Reporter: Dear comrade, how do you feel when receiving the good news that the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son - Kiep Bac Monuments and Landscape Complex (abbreviated as the Heritage Complex) was honored by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage?
Comrade Mai Son: This is a great honor and pride, not only meaningful to the government and people in the Heritage Complex but also to the people of the whole country. The Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son - Kiep Bac relic and scenic complex is the 9th heritage of Vietnam to be honored as a world heritage.
The heritage complex stretches across 3 provinces and cities: Quang Ninh, Bac Ninh, Hai Phong with 12 relics and scenic spots planned in a synchronous manner, connecting them into a unified entity in both space and spirituality. The long process of preparing documents, researching, preserving, promoting heritage values and cooperation between scientists , heritage experts and the authorities of the 3 provinces has been recognized by the international community. This is the common joy of the local people with the efforts to preserve, protect and spread the cultural values of this sacred land through many generations.
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Comrade Mai Son. |
Reporter: During the process of coordinating the construction of scientific dossiers, what contributions did Bac Ninh province make to the overall success of the Heritage nomination, sir?
Comrade Mai Son: The process of building and completing the scientific dossier of the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac relic and scenic complex to submit to UNESCO for recognition as a World Heritage Site took more than 13 years.
During this time, the three provinces of Quang Ninh - Bac Giang - Hai Duong, now the provinces and cities: Quang Ninh - Bac Ninh - Hai Phong, established a Steering Committee and Working Group, an Executive Board to build a dossier, a consulting and monitoring team; issued implementation plans. At the same time, many conferences and seminars were organized with the participation of domestic and international experts and scientists; conducted dialogues and worked with leaders of the World Heritage Committee.
From August 5 to 15, 2024, the three provinces welcomed and worked with a delegation of experts from the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) to conduct field appraisals of dossiers at clusters and component relic sites of the Complex of Monuments and Landscapes.
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Comrade Mai Son and international guests experience woodblock printing at Vinh Nghiem Pagoda. |
Organize a working delegation to attend the 221st session of the UNESCO Executive Board in France to exchange, provide information, and clarify the outstanding global values of the nominated heritage. Organize the Vietnam Learning Day program in 2025 in 3 provinces, inviting the Diplomatic Corps of 21 countries that are members of the World Heritage Council (diplomatic headquarters located in Vietnam) and a number of countries that have great influence on the promotion of the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac Monuments and Landscape Complex to visit and work at typical relic sites in the provinces to lobby for the nomination dossier. Organize a working delegation to defend the nomination dossier at the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee from July 6 to 16, 2025 at UNESCO headquarters, France.
This is an inter-provincial complex of relics and scenic spots including many component relics with different characteristics and values. This poses a great challenge in research, dossier building, unified management, conservation and promotion of heritage values. The dossier requires a large amount of information and scientific documents. To be recognized by UNESCO, the dossier must demonstrate the outstanding global value of the heritage. Therefore, it requires extensive research, gathering archaeological, historical and cultural evidence to clarify the process of formation, development and spread of Truc Lam Buddhism. The synthesis, editing and supplementing of information according to ICOMOS's requirements is also complicated and requires close coordination.
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Woodblocks of Vinh Nghiem pagoda carving Buddhist scriptures. |
In recent times, Bac Ninh province has closely coordinated with Quang Ninh province and Hai Phong city to regularly organize meetings and conferences to unify orientations, share information and resolve issues arising in the process of building dossiers; provide information, historical and archaeological documents related to relics in the area. At the same time, create conditions and support domestic and international experts and scientists (ICOMOS) to conduct field surveys in the locality. Bac Ninh has renovated and restored relics; maintained security, order and environmental sanitation at relics under its management. At the same time, actively propagate and promote the value of heritage, raising public awareness of the significance of heritage conservation.
Reporter: According to you, what outstanding values and unique features of the heritage complex have convinced the World Heritage Council to highly appreciate and recognize it as a World Cultural Heritage?
Comrade Mai Son: The Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac heritage complex converges many outstanding global values. This heritage complex is not only an ancient architectural work but also a living proof of the birth and development of Truc Lam Buddhism - a unique Zen sect of Vietnam, founded by King Tran Nhan Tong in the 13th century. The heritage complex with Truc Lam Buddhism as its core has created many values, making special and sustainable contributions to the cultural and spiritual heritage of humanity.
