Turning off the national highway, visitors arrive at a high earthen mound rising amidst open fields beside the main stream known as Suối Cái. Atop that mound sits a low tile-roofed communal house crowned with two dragons flanking the sun and paved with brick, surrounded by three smaller south-facing shrines. This is An Khê Communal House (An Khê đình), the most regularly tended sanctuary across an entire monument complex spanning eastern Gia Lai.
One practical clarification should be made right away. Although this complex comprises seventeen relic sites, most of them are earthen mounds, ramparts, mountain peaks, and archaeological spots without altars or incense offerings. Active worship takes place at only three locations, namely An Khê Communal House (An Khê đình), An Khê Trường, and the Snake Shrine (miếu Xà). This entry focuses on those three living sanctuaries while listing the remaining sites for completeness.
IFounding pioneers, the snake deity, and three co-enshrined brothers
The primary layer of worship across this upper highland region is not royal worship. Instead, it centers on founding and succeeding pioneers (tiền hiền hậu hiền), meaning the earliest settlers who cleared the highlands to establish villages and those who followed to build up the community, combined with an indigenous layer of nature spirit worship (nhiên thần). The three Tây Sơn brothers are present on the altars here, but they occupy the position of co-enshrined figures (phối thờ) rather than the principal titular deity of the communal house.
Understanding this distinction clarifies how this complex differs from the Temple of the Three Tây Sơn Heroes at Kiên Mỹ Village across the mountain pass. Kiên Mỹ is the ancestral homestead of the three brothers' family, making it a dedicated temple with individual altars for each brother. The Upper Tây Sơn highlands (Thượng đạo) were their launching ground, so the sanctuary here is first and foremost a migrant settlers' communal house honoring land pioneers, onto which the layer of co-enshrinement was later grafted.
In the ritual tradition of Vietnamese villages, founding pioneers (tiền hiền) are the first people to arrive in an untamed land to clear fields and establish hamlets. Succeeding pioneers (hậu hiền) are those who arrive later and contribute to building the communal house and market, opening roads, and raising dams. Once a hamlet matures into a village, residents set up altars for both groups inside the communal house, venerating them as common ancestors of the entire community regardless of bloodline. This represents an extended form of ancestor veneration grounded in land-clearing merit rather than kinship.
This practice is strongest among communities that have newly migrated to unfamiliar territory. When a group of settlers leaves their native homeland for an unsettled highland basin, the first permanent structure they erect is not a grand private house but a shared communal house. Raising a communal house declares that a village now exists on that soil, complete with guardian spirits and founding ancestors to venerate. The communal house becomes a marker driven into the land, and the annual communal house festival renews that foundational claim.
Inside An Khê Communal House (An Khê đình), nine wooden altars honor familiar folk deities of Vietnamese village temples, including Thiên Y A Na, the White Horse Deity (thần Bạch Mã), the Five Elements Goddesses (Ngũ Hành Nương Nương), the Local Tutelary God (Thành hoàng bổn xứ), the Two Young Lords (Nhị vị công tử), the Lord of the Mountain Forests (Chúa sơn lâm), and the Founding and Succeeding Pioneers (Tiền hiền, Hậu hiền). Three smaller auxiliary shrines (dinh thờ) in front of the communal house courtyard are the actual structures dedicated to the three brothers Nguyễn Nhạc, Nguyễn Huệ, and Nguyễn Lữ, with the central shrine partitioned inside to venerate Nguyễn Nhạc alongside his Bahnar wife Cô Hầu.
The Snake Shrine (Miếu Xà) belongs entirely to the layer of nature spirits. It venerates the snake deity, an ancient cult found across both lowlands and mountains where the serpent is regarded as guardian of water sources and forest gates. Built right beside the mountain pass road at the gateway to the entire upper highland region, the shrine naturally carries the added role of guarding a frontier pass.
The most common misconception about this complex stems from its name. Hearing Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo, many visitors picture an imperial temple complex and are surprised to arrive at a modest village communal house. In reality, the name designates an entire geographic region rather than a single temple, and the worship across that region grew out of popular village religion established by ordinary settlers for their own pioneers.
Even the inclusion of the three Tây Sơn brothers followed a discreet local practice. According to local records, the auxiliary shrines in the communal house compound were outwardly maintained under the titles of folk spirits while villagers knew internally whom they were honoring. That is the exact same approach used at the old communal house built over the family homestead in Kiên Mỹ on the other side of the pass. Separated by a mountain pass yet sharing the same quiet strategy, the two sites reveal how an entire region preserved its forbidden loyalties.
IIChronology and the three royal decrees
The complex has no single founding year because its seventeen sites belong to different historical layers ranging from prehistoric archaeological spots to village shrines. For the religious structures, the firmest chronological anchors are the royal decrees (sắc phong) preserved at An Khê Trường, which bear exact reign dates.
