Sacred Mountains: The Mysteries of Mount Chúa

A natural "lighthouse"

Mount Chua, located south of the My Son valley (Duy Phu commune, Duy Xuyen district, Quang Nam province), is notable for its unusual and unique shape. In the past, Mount Chua was called Mahaparvata, a symbol of the Amaravati principality of the Champa kingdom. The name Mahaparvata was recorded on the first stele at My Son in the 4th century during the Bhadravarman dynasty. It is likened to the sacred Mount Meru in Indian mythology, the dwelling place of the gods.

Mount Chúa, a place steeped in many mysterious stories.

From the mainland to the sea, within the Amaravati-Champa principality (present-day Quang Nam province), Mount Chua could be easily seen. Remarkably, when viewed from the My Son valley, the summit of Mount Chua resembled a giant Garuda bird spreading its wings, as depicted in Cham legend.

Mr. Le Van Minh, Head of the Conservation Department (My Son Cultural Heritage Management Board), has climbed Mount Chua many times to survey and explore . From the sacred valley to this holy mountain peak, every place is associated with a mysterious story passed down by the locals from generation to generation.

According to Mr. Minh, this sacred mountain is called Mount Chua because it is larger and taller than all the surrounding mountains. From the summit of Mount Chua, looking in a straight line, you can see the My Son temple complex, the ancient capital of Tra Kieu, the ancient town of Hoi An, and Cu Lao Cham island. All five of these famous landmarks lie on a straight line. "More accurately, it's a straight axis connecting the end point, Cu Lao Cham far offshore, to the starting point, the summit of Mount Chua. This proves that the ancient Champa people carefully considered feng shui before laying the foundation for the My Son temple complex," Mr. Minh said.

In Champa inscriptions, the sacred mountain Mahaparvata symbolizes the god Shiva. The Thu Bon River (or Mahanadi) is the sacred river symbolizing the goddess Ganga (wife of Shiva). The summit of Mount Chua was considered by the Champa people as a natural "lighthouse" to determine coordinates when sailing. Furthermore, foreign merchant ships traveling on the South China Sea, if they wanted to stop at the ancient land of Amaravati to get fresh water or dock at Cua Dai, would use this mountain peak as a landmark to determine their location.

"From Cu Lao Cham, Mount Chua resembles a giant bamboo shoot. In the opposite direction, Cu Lao Cham is considered a natural screen for My Son. The Cham people were right to view this mountain as a lighthouse, because when standing on Cu Lao Cham, you can see its peak," Mr. Minh explained.

My Son Sanctuary, with the peak of Mount Chua faintly visible in the background.

Many thrilling stories

According to the elders, on the night before the annual Thu Bon Goddess Festival (12th day of the 2nd lunar month), a fire often flies from the top of Chua Mountain to the Thu Bon Goddess Mausoleum (in Duy Tan commune, Duy Xuyen district), about 1 km as the crow flies from the mountaintop. Furthermore, in some years when the villagers were starving, a sacred cow from the valley of the gods came out carrying a lot of gold to help them…

Around Mount Chua, locals still tell the story of Governor Cao Bien (from China) who once rode a kite to the mountaintop to perform a ritual to ward off evil spirits, fearing that the geographical features of Quang Nam would produce heroes. Many also describe a bright red, circular mark with a square center on the protruding cliff face… But according to Mr. Le Van Minh, a flycam survey revealed no such mark. "Actually, the mark that people are talking about is just the trace left by rainwater flowing through cracks in the rocks. It's possible this is just a story fabricated by the locals," Mr. Minh stated.

In the past, the elders also recounted that halfway up Mount Chua lay the Lady's Garden, filled with various fruit trees, fragrant flowers, and exotic plants. The Lady's Garden was believed to be where the Cham people cultivated fruit trees to offer to the gods. Anyone who wandered into that garden and picked fruit to eat had to leave the seeds behind; they were not allowed to take the fruit home.

If, upon returning, someone recounts what they saw to others, they will be silenced (!). The story of the hunter is still being passed down. Long ago, while chasing prey, he got lost on Mount Chua. In the evening, hungry and thirsty, he came across an orchard laden with fruit and a cool, clear lake. After eating and drinking to his heart's content, the hunter found his way back and told the story to the villagers. A few days later, the hunter became silenced, fell ill, and died after 3 months and 10 days. According to the villagers' explanation, this was because the hunter was punished by the owner of the orchard for taking fruit seeds from Mount Chua with him down the mountain. "Currently, through surveys, we see that the area believed to be the 'Goddess's Garden' has very few fruit trees remaining. It's possible that due to the 'purification' process of nature, the forest trees have become stronger and have overwhelmed these fruit trees," Mr. Minh shared.

According to oral traditions, people used to go to the Chua Mountain area to harvest trees to bring home, but due to difficult roads, they stayed for 2-3 days and then encountered a disaster. "These are all just spiritual stories passed down by word of mouth among the people; nothing has been confirmed to this day," Mr. Minh said. (to be continued)

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhung-ngon-nui-thieng-huyen-bi-nui-chua-185240917153735901.htm