Thanh Am Communal House - Pagoda

: Thanh Am Communal House and Pagoda are named after the place name of the village community that built the relic. According to the bell “Thanh Am Tu Chung cast in the 12th year of Tu Duc (1859),” the pagoda’s own name was called after the village name “Thanh Am Tu.” Going back in history, from the early 19th century, through the Tay Son and Le Trung Hung periods, Thanh Am Pagoda was named “Dong Linh Tu.” Thanh Am Communal House worships Trinh Quoc Cong, First-rank Scholar Nguyen Binh Khiem—a cultural figure of the 16th century—as the village’s Tutelary God.

In the past, Dong Linh Pagoda had a large architectural scale and was a famous scenic spot in the region. Over its long existence, the relic was gradually destroyed. So that the pagoda would not lose its name, the villagers moved the Buddha and Dharma statues into a small structure just behind the main communal house. The pagoda’s main architecture today is a three-bay building with closed sloping gable walls, hand-shaped brackets, a roof covered with traditional tiles, and a floor raised 20 cm above the front yard. The roof-supporting frame is simple, with trusses placed directly on the house walls. The narrow veranda corresponds to three roof bays and has small corbels decorated with dragons and phoenixes in relief. Inside, against the rear wall, high brick platforms were built as places for the Buddha, Bodhisattvas, and Holy Mothers. Above each altar are hanging valances and ceremonial door panels, carved and painted red and gilded to make the architecture more splendid and solemn.

Thanh Am Communal House is in an ancient village formed long ago. The village had the vernacular name Duong village, so the Thien Duc River of earlier periods was renamed the Duong River as it is today. In the Mac dynasty, Trinh Quoc Cong, First-rank Scholar Nguyen Binh Khiem, while serving as an official in Thang Long, brought his descendants to settle and expand it into a prosperous area, and he named the village Hoa Am. Because of his many merits to the villagers, after his death, Trinh Quoc Cong, First-rank Scholar Nguyen Binh Khiem, together with two generals of the Hai Ba Trung, were worshipped as tutelary gods of Thanh Am village...

The communal house was built on a large scale, including a seven-bay main hall, a square pavilion, and a rear sanctuary. The sturdy wooden frame bears strong marks of 17th–19th-century architecture. The intricate carvings feature the four sacred creatures and four noble plants. It is a treasure trove of fine wood carving, evidence of craftsmanship and aesthetics through the Le, Tay Son, and Nguyen periods. The relic complex currently preserves a rich collection of artifacts of high historical value:

● Royal decrees: 7 decrees conferring divine titles (earliest in 1730, latest in 1924).

● Worship statues: 11 ancient round statues (1 Amitabha statue from the late 18th century and 10 statues from the 19th century).

● Stone steles: 7 stone steles from the Le and Nguyen periods.

● Books and records: the deity genealogy and the Prophecy Book of Nguyen Binh Khiem.

● Bronze bells: 2 large bells, including the “Tao Tru Hong Chung” bell (cast in 1793 during the Tay Son period) and the “Thanh Am Tu Chung” bell (cast in 1859 during the Tu Duc period).

Every year, on the 9th and 10th days of the third lunar month, the Thanh Am village communal house festival is held with many distinctive cultural and religious activities. This is a characteristic cultural beauty of the locality and also contributes to preserving and promoting the traditional values of the nation.