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The Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son and Kiep Bac relic and scenic complex reflects the story of the formation and sustainable continuation of the Truc Lam Buddhist heritage originating from the Yen Tu mountain range (Photo: Archive). |
The ideological and cultural values of Truc Lam Buddhism are completely consistent with UNESCO's basic goals in maintaining and enriching the common values of humanity: Education, building a culture of peace; spirit of self-reliance, harmonious combination between humans and the natural world, respect for the laws of nature. This is a positive, humanistic Buddhist ideology, religion is not far from life but closely linked to people, social life, bringing peace and happiness to the people.
The two relics of Vinh Nghiem Pagoda (Tan An Ward) and Bo Da Pagoda (Van Ha Ward) in Bac Ninh are recognized as two Truc Lam Buddhist centers, playing an important role in maintaining and developing Buddhism. Here, a unique system of woodblocks is preserved, in which the woodblock storage at Vinh Nghiem Pagoda includes 3,050 woodblocks engraved with Buddhist scriptures, medical books, and precepts in Chinese and Nom characters, which have been recognized by UNESCO as Documentary Heritage under the Memory of the World Program in the Asia-Pacific region.
Reporter: According to you, what is the significance of this complex of relics and scenic spots being honored at the international level for Bac Ninh province in particular and the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac area in general?
Comrade Mai Son: The recognition of Vinh Nghiem Pagoda, Bo Da Pagoda (Bac Ninh Province) along with other relics in Quang Ninh Province and Hai Phong City as World Cultural Heritage is an affirmation and honor of the unique cultural, historical, architectural and artistic values of the relics as well as the great values and role of Truc Lam Buddhism - a Zen sect with a positive worldly ideology that contributes significantly to building national unity and preserving regional and world peace. Having more world heritages in the province will create opportunities and motivation for Bac Ninh tourism to rise up in the general development trend and is an opportunity to continue spreading the spirit of Truc Lam Buddhism to the world. The recognition of the above heritages is also a prestigious "certification", helping to enhance the position and tourism brand of the province, creating unique and distinctive spiritual and cultural tourism products, and will be more effective when combined with tourism products along the Buddhist Propagation Road of the Truc Lam Buddhist Patriarchs.
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The tower garden at Bo Da Pagoda is recognized as the largest tower garden in Vietnam, and is the burial place of more than 1,000 eminent monks throughout history. (Photo courtesy) |
Reporter: Could you tell us about the upcoming plans and directions of Bac Ninh province to preserve and promote the value of world heritage?
Comrade Mai Son: The Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac relic and scenic complex is an international heritage. The honor and pride always go hand in hand with responsibility, requiring all levels, sectors and localities to raise awareness and synchronously deploy practical and effective measures to preserve and promote the value of the heritage in accordance with the spirit of the World Heritage Convention associated with sustainable development.
In the coming time, Bac Ninh will strengthen coordination with Quang Ninh province and Hai Phong city to manage, protect and promote the value of the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son and Kiep Bac relic and landscape complex. Pay attention to investing funds for the restoration and embellishment of relics according to the principles of preserving world heritage through the development of a system of documents and regulations on heritage conservation in accordance with regulations and local practices.
Promote propaganda, raise awareness, consciousness and responsibility for people about the great value of heritage, thereby actively participating in protecting, promoting, spreading the value of heritage, promoting tourism activities, contributing to the development of local economy - society. At the same time, continue archaeological work around the heritage complex to supplement relics of real value to expand the heritage protection area.
Reporter: What message do you want to send to the community and people of Bac Ninh in joining hands to preserve and spread the value of this particularly meaningful World Cultural Heritage?
Comrade Mai Son: The recognition of the heritage complex this time contributes to consolidating the potential and increasing the attraction of the province in tourism development; spreading the cultural beauty and traditional ethics of the nation to the world. To have a valuable heritage of international stature is thanks to the active and leading contribution of generations of local people in preserving and promoting the value of the heritage over the past 700 years.
I hope that people in the province and the area with heritage need to clearly understand the important role and contribution of their ancestors. From there, we can do better in preserving and promoting the value of heritage by protecting architectural works, natural landscapes; preserving the beauty of local lifestyle, customs and festivals. Each Bac Ninh resident should be a "cultural and tourism ambassador" contributing to spreading the image and value of heritage widely in the country and to international friends.
Reporter: Thank you very much, comrade!
Source: https://baobacninhtv.vn/bac-ninh-gop-suc-lan-toa-gia-tri-quan-the-di-tich-va-danh-thang-yen-tu-vinh-nghiem-con-son-kiep-bac-ra-toan-cau-postid421858.bbg
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