Sources differ openly regarding the founding date of An Khê Communal House. Local press records rely on the earliest surviving royal decree granted in the 33rd year of Emperor Tự Đức (1880) to deduce that the communal house must have stood prior to 1880. Other accounts place its founding in the late 17th century, much earlier. The first approach is firmer because it rests on a dated document, whereas the second relies on oral tradition. The library records both without arbitrarily picking a single date.
Sources also vary slightly on the year the complex was ranked as a special national monument, with some articles citing 2021 and others early 2022. Because the official prime ministerial instrument is Decision No. 93 signed on January 18, 2022 alongside several other monuments, 2022 is the date that matches the legal text.
- Early 17th centuryKinh settlers arrive in the upper highlandsVietnamese settlers from the eastern coastal plains cross the mountain pass to clear the An Khê highlands, establishing the two oldest settlements of Tây Sơn Nhất and Tây Sơn Nhị alongside indigenous Bahnar communities. Village communal houses are their first shared civic structures.
- Before 1880An Khê Communal House in existenceInferred from the earliest surviving royal decree. Also known as An Lũy Communal House or Tổ đình An Khê, it sits on a high mound near Suối Cái facing south.
- 1880Royal decree of Emperor Tự ĐứcThe earliest of the three surviving royal decrees, granted in the 33rd year of Tự Đức on gilded dó paper measuring 1.2 by 0.6 meters painted with dragons and clouds, confirming imperial recognition of the local tutelary cult.
- 1909 and 1911Two royal decrees of Emperor Duy TânTwo subsequent decrees granted in the 3rd and 5th years of Duy Tân, currently safeguarded at An Khê Trường and carried in procession only during the Quý Xuân festival.
- 1991National heritage site rankingThe complex is ranked as a national historical monument following nearly two years of field surveys and dossier preparation by local cultural officers.
- 2020Restoration of An Khê đình and revival of Nhà khóiFollowing repairs in 2005 to 2006 and 2014, An Khê Communal House undergoes further restoration in 2020. Around the Canh Tý Lunar New Year in 2020, the ritual kitchen house (nhà khói) at An Khê Trường is restored and fitted with over thirty traditional culinary artifacts.
- 2022Special national heritage siteRanked under Decision No. 93 signed on January 18, 2022, encompassing all seventeen relic points across the four former districts and town of An Khê, Đak Pơ, Kbang, and Kông Chro.
IIISeventeen relic sites and three living sanctuaries
The first thing to picture is the expansive geographic scale. Rather than a single walled compound, this complex spans an entire highland region with sites separated by dozens of kilometers. The monument dossier groups the seventeen points into six clusters, three of which lie within An Khê.
The first cluster comprises Mount Bình, Mount Nhạc, Mount Tào, and the Gò Kho and Xóm Ké area. The second cluster includes the Snake Shrine (miếu Xà) along with the Flag-Waving Ké Tree (cây Ké phất cờ) and the Drum-Beating Cầy Tree (cây Cầy gióng trống). The third cluster encompasses Gò Chợ, the An Khê Rampart (lũy An Khê), An Khê Trường, and An Khê Communal House (An Khê đình). The remaining clusters spread across the former Đak Pơ, Kbang, and Kông Chro areas, including Cô Hầu Field (cánh đồng Cô Hầu) and Cô Hầu Jackfruit Garden (vườn mít Cô Hầu) in Kbang associated with Nguyễn Nhạc's Bahnar wife.
Because most of those points are earthen mounds, rampart segments, mountain peaks, and archaeological sites without altars or ritual furnishings, this entry lists them for completeness while focusing architectural descriptions on the three active places of worship below.
Commonly called Tổ đình An Khê or An Lũy Communal House. Built on a high mound near Suối Cái facing south, it features a three-bay two-wing front hall and a one-bay two-wing rear sanctum supported by six roof trusses and forty wooden columns, with two dragons flanking the sun on the roof ridge and Bát Tràng floor tiles. Three small shrines in the yard honor the three Tây Sơn brothers and Cô Hầu.
A compound of roughly nine thousand square meters comprising a main sanctuary hall, a shrine to the Three Tây Sơn Heroes, a pioneer house (nhà tiền nhơn), and a ritual kitchen house (nhà khói). It safeguards the three royal decrees, which are carried in procession from here during festivals.
The ceremonial kitchen inside the An Khê Trường compound, spanning over fifty square meters with one bay and two wings, a tiled roof, brick floor, and front yard. Villagers use it to cook traditional ritual dishes such as stewed chicken (gà hầm), braised fish (cá ám), and whole unblemished pig with tail intact, while displaying over thirty donated traditional kitchen utensils.
