Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.Nghiên cứu văn bia Phật giáo thế kỷ XVII XVIII tỉnh Bắc Ninh.
VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES NGUYEN QUANG HA RESEARCH ON BUDDHISM EPITAPHS IN THE XVII – XVIII OF BAC NINH PROVINCE MAJOR: HAN NOM Code: 22 01 04 THE SUMMARY OF DOCTORAL THESIS ON HAN-NOM Hanoi, 2022 This thesis is completed at VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Supervisor: Prof Ph.D Dinh Khac Thuan Reviewer 1: Assoc Prof Ph.D Ha Van Minh Reviewer 2: Ph.D Dinh Thanh Hieu Reviewer 3: Ph.D Trinh Ngoc Anh This thesis will be reported in front of the Council of thesis evaluation level Institute at the Graduate Academy of Social Sciences At ……date…… 2022 The thesis can be found at: • The National Library of Vietnam • The Library of the Graduate Academy of Social Sciences INTRODUCTION Reasons for choosing the topic Bac Ninh is a long historical land, where thousands of years ago, villages and densely populated areas were formed It is believed by researchers that Bac Ninh was the "birthplace" of the ancient Vietnamese During a thousand years of the subjugation of Vietnam by China, Bac Ninh belonged to Giao Chau, during the Han period, Luy Lau (now Thuan Thanh - Bac Ninh) was considered the political, economic, and cultural center of Giao Chau and also the area with the earliest history of Vietnamese Buddhism It was contemporary comparable to Bành Thành (PéngChéng) Lạc Dương (Luòyáng) (China) Bac Ninh is also the homeland of the Ly Dynasty - a dynasty that worshipped Buddhism Many temples were built in Bac Ninh during the Ly - Tran dynasties In the Le dynasty, especially in the Le Trung Hung period (17th - 18th centuries), many largely ancient temples in Bac Ninh were built and restored by the contributions of the Le king, Trinh lord, and many intellectuals, aristocrats, Zen masters However, the questions of Buddhist epitaphs of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Bac Ninh province have not been thoroughly researched and answered Research objects and tasks The issues related to relics, ancient monuments, Buddhist activities, restoration, typical famous monks, Zen sects, and characteristics of culture and thought related to Buddhism from Buddhist epitaph data of the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh province today will be described Research objectives and scope The Buddhist epitaphs, that are in the Bac Ninh province (these days) and the period of the XVII - XVIII centuries, and their contents represent the developments of Buddhism and many aspects of the values of Buddhist epitaphs are the research object of this thesis The methodology and research methods of the thesis The epitaphs will be classified in terms of administrative units, chronology, and the ratio of epitaphs to the number of pagodas, and combined with literature review methods, area studies, and interdisciplinary studies, will be used in this thesis All these methods are based on the most common theoretical method of dialectical materialism and historical materialism's methodology References The main material source is mainly all the Buddhist epitaphs (pagoda stele) collected in Bac Ninh province (these days), during a specific period of the XVII - XVIII centuries These epitaphs include Hậu Phật Stele (memorandum and contract on the death anniversary of those who have money or fields to send to the temple, and when they die, the village will worship them in the temple), dedication stele, merit, restoration, construction achievement, biographies of monks, stupa, tombstones of monks and nuns The number of initial surveys was nearly 300 Buddhist epitaphs In addition, we refer to other historical sources and studies on the history of Buddhism in general, and the history of Buddhism in Bac Ninh province in particular New scientific contributions − Buddhist epitaphs, including Buddhist epitaphs of the 17th - 18th centuries, of Bac Ninh province have been collected, systemized, and classified − Studying Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh today, provides an understanding of the development of ancient temples in Bac Ninh and contributes to the promotion of the cultural and historical values for the masses, visitors, and tourists − The number of Buddhist Zen sects in Bac Ninh province and the ancestors and high monks in the history of Buddhism in Vietnam is initially studied − From the above contributions, the epitaph data will be classified in order to provide researchers in the history of Buddhism and the history of thought in Vietnam with evidence about the existence and development of Buddhism in Bac Ninh particularly, and Vietnamese Buddhism generally The structure of the thesis The thesis, apart from the introduction and conclusion, includes chapters: Chapter 1: Overview of the Bac Ninh epitaph and Buddhist epitaphs studies – Questions to be answered Chapter 2: Survey of Bac Ninh inscriptions and Buddhist epitaphs in Bac Ninh province Chapter 3: The Process of Formation and Development of Some Typical Pagodas of the 17th–18th Centuries in Bac Ninh Province Chapter 4: The Religious Groups: Their Founders and Characteristics The main text of the thesis consists of 150 pages In addition, it also has an introduction (8 pages), a conclusion (5 pages), a list of the author's research works related to the thesis (1 page), a 2-page table of contents, references, and 99 pages of appendices (including 14 statistical tables, schematic drawings, monument images, and 60 pages of full-text translation and summary translation of 58 typical Buddhist epitaphs Chapter 1: Overview of the study of Bac Ninh epitaph and Buddhist epitaphs – Questions to be answered 1.1 Concepts 1.1.1 Summary of classifications by type of epitaph in general In this chapter, before introducing the geographical location of Bac Ninh province, some basic concepts about Buddhist epitaphs in Bac Ninh province, in particular, followed by some comments on the research related to the topic and some issues related to the research orientation of the thesis will be introduced Chapter 2: Survey of Bac Ninh inscriptions and Buddhist epitaphs in Bac Ninh province In Chapter 2, the author initially introduces the situation of Buddhist relics in Bac Ninh province in the general