Dien Khanh Temple of Literature

The Temple of Literature is a place dedicated to Confucius, the founder of Confucianism, and his wise disciples. It also served as a hub for local scholars and candidates, honoring those who achieved success in imperial examinations.

Confucianism originated in ancient China and flourished in East Asian countries and Vietnam. In our country, during the Ly-Tran dynasties, there was only the Temple of Literature (Van Mieu Quoc Tu Giam) in the capital city of Thang Long. It was not until the 15th century that Temples of Literature began to appear in local regions. Along with the development of the nation, the Nguyen Dynasty marked the true peak of this type of temple. During this period, coinciding with the establishment of Temples of Literature at administrative centers across the country, the Temple of Literature of Binh Hoa garrison was established, experiencing the ups and downs of history and surviving to this day.

Within the system of cultural heritage sites across the country, Khanh Hoa remains proud to preserve and promote the values of its Confucian heritage sites, namely the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature, the Ninh Hoa Van Chi (Confucian shrine), and the Vinh Xuong Van Chi. Among these, the two Van Chi sites have been recognized as provincial-level heritage sites, while the Temple of Literature is recognized as a national-level heritage site.

Dien Khanh Temple of Literature

History of the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature:
In what year was the first Van Thanh (Temple of Literature) in Khanh Hoa built? What was its scale? To date, we have not found any historical documents clearly stating this. However, in Le Quang Dinh's "Hoang Viet Nhat Thong Du Dia Chi" (Geography of the Unified Hoang Viet), the section on the Hoa My post station (in Sino-Vietnamese characters) contains a passage stating: "Twenty tam (a unit of measure) to the old Toan Thanh station, dry land on both sides, with a dense population; 80 tam to the west is where the former dynasty's record-keeping garrison was located; 190 tam to the old Van Thanh temple, which is now relocated to Dien Khanh citadel for worship."[1].

Thus, before King Gia Long ascended the throne (in 1802), the Thai Khang garrison already had a provincial-level Temple of Literature located in Phuoc An commune, near the administrative seat of the Thai Khang garrison, which later became the Ninh Hoa Van Chi in Phuoc Ly village, Ninh Binh commune, Ninh Hoa town.
In 1793, Nguyen Anh (later King Gia Long) ordered the construction of the Dien Khanh Citadel, located within the two communes of Phu My and Truong Thanh, Phuoc Dien district, Dien Khanh prefecture, Binh Khang garrison, and appointed Nguyen Van Thanh as the garrison governor. Afterwards, he ordered the relocation of the old garrison seat from Phuoc Da commune, Quang Phuoc district, Binh Khang prefecture to the Dien Khanh Citadel, which became the political and military center of the Binh Khang garrison. According to the "Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chi" (Comprehensive Geography of Dai Nam) by the Nguyen Dynasty's National History Institute: "Temple of Literature: located in Phu Loc commune, west of the provincial citadel, built in the 2nd year of Gia Long (1803), restored in the 2nd year of Tu Duc (1849)." Therefore, the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature was built in 1803. The Dien Khanh Temple of Literature also has other names: Binh Hoa Garrison Temple of Literature; Khanh Hoa Temple of Literature; Khanh Hoa Van Thanh Temple.

In 1948, during the resistance war against the French colonialists, the French forces recognized the strategic location of the Temple of Literature; they occupied the site and intended to build a military post there. Not wanting to let the enemy exploit the location, the local elders carried out the "scorched earth" resistance policy. Worship rituals at the Temple of Literature were temporarily moved to the Vinh Xuong district Van Chi to facilitate both the worship and the activities of the local gentry, scholars, and intellectuals.

Later, realizing that the Vinh Xuong Van Chi was small and cramped, the gentry, scholars, intellectuals, and teachers in the Van Hoi (Literary Association) raised funds to build the Khanh Hoa Temple of Literature in Phuoc Hai to serve as a place for education. The temple was built with reinforced concrete and a Western-style tiled roof[2], featuring a blend of traditional and Western architecture.

In 1958, the Dien Khanh Van Chi at Go Song, Phuoc Tuy, Dien Phuoc commune was damaged and dilapidated, with no one to tend to the incense and offerings. Therefore, elders in the Literary Association, such as Hoanh Son Phan Duy Tuan, Qua Phong Nguyen Trong To, and Nguyen Tan, asked for permission from the authorities to move the remaining infrastructure of the Dien Khanh Van Chi in Phuoc Tuy to be rebuilt on the site of the old Dien Khanh Temple of Literature for restoration and reconstruction, naming it the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature. This is clearly stated in Official Dispatch No. 688/DK/HC dated November 3, 1958, from the Dien Khanh District Chief - Tran Ba Loc, sent to the representative of Dien Thuy commune in Phu Loc: "hand over to the Dien Khanh Literary Association Council the real estate of the old Van Thanh temple." The document included a passage stating: "To expedite the restoration of the old Van Thanh temple, you are requested to hand over to the Dien Khanh Literary Association Council the real estate of that temple, including the land, the old temple foundation, and other legacies if any...". From then on, the elders in the Literary Association maintained the annual sacrificial rites and incense offerings at the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature.

