11 of Vietnam’s Most spectacular temples and shrines (Part 2)

3. Temple of Literature

Don’t believe the name. This lovely complex of stately stelae (dedicated to the Confucian masters and select scholars), cloisters, scroll-filled libraries and terracotta roofed pagodas isn’t really a temple, and it’s got little to do with literature. This was the Imperial Academy – a university for aristocrats and mandarins, founded two centuries before Oxford and disbanded only when the Nguyen Emperors moved south to Hué in the 18th century. Today, its lush lakes and flower gardens are a haven from the heat and dust of Hanoi’s Old Quarter. Look out for shrines to Confucius himself, looking sage and portly and Chu Văn An – distinguished Chancellor of the University in the 13th century, physician and high-ranking mandarin of the Trần dynasty.

4. Huong Perfume Pagoda

This huge complex of Mahayana Buddhist temples, set along the shore of the Day River and clambering up the misty ‘Mountain of Subtle Fragrances’ to an ivory pagoda, is the country’s most visited pilgrimage site. The main pilgrimage season is between mid-January and March when thousands of Vietnamese pack into the cathedral like Huong Tich caves to pay obeisance to Amitabha, one of the great cosmic Buddhas of Mahayana tradition. There’s been a temple at Huong since mythological times – when the Shakyamuni Buddha himself is said to have visited the mountains. But the current buildings date back to the 17th century.

Start planning your cultural escape with 4U Tours NOW.

—————-

4U Tours

07 Đặng Dung, P. Tân Định, Tp. HCM

(+84.28) 7102 8048 | Ext: 1

#4utours #tour #travelservices #specialthemes #Tips #Vietnam #suprise #delight