context of other types of relics in the province Next is the survey on the distribution of Buddhist epitaphs of Bac Ninh province over time (centuries, chronology) and spatial division (administrative units of districts in the province) In this chapter, a survey on the characteristics of Buddhist epitaphs with features such as text, letters, and notes on (artificial) texts and the authors of the epitaphs will be mentioned Chapter 3: The Process of Formation and Development of Some Typical Pagodas of the 17th–18th Centuries in Bac Ninh Province First of all, the situation of Buddhist monuments and Buddhist epitaphs before the 17th–18th centuries in Bac Ninh province in order to see the development of inheritance and continuity of Buddhism, and some Buddhist relics in Bac Ninh province will be briefly introduced Through epitaph documents, the process of building and restoring some typical temples of Bac Ninh province, such as the Dau pagoda, But Thap pagoda, Ham Long pagoda, Phat Tich pagoda and some other temples, will be described The causes of the construction and restoration in the 17th - 18th centuries were different reasons, such as the destruction of nature, war-ravaged ancient temples, etc., are researched From the data of Buddhist epitaphs, the scale, the system of worshiping statues, its role in community life, and especially the contribution of the Le-Trinh aristocracy to the development of Buddhism in general and the great temples in Bac Ninh, in particular, are also represented in this chapter Chapter 4: The Religious Groups: Their Founders and Characteristics Through the epitaph documents and other documents, the author initially introduces a number of masters, achievements, sects, and some unique Buddhist cultural activities of Bac Ninh in the XVII-XVIII centuries, like Buddhism in Bac Ninh, has the continuous development of the Truc Lam sect, the Lam Te Zen sect with many typical Zen masters, Buddhism associated with agricultural beliefs CONCLUSIONS ARTICLES WERE WRITTEN BY THE PH.D STUDENT, RELATED TO THE THESIS REFERENCES APPENDIX CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY OF BAC NINH EPITAPH AND BUDDHIST EPITAPHS – QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED 1.2 Concepts 1.2.1 Summary of classification by type of epitaphs in general In Vietnam today, there are basically two types of ancient epitaphs written in two different scripts: one was written in the Han-Nom script and the other was written in Sanskrit (Sanscrit) In the north of Vietnam, there are basically only epitaphs written in the Han-Nom script, but it seems that there are no epitaphs written in Sanskrit characters (Sanscrit) In this thesis, we study the epitaph written in the Han Nom script The concept of epitaphs is classified according to the concept of scholar Zhou Kiem Tam (China) with the following types of lithology: engraving, stone column 碑 碑 , the art of virtue 碑碑, carving achievements 碑碑, and the event 碑碑, valuable words 碑碑, gravestones 碑 碑 … In the Buddhist epitaphs of the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh, we mainly research the following contents: Epitaphs mention restoration; Epitaphs mention the donating money, land, or other improvements to be used in community work Inscriptions saying about biographies and achievements The epitaph saying about sending anniversaries, and worshiping Hau (Those who often not have children or have no sons, when they are old, they put a certain amount of wealth (usually money and fields) into the temple so that later, when they die, the village organizes an annual memorial service) Tower steles, tombstones of monks and nuns; Of course, the division between the above types has only relative meaning because there are epitaphs that contain many different contents and aspects 1.2.2 The geographical location and history of the formation of Bac Ninh province Bac Ninh province today was a part of the ancient Kinh Bac country, which has a history of thousands of years, it was a rich center of economy, a long cultural history, and is one of the most crowded places with ancient rivers such as the Dau River, Tieu Tuong River, Ngu Huyen Khe River, Duong River of the ancient Vietnamese with many archaeological sites: Lang Ngam, Dai Trach, Qua Cam, Dai Lai… The West and Southwest of Bac Ninh province are next to the capital Hanoi, the North is Bac Giang province, the East and Southeast is Hai Duong province, and the South is Hung Yen province During the Tran dynasty, it was divided into ways, including Bac Giang Thuong and Bac Giang Ha; Bac Ninh belonged to Bac Giang Ha During the Le dynasty, it was called Kinh Bac land, including palaces and 20 districts (in which Bac Ninh province today is basically the land of palaces (Tu Son, Thuan An) of the Le dynasty Under the Nguyen dynasty in the 12th year of Minh Mang (1831) ), Kinh Bac was split into two provinces: Bac Ninh and Bac Giang At the end of the 19th century, three cantons of An Tru, Hoang Kenh, and Lai Thuong of Thanh Lam district (Nam Sach district, Hai Duong province) were merged into Luong Tai district 1895, Luc Nam province changed to Bac Giang province In 1903, Kim Anh and Dong Anh districts were separated, Da Phuc district was divided into Phuc Yen province, Van Giang district was divided into Hung Yen province, and Huu Lung district was split into Lang Son province In 1961, the two districts of Dong Anh and Gia Lam were separated and belonged to Hanoi In 1997, Bac Ninh province was re-established due to the separation of Ha Bac province into Bac Giang province and Bac Ninh province At the same time, some districts of Bac Ninh province were also reestablished in 1999: Gia Luong district was split into two districts Gia Binh and Luong Tai, and Tien Son district was split into two districts Tu Son and Tien Du So, by 1999, Bac Ninh province had city (Bac Ninh), town (Tu Son), and districts: Tien Du, Tien Son, Que Vo, Gia Binh, Thuan Thanh, and Luong Tai 1.3 The situation of historical sites in Bac Ninh province and Buddhist relics Bac Ninh has the Buddhist center of Luy Lau that has been for more than 2,000 years Currently, Bac Ninh has religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, Minh Ly Dao, Hoa Hao, and Cao Dai The province has 40 Catholic lands, and 1,558 