The ancient marking of peace at temples in Tan Uyen

Tan Uyen town is a locality with many communal houses and shrines. Currently, 5 communal houses have been recognized as provincial relics. The banyan tree and the roof of the communal houses have long been the symbol of Vietnamese villages. The communal house is also the place where the souls of the country is kept. Thus, the place is not only for religious activities but also a meeting place, and community activities of residents.

Nhat Thanh Communal House on Thanh Hoi Island

Historical and cultural values

Among the 5 communal houses in Tan Uyen that have been recognized as provincial relics, two are on Thanh Hoi and Bach Dang islands. On Thanh Hoi island, the ancient communal house is over 170 years old that is Nhut Thanh communal house, also known as Nhut Thanh ancient temple located at Nhut Thanh hamlet. On Bach Dang Island is the unique Tan Trach communal house.

Nhat Thanh Communal House worships Thanh Hoang Bon Canh (local god) who was bestowed an ordination by King Tu Duc in the fifth year of Tu Duc (in 1852) in order to recognize the communal house and confer the title on the Thanh Hoang god. In addition to being a place of cultural and religious activities of the community, during the early years of the resistance war against the French, the communal house was also a place to hide revolutionary cadres and patriotic struggle activities of people in the region. The communal house has a combination of three-room and four-pillar house architecture, roofed with yin and yang tiles, and tiled floor. The main hall consists of two chamber: a three-room house in front, a four-pillar chamber is adjacent; the truss frame is completely made of wood, and the surrounding wall is built of bricks. The façade is decorated with many beautiful images such as dragons, tigers etc. and is decorated with many ancient ceramic plates to create a unique and ancient beauty of the communal house. On December 27, 2019, Nhut Thanh communal house was ranked as a provincial relic by the provincial People's Committee.

Bach Dang commune is building a model new rural area integrating smart villages in order to develop sustainable new rural areas, contributing to improving people's quality of life. In addition, the locality pays special attention to developing specialties, and preserving local traditional culture. In particular, Bach Dang is the only locality in the province to have up to 6 communal houses. In which, Tan Trach communal house is recognized as a provincial relic and as one of the addresses to be preserved and promoted.

The common unique value of the two ancient communal houses of Tan Trach and Nhut Thanh is that they were ordained by King Tu Duc. As an ancient communal house, the construction materials of the two communal houses are precious woods with diverse and traditional architecture. Another unique feature is that the two communal houses are located on the peaceful land of two islands in the middle of the vast river. In addition to the common cultural and religious values ​​of the whole country, many communal houses in Tan Uyen also bear historical imprints of which the communal houses of Tan Trach and Nhut Thanh are the concrete examples. During the war, the communal house was also the base of the revolution where cadres and soldiers were kept. The preservation and promotion of cultural institutional values ​​from the two communal houses of Tan Trach and Nhut Thanh will contribute significantly to the development of Tan Uyen tourism.

To preserve and promote

Talking to us, Nguyen Tan Phat - Head of Culture and Information Division of Tan Uyen town, said that in addition to the two communal houses on the island, Tan Uyen has other temples that tourists cannot ignore thanks to the eye-catching architecture as well as cultural and religious meanings. On the other hand, visiting the temples on Tan Uyen land, visitors from all over the world can also combine with sightseeing. At Tan Phuoc Khanh ward is Bung Cu communal house, also known as Ong Cu Temple which was built during the reign of King Minh Mang more than 200 years ago. The place still preserves Sac Than, recognized by King Tu Duc since 1852, which is also the place where Ky Yen Festival is held once a year.

With the meaning of learning about historical sites combined with sightseeing, visitors can not ignore Thanh Loc rattan and bamboo establishment also in Tan Phuoc Khanh ward. Visitors can not help but admire on witnessing the unique village-style wicker crafts made by skillful and creative hands of the local craftsmen. Tan Phuoc Khanh is really a destination that tourists should stop by as it is the locality known as the ancient pottery village. Coming to Tuyen Phat antique pottery factory, visitors can better understand the ancient pottery craft and experience actual pottery making. Recently, Tuyen Phat pottery establishment has become one of the destinations chosen by the provincial tourism in Tan Uyen town to introduce the local pottery craft to tourists far and wide.

It can be said that, coming to the temples in Tan Uyen town, visitors will have the opportunity to explore more historical and cultural sites of the locality. Visiting Du Khanh communal house at Thanh Phuoc ward, visitors will have the opportunity to learn about Ba Kien bridge watchtower in the ward. At the place, and on the night of 18 and 19 March 1948 marked a historic victory – the victory over Ba Kien bridge watchtower as forever the pride of many generations of Tan Uyen homeland and in the history of the nation.

Reported by Hong Thuan – Translated by Vi Bao