Morning Tour
We arrived at Linh Son Ancient Pagoda early in the morning when the sky was clear, and the sun had yet to rise. This famous pagoda is located on Lam Thanh Hong Road (Oc Eo town, Thoai Son district, An Giang province). Surrounded by rows of tall, straight ancient trees, the pagoda carries a very unique and ancient beauty.
Construction History
This pagoda was built in 1912 by the abbot Nhu Chanh. Initially, the pagoda was made of wood and roofed with leaves. In 1913, when the Four-armed Buddha statue was brought and placed between two stone steles, the pagoda was rebuilt with bricks and has undergone several renovations to achieve its current form.
Over a Hundred Years Old
With a history of over a hundred years, it is considered a top spiritual destination in Oc Eo town. The locals here always keep the pagoda clean and spacious. Around 5 am every day, devotees, volunteers, and locals come to sweep the pagoda. The sound of sweeping leaves in the early morning, along with the birds chirping to greet the dawn, is the purest sound that visitors will experience when coming here.
The moss-covered stone bricks, scrubbed daily by brooms, have existed for hundreds of years, adding to the unique ancient charm. Mr. L.M.T (50 years old, a local resident in Oc Eo town) said that these moss-covered bricks were unearthed at the same time as the Four-armed Buddha statue. Immediately after enshrining the Buddha in the pagoda, the locals continued to move these bricks to pave the slopes.
The Story of the Four-armed Buddha Statue
Regarding the story of the Four-armed Buddha worshiped in the pagoda, the locals say that the elders in the area passed down that in the past, the local Vietnamese reported to the French officials that they had unearthed a Four-armed statue on a high mound about 100 meters away. After that, people moved the Buddha statue. When they moved near Linh Son Pagoda, the statue became heavier, so they decided to place the statue in Linh Son Pagoda, where it has been worshiped ever since.
However, the current abbot of Linh Son Ancient Pagoda is over 95 years old and in poor health, so he cannot recount more stories about the Four-armed Buddha. There are also restrictions on capturing close-up images of the statue. Visitors are advised to take only a few exterior shots.
Two Ancient Stone Steles
In addition to the Four-armed Buddha statue, Linh Son Pagoda also preserves two ancient stone steles discovered in 1879. They are made of black sandstone with many veins on the surface. Of these, one stele on the left (from the main entrance) is inscribed with ancient Sanskrit characters. The stele on the right has no inscriptions. The content has not been fully translated by linguists and is only tentatively translated as “...For the Queen Mother of Kumarambha who follows the path of Dharma and joyfully offers (to the deity) SriVarhamana...”.
This leaves visitors still intrigued by the unsolved mysteries when they leave the pagoda.