relics, of which 194 are ranked national monuments by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and 312 relics were ranked as provincial relics by the Provincial People's Committee, National Special Monuments 1.4 Studies on epitaphs and epitaphs in Bac Ninh province 1.4.1 An overview of research on Vietnamese epitaphs In our opinion, the study of Vietnamese epitaphs is divided into two main stages: the period from before the 20th decade of the 20th century and the second period from the 70s of the twentieth century onwards The mark of the process of regarding epitaphs as an object of research and collection should mention the merits of scientist Le Quy Don (XVIII century), who had put a lot of effort into collecting and analysing epitaphs from the Ly-Tran dynasties In the work, the Literature Collections of Hoang Viet, Bui Huy Bich (XVIII century) also continued to collect many valuable inscriptions, including epitaphs Phan Huy Chu (XIXth century) also continued to inherit and promote the work of collecting and searching for bibliographic materials, books, and inscriptions In the first half of the nineteenth century, the French School of Asian Studies (ẫcole franỗaise d'Extrờme-Orient - E.F.E.O) focused on collecting texts of steles and bells in many provinces in the North and Central Vietnam, with a large number (about 22,000 ancient Vietnamese inscriptions)) After the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was established, then the whole country was in the resistance war against the French (1945 - 1954) and the struggle against the US for national salvation for more than 20 years (1954 - 1975) During this time, the land reform and cultural revolution were carried out, so they did not pay due attention to relics in general, including Buddhist relics, temples, and epitaphs + The second phase, from the 90s of the XXth century to the present day: The largest collection of epitaphs in both scope and quantity must include the collection of epitaphs during the 90s of the 20th century by the Institute of Han Nom Studies with nearly 50,000 units of ancient Vietnamese inscriptions Next, the epitaph was exploited by researchers from all angles such as textology, ethnology, historical phonetics, and toponymy, that have researched the perspective of spiritual beliefs: Hau Than Stele (The memorial stele and contract on the death anniversary of people who have money or fields are sent to the communal house, and when they die, the village worships them in the communal house, Hau Phat stele; classified by contents: stele of learning encouragement and stele of incentive; Regarding area studies: Epitaph of the East Land, Epitaph of Doai Land, Epitaph of Hue Land ; The study of epitaphs was also carried out in some typical provinces such as Hanoi, Bac Giang, Hai Duong, Hung Yen, Thanh Hoa, etc In terms of time: Ly stele, Tran stele, Le stele, stele under Le Trung Hung's period; Refer to the levels: Bachelor Thesis, Master’s dissertations, Doctoral Thesis… 1.4.2 Direct studies and studies related to Buddhist epitaph documents of the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh The research on issues related to Buddhist epitaph documents of the 17th - 18th centuries in particular and the epitaph of Kinh Bac in general, the first of which must be mentioned is the work of the epitaph of the Le dynasty of Kinh Bac and the reflection on the village of Pham Thi Thuy Vinh (1997) However, due to covering all types of epitaphs and surveying the vast space of Kinh Bac in the Le Dynasty, Pham Thi Thuy Vinh did not have the conditions to research carefully into the types of Buddhist epitaphs in the XVII - XVIII centuries In addition to the above work, there are also some studies on the epitaphs of some specific temples, such as the epitaph of Dau pagoda, the epitaph of But Thap pagoda, and a number of other typical temples in Bac Ninh province, published in a number of scientific journals, in a number of seminars, scientific announcements However, until now, the issue of indepth research on Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh has not been profoundly studied by researchers in some villages today; How to calculate month according to can chi, for example, Ngo Nguyet 碑碑(ie May)[No: 23332]… 2.3 The author of the epitaphs 2.3.1 Authors are Zen masters Based on the source, the Buddhist epitaph has provided many valuable documents about the history of Buddhism in Vietnam in general and the background of the Zen masters who used to be abbots in Bac Ninh province in particular We estimate that there are at least 40 Zen masters who wrote Buddhist epitaphs in the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh province These are the people who not only compiled the epitaph, but most of them are the people who have the merit of creating, constructing, restoring, and embellishing the ancient temples of the time 2.3.2 The author who passed the Pre-Court competition examination For the most part, those who passed the Pre-Court competition examination not only participate in social management, and contribute to the feudal state government, but also participate in many cultural, spiritual, and religious activities of the village The epitaph with the specific name of each title at the time of writing the epitaph will be a reliable source for supplementing the study of character biographies in particular and the study of Vietnamese academics in general Many academics who are writers and editors of epitaphs were also born in their homeland 2.4 Engraver of epitaphs The engravers of Buddhist steles in Bac Ninh province in the 17th 18th centuries originated in many places such as Nui Nhoi (Dong Son district, Thanh Hoa), Dai Bai (Gia Binh, Bac Ninh); Kinh Chu (Hiep Thach, Kinh Mon, Hai Duong)… Thus, the epitaph sculptors of this period became professional and famous Among the above craft villages, they are divided into two types: association of workers in their homeland, such as Dai Bai (Gia Binh district, Bac Ninh) or close to Hiep Thach ( Kinh Mon, Hai Duong); association of workers who comes from as far away as Nui Nhoi (Dong Son, Thanh Hoa) In addition, there are workers who are probably originally of Chinese origin but have settled in Vietnam whose stele also says "Dai Minh" 碑碑 2.5 Fake