Van Hoi Pagoda, Van Hoi Village, Thuong Tin Commune, Hanoi City

Van Hoi Pagoda has the Sino-Vietnamese name Hoi Phuc Tu and was ranked as a historical-cultural relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1993.

The pagoda was built on the west side of the village. At the beginning of the Le dynasty, Van Hoi and Van Giap villages were originally one village sharing Hai Ba Pagoda, which worshipped the deities Phap Van and Phap Loi. In 1947, due to the scorched-earth resistance policy, Phap Loi Pagoda was destroyed. The people of Van Hoi carried the Phap Loi statue to worship at the village pagoda of Van Hoi. Therefore, Van Hoi Pagoda is a village pagoda built to worship Buddha according to Mahayana Buddhism. Half a century ago, an ancient Phap Loi statue was added. The statue was carved from mulberry wood according to the bronze book “Nam Thien Nhi Phap Su Tich Chan Kinh Phung Luc”; it is 1.5 m high, sits on a throne, and looks straight ahead. Its hand is carved in the Abhaya mudra. In Buddhist teachings, this brings peace to sentient beings, dispels doubt, and saves people. The pagoda still preserves 14 royal edicts from the Le and Nguyen dynasties.

At the top of the Upper Hall is the set of Three-Time Buddhas. These are three ancient statues, all carved from wood, lacquered and gilded, and seated on lotus thrones. The second tier is the Amitabha Trinity: in the center is the Amitabha statue, on the left is Guanyin, and on the right is Mahasthamaprapta. The third tier is Thousand-Hand Thousand-Eye Guanyin. This statue was crafted very elaborately by the ancients from wood, lacquered and gilded. It is 0.98 m high, with a generous and gentle appearance, and forty arms extend from its body. The fourth tier is the infant Shakyamuni statue. Finally, in the Upper Hall is the Phap Loi statue (the Thunder God among the Four Dharma deities), which was brought here in 1947 as mentioned above.

According to the rear stele carved in the third year of Dong Khanh (1888), Van Hoi Pagoda was restored under the leadership of the villagers and Mr. Tran Lieu, Left Tham Tri of the Ministry of Revenue during the Nguyen dynasty. As a village pagoda, its architectural appearance therefore carries the late Nguyen style with a “ding” plan, including the Front Hall and the Upper Hall. In addition, the pagoda has a Patriarch's Hall, a guest house, and residences for monks and nuns... located on spacious grounds.

The Front Hall consists of five bays, with closed gable ends; two pillars are modeled and painted with dragons and lanterns in the style of village communal houses. The roof is covered with old ri tiles. Van Hoi Pagoda's load-bearing structure is mainly a tightly connected wooden frame. The roof trusses are structured in the gia chieng style on four rows of wooden column bases. On the cau dau, xa thuong... members, ancient artisans relief-carved patterns of lat leaves and ngô đồng leaves very gracefully....