The thang long’s four guardian god temples

The thesis uses the theoretical concept of "Invention of tradition" in studying the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in order to test its suitability for

INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

“Thang Long Tu Tran” ("The Thang Long’s Four Guardian God

Temples") refers to four sacred temples built to defend the four directions (East, West, South, North) of the ancient Thang Long capital city To the East is the Bach Ma (White Horse) temple, which is dedicated to Long Do God To the West is the Voi Phuc (Kneeling Elephant) temple where Linh Lang God is worshipped The Kim Lien temple to the South is dedicated to Cao Son God And to the North is the Quan Thanh temple dedicated to Huyen Thien Thuong De God

It was not by chance that it existed the concept of Thang Long having Four Guardian God Temples However, did Thang Long really have four guardian god temples since its original city planning during the Ly Dynasty as indicated in the term “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God

Temples”? Or the Four Guardian God Temples were gradually formed

through time and were “invented” with additional guardian meaning? These questions still need to be answered Therefore, it is the main research question for the thesis to study the establishment and changes of the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God

Temples” in Ha Noi

2 Research Purposes

2.1 The thesis aims to provide a comprehensive exploration of the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in

Ha Noi from its earliest origins to the present day

2.2 The thesis seeks to provide initial explanation of the “invention of tradition” of the costumary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples”

2.3 The thesis uses the theoretical concept of "Invention of tradition"

in studying the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in order to test its suitability for analysis of the "invention"

of the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in Ha Noi

3 Research Topic and Scope

3.1 Research Topic: The costumary worship of the “Thang Long’s

Four Guardian God Temples” in Ha Noi

3.2 Research Scope

- Time: The research explores the costumary worship from its earliest

origins to the present day

- Space: The research focuses on administrative boundaries of Hoan Kiem, Ba Dinh and Dong Da districts

4 Research Approaches and Methods

4.1 Approaches: The thesis uses the specific historical approach

Secondary
 Data
 Analysis;
 Ethnographic Fieldwork;
 Interdisciplinary

Analysis and Interdisciplinary Synthetics Methods

5 Research Result and Contribution

- This thesis presents a comprehensive, in-depth exploration of materials relating to the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in Ha Noi

- The thesis documents the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in Ha Noi from its earliest origins to the present day

- The thesis uses the theoretical concept of "The invention of tradition"

in studying the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in order to test its suitability for analysis of the "invention"

of the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in Ha Noi

6 Thesis Structure

In addition to Introduction, Conclusion, Bibliography and Annexes, the main content of the thesis is organised into four chapters as follows:

Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

Chapter 2: THE CUSTOMARY WORSHIP OF THE “THANG

LONG’S FOUR GUARDIAN GOD TEMPLES” FROM INVENTION TO “INVENTION OF TRADITION”

BEFORE 1945 Chapter 3: CHANGES OF THE CUSTOMARY WORSHIP OF

THE “THANG LONG’S FOUR GUARDIAN GOD TEMPLES” FROM 1945 TO THE PRESENT DAY Chapter 4: DISCUSSIONS ON THE CUSTOMARY WORSHIP

OF THE “THANG LONG’S FOUR GUARDIAN GOD TEMPLES” IN TODAY’S LIFE

CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Literature Review and Background Research

1.1.1 “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” through various sources

1.1.1.1 Data sources related to each Guardian God Temple

* Ancient scripts: Most of the ancient scripts discuss the Four

Guardian God Temples separately such as Việt điện u linh and Lĩnh Nam

Towards the end of the 14th century AD, the term “Tu tran” (Four

Guardians God Temples) first appeared in some books like: the series Hà

Nội địa dư; the series Đại Nam nhất thống chí; the series Hà Nội sơn xuyên phong vực compiled around the end of 1887 AD; and in the Tuyển tập văn bia Hà Nội

Written notes on the customary regulations and rites at each “Tran”