inscriptions In the history of epitaphs, there are many cases of text fabrication Researcher Nguyen Van Nguyen has found that out of 5,000 units of Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions, there are 517 units of Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions, with signs of fabrication (accounting for 10.30%) of the number of Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions However, the artifice only happened in the first 5,000 units, not in the subsequent documents Forged epitaphs mainly take place in the provinces of Ha Dong, Nghe An, Hung Yen, and Hai Duong Bac Ninh province only has ancient Vietnamese inscriptions; Nam Dinh and Ninh Binh each have only Ancient Vietnamese inscription In Bac Ninh, there are Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions [77; 36, 38] Those are the waterfalls [No: 02862; 04370; 04371] In stele 02862 there is a fake dating line [Canh Thinh] the year of 11st December, th The letter sample "Canh Thinh" 碑 碑 together with the letter sample printed in the waterfall version number 02855 has the word Hoa Lam 碑 碑 In fact, there is no date for the 17th Canh Thinh, on the other hand, in Thieu Tri's period (1841-1847), abstention from Chinese characters (name of King Thieu Tri's mother - Ho Thi Hoa 碑碑碑) Therefore, this beer must be dated (before 1841) So, this stele must be dated Gia Long 17 (1918) or Minh Menh 17 (1836) Or beer [No: 04370/04371], Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions in Thanh An pagoda, Phu Than commune, Van Ty canton, Gia Binh district, Bac Ninh province (now Kenh Pho village, Cao Duc commune, Gia Binh district, Bac Ninh province), On the Ancient Vietnamese inscriptions, there is a fake dating line [Canh Tri 碑 碑]… We have investigated that the Buddhist epitaph located at the temple in An Phu village, (An Thinh commune, Luong Tai district, Bac Ninh province) is also chiseled Until now, the cause of this line chiseling has not been determined yet? Summary of Chapter It can be said that the Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province were born with the flourishing and restoration of the supremacy temples The division according to the spatial distribution of administrative units shows that Thuan Thanh and Yen Phong districts are the districts with the most Buddhist epitaphs, followed by Tu Son, Tien Du, Que Vo, Luong Tai, and Bac Ninh city Among Buddhist epitaphs, in terms of literature, Buddhist epitaphs in Bac Ninh province are rarely artificially inscribed There are a number of epitaphs with lines inscribed in the manner of reversing place names, combining place names between the district and government levels or between government and township levels, misspelled homonyms or influenced, copied content of earlier famous Buddhist works CHAPTER 3: THE PROCESS OF FORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOME TYPICAL PAGODAS OF THE 17TH 18TH CENTURIES IN BAC NINH PROVINCE 3.1 The epitaph reflects the terrain and feng shui On the epitaph, especially, the opening part often has a preface, and the end often has an expository text praising the land and location of the temple Therefore, we can see the concept of traditional eastern feng shui associated with local topography, features, streams, and rivers Those are famous mountains such as Thien Thai mountain, Dong Cuu mountain, Tien Du mountain, or rivers that are not only included in literature and art but also included in the content of the epitaph from the perspective of feng shui and geography: Thien Duc River, Tieu Tuong River Bac Ninh doesn't have many mountains Although the mountains are not high, the river is not big, but on it, for generations, many ancient temples had been built in the concept of feng shui surely, the designers were aware of the sacredness and poetic beauty, attractive of these temples 3.2 The epitaph reflects the meaning of the name and the scale and appearance of some pagodas The Buddhist epitaphs of the 17th – 18 th-centuries in some pagodas show the names of some pagodas, as well as the names of some villages, sometimes changed The author has surveyed the field and studied the ancient Vietnamese inscriptions in some typical ancient temples such as the Dau pagoda and the pagodas in the Four Dharma system, Tinh Lu pagoda, Bach Mon pagoda, Ham Long pagoda, etc many other pagodas show that many pagodas of the 17th - 18th centuries were successfully restored, restored and built, including a system of walls, steeple, three gates, upper hall, ancestral house, corridor, etc incense burners, monks' houses, opulent houses, ancient towers and a complete system of worshiping statues In addition, some pagodas also mentioned the process of building paved roads, planting ancient trees, planting areca trees, etc to make the landscape more harmonious and beautiful 3.3 The value of the 17th – 18th-century epitaphs gives more information about the pagoda of the Ly - Tran and Le dynasties Many Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province are a mirror reflecting the history of the village Many epitaphs mentioned the ups and downs of the mountain through inscriptions of restoration, merit, or inscriptions about the history of the location of the pagoda or the monks, mentioned that these pagodas date back to the Ly and Tran dynasties It is the stele of the pagoda of Nam Dien, Lang Ngam commune (dating from Vinh To (1621), indicating that the pagoda was built in the Dai Tri period under King Tran Du Tong (1358 - 1369); Hong Phuc pagoda stele, Xuan O commune, Que Vo district, Hoang Dinh (1612) said that this pagoda was also built during the Dai Tri period (1358 - 1369); Stele of Donation of the field to the pagoda 碑碑碑碑, dating from Khanh Duc (1652) of Tay Thien pagoda (Kha Le village, Bo Son commune, Tien Du district, Bac Ninh province) also said that this pagoda was built during the Tran Dynasty 3.4 The main reason why many pagodas had to be built and restored in the 17th - 18th centuries 3.4.1 Participation of the aristocracy, high-ranking mandarins Many of the Buddhist epitaphs of the 17th - 18th centuries of Bac Ninh province show that many high-ranking aristocrats in the Le - Trinh administration called for or contributed to the construction of ancient temples, some of the pagodas were