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Ho Hoan Kiem
Ho Hoan Kiem or Lake of the Returned Sword was
once a part of the Red river (song Hong). Through thousands
of years of changes in the geography, the lake moved
eastward to its present position many kilometers from
the river. The lake was once called Luc Thuy or Green
Water because the water was green year round. In the
fifteen century, the lake was named Ho Hoan Kiem, based
of a legend that is quite similar to King Arthur and
the Lady of the Lake's legend.
While fighting against the Chinese, King Le Thai To
has in his possession a very valuable sword. After 10
years of continuous struggle, the King finally defeated
the Chinese and reclaimed Vietnam's independence. One
day, while sailing on lake Luc Thuy, a large turtle
appeared. The king drew his sword and pointed at the
creature. The turtle immediately grab hold of the sword
with its mouth and submerged. The king mourned the lost
of such valuable sword, demanded that the lake be emptied
and dredged. Both the turtle and the sword were not
found. The king realizing that the gods must have lent
him the sword to drive back the enemy, but now that
Vietnam is free, the sword must be returned. King Le
Thai To named the lake Ho Hoan Kiem or Lake of theReturned
Sword. |
Den Ngoc Son
Since the reign of king Le Trung Hung (XVI century),
every king in the Le dynasty, and Lord Trinh have all
contributed to the beautification of the lake. Lord
Trinh Giang built Khanh Thuy shrine on Ngoc island on
the north end of the lake. He also had the two man made
hills built across from Ngoc son Shrine. At the end
of the Le Dynasty, Khanh Thuy was destroyed by Chieu
Thong. A philanthropist named Tin Trai built Ngoc Son
pagoda. Ngoc Son pagoda was renamed Ngoc Son shrine
during the reign of Thieu Tri III (1843) because it
was no longer a Buddhist shrine. Instead, Ngoc Son is
a shrine to Van Xuong, a deity, in charge of literature
and the various tests required to become in mandarin.
It is also a shrine to general Tran Hung Dao, a national
hero responsible for many victories against the Mongols.
Since den Ngoc Son has gone through many renovations,
one of which was the addition of Thap But (Pen Tower)
on the hill which was once called Dao Tai. Three words
inscribed on the tower "Ta Thien Thanh" or "write on
blue sky". Inside the gate a pool resembling the shape
of an ink well was added. Beyond the ink well is The
Huc bridge or "where the sun light is absorbed". The
bridge leads to Dac Nguyet Lau or "Moon Light Tower"
- Ngoc Son shrine. Beyond the gates to the shrine, there
are two walls called bang Rong and bang Ho (dragon and
tiger slate) where the names of those who passed the
national test are inscribed. On the southwest end of
the lake is Thap Rua. It was rumored that king Le Thanh
Tong used to fish there. Lord Trinh also built the structure
to house his entourage while visiting the lake. |
Ho Tay
Ho Tay is the largest of all the lakes in Ha Noi.
The lake is on the northwest part of the city. Long
ago, the lake was a branch of the Red river but later,
as the river changed course, the lake remained a body
of water just west of the river. There are many legends
associated with West Lake. The most popular is the legend
of the golden buffalo. As the story goes, there once
was a medicine man who was a giant. He is well known
in Vietnam for his medicine practice and the king often
used him to treat the royal family. His fame reached
China and he was invited to China to treat the king.
He was successful where others have failed so the king
was going to reward him with great wealth. He refused
offerings of gold and only requested that the king give
him all the black copper in the king's vault. The king
agreed and the giant left for Vietnam with vast amounts
of black copper. In Vietnam the giant molded a giant
bell of black copper. The giant rang the bell and the
sound resonated all the way to China. In the king's
vault there was a golden buffalo. Upon hearing the sound
of the bell, the buffalocame to life (because he thought
that his mother was calling him) and charged southward.
Upon reaching Ha Noi, the buffalo trampled the land
in the area near Red river. Over the years, this area
filled with water and became Ho Tay or West Lake. |
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