Local pagoda named special national relic site

March 22, 2016 - 09:00

Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda, also known as a centre for Buddhism in Trí Yên Commune in the northern province of Vĩnh Phúc, has received the title of Special National Relics site.

National relic: Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc granted Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda the recognition certificate in a ceremony on March 20. -- VNA/VNS Photo Đồng Thúy

BẮC GIANG – Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda, also known as a centre for Buddhism in Trí Yên Commune in the northern province of Vĩnh Phúc, has received the title of Special National Relics site.

Attending the certification granting ceremony were Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc, representatives of relevant departments and locals from the province.

According to Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, Nguyễn Văn Linh, the ceremony was an important cultural event of Bắc Giang Province, and also an opportunity to honour and promote the value of Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda and the province in general.

Granting the title to the Provincial People’s Committee, Deputy Prime Minister Phúc urged the province to compile a plan to preserve and restore the relic, along with further research to clarify its value, which is deeply associated with the Yên Tử complex.

Such research and the Special National Relics site title of the pagoda will contribute to the dossier to be submitted to UNESCO, proposing the Yên Tử complex as a world heritage site in the years to come.

Phúc also asked the province to broadcast widely the cultural, historic, scientific and aesthetic value of Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda so that it would become an attractive destination for tourists.

Located 20 kilometres from the centre of Bắc Giang City, Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda was built in the 11th century under the Lý dynasty (1009-1225).

It was later turned into a training centre for talented monks during the Trần dynasty in the 13th century.

Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda was recognised as a national heritage site in 1964. The Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda festival, which is held annually on the 12th day of the second lunar month, was made a national intangible cultural heritage by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2013. – VNS

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