built by Lord Trinh The lords Trinh Can, Trinh Tac, Trinh Tung, Trinh Trang all participated in the meritorious deeds in a number of pagodas In addition, there were many crown princes, county lords, mandarins, and martial arts officials in the Le - Trinh court who contributed a lot of money, fields, and other possessions 3.4.2 To be restored and rebuilt by fire and war In addition to the objective reasons due to having to experience the sun and rain for hundreds of years, many temples have been seriously degraded Another subjective cause that led many pagodas in Bac Ninh province to be built and restored in the 17th - 18th centuries was the fire caused by the struggle for power of the feudal groups of the Le - Trinh, Trinh - Mac dynasties, and the peasant uprisings that broke out continuously for many decades in what many called: "the century of peasant uprisings" During this time, many pagodas in Bac Ninh were damaged or burned For example, Hong Phuc pagoda, (Long Khanh commune, Que Duong district - now La Miet village, Yen Gia commune, Que Vo district), [No: 4243/5244; 5247/5248]; Long Khanh Pagoda [No: 5454 - 5457]; Thien Phuc pagoda (Cach Bi commune, Bong Lai canton, Que Duong district (now Que Vo district) [No: 5509/5510]; Touch Pagoda (Bao Thap village, Dong Cuu, Gia Dinh district (now Dong Cuu commune), Gia Binh district), [No: 04526]… 3.5 Activities to engrave Buddhist scriptures In spiritual and cultural activities as well as in Buddhist practice, a system of books and scriptures is indispensable The sutras, laws, and treatises are often copied, engraved, and then transferred to other temples in the area by large pagodas For example, Co Tien Pagoda (Chau Cau Commune, Dao Vien, Que Duong District) engraved Buddhist scriptures in the 11th year of Vinh Thinh 碑 碑 (1715); Thanh Lan pagoda (Bong Lai commune, Lai Thuong canton - now Bong Lai village, Lai Ha commune, Luong Tai district, Bac Ninh), engraved Buddhist scriptures in 1620 But the 17th – 18th-century Buddhist epitaph says there are many different types of these sutras, depending on each pagoda The stele of Hung Nghiem pagoda (Que O commune, Que Duong district - Que Vo) engraved in the year of Canh Tri (1668) said that at that time, it was engraved with the Lang Gia Sutra - the Mahayana sutra, emphasizing the inner enlightenment In addition, other pagodas such as the Dau pagoda, Viem Xa pagoda (Hung Son Tu, Hoan Long commune, Bac Ninh city, and some other pagodas) still preserve some ancient Buddhist scriptures carved boards 3.6 A system of worshiping statues Through Buddhist epitaphs in the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh province, it is said that up to this time, many pagodas had sculpted worshiping statues, including the Bodhisattva statue, Tam The statue, Quan The Am statue, Ngoc Hoang Buddha statue, etc The Dharmapala (- type of wrathful god in Buddhism), the temples of the Buddha, the Buddha, the Nam Tao (the god who records all human births), Bắc Đẩu - Big Dipper (the god who records all human deaths), the evil spirits, the Lord of the mountain, the dragon god, the Dharma protector (Arhat) typically with 57 statues such as Thien Thai pagoda (Dong Cuu commune), Gia Binh district, Bac Ninh province)… Statues of worship in pagodas are mostly made of wood and inlaid with gold These statues are very familiar in Vietnamese Buddhist temples Many Buddha statues are the pride of Vietnam's architecture and fine arts, which are classified as National Treasures such as the thousand-eyed Quan Am, thousand-armed But Thap pagoda (Thuan Thanh - Bac Ninh) 3.7 Some typical pagodas of Bac Ninh province in the 17th - 18th centuries In the 17th - 18th centuries, the social situation in Vietnam had many complicated changes, but many pagodas were built and restored on a larger scale than before such as Dau Pagoda (Dien Ung Tu), Ham Long Pagoda (Long Ham Tu, Son Duong Commune, Que Vo District (now in Bac Ninh City); Van Phuc Pagoda (Phat Tich Commune, Tien Du District); The complex of Buddhist relics on Thien Thai Mountain includes: Tinh Lu Pagoda, Phuc Long Pagoda and Thai Su Pagoda (Dong Cuu Commune, Gia Binh District, Bac Ninh Province); But Thap Pagoda (Ninh Phuc Tu - Dinh To Commune, Thuan Thanh District, Bac Ninh Province) are typical temples built on grand scales, were contemporary landscapes and most of the time, that architectures still exists to this day Summary of chapter Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province reflect on the Buddhist relics of the Ly - Tran, Le So, Mac, Le Trung Hung dynasties many famous pagodas were restored and built-in different grades with great scales In addition, the activities of carving Buddhist scriptures and carving statues were also carried out in many temples In order to obtain a lot of material resources and money for construction, it should mention the important contributions of the Le - Trinh government, especially those in the Lord's Palace, the Trinh Lords, the Princesses of the Lords, odalisque, concubines of the King, Crown Prince… together with mandarins, dignitaries, academics, high monks, masters, and the ten directions participated in the work, contributing to the construction CHAPTER 4: THE RELIGIOUS GROUPS, THEIR FOUNDERS, AND CHARACTERISTICS 4.1 The religious groups In the course of history, Bac Ninh province has long been a place for cultural exchanges, including Buddhist culture During the Tran dynasty, Bac Ninh was also one of the places where there were many pagodas belonging to the Truc Lam Tam To sect The epitaphs of some pagodas mentioned the XVII - XVIII centuries, and Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province refer to different sects such as Tinh Do Zen (Phuc Tho pagoda, Cham Khe commune, Yen Phong district, Tu Son district, Bac Ninh); Dhàraịi, (Perfection of Wisdom); Lam Te sect (But Thap pagoda, Dau pagoda)… Buddhism is associated with indigenous beliefs and the relationship with the phenomenon of worshiping the Four Dharmas in the Dau region According to the stele currently kept at the pagoda, it is said that Dau pagoda and other pagodas belonging to the "Four Dharma" system of the 17th - 18th centuries belonged to the Lam Te sect, but in the Tran dynasty it belonged to the Truc Lam sect In addition, the original beliefs