a front 'nhất' (one) shape and rear 'đinh' (T) shape, with the main architectural items being: the Three-Entrance Gate, the Front Hall, and the Upper Hall. In front of the Front Hall, offset to the right, is the Mau House facing east toward the canopy courtyard connecting the Three-Entrance Gate and the Front Hall.

Previously, outside the Three-Entrance Gate was a fairly large pagoda pond, and the path into the pagoda was made straight with the middle bay of the Three-Entrance Gate, truly the 'righteous path' of Buddhism.

From the resistance war against the Americans to the present, there have been many changes in land, so today the entrance to the pagoda is opened on the right side.

The pagoda's Three-Entrance Gate has three bays, closed gable ends, two sloping tiled roofs, and is open at the front and rear. The truss sets supporting the roof of the Three-Entrance Gate are made in two different styles on a plan of four rows of column feet; the two truss sets of the middle bays are made in the style of upper giá chiêng, lower kẻ, and eave braces with a crossbeam hidden from the main column row. The two truss sets of the gable bays are made in the style of kèo kẻ cánh ác, with a central beam connecting from the front military column through the bodies of the two main columns to the rear military column.

From the Three-Entrance Gate, across a courtyard paved with bat bricks 2.97 m wide, is the Front Hall. The Front Hall is 9.98 m long and 8.80 m wide, repaired in the style of two sloping roofs and closed gable ends during the reign of Emperor Bao Dai. The roof ridges are built with đinh edging, and below is stepped masonry with simple pilasters.

Inside, the Front Hall is divided into five bays, corresponding to six truss sets supporting the roof. Previously, along the front main column row there was a system of folding panel doors running along the bays; during the resistance war the pagoda deteriorated, so the villagers removed the folding doors and built brick walls outward to support the braces and installed two-leaf panel doors in the three middle bays for convenience of use.

The truss sets supporting the Front Hall roof are made in two styles. The four middle trusses are made in the upper giá chiêng and lower kẻ/bẩy style on a plan of four rows of wooden column feet. A large, sturdy câu đầu connects the two ends of the main columns by means of a mortise cut into the column head. The câu đầu supports two hidden posts through two small blocks; the ends of the two hidden posts support a rường bong lợn carrying the upper beam through a boat-shaped block. Two kẻ are mortised from the ends of the hidden posts below the rường bụng lợn to the end of the câu đầu, forming the upper truss. The kẻ is mortised from the main column below the câu đầu to the end of the military column to support the roof purlins through dong boards. From the end of the military column, the eave brace (rear) is mortised in and extends outward to support the lower purlin and roof edge. The two gable truss sets have upper parts made similarly to the middle truss sets; in the lower part, instead of the kẻ chuyền and xà nách structure, there are short rường stacked on top of the xà nách, with one end mortised into the body of the main column and the other supporting the roof purlins. The rường are carved with scroll patterns and stylized clustered clouds in the Nguyen artistic style.

The Upper Hall of Liep Mai Pagoda is a three-bay longitudinal building connected to the middle bay of the Front Hall. The truss set connecting to the Front Hall is made in the style of an upper ván mê carved with two dragons flanking the moon and a lower cốn mê carved with a seal pattern of intertwined leaves. The remaining truss sets are made similarly to the middle-bay truss set of the Front Hall.

Overall, at Liep Mai Pagoda most wooden architectural items are smoothly planed and tightly joined; the bodies of the kẻ and bẩy are planed with bamboo-shoot molding; the side rường are carved with clustered-cloud and scroll patterns; the ván mê are carved with two dragons flanking the moon and seal patterns of intertwined leaves... in the Nguyen artistic style. Therefore, the carving art in the pagoda is also expressed through the system of Buddha statues and the remaining wooden, bronze, ceramic, and stone artifacts at the pagoda.

Although the Buddha statues at Liep Mai Pagoda are not numerous, they are relatively complete in terms of traditional statues. The statues are mainly displayed in the Upper Hall; in addition, in the Front Hall are displayed statues of Đức Ông, the Holy Sage, Quan Am Tống Tử, and two Hộ Pháp. In the Mẫu Hall are a Mẫu statue and two small statues of Cô and Cậu.

