Quỳnh Lôi Pagoda

Quỳnh Pagoda (also known as Quỳnh Lôi Pagoda) has the literary name Khánh Long Tự and is located in Bạch Mai Ward, Hanoi City. The pagoda takes the name of the village, Quỳnh Lôi, and was founded very early, possibly in the late Lý dynasty and early Trần dynasty. By the early Lê dynasty, in the 7th year of the Hoằng Định era (1607), the pagoda underwent a major restoration recorded on the stele “Trùng tu Long Khánh tự bia” composed by Phùng Khắc Khoan. In the Mậu Thân year (1608), an inauguration ceremony was held; Buddhists hung lanterns and flowers magnificently, and King Lê Kính Tông and Lord Bình An Vương Trịnh Tùng also attended. At the beginning of the 20th century, the pagoda burned down, and the patriarch and local people encouraged and rebuilt it in its ancient style past. Beforethe August Revolution, Quỳnh Lôi Pagoda was a base for the Bắc Kỳ Regional Party Committee (1944–1945). Here, comrades Trần Đăng Ninh, Nguyễn Văn Trân, Văn Tiến Dũng... were sheltered by the abbots to carry out secret activities. The pagoda was also a place for meetings and military training in preparation for the National Resistance War (December 1946). Quỳnh Lôi Pagoda currently preserves the characteristic architecture of the Lê era and artistic imprints of the late 19th century. The overall pagoda includes architectural components: the three-entrance gate, courtyard, main pagoda, Mother Worship Hall, Patriarch Hall, stupa garden... Currently, the pagoda still keeps a collection of typical relics such as: four stone steles, including one stele from the 7th year of Hoằng Định (1607), carved in relief with an inscription recording the restoration, composed by Trạng Bùng Phùng Khắc Khoan. The remaining steles from the Nguyễn dynasty reign eras record names, donors of money, and architectural items restored. Two bronze bells cast in the 4th year of Duy Tân (1910) and the 5th year of Bảo Đại (1930), 42 large statues made in the 19th century, including two Dharmapala statues dating from the 18th century. In addition to the typical relics mentioned above, the pagoda also preserves many shrine cabinets, incense altars, hanging curtains, ceremonial gates, horizontal lacquered boards, couplets, and scroll boards that are very elaborately and meticulously carved and splendidly lacquered red and gilded, carrying the artistic value of the 19th century. Quỳnh Pagoda is a relic with a historical depth closely associated with the formation and development of thousand-year-old Thăng Long – Hanoi; the pagoda has a grand scale and a picturesque natural landscape. Its system of relics is diverse and rich, with long-standing cultural and artistic value; it is an important relic and a scenic landmark in the south of Hanoi. In 1995, the pagoda was recognized as a National-level historical-architectural and artistic relic, and in 2014 it was ranked by Hanoi City as a Revolutionary and Resistance Historical Relic.