Raw data
This monastery is mentioned in the biography of a Zen master named Thanh Bien. He studied at Pho Quang monastery and went to this monastery when his teacher died. He died in 686 CE.
The notes describe Kien Duong as in Hoa Lam village in Dong Ngan District, Bac Ninh Province
See Cuong Tu Nguyen, Zen in Medieval Vietnam: A Study and Translation of the Thien Uyen Tap Anh (Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 1997), 166, 415.
Input by: Stewart Gordon, Jan 19, 2010
Hoa Lam is situated about 500 m E of Duong river's confluence with the Hong river. It is close to and opposite of the West Lake, which is situated SW of the said confluence (Taylor 1991: 213, Map 9 - The Heartland of Provincial Vietnam).
Hoa Lam village is v. close to Thai Duong hamlet, Dong Ngan District, Bac Ninh Province (CUONG TU Nguyen 1997:415)
Input by: tmciolek, 10 Mar 2010.
Final data (and their sources)
Lat/Long coordinates' accuracy:
The monastery in question is assumed to be situated actually no farther than 2 km from the point defined by the coordinates below.
General location of the Kien Duong monastery, VN.
Lat 21.0817 Long 105.8632
Mapping & images: Falling Rain Genomics (http://www.fallingrain.com), 2009.
Google Map link:
Final data - explanatory notes
1. Monastery's name
- Kien Duong monastery
2. Monastery's modern country & province
- Vietnam: Bac-Ninh Province
3. Monastery's alternative/historical names
- Thai Duong
4. Monastery's lat/long coordinates
- Approx, Lat 21.0817 Long 105.8632 - estimated from (Taylor 1991: 213, Map 9 - The Heartland of Provincial Vietnam) and maps.google.com sattelite imagery - tmciolek, 10 Mar 2010.
5. Other known nearby Buddhist monasteries
6. Modern name of the known nearest city, town, or village
final data ….
7. The settlement's alternative/historical names
final data ….
8. The settlement's coordinates
- Approx, Lat 21.0817 Long 105.8632 - estimated from (Taylor 1991: 213, Map 9 - The Heartland of Provincial Vietnam) and maps.google.com sattelite imagery - tmciolek, 10 Mar 2010.
9. Monastery's major Buddhist tradition
- Mahayana
10. Monastery's Buddhist sub-tradition
- Ch'an/Zen
11. Date-early
- 650 CE.
12. Date-intermediate
- 1232 CE. It was in this monastery that the royal Ly family was, en masse, buried alive by usurpers.
13. Date-late
final data ….
14. Details of contacts with other monasteries
final data ….
15. Type of evidence regarding the monastery
- Biography of Zen master. 14th cent. copy of 10th cent. mss.
16. Additional notes
final data (incl. details of the size of the monastic population)….
17. Corrections & addenda to this page were kindly provided by
final data ….
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