A small wayside shrine beside the mountain pass road in the former Song An area. Its gate features two square pillars topped with stone lotus buds linked by a scroll panel inscribed with the four words Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo, a brick altar with a Five Tigers relief on the left side of the yard, and a 1.2-meter main altar inside. About two hundred meters to the left stands a 1.5-meter stone stele.
One architectural detail of An Khê Communal House often causes confusion because sources describe its roof structure differently. Some accounts record a front hall of three bays and two wings paired with a one-bay two-wing rear sanctum, while others describe a structure of two bays, four roof slopes, and four wings. Such discrepancies usually arise from whether the rear sanctum and verandas are counted separately or together, as well as from multiple restorations over time. The library notes both descriptions so visitors can compare them on site.
Another noteworthy feature is that the auxiliary shrines in the communal house yard rest on stilt-like pillars while wearing Vietnamese tile roofs. That hybrid form reflects a community living amidst two building traditions, combining highland stilt framing with lowland roofing carpentry.
IVThe lie of the land and orientation
This section presents the library's reading through the lens of traditional geomancy rather than content copied from stele inscriptions or monument dossiers. The library states this clearly so readers can distinguish between historical documentation and interpretive reading.
First is the overall landform of the region. An Khê sits inside a high mountain basin bounded on the east by a steep pass dropping toward the coastal plains and opening gradually westward into the plateau. In traditional geomantic terms, this forms a basin node (huyệt trong lòng chảo) ringed by mountains on all sides with only a single narrow gateway. Land with a single threshold retains its gathered qi and naturally creates a stronghold where outsiders struggle to penetrate while insiders can easily keep watch.
Second is the site of the communal house. An Khê Communal House stands atop a high earthen mound rising from low-lying fields right beside the main stream Suối Cái. In geomancy, an elevated mound rising amidst flat ground marks the spot where a land vein halts and coalesces into a raised node (huyệt nổi). With a stream curving alongside, the mound is embraced by water without suffering floods, securing both water gathering (thủy tụ) and physical safety. For a migrant community settling unfamiliar highlands, choosing a dry mound beside running water for their shared civic hall was first of all a practical survival choice that aligned naturally with classic geomantic principles.
Third is orientation. Local records state clearly that the communal house faces south, and its auxiliary shrines likewise face south. South is the favored direction for Vietnamese communal houses and temples, and it is striking that a community migrating deep into the central highlands preserved the exact directional convention of their lowland homeland. Wherever the communal house was raised, it still faced the direction of their ancestors, carrying the order of the old village into the new land.
Finally, there is the placement of the Snake Shrine (miếu Xà). Rather than standing inside a residential hamlet, the shrine sits beside the mountain pass road at the threshold of the entire highland basin. In traditional practice, steep passes and border crossings were routinely marked with small wayside shrines to guard the threshold, and the spirit invoked there was almost always an indigenous nature deity of that exact terrain rather than a human hero brought from elsewhere. Placing a snake-deity shrine at the pass gate follows that exact logic, honoring the power already resident in the soil at the precise spot where travelers felt the greatest need for protection.
VThe Quý Xuân festival and annual communal house rites
An Khê Communal House and An Khê Trường maintain four major ritual periods each year, all reckoned by the lunar calendar, while the Snake Shrine observes its own festival day. The most important observance of the entire year is the Quý Xuân festival, which locals simply call the communal house festival (cúng đình).
| Lunar date | Location | Ritual observance |
|---|---|---|
| 4th day of the 1st lunar month | An Khê đình and An Khê trường | Commemoration of the Đống Đa Victory, opening the annual ritual cycle with incense offerings and ceremonial sacrifices. |
| 10th day of the 1st lunar month | An Khê đình | Mountain-Opening Ceremony (Lễ Khai sơn), asking permission from the mountain deities at the start of the year before entering the forests to work. |
| 9th and 10th days of the 2nd lunar month | An Khê đình and An Khê trường | Quý Xuân Festival, the principal festival of the year, featuring the royal decree procession (nghinh sắc), deity sacrifices, pioneer house incense offerings, and the main communal feast. |
| 20th day of the 2nd lunar month | Miếu Xà | Local festival honoring the snake deity, praying for favorable crops and safe passage across the mountain pass. |
| 28th day of the 7th lunar month | An Khê đình and An Khê trường | Death anniversary of Emperor Quang Trung, observed with solemn liturgical sacrifices and incense offerings. |
The Quý Xuân festival takes place over two days at the ancestral communal house (the 9th and 10th of the 2nd lunar month) and then continues across the surrounding guild hamlets (vạn An Xuyên, An Tân, An Tập, An Phong, Miếu Sở, and local shrines) through the end of the second lunar month. The festival opens with the royal decree procession (nghinh sắc), in which the three royal decrees kept at An Khê Trường are carried to An Khê Communal House accompanied by flags, placards, and ceremonial music. This procession forms the core of the entire festival because it reaffirms that the community's worship received official written recognition and that those charters remain in the village's keeping.