of worshiping nature gods: God of Clouds, God of Rain, God of Thunder, and God of Lightning are still maintained, recorded through many sources, and specified in rituals, sacrifices, and rules at the epitaph at the pagoda 4.2 The famous monks of the XVII - XVIII centuries The famous monks who used to be abbots at the ancient temples of Bac Ninh in the 17th - 18th centuries with a relatively large number are reflected in Buddhist epitaphs Those influential people who were well known in terms of moral influence had many followers of the Dharma, those who had merit in transmitting or continuing the lineage, or monks and nuns who had merit in the enlightenment of the sector of restoration and construction of ancient pagodas were considered centers of religious and spiritual activities of the homeland or of a cultural region It can be said that the Zen masters have a prominent role such as Chan Nguyen Zen Master, who had the merit of connecting the Truc Lam Zen lineage of the Tran dynasty with contemporary Buddhism, and Chuyet Chuyet Zen Master - the founder of the first Lam Te Zen lineage in Vietnam, Trinh Thap Zen master - a typical Zen master of the Mat Tong sect, Nun Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc - A ordained empress to be a Buddha, who deserved credit for building But Thap pagoda as well as having unique Buddhist works 4.2.1 Chan Nguyen Zen Master – The successor of Truc Lam Buddhism Venerable Chan Nguyen was considered the successor of the Truc Lam Tam To lineage He had a lot of influence on the northern area of Thang Long Capital, especially the areas of Bac Ninh, Bac Giang, Dong Trieu, and Quang Ninh provinces (at present) Most Venerable Chan Nguyen has many relationships with pagodas in Que Vo, Thuan Thanh, Gia Binh districts 4.2.2 Chuyet Chuyet Zen Master (1590 – 1644) – The founder of the Lam Te sect in Vietnam The person who was considered to be the first ancestor of But Thap pagoda is Chuyet Chuyet Zen Master From China, he went to India and many countries in Southeast Asia He went to the location where the was built But Thap pagoda on a grand scale, and guided many disciples to attain the Dharma such as Minh Hanh Thich Tai Tai, and Queen Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc represented by many epitaphs currently kept at the pagodas 4.2.3 The Zen master of the Lam Te sect Based on the inscriptions of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it is said that But Thap Pagoda had many generations of dharma students who were students of Chuyết Chuyết Zen Master: That is Minh Hanh Thich Tai Tai 碑碑碑碑碑 (1590 - 1659); Nun Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc named Phap Tinh 碑碑碑碑碑碑 碑; Le Thi Ngoc Duyen 碑碑碑碑, Nun Nhu Chuc 碑碑碑碑 … 4.2.4 Trinh Thap - Trinh Lan Giac and the Mat Tong sect of Ham Long Pagoda Trinh Lan Giac was originally from the aristocracy, but he soon came to Buddhism and became a high monk, having a great influence on the contemporary Buddhist world Trinh Thap deserved credit for building many pagodas in Bac Ninh province such as Ham Long pagoda (Bac Ninh city); Co Tien pagoda (Chau Cau commune, Que Vo district); Thai Su Pagoda (Dong Cuu commune, Gia Binh district); Huong Nghiem pagoda (Que O commune, Que Vo district) and many other pagodas… Master Trinh Phuc Nguyen - who lived at the same time and together with Trinh Thap also had many merits in the construction of the Thien Thai pagoda and a number of other ancient pagodas in Bac Ninh province in the 17th - 18th centuries 4.3 Influence, the relationship of some famous pagodas, of some famous monks in Bac Ninh on some other localities Surveys on the inscriptions revealed that the names of many high monks and masters such as Patriarch Chinh Giac, Most Venerable Nguyen Ba Tho, Chieu Han Zen Master (Na Ca Zen Monastery, Cu hamlet, Vo Giang commune), Que Duong district, Tu Son district (now Que Vo district, Bac Ninh province); Monk Nguyen Dinh To whose courtesy name is Phuc Thien and Patriarch Nguyen Dinh Tien whose courtesy name is Phap Uyen 4.4 Buddhist culture and activities 4.4.1 The Buddhist culture conveys the philosophy of life In this section, the author presents Buddhist epitaphs of the 17th 18th centuries, showing the author's deep understanding of the philosophy of life from a Buddhist perspective, with the following concepts: The Six Paramitas, the three ways, reincarnation, animals, birth-death, and karma knowledge about Buddhism and this concept of life is often expressed through the preface (first part) or inscription (last part) of the epitaphs 4.4.2 Regulations on rituals when worshiping the Hau Phật The inscriptions of the Hau Phat or the epitaph of Ky ki (sending money/fields to the temple so that when you die, the temple can offer you the death anniversary) at the pagoda, give a lot of information about the regulations when worshiping, especially the worshiping of Hau These "contractual" documents are actually very strict in terms of financial, rituals, and specific amounts of money written down to each penny, each dime, or the number of fields offered that are detailed, specific to every inch … Through the epitaph sent to Hau and the death anniversary, the Vietnamese people's morality " Gratitude is the sign of noble souls " in particular and of human morality in general This type of epitaph is quite common in Vietnamese pagodas 4.4.3 Pagoda Festivals The pagoda festivals in Bac Ninh in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were recorded in a very specific and attractive manner by the bibliographies and customs However, through the Buddhist epitaph documents in Bac Ninh province, we only see a lot of pagoda festivals are often associated with the inauguration of construction works, such as the Stupa inauguration festival, main hall, patriarch house,… Of course, this festival only takes place once at the time of completion of that work, not an annual festival except for some special festivals such as the Dau pagoda festival, which opens its annual festival on the 10th of the fourth lunar month (Buddha Phap Van is both a Buddha and a saint, so the Phap Van Buddha procession festival is both an association of the temple and a village and intervillage festival) However, the inscriptions at the Dau pagoda not record this important