Khleang Pagoda

Khleang Pagoda

Kh'leang Pagoda is located right in the city center, located on Ton Duc Thang Street, Group 5, Ward 6, Soc Trang City. The pagoda was built nearly 500 years ago, associated with the legends of Soc Trang. The main hall of Kh'leang Pagoda is built on high and wide ground with clear green space, especially with many palm trees, a typical tree of the Khmer people. Kh'leang Pagoda has been restored many times, but it was not until 1918 that the Main Hall and Sala were rebuilt and all materials were replaced. Still an architectural characteristic of the Southern Khmer people with the dragon image on the roof. In Buddhist stories, Khmer people often say that: Dragon is a sacred animal, it turns itself into a boat to take Buddha across the sea to places to preach sutras and save sentient beings. Therefore, the Dragon was brought to the roof of the temple with the intention of wishing Buddha to stop and save them from their damnation. Adjacent to the roof of the main hall is the image of the god bird Krud strongly supporting the roof. According to Khmer folk legend, the god bird Krud is the king of birds. In front and behind the main hall of Kh'leang pagoda, there is the image of Chan standing to protect the pagoda. In Khmer fairy tales or in Du-Ke, the character Chan is a symbol of evil and ugliness, causing trouble. suffering for everyone. However, in Khmer visual art, Chan was conquered by Buddha. Placing the Chan statue outside the main hall implies that evil and ugliness have been transformed to serve and protect beauty and goodness. Inside the main hall is a large room reserved for ceremonies. In addition to the 12 round columns, the most important part inside the main hall is the altar of Shakyamuni Buddha statue, a 2.5m high statue placed in the middle of the two innermost rooms, not only precious in terms of materials but also in terms of sculptural art. On the altar, there are dense patterns with intricately sculpted networks and flame-shaped patterns that are very typical of Khmer culture. A refined aesthetic sense emerges into inspiration. Because they follow the Theravada Buddhist system, the pagodas of the Southern Khmer people only worship Shakyamuni Buddha in many different positions: meditating, newly born, begging for alms, at nirvana, etc. . The interior of the main hall of Kh'leang Pagoda brings many unexpected and interesting discoveries to visitors, which is the interference of three cultures: Kinh, Khmer, Chinese in an architectural space, clearly showing On the wooden pillars: Vietnamese lacquer art, traditional Khmer color combinations and typical Chinese drawings, create a masterpiece that perhaps only exists at Kh'leang Pagoda. In the main hall of Kh'leang pagoda, we can also see works of the Kinh people on the sagging door, this reflects the cultural exchange between the three ethnic groups in the long-term cohabitation process, knowing how to combine elite elements. in art to learn and grow together. In addition to being a religious base, the main hall of Kh'leang Pagoda also stores and preserves a collection of Buddha statues with many different positions, sizes, and materials, which is considered a museum of ancient art. artifacts. These artifacts have been preserved by many generations of monks for hundreds of years, with contributions from many Buddhists. Since the beginning of the temple's construction until now, Kh'leang Pagoda has had 21 abbots and the current abbot is Venerable Tang No (1943). Some not only took care of building pagodas but also actively participated in revolutionary activities such as preventing conscription, nurturing famous revolutionary cadres... some had to sacrifice themselves before the enemy's guns like Dai Duc. Tran Ke An, the head monk, was murdered by enemies right in the back of the temple. Therefore, during the years of the resistance war against the Americans to save the country, the pagoda was both a place for organizing religious activities and the most effective place for revolutionary activities of the Party. Over the years, with its important historical significance and preserved architectural value, Kh'leang Pagoda was recognized by the Ministry of Culture as a national historical and cultural relic on January 27. April 1990. Source: Electronic information portal of Soc Trang City People's Committee

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Rating : National monument

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