Offerings include fruit, sticky rice, sweet soup, and an indispensable whole raw sacrificial pig (heo nguyên sinh), meaning an unblemished pig that has been dressed and cleaned but left uncooked and placed whole upon the sacrificial table. Presenting an uncooked animal offering preserves the archaic rule of village communal house sacrifices, in sharp contrast to the cooked feasts offered to family ancestors. The liturgy is led by the Chief Ritualist (Hương lễ) alongside members of the ceremonial music ensemble, who offer incense, pour wine, and present tea in strict sequence before distributing the feast as communal blessings.
The An Khê region also preserves a distinctive folk performance known as flower-praying antiphonal singing (hội hát cầu huê), a springtime responsive singing and theatrical tradition of local Vietnamese settlers that was interrupted for more than sixty years before being revived in 2017 during early-year festivals. Although not part of the formal liturgy inside the communal house hall, cầu huê singing accompanies the communal house festival season as part of the same communal life.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- An Khê trường và An Khê đình ở phường An Khê, các điểm còn lại rải trên vùng An Khê, Đak Pơ, Kbang và Kông Chro cũ, tỉnh Gia Lai
- Getting there
- An Khê Trường and An Khê Communal House lie close to each other in An Khê Ward, Gia Lai Province, and are usually visited together on a single trip. The Snake Shrine sits beside the mountain pass road in the former Song An area. The remaining sites are scattered across the former An Khê, Đak Pơ, Kbang, and Kông Chro areas across several dozen kilometers.
- Coordinates
- 13.9471, 108.6616
Because An Khê Communal House, An Khê Trường, and the Snake Shrine are all active places of worship, visitors should observe house rules by dressing modestly, removing hats inside the halls, walking quietly and speaking softly before the altars, and never touching royal decrees, dragon thrones, or ritual vessels. During the Quý Xuân festival, please stand outside the sacrificial area and avoid walking between the officiating elders and the altars. At the Snake Shrine, locals avoid speaking loudly or pointing directly at the altar platform. At the remaining earthen mounds and ramparts of the complex, please keep to established paths.
Nearby places in the library
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?Quick Questions
Which sites belong to the Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo complex
The monument dossier lists seventeen sites grouped into six clusters. Three clusters in An Khê include Mount Bình, Mount Nhạc, Mount Tào, and Gò Kho - Xóm Ké, the Snake Shrine cluster with the Flag-Waving Ké Tree and Drum-Beating Cầy Tree, and the cluster of Gò Chợ, An Khê Rampart, An Khê Trường, and An Khê Communal House. The remaining clusters spread across the former Đak Pơ, Kbang, and Kông Chro areas.
Who is worshipped at An Khê Communal House
The primary layer of worship honors founding and succeeding pioneers (tiền hiền hậu hiền) who cleared the highlands, alongside traditional Vietnamese village deities on nine wooden altars including Thiên Y A Na, the White Horse Deity, the Five Elements Goddesses, the Local Tutelary God, the Two Young Lords, and the Lord of the Mountain Forests. The three brothers Nguyễn Nhạc, Nguyễn Huệ, and Nguyễn Lữ along with Cô Hầu are co-enshrined in three small auxiliary shrines in front of the courtyard.
How does Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo differ from the Temple of the Three Tây Sơn Heroes
They differ in ritual role. The Temple of the Three Tây Sơn Heroes at Kiên Mỹ Village stands on the original family homestead of the three brothers, making it a dedicated temple with individual altars for each brother. Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo was their highland launching ground, where the primary worship honors the founding pioneers of Vietnamese migrant settlers and the three brothers are co-enshrined.
When is the Quý Xuân festival held in An Khê
On the ninth and tenth days of the second lunar month at An Khê Communal House and An Khê Trường, followed by rites at surrounding guild hamlets (vạn) and shrines through the end of the month. It opens with a procession carrying three royal decrees from An Khê Trường to the communal house, followed by deity sacrifices, pioneer house offerings, and the main ceremony featuring a whole uncooked sacrificial pig.
What is worshipped at the Snake Shrine in An Khê
It honors the snake deity, an indigenous nature spirit associated with water sources and forest gates rather than a human figure. Located beside the mountain pass road in the former Song An area, the small shrine features two square pillars topped with stone lotus buds linked by a scroll panel and a stone stele about two hundred meters to the left. Locals hold its main rite on the twentieth day of the second lunar month.