festival During the survey, we collected some indirect information from a number of pagodas, which stated: when the village opens a festival, how are offerings and ceremonies for the Hau Phat, Hau Ky held? … By studying this, it is possible to know the relationship between the festival of the pagoda and the festival of the village community Summary of Chapter The most prominent feature of Buddhism in Bac Ninh is that of Buddhism in the Dau (Luy Lau) culture region for generations associated with indigenous agricultural beliefs, worshiping the gods of nature, clouds, rain, thunder, and lightning During the Tran dynasty, many pagodas in Bac Ninh province belonged to the Truc Lam sect, but in the Le dynasty, they belonged to the Lam Te sect In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, on the land of Bac Ninh appeared many high monks who had merits in propagating the Buddhadharma and building mountain sects such as Zen Master Chan Nguyen, who is considered to be credited with re-establishing the Truc Lam lineage of the Tran dynasty; Zen Master Cheek Cong (Chieu Chec) is the founder of the Lam Te Zen lineage in Vietnam, abbot of But Thap and Phat Tich pagodas; Nun Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc with the name Phap Tinh, Princess Trinh Thi Ngoc Duyen and many people from the Le - Trinh aristocracy also ordained, Buddha's members became prestigious Zen masters in society, they made contributions to the construction of pagodas, engravings of Buddhist scriptures, printing works of the monks of the Truc Lam Zen sect and had an important influence on the spiritual life of the people CONCLUSIONS Bac Ninh is an ancient land, throughout its history, this place is the nucleus of Kinh Bac culture with many unique cultural features Since the dawn of history, Bac Ninh has been considered the "birthplace" of the maturing Vietnamese Here, through the pre-Dong Son cultures, the Dong Son culture has formed and consolidated the ancient Vietnamese culture During the Northern domination period, Bac Ninh was chosen as the capital of Giao Chau under the Han dynasty, as well as the political, economic, and cultural center of the first century AD Bac Ninh is also a land that leaves many historical and cultural relics, many important historical sources recording the Buddhist imprint in the nation's history Many pagodas of Bac Ninh province in the 17th - 18th centuries were formed and built on the foundations of pagodas with a history dating back to the Northern colonial period and the Ly - Tran dynasties Bac Ninh homeland of the Ly Dynasty - a dynasty that gave special priority to the development of Buddhism Along with Yen Tu, Bac Giang, and Thang Long, Bac Ninh was also the place of the activities and practices of the ancestors of the Truc Lam sect of the Tran dynasty Therefore, this place has developed and continued the facilities and sects of the previous dynasties that have built for the Truc Lam Zen lineage, as well as the foundation for many temples of the Le Trung Hung period to be restored and constructed On the basis of studying Buddhist epitaph documents of the 17th - 18th centuries, it shows that, in terms of form, Buddhist epitaphs in Bac Ninh province also have some common features similar to Buddhist epitaphs of some localities Other methods, such as names, how to write pagoda names, and how to write abstinence Basically, in the flow of history, through dynasties with many complicated fluctuations of natural disasters, enemy sabotage, and wars between feudal groups, many ancient pagodas in Bac Ninh were destroyed and degraded but it seems that there was no stopping in the construction and restoration of village pagodas Evidence for the development of Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries is the fairly regular appearance of Buddhist epitaphs with many types of steles such as the Merit stele, restoration, Hau stele, tower stele, etc, and the pagodas The construction of pagodas was a permanent need, a necessary job in the spiritual life of the people During the Chinh Hoa period (1680 - 1705) and the Canh Hung era (1740 - 1786), there was a remarkable development in the number of epitaphs and the appearance of many Zen masters and monks who made important contributions to the Buddhism in particular and for Vietnamese culture in general such as Zen Master Chuyết Chuyết, Minh Hanh (who is of Chinese origin), Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc, Chan Nguyen Tue Dang, and many other famous monks Chuyết Chuyết was considered the founder of the Lam Te Zen (Vietnam) and his concubine Minh Hanh Thich Tai Tai, Queen Trinh Thi Ngoc Truc Along with the Lam Te sect, the Lien Tong sect with the outstanding contribution of Trinh Lan Giac - Trinh Thap was passed on from Chan Nguyen monk who was the successor of the Truc Lam Zen lineage (abbot of Ham Long Pagoda) and a number of other pagodas in Bac Ninh (King Bac) and Thang Long that had made a contribution to the Truc Lam Zen in Bac Ninh is growing strongly Many high monks, Zen masters, and nuns of the XVII - XVIII centuries, due to their conditions of being born in the ranks of the nobility, in the Le - Trinh courts should be well-educated, with rich knowledge and a solid cultural background so they had combined religion with life, meditation and pagoda construction with a series of superficial works and many exciting academic activities such as printing Buddhist scriptures, printing Buddhist books, printing books, etc works of Truc Lam Tam To… made the study of Buddhism develop Along with Zen masters, laypeople, and Buddhists, Confucian intellectual positions of the 17th - 18th centuries also made important contributions to Buddhist activities such as composing epitaphs, writing letters on epitaphs, including many people with high educational achievements- typical intellectuals of their homeland and even many successful intellectuals from other localities also participated According to Buddhist epitaph documents of the XVII - XVIII centuries, Bac Ninh ancient pagodas in this period had completed a relative system of worshiping statues with many Buddha statues that now become familiar in the system of Buddhist pagodas in Vietnam such as the statue of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, a