(Guardian God Temple) appear in Chinese manuscripts as follows: Hà

khẩu phường hương lệ, Bạch Mã từ Tam giáp hương lệ, Đại Nam thần lục,

Bị khảo lục; Hoàn Long Thủ Lệ trại thần tích; Hoàn Long Kim Liên phường khoán ước; Trấn Vũ Quán lục, Trấn Vũ quán mặc tích, Trấn Vũ thần mộng hiển ứng ký

* Documents from foreigners, including written notes of European

authors in the period from 17th century to 1945, are presented in the book

Hà Nội qua tài liệu và tư liệu lưu trữ (Ha Noi through documents and archival documents)

1.1.1.2 Data sources refer to the system of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples”

These data include merely ancient documents

The volume Bản đồ thời Hồng Đức (Hong Duc Maps) reflect the

locations of the temples which formed the Four Guardian God Temples to protect the Thang Long imperial citadel Next is the book in Chinese

scripts called Hà Thành Linh tích cổ lục, and the book Thăng Long cổ tích

khảo tịnh hội đồ by Đặng Xuân Khanh (1956)

1.1.2 Review of Background Researches

* Researches and identifications of each temple

Researches on the Northern Guardian God Temple include the thesis

Khảo sát Hệ thống văn bản khắc Hán Nôm đền Quán Thánh (Research on Han Nom scripts in Quan Thanh Temple); or the dissertation: Đền Voi

Phục Thủ Lệ di tích và lễ hội (The Voi Phuc Thu Le Temple: Monument and Festival)

In addition, each temple is studied from different aspects, such as:

- About legends related to each Guardian God at each temple, there are

books like Văn học dân gian người Việt – Góc nhìn thể loại (Viet folk

culture – Seen from formative angle), Địa chí văn hóa dân gian Thăng Long - Đông Đô - Hà Nội (Thang Long – Dong Do Cultural Geography of Folk Belief), Sự tích các vị thần Thăng Long – Hà Nội (Legends of Thang Long – Ha Noi’s Gods) and Truyện kể dân gian Hà Nội (Ha Noi Folk Stories)

- About beliefs and festivals, there are books such as Lễ Hội Thăng

Long (Thang Long Festival) and Tín ngưỡng dân gian Hà Nội trong đời sống văn hóa đô thị hiện nay (Ha Noi Folk Belief in Today’s Urban Life)

* Researches and identifications of the four temples

In 1975, when Ha Noi became the capital city of the unified Vietnam, the term “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” was used again,

initially by Tran Quoc Vuong in his book Hà Nội nghìn xưa (Ha Noi in the

Ancient Time) In 2001, in the article “Đôi điều về quy hoạch thành Thăng

Long” (Some thoughts on Thang Long’s Construction Planning), Trần Quốc Vượng once again discussed the matter of the Four Guardians God Temples Hoàng Giáp (from Han Nom Institute), in his article “Thuyết ngũ hành và Thành cổ Hà Nội” (Rule of the Five Elements and Ha Noi Ancient Citadel), analyses the God at the Northern Guardian God Temple

In 2010, on the occasion of celebrating 1000 years of Thang Long – Ha Noi, based on the standpoint of Tran Quoc Vuong on characteristics of the

sacred land, sacred space in the “religious characteristics in building the

capital city” of the ancient Thang Long imperial citadel, a series of articles related to the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” provide analysis and explanations on the meaning of the customary worship of the

“Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” such as the book Tín ngưỡng

dân gian Hà Nội trong đời sống văn hóa đô thị hiện nay (Ha Noi Folk Belief in Today’s Urban Life), the article “Không gian thiêng của Thăng

Long – Hà Nội” (Thang Long – Ha Noi’s Sacred Spaces) by Đỗ Quang

Hưng in the international conference Phát triển bền vững Thủ đô Hà Nội

văn hiến, anh hùng, vì hoà bình (Sustainable Development of Hanoi – The Civilized Heroic Capital City For Peace) “Thăng Long Tứ trấn” (The

Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples) is also the title of an article by

Lê Văn Lan in the book Dấu xưa chuyện cũ Thăng Long – Hà Nội (Thang

Long – Ha Noi’s Ancient Vestiges and Old Stories) From the data sources

motioned above, we came to think that the concept of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” was invented in the Nguyen Dynasty as the latest and it has been perpetuated by today’s authors

