Temple of Holy Mother Lieu Hanh

Lieu Hanh Holy Mother Temple is a famous spiritual tourist destination in Quang Binh. From the top of Deo Ngang Pass, follow National Highway 1A about 2km south, turn left along the trail about 500m, you will reach Lieu Hanh Holy Mother Temple.

The temple is located at the foot of Deo Ngang mountain, on a fairly flat land, close to the former North-South highway. Behind the temple is the Hoanh Son range, right in front is the freshwater lake of Quang Dong commune. The temple faces South, also towards the sea.

In the folk beliefs of the Vietnamese as well as some other ethnic groups, the worship of goddesses and Mother Goddesses is a fairly common phenomenon with deep historical and social roots.

Respecting women, respecting the role of mothers and wives in our country, a very beautiful tradition and a strong vitality of folk culture. It is the political and social foundation, the mental and spiritual foundation, that has formed and developed the worship of goddesses, the worship of mothers, the Mothers, a custom that has existed since the time of Van Lang, Au Lac and is still passed down to this day, the worship of gods of the ancient Vietnamese people.

The story of Holy Mother Lieu Hanh

The Temple of Holy Mother Lieu Hanh in Deo Ngang, Quang Binh has both its own story and the common image of Mother Lieu Hanh in the spiritual life of our people.

Therefore, according to the book “The treasure of Vietnamese fairy tales” volume IV – by Nguyen Dong Chi, it is said that: “Once upon a time in Heaven, the Jade Emperor had a daughter named Lieu Hanh, who was unruly and stubborn, and refused to follow the rules of Heaven. The Jade Emperor tried his best to educate her, but in vain, she still had the same bad habits. Angry because there was a bad daughter in the family, who could not set an example for everyone, the Jade Emperor decided to punish her to help her reform.

The legend of Mother Lieu Hanh on earth

Once, when Lieu Hanh committed a mistake, the Jade Emperor banished her to the mortal world for three years. After coming to the mortal world, Mother Lieu Hanh transformed into a beautiful girl and set up a tent at the foot of Deo Ngang Mountain. This was a deserted mountainous area, but it was also the place where the North-South Highway passed through, so every day there were never a lack of pedestrians passing by. Since ancient times, because of fear of bandits and wild animals, no one dared to open a shop there. Therefore, Lieu Hanh’s unique village was crowded with visitors every day.

Anyone going up and down the Pass, passing by the shop, could not help but stop by to rest. Moreover, there was also a stunningly beautiful girl in the shop.

Since being exiled, Lieu Hanh has not given up her old ways of looking down on and teasing people. Therefore, if anyone comes to the restaurant to eat, drink, and then continue on their way, she is fine. But if she sees the beautiful owner of the restaurant making fun of her or using her power, influence, or power to do something wrong, she will definitely punish her without mercy. When she returns, if she does not die, she will become insane.

At that time, it was the time when King Le Thai To ruled the world. Rumors about the beautiful girl who opened a shop alone in Deo Ngang quickly spread far and wide. Everywhere people were talking about it. Some people said that the shop owner was a girl with extraordinary martial arts skills, she could fight a hundred men at once; others said that she was a skilled gangster, not only good at seducing young men but also doing many other dishonest jobs. Some people also said that she was a fairy who came down to test mortals. Each person said something different, so no one knew which one to believe. But the rumors about the shop owner of Deo Ngang also attracted countless unemployed young men from the countryside to the market.

The young and naive Prince of King Le, upon hearing the news, was also fascinated. The Prince wanted to send soldiers to capture the girl immediately, but he knew that his father was very strict, and causing a disturbance in a region was something the King would never allow; moreover, he heard that the girl was good at martial arts and had many magical powers, so he hesitated. In the end, he could not contain his longing and curiosity. One day, the Prince hid from his father and the Queen, prepared a palanquin and luggage, pretended to be a young nobleman, and led a group of disguised guards to leave. After more than ten days of traveling, crossing the Lam River and Nam Gioi Mountain, the Prince was about to set foot on the highest mountain pass.

From Deo Ngang, Holy Mother Lieu Hanh knew that the Prince had come to find her, but also knew that he was an ordinary young man, without any ability, but arrogant and dissolute. To prevent it, she transformed herself into a peach tree growing by the roadside, where the Prince was resting, on the tree there was a ripe peach. The Prince suddenly saw the peach and drooled, without waiting to order the servants to climb up and pick it to eat.

The peach was fragrant and delicious, but suddenly, when it was about to be put into the Prince’s mouth, it became soft in his hand, then shrunk, and finally disappeared without a trace. “This peach is haunted!” – the guards shouted in horror and advised the Prince to be careful. The Prince felt a shiver but because he still could not see the hidden warning from Lieu Hanh, after a while, he urged the bearer to continue walking quickly to the foot of the pass.