In the Upper Hall, at the highest position are three statues: in the middle is Amitabha, on the left is one statue from the Three Ages set, and on the right is the statue of Shakyamuni Attaining Enlightenment. The Three Ages statue is 65 cm high, 27 cm across the shoulders, 43 cm across the thighs, and 22 cm high at the head; it is carved in the lotus position on a lotus throne, with hands in the meditation mudra placed palms up on the thighs. The skull is full, the ears are large and elongated, and the ushnisha is raised into a halo on top of the head. The statue's clothing has two layers: the inner layer is tied in a knot before the belly, and the outer kasaya is draped in soft folds. The statue has the artistic style of the 18th century. The lotus base of this statue group consists of three layers of single upward-facing petals and was recently repaired during the resistance period.

The Amitabha statue (also called the Buddha of Infinite Life or Buddha of Infinite Light) is 85 cm high, 39 cm across the shoulders, 65 cm across the thighs, and 29 cm high at the head; it is carved in the yin-yang sitting posture on a lotus throne, with hands in the meditation mudra placed palms up on the thighs. The statue has a full skull, a raised ushnisha, a full oval face, sloping shoulders, a full waist, and an expanded chest with the character 'van' carved in relief. The statue's clothing has two layers with soft falling folds. The statue's lotus base is 21 cm high and made with three rounds of single upward-facing petals. The statue dates to the first half of the 19th century.

The Shakyamuni Attaining Enlightenment statue is 71 cm high, 35 cm across the shoulders, 59 cm wide across the thighs, and 27 cm high at the head; it sits in the lotus position on a lotus throne, with both hands forming the lotus mudra before the chest. The statue's face is oval, the ushnisha is full, and the topknot is clearly raised. The statue has the artistic style of the Nguyen period.

The statue's lotus base is 18 cm high, divided into three layers of single upward-facing petals; the lotus petals are thick, fleshy, and pointed—an artistic style of the Le period (18th century).

The second level consists of the Maitreya statue on the left and the Tuyet Son statue on the right. The Maitreya statue is 65 cm high, 57 cm wide across the thighs, and 37 cm wide across the shoulders. The statue has a cheerful face, a joyful smile, naturally placed hands, and a full, protuberant belly... The Tuyet Son statue is 67 cm high, 31 cm wide across the shoulders, and 45 cm wide across the thighs; it has a gaunt figure and a pensive face, representing the incarnation of Shakyamuni while practicing before attaining enlightenment.

The third level consists of the Kim Dong and Ngoc Nu statues. The two statues have similar dimensions: 109 cm high and 29 cm wide across the shoulders. They are carved standing on a pedestal, with hair coiled up under a hat; the front of the hat is decorated with a sun and scrolling clouds; the statues' two-layer clothing falls softly; the Ngoc Nu statue has a flower-shaped belt at the belly. Both statues' hands are in a standing attendant posture. The statues date to the first half of the 19th century.

The fourth level is the statue of Ngoc Hoang Thuong De, which was introduced into the pagoda from the Daoist pantheon. The statue is 125 cm high, 46 cm across the shoulders, and 51 cm wide across the thighs; it is carved sitting on a dragon-throne-like pedestal, wearing a binh thien hat and a dragon robe inlaid with dragons, clouds, and tiger tally motifs, with both hands holding a ceremonial tablet. The statue is made of clay and dates to the 19th century.

The two attendant statues offering flowers on either side are 83 cm high, 27 cm across the shoulders, and 33 cm across the thighs. The statues have full chests, slim waists, and long flowing skirts with flower-shaped belts before the belly; both hands are in the gesture of offering lotus flowers. Their hair is coiled high with a hair tip decorated with a flower motif. The statues are made of clay and date to the late 18th century.

The fifth level, in the middle, is the Nine Dragons throne, with statues of Nam Tao and Bac Dau on either side. The Nine Dragons throne is a vaulted structure 125 cm high and 87 cm wide, depicting the scene of Shakyamuni's descent into the world: nine dragons throughout the sky rear up and spray water to bathe him, while on the upper level nymphs and Buddhas witness and sing and dance to celebrate his birthday. Legend says that when he had just emerged from his mother's womb, he took seven steps, and seven lotus flowers bloomed, and he said: 'Above heaven and below earth, I alone am the most honored.'

On either side of the Nine Dragons statue are the Nam Tao and Bac Dau statues seated facing each other. These two statues are 103 cm high, 40 cm wide across the shoulders, and 51 cm wide across the thighs; they wear winged hats, court robes, and shoes. These are two heavenly officials who specialize in overseeing life and death in the human realm. The statues date to the Nguyen period.