1.1.3 Evaluation of the data sources and background research and thesis’s question

* Initial thoughts on the data sources and background research

a) If documents in Chinese scripts provide an anthology of data on the gods, then written notes of European people on Thang Long – Ke Cho reflect Western opinions, thoughts and management methods These are valuable sources for us to explore the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in the past

b) Based on ancient manuscripts, it is possible to determine relatively the time period when the term “Tu tran” (“Four Guardian God Temples”) was formed and appeared

c) Data after 1954 onwards include mostly documents referring to each temple from the angle of professional disciplines such as Han Nom Studies

or Literature Studies, etc The explanation of the customary worship at each temple and at all four temples appear scarcely in some works by various authors In addition, the changes of this customary worship have rarely been studied so far

* Justification for the research of the customary worship of the

“Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in the present day:

a) There has not been any work that considers “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” as an “invention of tradition” using the theoretical concept of the same name

b) There are quite a lot of not-yet-explored materials related to the Four Guardian God Temples in Chinese scripts and in French people’s documents

c) The study of these data sources reveals the fact it exists many problems that need to be further discussed on the Guardian Gods at the Four Temples

d) On the one hand, clarifying the establishment and changes of the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in the past is also a way to recognise the position and role of this custom in contemporary life

e) On the other hand, from the result of revival and restoration of relics and festivals, there are problems that need to be paid attention on the customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in today’s life

Above are questions for research on the customary worship of the

“Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” at present and also the main research question for the thesis

1.2 Terminology and theoretical concept

The thesis uses theoretical concept of “invention of tradition” by Eric

Hobsbawm and Terence Ranger

1.3 The “Thang Long Four Guardian God Temples” in historical, cultural and social spaces of Thang Long – Ha Noi

The four historical monuments forming the Four Guardian God Temples are situated in the core areas of the ancient Thang Long citadel and of today’s Ha Noi

1.3.1 Overview of historical, cultural and social spaces of Thang Long – Ha Noi

Historical, cultural and social spaces of Thang Long – Ha Noi are

reflected generally in the analysis of King Ly Thai To in his Chieu doi do,

as well as in historical books of the Nguyen Dynasty The shared cultural elements and cultural diversities of Thang Long – Ke Cho is the village culture in the Northern Delta The specific cultural elements of Thang Long – Dong Do – Ha Noi were created due to urban spaces where intellectuals gathered, diplomatic and business people from different

countries came and met

1.3.2 The customary worship of the Four Guardian God Temples in the religious and belief context of Thang Long – Ha Noi

There are various forms of religious and belief practices in Thang Long

- Ha Noi This religious characteristic was formed at the beginning of Dai Viet independent state in the period from the 9th to the11th centuries and

until the present day

Summary

“The sacred space of Thang Long” was constructed by the Ly Dynasty since the earliest origins of the citadel The locations of the Four Guardian God Temples served as protectors to the four directions of the ancient Thang Long captial city The Four Guardian God Temples are imbued and influenced by characteristics of the historical, cultural and social religions and belief of the Thang Long – Ha Noi space The concept that Thang Long was protected by Four Guardian God Temples or the customary worship of the Four Guardian Gods at these temples might have been formed at the earliest time, but the term “Four Guardian God Temples” appeared later in a document in the Nguyen Dynasty period To a certain extent, it is the “invention of tradition” that Eric Hobsbawm and Terence

Ranger use in their theoritical concept of the “invention of tradition”

CHAPTER 2 THE CUSTOMARY WORSHIP OF THE THANG LONG

FOUR GUARDIAN GOD TEMPLES – FROM “INVENTION” TO

“INVENTION OF TRADITION” BEFORE 1945

In this chapter, I divide the research into two periods for studying the customary worship of the Four Guardian God Temples, including:

1 The period where the customary worship was established (from the

Ly Dynasty to the beginning of the Nguyen Dynasty) 2 The period of

“invention of tradition” (during the Nguyen Dynasty)