Architecture of the Temple of Literature:
The Dien Khanh Temple of Literature is located on a large, flat area with a total area of 1,500m2, in Phu Loc Tay 1 Residential Group, Dien Khanh Town, Dien Khanh District. When first established, the Temple of Literature included the Main Temple and the Khai Thanh Temple, which were covered with thatch.

Stele house at Dien Khanh Temple of Literature

In 1849, the temple's roof system was restored, replacing thatch with tiles, and the Ta Vu (Left Pavilion), Huu Vu (Right Pavilion), Khai Temple, Quan Cu, and Tu Temple were added on a very imposing and sturdy scale. In 1959, the temple was rebuilt on the old foundation in Phu Loc village, but on a smaller scale, including: the outer ceremonial gate and perimeter walls, the inner ceremonial gate, the stele house (Thach Bi Dinh), the temple courtyard, the flagpole, the East Pavilion and West Pavilion (Ta Vu - Huu Vu), the Hall of Worship, and the Main Sanctuary. Basically, the structural frames of the Main Sanctuary and the Hall of Worship were transferred from the Phuoc Dien Van Chi, with the addition of the Ta Vu and Huu Vu built in the style of three-bay single-story houses. The walls were built with brick, without lean-tos. The roof was covered with yin-yang tiles, later replaced with Western-style tiles during restoration; the wooden door system was closed in a plank style, replacing the ancient style of upper bars and lower planks; the Khai Temple, Quan Cu, and Tu Temple were not reconstructed.

In 2008, using funds from the National Target Program of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the budget of Khanh Hoa province, the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature underwent restoration, keeping the structure as it was since 1959.

Altar of Confucius

Festivals at Dien Khanh Temple of Literature
The Dien Khanh Temple of Literature is dedicated to Confucius, the Four Associates (the four favorite disciples of Confucius who are worshipped alongside him: Yan Hui, Zeng Shen, Kong Ji, and Mencius), and the Ten Philosophers (the 10 sages who contributed to Confucianism, including Min Ziqian, Zi Zhang, Zai Yu, Ran You, Yan Yan, Ran Geng, Ran Yong, Zhong You, Bu Shang, and Duanmu Ci)...

During the Nguyen Dynasty, the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature was one of the six places of worship in Khanh Hoa province listed under the "State Ceremony" (Quoc te) regulation. Rituals were organized by the feudal government: An official with the rank of Ninth Grade was assigned to supervise it, falling under the management of the Director of Education. Assisting him were 4 ritual assistants in charge of ceremonial duties and 30 temple servants who were carefully selected. The temple servants were "exempt from tax and corvée labor," meaning they did not have to participate in other communal labor duties. Most of those chosen to be temple servants were residents of Truong Lac, while most of the post station staff were from the villages of Phuoc Thanh and Phu Loc.
Every year, the Management Board of the heritage site organizes the Saint's Birth Festival (celebrating the birthday on the 27th of the 8th lunar month) and the Saint's Memorial Day (death anniversary on the 18th of the 4th lunar month) of Confucius.

Since 2004, the Dien Khanh Temple of Literature has maintained a ceremony to present awards and scholarships for "Educational Promotion and Talent Promotion" to poor but excellent students of Dien Khanh district and Khanh Hoa province on the "Saint's Memorial Day." The funding is sourced by the Management Board from donations by benefactors, the Study Promotion Association of Khanh Hoa province, and the Study Promotion Association of Dien Khanh district.

The Dien Khanh Temple of Literature site was recognized as a National Heritage Site by the Ministry of Culture and Information (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) under Decision No. 04/1998/QD-BVHTT dated October 15, 1998.

[1] loosely translated: "20 tam to the old Toan Thanh station, dry land on both sides, with a dense population; 80 tam to the west is the former dynasty's record-keeping garrison, 191 tam to the old Van Thanh temple, which is now relocated to Dien Khanh citadel for worship."
[2] currently located within the headquarters of the Phuoc Hai Ward People's Committee, Nha Trang City

Source: https://disanvanhoa.khanhhoa.vn/