statue of Sakyamuni, a statue of Tuyet Son (represented the Buddha when he lived in the mountain to look for his meaning of life), Arhat, Dharmapala – the type of wrathful god in Buddhism, Jade Emperor, Nam Tào (Crux - the god who records all human births) Bắc Đẩu - Big Dipper (the god who records all human deaths Today, most of them are still kept in pagodas, and relics of Bac Ninh province such as the system of statues in Dau pagoda, Ham Long pagoda, But Thap pagoda, Bao Kham pagoda, etc., becoming the pride of Vietnamese statue sculpture The content of Buddhist epitaphs in this period also reflected the construction process with many different work items forming a popular " inside is a form of the character of Cong ( 碑 ) and the outside is a form of the character of Quoc ( 碑 )" architectural complex and became artistic masterpieces The construction items in the pagoda are also very varied, including front hall, upper hall, backroom, monk house, corridor, three gates, steeple, well, bridge, path The sect of Buddhism in the XVII - XVIII centuries is also reflected in the epitaph documents and ancient bibliographic sources collected in Bac Ninh province, through the activities and transmission of generations of monks On the basis of indigenous beliefs, beliefs of agricultural nature, praying for favorable rain, harmonious wind, all things to flourish, human health, and prosperity then Buddhism in Bac Ninh during this period continued developing on the basis of Zen Buddhism originating from the Ty - Ni - Da - Luu - Chi (Tk VI) of the Southern Zen was developed through the Zen masters of the Dinh - early Le - Ly - Tran dynasties and directly from Truc Lam Buddhism, which was transmitted from Zen masters on Hoa Yen mountain (Yen Tu) to successive generations such as Chan Nguyen, Trinh Thap with many generations of Dharma successors by the transmission and steles, build towers of disciples for the masters The pagoda festival in Bac Ninh in the XVII - XVIII centuries also has many remarkable features: Besides the festival is associated with agricultural production, especially the beliefs of the Dau region, and some pagoda festivals of the villages of Kinh Bac - Bac Ninh with a unique secular life… Some recommendations: Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries of Bac Ninh province are still very valuable historical sources for research in many aspects, especially research on the formation and development of each land, each locality, related to the formation of the origin of the inhabitants and the history of the settlement of each village The pagodas and epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries that exist to this day are 300400 years old These temples together with other types of relics will contribute significantly to creating a rich and attractive appearance of spiritual tourism - finding the national cultural roots, and contributing to the economic and cultural development, and tourism of Bac Ninh province Therefore, ancient temples in general and temples built in the XVII - XVIII centuries in particular need to be carefully protected The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism together with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Bac Ninh province need to have a mechanism to closely monitor and direct localities from the perspective of state management of culture to have a plan to preserve, research and promote values such as organizing research, translating, publishing epitaph documents in the form of book publishing, introducing translations, introducing typical provincial Buddhist epitaph treasures and National level The content of Buddhist epitaphs in general and the 17th 18th centuries, in particular, is an important historical source contributing to the study of the history and culture of each locality Cultural management agencies and related agencies responsible for researching and ranking historical monuments from the provincial to national level need to have criteria for ranking Buddhist relics in a specific way Assessment and ranking of historical monuments associated with strict administrative and cultural management can avoid mistakes and violations in the process of construction and restoration in a timely manner in some localities is taking place every day in the whirlwind of rural urbanization Priority should be given to temples that still preserve epitaphs dating back to the XVII - XVIII dynasties, and those in temples with earlier dates that need to be recognized as historical relics The existence of ancient epitaphs is one of the important criteria in ranking historical relics at the provincial and national levels ARTICLES WERE WRITTEN BY THE PH.D STUDENT, RELATED TO THE THESIS Nguyen Quang Ha (2013), About the stele of the Sui dynasty (601) newly discovered at Gian Pagoda - Hue Trach Temple (Tri Qua Commune, Thuan Thanh District, Bac Ninh Province); Journal of Historical Research, No 5, pp 62-67; Nguyen Quang Ha (2014), An Phu village epitaph heritage (An Thinh commune, Luong Tai district, Bac Ninh province) (Nguyen Quang Ha collected, translated, researched, annotated; Social Sciences Publishing House, pp 238; Nguyen Quang Ha – Nguyen Huu Mui (2014), Epitaphs of Hau Than, Hau Phat, An Phu Village, An Thinh commune, Luong Tai district, Bac Ninh province, Han Nom magazine, No 4, pp 26-37; Nguyen Quang Ha (2017), The stele of the Buddha Pagoda in the system of ancestral towers in Bac Ninh; Art and Culture Magazine, No 4; pages 60 - 63; Nguyen Quang Ha (2017), Activities of building, restoring, sculpting, printing Buddhist scriptures of the 17th - 18th centuries in Bac Ninh, Culture and Art Magazine, No 9, pp 103- 107./ ... PROVINCE 2.1 Classification of epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province 2.1.1 By administration The Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province were collected... the Truc Lam Tam To sect The epitaphs of some pagodas mentioned the XVII - XVIII centuries, and Buddhist epitaphs of the XVII - XVIII centuries in Bac Ninh province refer to different sects such... Zen Buddhism originating from the Ty - Ni - Da - Luu - Chi (Tk VI) of the Southern Zen was developed through the Zen masters of the Dinh - early Le - Ly - Tran dynasties and directly from Truc