Cuong Temple has been described by researchers as a beautiful and solid architectural work which can stand the adverse weather with heavy rains and typhoons in central Vietnam.
According to village elders, in the past Mo Da mountain was the habitat of peacocks. From afar, Mo Da looks like a giant dancing peacock or stork. The peacock is stretching its tail over to La Van village, with two wings reaching low hills far away. The Temple dedicated to King Thuc is situated on the head of the peacock. That is why it is called Cong, or Cuong Temple according to local pronunciation.
A thick and vast pine forest covers Mt Mo Da. Behind it is the immense sea, with waves crashing onto the shore day and night. To the north of the mountain is the flat Cua Hien beach which makes a good seaside resort. Tens of thousands of rocks in the form of fishes emerge from the beach, giving it the name Ngu Hai rock-field. There is a big and flat rock which looks like a chess-board. Legend has it that on fine days, King Thuc An Dương Vương walked along the shore and played chess with fairies on this rock, so it was named chess-board rock. At dawn, the rock-field is sparkling splendidly in different colours. In the afternoon, the shade of Mo Da mountain covers the rock-field, temperature reduces and the area becomes very cool and comfortable. Particularly, this is the only area in Nghe An province not hit by the hot south-west wind in summer. From Mo Da mountain in fine weather we look around and find ourselves quite carried away by a charming scenery that looks like the rendervous of the mountain and the sea, of history and love.
Visitors to Cuong Temple will have a chance to hear legends about Vietnam’s brave fighting against foreign aggressors. One story goes that at the end of the reign of King Hung the 18th, Vietnam which was called Van Lang at that time, was confronted by an invasion of the northern Qin dynasty. To save the country, King Hung abdicated the throne to Thuc Phan, a talented mandarin who could unite all generals and the people to defeat the Qin aggressors. After the victory, Thuc Phan was enthroned and called himself King Thuc An Dương Vương. He changed the country’s name from Van Lang to Au Lac and moved the capital city from Phong Chau to Co Loa. King Thuc ruled the country for 50 years (from 257 BC to 208 BC). In 208 BC, as King Thuc was off his guard, Trieu Da launched a surprise attack and the King had to retreat southward. He committed suicide at Cua Hien beach, north of Mt Mo Da, which is now in Dien Trung commune, Dien Chau district, Nghe An province.
To commemorate the great merit of King Thuc An Dương Vương, the people in Dien Chau built a temple dedicated to him at Cua Hien where King Thuc met the Tortoise God who emerged, cleaved the waves and led him to Heaven. Princess My Chau was also said to be buried there. According to a legend, although a temple was built, local people still saw a small fire sparkling on the side of Mt Mo Da at night. They believed that the soul of King Thuc wanted to rest on the mountainside and so they built a temple to worship him there. The Cuong Temple is therefore dedicated to King Thuc An Duong Vuong.
The exact year when Cuong Temple was built was not clear. A celebrity of the Le dynasty, Pham Dinh Ho (1768 - 1839) in his “Notes taken on rainy days” wrote, “I was on a family business and stopped over in Cuong Temple. Looking down from the rocky mountain which looked like the head of a stork I found the temple dedicated to King Thuc An Dương Vương lying on the mountain’s side. I felt as if I saw the neck of the stork as green as grass and a number of beautiful dancing peacocks. The thatched roofed lower structure was lying under the central structure. After three layers we came down the mountain".
In 1802, King Gia Long was enthroned and he then ordered the repair of the temple. In the Giap Ty lunar year (1864), King Tu Duc again improved the temple. At its inauguration ceremony, the King offered it a gold coin as a keepsake.
In the 10th year of King Thanh Thai’s enthronment (1897), the Temple’s upper structure was upgraded to deserve a place worthy of a king. In the 1st year of King Khai Dinh’s enthronment (1916) the external part was refurbished. The Temple has maintained its look until today.
In the past, the Royal Court classified the Cuong Temple Festival as a national festival. However, the festival was held by Cao Xa commune which included four villages of Cao Ai, Cao Quan, Tap Phuc and Yen Phu.
The Cuong Temple festival was held from the first of the second lunar month to the end of spring. The main ceremonies were held on the 14 and 15th day of the second lunar month. In the afternoon of the 14th day an announcing ceremony was held at the temple. On the 15th day, a magic sedan procession was held in honour of King Thuc from Cuong Temple to the Cao Ai village communal house so that the King could enjoy the festival, receive the offerings and bless the people. After that the procession headed back to the temple. The people in Cao Xa commune also carried their village tutelary gods to Cuong Temple to let them attend the festival.
Today, the festival still occurs every year, with traditional games such as swinging, wrestling, cock-fighting and human chess held in the day, and Ca Tru singing, classical drama and popular opera are held at night. Fireworks are also displayed making the festival more attractive, jubilant and animated. The Cuong Temple festival is held every year, attracting a large number of pilgrims and tourists from all over the country.
Tran Dinh Ha
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