When they met Mau Lieu Hanh, both the master and the servant were astonished. Never before had the Prince been so fascinated. This girl was truly as beautiful as rumored, and in the palace of his father, there was hardly anyone who could compare. The Prince then secretly ordered the whole group to stop at the inn, lingering around eating and drinking until the afternoon, then when the sun was about to set, he told the owner:

“The road is long and it’s getting dark. We want to stay here for the night. Would the mistress agree?”

Mother Lieu Hanh knew the Prince’s thoughts so she refused:

– Sir, the shops here are cramped, and besides, there are only a few women and girls. It is inconvenient for you and the others to stay. There is a village half a mile to the east. Please go there to stay. There will be houses and laborers ready to serve you.

– We just need to stay here, don’t worry, mistress. A place in the inn to hang the curtains is enough. Also, I promise not to bother the mistress in any way.

– If so, please feel free.

At night, after everyone had finished eating, they prepared to go to bed. The bearers and servants spread out mats and lay down in the middle of the yard. The Prince alone had two guards who had set up a tent in the inn. The summer weather was cool and the moon and wind were charming. Under the light of the oil lamp, the Prince still leaned against the pillar and chatted with the female innkeeper. Lieu Hanh still patiently sat and lingered, her every word pleasing to the guests, making the Prince even more fascinated.

He forgot his promise, lost all his dignity when he first arrived, and began to flirt. Lieu Hanh refused and ran into the room. In his infatuation, the Prince no longer cared about keeping his dignity, so he ran after her. Little did he know that in the blink of an eye, Lieu Hanh had transformed herself, flew up the mountain, captured a female monkey, and transformed herself into a beautiful girl to deceive the Prince. Not seeing the innkeeper, but there was another girl in the room, the Prince immediately acted frivolously.

But suddenly he screamed so terribly that all the servants woke up. In the Prince’s hands was no longer a beautiful girl, but a female monkey, covered in hair. The servants rushed forward, and with a flash, the monkey transformed into a snake carrying flowers on the Prince’s body, climbed up to the rafters, opened its mouth and breathed fire, then disappeared. When the servants lit the lamp, the Prince had fallen in the middle of the inn, lying unconscious, his face drained of blood.

That midnight, the post horse was cut to take the Prince back to the capital. When arriving at the palace, the Prince became insane, not answering any questions, only laughing and talking to himself. The Queen and the concubines were extremely worried; on one hand, they kept the matter of that reckless “incognito” a secret, and at the same time, they invited famous doctors to treat the Prince. However, the famous doctors all shook their heads and gave up. The palace became even more confused and panicked, and finally, someone suggested that they should go to Thanh to ask for a magic charm from the eight Vajrapanis, in case they could be cured…

Immediately, the guards were ordered by the king to go to Thanh Hoa to ask for magic spells. Thanks to that, the Prince’s illness gradually improved. After recovering, the Prince bowed his head and confessed his crime to his father, telling him everything about the female innkeeper at Deo Ngang.

King Thai To was extremely angry because the Prince dared to disregard the king’s orders, leave the palace to go out, and become a degenerate and insane person, so he abolished the Prince’s position as Crown Prince and replaced him with his second son. But the king was even angrier because in his own territory, there was a woman who dared to disregard the law of the country. The king ordered the governor of Nghe An to ask about the background of the female owner of Deo Ngang Inn. After a period of investigation, the governor sent a letter back to report that she was a female demon who came from nowhere and often captured the souls of men and boys. Without great magic and talent, it would be difficult to subdue her.

The king again ordered to invite the most skilled magicians and sorcerers to go and exorcise the demons, but soon they returned to plead guilty because not only were they unable to control the demons, but on the contrary, all their magic was taken away by Lieu Hanh. The king again asked for help from the eight Vajrapani and flew into Deo Ngang. Hearing the bad news, Lieu Hanh immediately went out to fight and the battle gradually became fierce, the rain poured down, the wind blew terribly, trees fell everywhere, the eight Vajrapani rushed in and surrounded Deo Ngang.

Holy Mother Lieu Hanh also used magic to fight back, she made the fallen trees stand up and rocks and soil fly. Seeing Lieu Hanh’s powerful magic, the eight Vajras used magic to make wild animals gather together, baring their fangs and claws, rushing in in groups, intending to tear each other apart, but Lieu Hanh promptly flew into the air and used magic to destroy the entire herd of ferocious animals.

