Vinh Nghiem pagoda is the first tourist destination in Bac Giang. It has been considered as the place of Truc Lam Zen Buddhism and held a special position in the history of Buddhism in the Tran Dynasty in particular and Vietnamese Buddhism in general.
It was built under the reign of King Ly Thai To (1009 – 1028) with the name as Chuc Thanh Pagoda. During the reign of King Tran Nhan Tong, the pagoda was restored, enlarged and renamed as Vinh Nghiem.
The pagoda was used as a preaching place for the three Truc Lam ancestors, namely King Tran Nhan Tong, Monks Phap Loa and Huyen Quang. It was also used as a major publishing house of Vietnamese Buddhism, where it edited, carved, and published many important texts and sutras of Truc Lam Zen. In May 2012, Buddhist Sutra Woodblocks of Truc Lam Zen stored at the pagoda were recognized as World Documentary Heritage by UNESCO.
Vinh Nghiem Pagoda contains great cultural, historical values and also stands out by harmonious architecture with an area of more than 10,000m². The main architecture of the pagoda lies on a south-west axis and is composed of four principal areas.
The first area includes Ho Pagoda and temples of Thieu Huong and Buddhist. The interior of the Ho Pagoda is adorned with many statues; at the two gables there are two Thap Dien niches, two colossi as high as the roof. The Thieu Huong Temple is splendidly decorated with three horizontal panels and a gilded door; the first compartment is for bonzes to say prayers, the second is for the display of Buddha and Arhats statues. The Buddhist Temple is a world of Buddha statues bearing many architectural imprints of the Le Dynasty.
The brickyard separates the second area from the first and is an ancestral shrine built in a simple architectural style with wooden planks and cloud – like decorations. The panel is inscribed with the words “Truc Lam ho thuong” (A rendezvous of the Truc Lam Trinity) in Han characters and is seen above the three statues of the Truc Lam Trinity.
The third area is the two-roofed bell tower and the fourth is the second ancestral shrine hosting two statues symbolic of the art of sculpture in the Nguyen Dynasty.
Hundreds of years have elapsed but all four architectural structures remain intact. Vinh Nghiem Pagoda remains a major training centre of Buddhism with wooden shelves for the printing of Buddhist sutras still conserved as evidence of the important role of the pagoda.