The term “invention” in the first period (2.1) refers to legends, the year of invention and the symbolic meanings of the Four Guardian Gods at the four temples mentioned in various historical textbooks and documents We think that this was the main period of the invention that constituted the core with unchanged symbolic meanings of the customary worship at the Four Guardian God Temples

The term “invention of tradition” refering to the second period (2.2) denotes that the concept of Thang Long protected by the Four Guardian Gods was invented during the Nguyen Dynasty, but it was understood that it was rooted in the ancient time and attached to the newly constructed citadel under the Ly Dynasty

2.1 Invention periods of the customary worship at the “Four Guardian God Temples”

2.1.1 Invention periods and restorations of the “Four Guardian Temples”

The four temples were not constructed at the same time Restorations, as documents reveal, took place at different levels, which means they were not included in the construction planning of the Thang Long citadel and did not bear the meaning of protecting the longlasting

citadel from the Ly Dynasty (1010-1225)

2.1.2 Contributions and merits of the Four Guardian Gods All of

the Four Guardian Gods contributed in the defending of the country and

consolidating the royal throne

2.1.3 Symbols and meanings of the customary worship of the Four Guardian Gods It is possible to realise that the main meaning of

the customary worship in the invention period was to fight again foreign envaders, to defend and consolidate the imperial power of the

feudal regims from the Ly – Tran Dynasties to the Posterious Le

Dynasty

2.1.4 The customary worship of the Four Guardian God Temples

The Regulations and Rites of the Kiến văn tiểu lục mention only the

Bach Ma Temple, one of the eight temples dedicated to Superior Gods The other temples, Voi Phuc, Quan Thanh and Kim Lien, are not

mentioned In addition to the regulaions reflected in Kiến văn tiểu lục,

other documents about the four temples provide more data on the

practice of the worship at the four Guardian God Temples

2.1.5 Summary and Opinions: The Four Guardian God Temples

were invented at different time periods Each Guardian God had its own symbol and meaning, but in general, they all contributed to the defending of the country and consolidating the imperial power The customary worhsip of these Guardian Gods were refected at different

levels

2.2 The period of “invention of tradition” of the Thang Long’s

Four Guardian God Temples (1820-1945) This was the period when

the four temples were vested with the role of protecting the Thang

Long citadel since its foundation during the Ly Dynasty

2.2.1 Hanoi historical context in the period of “invention of tradition” In 1802, the capital city was moved into Hue The former

Thang Long citadel, which used to be the country’s political, economic and cultural centre, then became a guardian city in the Northern Region

2.2.2 Basis for the invention of tradition of Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples In our opinion, the notion of “Four Guardian

God Temples” was formed based on the following:

* First: Thang Long’s “sacred spaces” had been formed about 800 years ago

* Second: The Guardian Gods at these temples all helped the regims fighting the ennemies, chasing away evil spirits and strengthening the royal power as mentioned in 2.1.2

* Third: Data resources related to the formation of the concept

“Four Guardians”

* Fourth: The belief in geomency rule of the Thang Long Citadel

2.2.3 The customary worship of the Four Guardian God Temples

in the period of “invention of tradition”

Due to the fact that the invented tradition has political nature, research on the worship of the Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples through architecture and belief traditions shows that the

invented tradition did not have much contribution

2.2.3.1 Landscape architectures of the Four Guardian God Temples The photographs taken by French people since 1883 show

that the Four Guardian God Temples of the past look alike their

landscape architectures of the present day

2.2.3.2 The worshipping practices The book Khâm định Đại Nam hội điển sự lệ (in the Nguyen Dynasty) regulates the worshipping rites

and rituals at temples in the capital citadel and in the provinces (Ha Noi

was a province at that time)

Summary

The Four Guardian God Temples were formed through time Merits and contributions of the Four Guardian Gods were reflected as an attachement to the protection of the country and the consolidation of feodal regims’s power from the Ly Dynasty to the beginning of the Nguyen Dynasty In addition, the four temples situated at the four compass points of the citadel can be seen as the four directions of the

