Turn into Thịnh Yên Street, a short street behind the Giời market, and you come to a courtyard paved with blue stone in front of the pagoda. On ordinary days, potted ornamental plants stand on it at even intervals, and only on a closer look does one see that each pot bears a name, chariot, cannon, horse, elephant, advisor, general. Beneath the pots, lines of white lime mark out squares. The whole courtyard is a board for Chinese chess (cờ tướng), and the potted plants are standing exactly where the pieces belong.
This is the courtyard of Chùa Vua, the King's Pagoda, whose formal name is Đế Thích quán, one of the four Taoist temples of Thăng Long. The one worshipped in the inner hall is not an earthly king but Đế Thích, the deva who rules the Trāyastriṃśa heaven (Đao Lợi). The people of old Thăng Long honored him as the king of chess, and so this temple became the most famous chess ground in the capital.
IĐế Thích, the deva honored as king of chess
Đế Thích quán belongs to the set of four great Taoist temples of the capital, together with Trấn Vũ, Huyền Thiên and Đồng Thiên. The set is introduced in detail on the page on Huyền Thiên Temple. This page is devoted to what sets Đế Thích quán apart from the other three. The deity worshipped here was not born of Taoism.
Đế Thích is the Sino-Vietnamese name of the deva whom the Buddhist scriptures call Śakra, Lord of the Devas (Thích Đề Hoàn Nhân), who has his origin in the god Indra of ancient India. In Buddhist cosmology he dwells on the summit of Mount Sumeru and rules the Trāyastriṃśa heaven (Đao Lợi), the heaven of the thirty-three, where thirty-three devas live together. In the sutras Đế Thích is a protector of the Dharma, appearing many times to hear the Buddha teach and to guard those who practice. The journal Nghiên cứu Phật học (Buddhist Studies) presents Chùa Vua in exactly this sense, as a pagoda that is also a shrine to a deva who protects the Buddhist teaching.
On reaching Vietnam, Đế Thích did not remain within the Buddhist scriptures. Dân Việt records that this deva was taken up by Taoism and by Vietnamese folk religion and worshipped in Taoist temples under the title Thiên Đế, the Heavenly Emperor. From king of heaven to king of chess was one step for popular imagination. The Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports records that Đế Thích was regarded as the greatest of chess players, and a saying has passed down by word of mouth, cờ cao Đế Thích chấp đôi xe, "Đế Thích plays so well he gives away both chariots", meaning so skilled that he could spot his opponent both of his chariots. The story of Đế Thích playing chess is folk tradition and is not in the Buddhist scriptures, yet it is this story that created a whole chess tradition on Thịnh Yên Street.
The word Vua, king, in Chùa Vua is often taken to mean a pagoda built by a king or belonging to the king. The sources do not agree on this. The most familiar explanation is that Vua refers to Đế Thích, the king of heaven and king of chess worshipped here. The journal Nghiên cứu Phật học adds another explanation, that the kings of the Lý and Lê dynasties often came here to worship, so the people called it the King's Pagoda. The two readings do not exclude each other, and the library records both.
One more point. Đế Thích here is not Huyền Thiên Trấn Vũ, as at Quán Thánh or Huyền Thiên Temple. All four bear the name quán, but the four temples do not worship the same deity.
IIVersions of who built the temple
The founding date has not been established. Thế giới Di sản (World Heritage magazine) and the 360-degree heritage site of the former Hai Bà Trưng district say the place goes back to the Lý dynasty. The sources place the shrine to Đế Thích in the Lê period, but each tells a different story about who built it.
According to the legend recorded by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, a chess-loving king of the early Lê dynasty had the Thiên Đế hall built beside an existing pagoda. Dân Việt records that the temple was founded in the 15th century by a prince of the Later Lê who loved Chinese chess, the 360-degree heritage site gives a prince of the early Lê, and the journal Nghiên cứu Phật học also names a prince of the Lê. The history page of Vietnamese chess gives more detail, that a Lê prince who followed Taoism and was a skilled player rallied the villagers to give labor and money to build the Đế Thích temple beside the Hưng Khánh Pagoda. The versions share one core, the Lê period, a lover of chess, and a hall for Đế Thích built beside an older Buddhist pagoda. The library does not choose between the version of a king and the version of a prince.
Thế giới Di sản, the journal Nghiên cứu Phật học and the chess history page also record that in the Lê period this was the Thừa Lương palace, with a half-moon pond of clear water in front, which the journal says was reserved for the princesses to bathe, and that the kings stopped here before the sacrifices to heaven and earth. This has not been checked against the official chronicles, and the library gives it as tradition.
- Lý dynastyA pagoda from early timesAccording to Thế giới Di sản and the 360-degree heritage site of the former Hai Bà Trưng district. No founding stele survives.
- 15th centuryThe Thiên Đế hall is builtIn the Lê period, according to versions that differ on the builder, either a king or a prince whom the chess history page says followed Taoism, both lovers of chess.
