Bich Dong Pagoda

This sweet little spot was close to our lodging. Naila, her friend Joanne, and I walked to the Pagoda. I ws surprised to learn most pagodas, including this one, have no admission fees. There are many donation boxes.

It looks small from the front but goes back quite far into caves and all around the grounds. There are many shrines. I was surprised to find offerings included a lot of processed foods 😆 - packaged cake, pop. Hmmmm.... Exotic fruit was also offered along with flowers and money.

The MANY stone steps are quite polished from thousands of years of use, plus it's been raining so the steps were really slippery. Like ice! We saw several folks slide but none fell. Some of the steps are as tall as knee-height and some are ankle-height. One must pay close attention and Naila held my hand most of the way.

There are about 15 "tablets" with karma rules. I didn't know Buddism was so fire & brimstone.

FROM TOURISM VIETNAM:
Bich Dong Pagoda is a famous historical and cultural relic in Ninh Binh, about 100km from Hanoi. Its unique characteristic is the perfect combination of ancient pagodas with cross-covered roofs, natural caves and majestic mountains, hidden in the green of tropical forests. Bich Dong Pagoda belongs to Trang An Complex which is inscribed to the UNESCO World Heritage. It is 3 km west of Tam Coc and 11 km southwest of Ninh Binh City. 

General Information:
Bich Dong literally means “Emerald Green Grotto”. The ancients named it because the pagoda was surrounded by green trees and the scenery was really peaceful. Bich Dong Pagoda was first built in 1428 under the reign of Ly Thai To on the Truong Yen limestone mountains range, Hoa Lu District. In 1705, 2 Buddhist monks, called Tri Kien and Tri The, came here and discovered this cave with a pagoda hidden by dense and strong vine and plants. Then they rebuilt it with 3-layers pagoda. “Chua” in Vietnamese means pagoda.

Architecture:
Bich Dong Pagoda is a typical sample of traditional construction style, made from wood and stone with brick tiled roofs. But what makes it unique is 3 separate layered structures: Ha Pagoda (Lower Pagoda), Trung Pagoda (Middle Pagoda), and Thuong Pagoda (Upper Pagoda). These 3 pagodas are built in ascending. To reach them you must climb some steep stairs. On arrival at the site, you will see a small gate by a gigantic mountain. Crossing a stone bridge over a lotus flower pond, you go through a beautifully decorated gate and follow a small footpath to explore the whole pagoda.

Chua Ha – Lower Pagoda:
Chua Ha, or Ha Pagoda, is situated at the foot of the mountain. It is used as shrine of worshiping the Buddha. Ha Pagoda comprises 5 rooms with two-tier roof including 8 smaller roofs while its broad eaves were constructed by 6 stone steps. The 4-meters stone pillars in the pagoda are all monolithic without any joints.

Chua Trung – Middle Pagoda:
From Ha Pagoda, you will climb up 120 S-shaped steps to the halfway of mountain where Chua Trung, or Trung Pagoda, is located. This second pagoda is divided into two areas: half of the pagoda is situated outside and another half is situated inside the cave. It has a two-tier roof, a three-room upper temple, and a forecourt which all face west. The precious remains in the pagoda are the bronze bell with sophisticated engravings, the three huge stone statues of Amitabha Buddha, Van Thu Bodhisattva and Thi Kinh Bodhisattva.

Chua Thuong – Upper Pagoda:
Chua Thuong, or Thuong Pagoda, is on the top of the mountain. It has two small temples – the left one for the local earth god and the right one for the mountain god. To get there, visitors must climb up 40 stone steps along the mountain side, through Dark Cave where you can find the image of fairy, Buddha, little boys, flying dragon, swimming turtles. Thuong Pagoda is the ideal place to see the panoramic poetic scenery of Tam Coc – Bich Dong.Read more