Tu Dinh Communal House

Tu Dinh Communal House and Pagoda (Tu Dinh) previously belonged to Tu Dinh Village, Co Linh Commune, Thuan An Prefecture, Kinh Bac Garrison; during the Nguyen dynasty it belonged to Bac Ninh Province, and today it is located in Tu Dinh 1 Residential Group, Long Bien Ward, Hanoi City. The relic stands on the north bank of the Red River, about 7 km northeast of central Hanoi.

Tu Dinh Communal House was built in the character “Tam” layout, consisting of three parts: a five-bay Main Hall, a three-bay Middle Hall with two tiers and eight roofs, and a three-bay Rear Sanctuary structured in the “upper stacked beams and trusses, lower seven-part frame” style. In front of the communal house courtyard are two rows of Left and Right Auxiliary Halls (three bays each), a scroll-shaped screen, a ceremonial gate, and an ancient well. To the right of the communal house is a kitchen area serving traditional rituals.

At present, there is no official documentation determining when Tu Dinh Communal House was first built. However, based on the beam ends, the carved panels of the four sacred creatures in the Main Hall, and the architectural style, it can be identified that the communal house bears characteristics of the Le–Nguyen period. The Rear Sanctuary was restored in the third year of Bao Dai (1928). In 2013, the relic was invested in, restored, and upgraded by the Long Bien District People's Committee and had a project plaque installed to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the establishment of Long Bien District (2003–2013).

According to the genealogy and sacrificial texts still kept at the communal house, it worships Saint Linh Lang Dai Vuong, a deity ranked by the feudal court among the top-grade tutelary deities. The legend states that Hao Nuong, a woman of complete talent and beauty, gave birth to Linh Lang after a sacred dream at West Lake. Linh Lang's real name was Hoang Lang, son of King Ly Thanh Tong, and he bore heavenly signs with the marks of the Big Dipper and a seven-faceted pearl on his body. When northern invaders attacked, Linh Lang received the king's command, rode an elephant into battle, and achieved a glorious victory by defeating the Song invaders in 981. After his death, Linh Lang became a deity and was ordained for worship at Voi Phuc Temple (the main temple), together with Tu Dinh Communal House and 268 other localities.

The festival commemorating Him is held on the 9th and 10th days of the second lunar month every year, with a solemn ceremony and a distinctive festival including quan ho folk singing, xoan singing, and folk games such as human chess, tug-of-war, and cockfighting, creating an atmosphere of solidarity and joy and strongly expressing the community culture of the people of the former Tu Dinh area.

In 1991, the relic complex was recognized as a national-level Historical-Cultural Relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) under Decision No. 1972/QD-BVHTT dated January 20, 1991.