- 16th centuryThe chess village of Thịnh YênThe history page of Vietnamese chess records that the chess-playing tradition of Thịnh Yên village dates from the 16th century.
- 19th centuryThe wooden statuesThe pagoda keeps 14 wooden statues from the 19th century, among them the statue of Đế Thích, about 1.6 meters tall.
- 1892A bronze bell is castThe bell Hưng Khánh tự chung was cast in the third year of the Thành Thái reign, according to the 360-degree heritage site. The pagoda also keeps older bells, see the box below.
- 1992Ranking and the revived chess festivalNational historical and cultural heritage site by Decision No. 97/VHQĐ of 21 January 1992 of the Minister of Culture. The Vietnamese chess history page records that the chess festival had been interrupted for more than thirty years and resumed this year.
- Late 20th centuryRestorationThe 360-degree heritage site records that the present appearance comes mainly from restorations in the late 20th century, while the three-entrance gateway, the ceremonial gate and the stupas still bear the old traces.
Two points need to be stated plainly. The first is the bronze bells. At first sight the sources give different dates for the bell, but in fact the pagoda has several bells. The 360-degree heritage site lists a small bell from the Tây Sơn period in the Cảnh Thịnh reign, two large bells from the Lê period, a small bronze bell inscribed Thiên đế điện cung, and the bell Hưng Khánh tự chung cast in the third year of the Thành Thái reign, that is 1892. The site of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese mentions only the small Cảnh Thịnh bell and the two large Lê bells.
The second is the street number. The Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports and Thế giới Di sản give number 17 Thịnh Yên Street, while the 360-degree heritage site and the journal Nghiên cứu Phật học give number 33. The library keeps both in the directions.
IIIPagoda, hall and chess courtyard
Chùa Vua is not a single building but a complex of several shrines in one compound. The Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports lists four parts, the Hưng Khánh Pagoda for the Buddha, the Thiên Đế hall for Đế Thích, an altar to Saint Trần (Đức Thánh Trần) and a Mother Goddess hall (điện Mẫu). This arrangement shows clearly how the four temples became Buddhist over time. The Taoist part was not erased but set as a separate hall beside the pagoda.
The part for the Buddha, formally named Hưng Khánh tự. This is the existing pagoda beside which, all versions agree, the Thiên Đế hall was built.
The Taoist temple part of the complex. The rear sanctuary holds the wooden statue of Đế Thích, about 1.6 meters tall, according to Thế giới Di sản. This is where the Taoist character of the place is clearest.
Two layers of popular worship added later, familiar in many Hanoi pagodas.
A courtyard paved with blue stone, the board marked out in lime. On ordinary days potted plants bearing the names of the pieces stand on the squares, and on festival days the courtyard becomes the ground for human chess.
The 360-degree heritage site records 19th-century wooden statues, a carved hanging arch and a dragon-carved throne shrine, ceramics, and poems dedicated to the Heavenly Emperor.
So the Taoist mark at Chùa Vua does not lie in a tower or a special set of ritual objects but in the separation of the halls. Đế Thích is not placed in the main hall of the pagoda as a protector standing in attendance on the Buddha, but has his own hall, his own title of Thiên Đế and his own rear sanctuary, like the principal deity of a Taoist temple. This says that those who built the hall regarded Đế Thích as the main figure of worship, not a secondary one.
The Chinese characters at the top of this page are written by the library after the name Đế Thích quán and have not been checked against the horizontal boards on site.
IVThe lie of the land and the facing
A word first. What follows is the library's reading through traditional feng shui. The pagoda has no document recording why the site was chosen, and the library has no measurement of the hall's facing.
The pagoda lies in a crowded neighborhood south of central Hanoi, right by the Giời market. This is urban ground, with no mountain to lean on and no river to face, and the library does not force a search for a dragon vein (long mạch).
What is worth reading is the courtyard. In traditional feng shui, the open space in front of a shrine is called the bright hall (minh đường), the place where qi gathers before it enters the hall. The bright hall is usually kept open and level, sometimes with a pond. At Chùa Vua that bright hall is used as a chessboard. Thought of in the old way, this is a fitting use. A chessboard is an ordered battlefield, nine files and ten ranks, each piece in its place, an image of heaven and earth put in order. To set that battlefield right in front of the hall of the king of heaven is to set the order of humankind under the gaze of heaven.
The second point is the tradition of the Thừa Lương palace, where the princesses bathed, with a half-moon pond in front. If the tradition is right, there was once water here, and land with water is, in the old way of seeing, land that gathers qi. But because the story has not been checked against the official chronicles, the library offers it only as a possibility and does not build a further reading on it.