The battle lasted for three days and nights, Deo Ngang became a terrifying and extremely fierce battlefield. Both sides used all their magic spells but still neither side won or lost. Later, the eight Vajras knew they were powerless so they flew up to Heaven to pray to Buddha. Buddha threw them a bag, and indeed Lieu Hanh fell into the net and fell into that bag. The eight Vajras brought the bag back to the capital to report, the king immediately went to the palace yard to question:

– Who are you?

– Your Majesty, I am daughter of the Jade Emperor who was banished to the mortal world and took the Deo Ngang region as my residence.

– You are the daughter of the Jade Emperor, how dare you destroy the people and harm my son, the Prince?

– Punishing boys who tease girls and bully lonely people is following the law, not breaking the law.

Hearing Lieu Hanh say she was the daughter of the Jade Emperor, and seeing her clever response, the king changed his anger into joy, so after the interrogation, he ordered her to be pardoned, only advising her not to cause disturbances and harm innocent people.

Through the folk legend of Princess Lieu Hanh, we see that it is a belief and a wish for justice of the people. Or we can say the opposite: It is that belief and wish that is the premise for the birth of a miraculous story, that is the story of Princess Lieu Hanh. The path to forming the legend of the Holy Mother is also the path that formed the legend of other saints and deities. That is the path of folk creation or the path of folkizing specific authors and works…

Saint Mother Lieu Hanh left behind an exemplary image worthy of being a role model and a goal for generations of Vietnamese women to strive for.

Lieu Hanh Holy Mother Temple at the foot of Ngang Pass Mountain

The temple of the holy mother Lieu Hanh princess in Deo Ngang has an area of ​​about 335m2. From the North-South highway, enter through the temple gate, the screen, the Tam Quan gate, the two lion-headed pillars in front of the shrine, the Tien temple, and the Hau temple.

Looking at the overall architecture of the temple, we see that this is a small architectural work, built with stone, brick, and lime, but still carries the traditional Asian aesthetic and preserves the national cultural identity. This is shown through the structure of the three-entrance gate, which is arranged symmetrically, balanced, and harmoniously. The symmetry and harmony here represent honesty, uprightness, and are also the dreams of people. On the other hand, the symmetrical, balanced, and harmonious structure also creates beauty for architecture, art, and shows the solemnity of the entire temple architecture.

In general, we can see the talent of construction techniques, painting, and porcelain mosaic of the people here. The decorative themes of the temple are often associated with the concepts, thoughts, and beautiful dreams and aspirations of the feudal society of Vietnam in particular and the residents of the Eastern rice-growing civilization in general. These are images such as the Four Sacred Animals (dragon, unicorn, turtle, phoenix), the Four Hands (music, chess, poetry, painting), the Four Noble Ones (pine, bamboo, apricot, lotus) and many symbols of chrysanthemum transforming into a dragon, apricot transforming into a dragon, pine transforming into a dragon…

In particular, looking at the architectural layout of the temple, arranged in order from low to high along a vertical axis, balanced and symmetrical, this layout adds to the solemnity of the temple of the holy mother Lieu Hanh princess.

Princess Lieu Hanh Temple in Deo Ngang is located in the relic and scenic complex of Deo Ngang (Hoanh Son Quan, Hoan Vuong rampart, Vinh Son communal house, Hon La…). This is a relic complex that still holds many potentials for the socio-economic development of the province.

Princess Lieu Hanh Temple in Deo Ngang is a place of Mother Goddess worship in Quang Binh and has become a form of community cultural and religious activity for the people of Quang Binh in particular and the people of the whole country in general.

The temple of the holy mother Lieu Hanh princess in Deo Ngang is the southernmost point that still has intact architecture of the temple of the holy mother Lieu Hanh like the custom of worshiping the Mother in Phu Giay. The temple is a testament to the legend of Lieu Hanh princess in Deo Ngang, which has existed for a long time in folk legend. Therefore, the relic of the temple of the holy mother Lieu Hanh princess in Deo Ngang, in terms of its scale, style and position in the history of the development of Vietnamese folk beliefs, is worthy of our respect and preservation.

Currently, Lieu Hanh Holy Mother Temple is a meaningful spiritual destination of Quang Binh Tourism.

You can refer to the tour of Quang Binh Temple of Holy Mother Lieu Hanh combined with nearby scenic spots such as Vung Chua, Yen Island, Ngang Pass, which is extremely attractive of Netin Travel Company, conducted by local guides with local knowledge.

• Northern Quang Binh tour to visit the General’s tomb – Lieu Hanh Holy Mother Temple – Deo Ngang – Da Nhay costs only 850,000 VND/01 person.

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