On both sides of the Upper Hall are the locations of the Ten Courts of Yama statue set; each side has five statues of similar size and pose. The statues are 103 cm high, 32 cm across the shoulders, and 39 cm wide across the thighs. The Ten Courts of Yama are ten kings who govern the regions of the underworld; each heads a court to judge the merits and faults of the newly deceased, and on that basis grants rewards or punishments and then allows reincarnation in the corresponding life.

In the left corner of the Upper Hall's gable is the statue of Quan Am Chuan De, a newly introduced statue. In the right corner of the gable is the statue of Quan Am Toa Son. The statue is 77 cm high, 35 cm across the shoulders, and 50 cm across the thighs, seated on a rockery (this rockery has been lost and is now replaced by a lotus pedestal, so it does not yet suit the statue). The statue's hair is coiled and covered by a hat; its oval, gentle face has portrait-like features. The statue dates to the 19th century.

Outside the Front Hall there are also the following statues:

The two Hộ Pháp statues measure 221 cm high, 85 cm across the shoulders, and 96 cm across the knees. These are two divine generals who protect the Buddha's Dharma treasure according to the principles of encouragement and discipline. The left one is Khuyen Thien, with a kind face, holding a luminous pearl representing the light of the Buddha's Dharma. The right one is Trung Ac, holding a long blue sword, with slightly fierce slanted eyes, admonishing people not to do evil. Both wear golden helmets and armor of patience, shoes on their feet, and sit on lions. The lions are 157 cm high, 75 cm wide, and 76 cm tall.

On both sides of the two Hộ Pháp statues is the set of Đức Ông statues, the direct caretaker of the pagoda. The statue sits on a dragon throne, wears a winged hat, has a red face, and the chest of the robe is decorated with dragon patterns. On either side of Đức Ông are two assistants, Gia Lam and Chan Te, who help Đức Ông guard and protect the pagoda grounds and Buddha's land.

The set of Thanh Hien (Holy Sangha) statues represents the sangha in transmitting the Buddha's scriptures and Dharma to sentient beings. The statue sits on a pedestal, wears a seven-Buddha hat, and a pale yellow kasaya. On either side of Đức Thanh Hien are two assistants, Diem Nhien and Dai Si, originally two demons who, after hearing Buddhist sutras, understood and became silent, no longer causing trouble so that everyone could have enough food.

On the right gable of the Front Hall is a statue of Quan Am Tong Tu, originally a statue located in a statue cave. The statue is made similarly to the Quan Am Toa Son statue but holds a small boy in its arms. The statue is made of clay and dates to the 19th century. This is a relatively beautiful statue at Liep Mai Pagoda.

those who have a sincere heart [...] worship the Buddha. For festivals and death anniversaries in the past, there was Buddha offering land; the pagoda only notified the pagoda and all villagers to come and help, and all expenses were handled by the pagoda. Today the death anniversaries are organized more simply and economically by the Buddhist laywomen, but are no less solemn.

In addition, because it is located in the area adjacent to the village communal house and shrine, on village festival days the pagoda also regularly opens its doors for villagers and pilgrims from afar to come to the pagoda to worship the Buddha and visit the pagoda scenery.

Overall, at Liep Mai Pagoda, the elderly Buddhist laywomen and villagers are very kind-hearted, enthusiastic toward visitors, and in particular there is no occurrence of superstition here.

Liep Mai Pagoda, as it exists today, carries a certain historical depth. The remaining stone pedestal bases carved with lotus flowers from the Early Le dynasty confirm that the relic is around 500 years old. Through many dynasties of prosperity and decline, the relic has been affected to some extent. In addition, due to changes over time, some artifacts of the relic have been scattered and others damaged. Nevertheless, the pagoda still retains the scale and value of traditional Buddhist architecture.

The artistic sculpture in the pagoda is concentrated in the system of round statues in the Buddha hall. The statues at Liep Mai Pagoda are not numerous; made of wood in various sizes, they are all meticulously and elaborately crafted. Each statue has its own beauty, characteristic of the period in which it was made, and at the same time each also carries typical generalized features of the character of each specific figure.

In addition to their natural value, the beauty of the statues is enhanced by their reasonable arrangement within the unified common space of the pagoda. With high, dry terrain, the quiet pagoda, appearing and disappearing among the canopies of trees and foliage, and its picturesque landscape of mountains and water seem to invite sightseeing and pilgrim visitors.