Long Quang Pagoda
Introduction
Long Quang Pagoda is quite large in scale with many construction items adjacent to one another, creating an enclosed space for the entire relic site arranged in the style of “front deities, rear Buddha.” The outer three-entrance gate is built with 2 stories and 8 roofs; the lower story opens with 3 arched doors, with 2 pillars on both sides; the tops of the pillars are attached with images of 4 phoenixes clustered together; the pillar bodies have raised ridges; inside are embossed Han Chinese couplets. In front of the inner three-entrance gate is the Ba Dan Communal House pond. The pagoda is built in the shape of the character “Cong.” The front hall consists of 5 bays with “gable walls sealed with ngai-style arms,” two roofs covered with tile in the shape of a hat, and the ridge decorated with a stylized tiger emblem. Inside, the roof-supporting frame is made in the style of “upper giai chien, stacked truong, lower truong nach, transom hiding columns”; the upper hall consists of 3 bays of a transverse house with “gable walls sealed with ngai-style arms,” connected to the front hall by 1 incense-burning bay. The structure of the roof-supporting frame is made in the style of “stacked truong, giai chien,” with symmetrical side beams. The Mother Goddess House is located behind the main pagoda, with two corridors on both sides containing a guest house and a Patriarch Worship House. At present, the pagoda still preserves relics of various materials dating from the 18th to the 20th century, such as stone chimes, bronze bells, horizontal plaques, couplets, decorative curtains, y men, especially a collection of round statues including 52 statues of Buddha, Bodhisattva, Mother Goddess, and Patriarch made meticulously and elaborately. Among them, the two statues of Amitabha and Avalokitesvara Cundi, dating to around the early 18th century, are the most valuable. The remaining statues carry the artistic style of the Nguyen dynasty (19th–20th centuries).
Long Quang Pagoda was ranked as a National Architectural and Artistic Relic in 1994
