Hưng Long Pagoda

Hưng Long Pagoda is located in Đông Phù hamlet, Nam Phù commune (formerly Đông Mỹ commune, Thanh Trì district), now part of Hanoi city. In the past, it was also known as Long Hưng Pagoda, Hưng Hóa Pagoda, Nhót Pagoda, Phù Liệt Pagoda, and Đông Phù Pagoda. The pagoda belongs to the two villages of Đông Phù Liệt and Đông Trạch.

The pagoda was first constructed in 1011, the second year of Thuận Thiên (Tân Hợi), by imperial decree and financial support from King Lý Thái Tổ. The pagoda features the architectural style of “nội công ngoại quốc, tiền Phật hậu Thánh” (inner layout in the shape of the Chinese character for 'gong', outer layout in the shape of the character for 'quốc', with Buddha worshipped at the front and Saints at the back).

During the reign of King Lý Thánh Tông (1054–1072), Empress Thượng Dương gave birth to two princesses, Lý Từ Thục and Lý Từ Huy. Upon reaching adulthood, the two princesses entered monastic life at Hưng Long Pagoda and passed away at Liên Hoa Mausoleum on the 15th day of the 3rd lunar month, year Ất Hợi, the 4th year of the Hội Phong era (1095), during the reign of King Lý Nhân Tông, with the Dharma titles Đại Thánh Bồ Tát Lý Từ Thục and Đại Thánh Bồ Tát Lý Từ Huy. The local people commonly refer to them as the Two Bodhisattvas.

Every year, on the 14th, 15th, and 16th days of the 3rd lunar month, the people of the villages Đông Phù, Đông Trạch, Tương Trúc, Tự Khoát, Mỹ Ả, Tranh Khúc, Văn Uyên, Mỹ Liệt, and Ninh Xá organise a festival to express gratitude for the merits of the Two Bodhisattvas, who guided and taught the local people in farming and handicrafts. Out of deep respect for the virtues of the Two Bodhisattvas, the people have sculpted statues and enshrined them in prominent positions at Hưng Long Pagoda (Đông Phù), Hưng Phúc Pagoda (Tự Khoát), and Phổ Quang Pagoda (Ninh Xá).

Over thousands of years, Hưng Long Pagoda has been restored and embellished many times through the devotion of generations of resident monks and nuns, and Buddhist followers from near and far. Especially in 1619, Princess Dowager Trịnh Thị Ngọc Thưởng generously donated all the funds for a major restoration.

In 2004, the People’s Committee of Hanoi allocated a budget of over 2 billion VND to restore the Tam Bảo hall, including the seven-bay front hall, the rear sanctuary, eleven-bay left wing (dedicated to Đức Thánh Hiền – the Holy Sages), and a three-bay ceremonial hall in front of the altar to the Two Bodhisattvas.

In September 2008, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and the Hanoi Buddhist Association appointed Venerable Thích Minh Tiến – Secretary Member of the Central Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha – as abbot of Hưng Long Pagoda.

From January to December of the Year of the Buffalo (Kỷ Sửu, 2009), the abbot carried out restoration and reconstruction of the remaining structures: the system of worship statues in the Tam Bảo hall, the Holy Mother statue, altars, incense tables, horizontal lacquered boards, parallel sentences, decorative archways, and restored the three-bay altar to the Two Bodhisattvas, the eleven-bay right wing (dedicated to Đức Ông – the Holy Lord), the ten-bay Holy Mother altar, the fourteen-bay ancestral hall, the twelve-bay monks’ quarters and guest room, the bell tower, drum tower, and other auxiliary works. The funding for this restoration was raised by the abbot from Buddhist followers and his own relatives.

After the 2009 restoration, the abbot petitioned the Hanoi People’s Committee and the Ministry of Defence to return a portion of land adjacent to the pagoda, which was being used by the Special Forces Command, to expand the pagoda’s grounds. By early 2017, the area of Hưng Long Pagoda had been expanded by more than 2,500 square metres after nearly six years of completing the procedures. The abbot then built a lecture hall, dining hall, and library to serve the study and practice of monks, nuns, and Buddhist followers.

Hưng Long Pagoda has been recognised by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam as a National Historical and Cultural Site, and by the Hanoi People’s Committee as a Revolutionary Historical Site. In 2010, the Hanoi People’s Committee installed a plaque designating Hưng Long Pagoda as a project commemorating the 1000th anniversary of Thăng Long – Hanoi.