VThe spring chess festival
Every year, from the 6th to the 9th day of the 1st lunar month, the village of Thịnh Yên holds its festival at the pagoda. The 9th is the main festival day. Thế giới Di sản records it as the celebration of Đế Thích's birthday. In Chinese and Vietnamese belief, the 9th day of the 1st lunar month is also the Jade Emperor's day, the king of heaven of Taoism. Since Đế Thích is worshipped under the title of Thiên Đế, the coincidence of the two days is perhaps not an accident, though no source says so directly.
| Lunar date | Part of the festival | Content |
|---|---|---|
| 6th to 8th day of the 1st lunar month | Opening and chess contest | A sacrifice in the Thiên Đế hall, then the rounds of the Chinese chess contest. |
| 9th day of the 1st lunar month | Main festival day | The celebration of Đế Thích's birthday according to Thế giới Di sản, with a sacrifice and games of human chess on the stone courtyard. |
| Throughout the festival | The festival's chess rule | The Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports records that each player must make twenty moves within one hour. |
The Department records that players from Laos, Cambodia and China come to the chess festival. The history page of Vietnamese chess tells how the festival has produced many of Hanoi's great players over the generations. What is worth noticing is that the chess contest is not separate from the rites. The games begin after the sacrifice and are played right in front of the hall of the king of chess, so that here playing chess is also a way of making an offering.
Please also do not confuse this place with the Hai Bà Trưng Temple at Đồng Nhân, about 450 meters away. That temple honors people who served the country, holds its festival in the 2nd lunar month, and has no connection with the four Taoist temples or the chess festival.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Phố Thịnh Yên, phường Hai Bà Trưng (phường Phố Huế cũ, quận Hai Bà Trưng cũ), Hà Nội. Số nhà vênh: Sở Văn hóa và Thể thao Hà Nội và Thế giới Di sản ghi số 17, trang 360 di tích của quận Hai Bà Trưng ghi số 33
- Getting there
- Phố Thịnh Yên, phường Hai Bà Trưng, Hà Nội (formerly Phố Huế ward, in the former Hai Bà Trưng district). Sources give different street numbers, 17 or 33. The pagoda is behind the Giời market.
- Coordinates
- 21.0101, 105.8532
On ordinary days the potted plants in the courtyard stand on the squares of their pieces, and visitors are asked not to move them. In the Thiên Đế hall, visitors are expected to dress modestly, remove hats and not touch the wooden statues. During the festival in the 1st lunar month the courtyard is very crowded, and spectators are expected to stand outside the lime lines and not advise the players, as is the custom at every chess ground.
Nearby places in the library
VIIContribute To This Page
Contribute photos, information or video for De Thich Temple (Vua Pagoda)
Góp ảnh, thông tin hoặc video cho Quán Đế Thích (Chùa Vua)Everyone is welcome to enrich this page: a photo you took, a detail the page misses, a short video. Every contribution is read and answered.
Thầy Ưng Khiêm mời cộng đồng cùng làm giàu trang này. Ảnh chụp tận nơi, một chi tiết lịch sử chưa được nhắc, một đoạn video ngắn: mọi đóng góp đều được đọc và trả lời.
No community contribution yet. You could be the first. Chưa có đóng góp nào từ cộng đồng. Bạn có thể là người đầu tiên.
?Quick Questions
Who is worshipped at Chùa Vua
Đế Thích, the deva who rules the Trāyastriṃśa heaven in Buddhist cosmology, worshipped in the Thiên Đế hall and honored by the people of Thăng Long as the king of chess. The complex also has the Hưng Khánh Pagoda for the Buddha, an altar to Saint Trần and a Mother Goddess hall.
Why is it called Chùa Vua, the King's Pagoda
There are two explanations. The most familiar is that Vua, king, refers to Đế Thích, the king of heaven and king of chess worshipped here. The journal Nghiên cứu Phật học adds that the kings of the Lý and Lê dynasties often came to worship, so the people called it the King's Pagoda. The sources do not agree.
When is the Chùa Vua chess festival held
From the 6th to the 9th day of the 1st lunar month, with the 9th as the main festival day. The festival has a sacrifice, a Chinese chess contest and human chess on the stone courtyard. According to the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, each player must make twenty moves within an hour, and players from abroad come to take part.
Who is Đế Thích, and is he the Jade Emperor
Đế Thích is the deva Śakra (Thích Đề Hoàn Nhân) of the Buddhist scriptures, who has his origin in the god Indra. At Chùa Vua he is worshipped under the title of Thiên Đế. The main festival day, the 9th of the 1st lunar month, coincides with the Jade Emperor's day, but no source states that the people of Thịnh Yên regard the two as one.
Is Chùa Vua one of the four Taoist temples of Thăng Long
Yes. Chùa Vua is Đế Thích quán, which together with Trấn Vũ quán, Huyền Thiên quán and Đồng Thiên quán makes up the four Taoist temples of Thăng Long. Of the four, this is the one that worships a deva of Buddhist origin rather than Huyền Thiên. The library's page on Huyền Thiên Temple introduces the set in detail.