Hanoi is the capital, and one of the most popular cities to visit in Vietnam. The Temple of Literature, an ancient complex that is both a temple and an academy, is one of Hanoi's most famous attractions and places of history.
It's a temple dedicated to Confucius, where scholars and students formerly lived and studied. Beginning in 1076, the imperial academy opened and started to enroll students.
The Temple of Literature is neatly organized in a series of courtyards, each courtyard leading further into the temple and finally to an area that housed shrines and many statues, including one of Confucius himself (see below).
The construction is based on the temple in China where Confucius was born. The temple grounds are lush and green with big, beautiful trees and gardens.
You can browse around all the courtyards at your own pace. I enjoyed looking at the stone steles lined up under an awning when you enter the complex.
Known as the Stelae of Doctors, 82 (though there were formerly 116) of these stone engravings have a turtle as a foundation.
The steles were created as a way to encourage students to pursue knowledge and to continue learning.
The Chinese writings on these stones steles have been a significant source of information into Vietnam's past lives and culture nearly 1,000 years ago.
These steles also include information about students and those who graduated from the academy.
The fourth of five courtyards is where the main temple is located. On either side of the main shrine, two halls were used to honor some of the most faithful Confucian followers.
At the front of the courtyard, surrounded by statues and burning incense, was the elaborate statue of Confucius himself.
As a Confucian temple, Confucius was studied and worshipped here. Just outside the main shrine were some cabinet displays of old clothes, pens, notebooks, and a few small personal belongings from students who had attended the imperial academy.
Like any historical site I visit, while I enjoy the overall attraction, I like to pay attention to the small details. The little things can make a place stand out and be worth visiting.
The Temple of Literature is packed with symbols and details that are easy to miss, but if you look in the right places, they can make the experience more rewarding.
The dragons on top of the roof carved from stone are in place according to Feng shui and give the building protection, not so much from human enemies, but from natural things like fires and other devastating disasters.
After spending a few hours walking around the Temple of Literature, we were hungry.
Luckily, after just a few minutes of searching, I found a local restaurant serving Vietnamese noodles. It wasn't long before I was seated in front of a piping hot bowl of chicken pho and ready to dig in!
Be sure to include the Temple of Literature on your tour of Hanoi.