“sacred spaces” of the Thang Long citadel Based on these data, Confucian mandarins in the Nguyen Dynasty invented the term “the Four Guardian God Temples” in order to syntify the temples and the sacred spaces of the Thang Long Citadel “Destiny” or result of this

“invention of tradition” of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” was not as expected by the mandarins during the Nguyen Dynasty However, the foundation of the “invention of tradition” would serve as the standpoint for the revival of the customary worship of the

“Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” in the period of the Independent Vietnam

CHAPTER 3 CHANGES OF THE CUSTOMARY WORSHIP OF THE THANG LONG’S FOUR GUARDIAN GOD TEMPLES FROM 1945 TO THE

PRESENT DAY 3.1 The customary worship of the Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples in the spontaneous period (1945-1986)

“Spontaneity” is a relative concept that is illustrated in two areas: management of monuments and worshipping practices Although the four temples are subjects to Government’s religious and belief policies, reflection on the monument landscapes and religious activities at these four temples seem to be spontaneous

3.1.1 Historical context of the capital city of Ha Noi The thesis

discusses the social contexts in specific periods such as: Period of

1945-1954, Period of 1954-1975, Period of 1975-1986 It focuses on main

historical events as well as policies on religions and beliefs of the Party

and the State From the end of this period, rituals and traditional

festivals started to be revived

3.1.2 The customary worship of the Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples in the spontaneous period (1945-1986)

3.1.2.1 Landscapes of the Four Guardian God Temples After peace

had been established (in 1954), the country was divided into two regions People returned to the capital city after evacuation Many historical monuments were turned into storages, school classes or houses, etc In this situation, the landscapes of the Four Guardian God Temples were affected and changed

3.1.2.2 Worshipping practices at the Four Guardian God Temples The

landscapes of the Four Guardian God Temples were more or less occupied and degraded The temples were governed by the village’s elderly associations Budget for maintaining the worshipping practices such as burning incense or making rituals came from donations by pilgrims from all over directions

3.2 The customary worship of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian Temples” in the revival period and the perpetuation of the invention

of tradition since 1986 to the present day

3.2.1 Historical context In this periold, the customary worship

continued to be revived and developed even stronger In the last 15 years,

on the occasion of the celebrations of 990, 995 and 1000 years of Thang

Long – Ha Noi, many historical and cultural monuments were conserved and restored, especially the monuments that were the keys of the celebration, including the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” The legends of the “Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples” continued to draw attention of scholars and were analysed from different angles, which contributed to the development of the “invention of tradition” of the Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples originated

from the Nguyen Dynasty

3.2.2 The customary worship of the Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples It was possible that the direction of the Program 05-Ctr/TU on 30 May 2001 of Ha Noi’s city Party Committee on the “ completion of the restoration of the Four Guardian God Temples” together with the concept

of sacred spaces of Thang Long’s Four Guardian God Temples formed the basis for the revival of the customary worship at these temples, both tangibly and intangibly In addition to the revival was the “absorption” of

new beliefs into the original sacred spaces of the four temples

* 3.2.1.1 Management of the Four Guardian God Temples and financial resources

The management of the Four Guardian God Temples and their financial

resources shared similar characteristics as the following:

- About monument management: all four temples were recognised as National Monuments, therefore they were put under the State management The conservation and restoration of the temples must follow the terms regulated in the Law on Cultural Heritage In addition, except for the Northern Temple, the Management Board of the Temple is the combination of the local government and the local elderly association in order to maintain worshipping activities at the temple

- About financial resources: All of the four temples have a financial resource from donations by pilgrims However, the conservation and restoration of the temples come from the State budget

3.2.1.2 Revivals and expansion of scope, premises and architectural landscapes of the Four Guardian Temples Before 2000, the architectural

premises of the Four Guardian Temples contained mostly vestiges from the Restored Le Dynasty to the present day However, from 2000 to 2010,

on the celebration of 1000 years of Thang Long, the revival of “invention

of tradition” was clearly seen materially and spiritually

3.2.1.3 Annual worshipping practices rituals at the Four Guardian God Temples