The To Mieu - A place to worship the Nguyen Dynasty kings

In the Imperial City of Hue, the Nguyen Dynasty kings built five shrines. Among them, The To Temple (often shortened to The Mieu) was built in the second year of Minh Mang (1821) in the "double-sided" architecture, with 11 compartments and two wings in the front yard; nine compartments and two double wings in the main yard.

The most sacred place in Hue Imperial Citadel

Thai To Temple (worshiping 9 Nguyen Lords, from Thai To Gia Du Emperor Nguyen Hoang to Hieu Dinh Vuong Nguyen Phuc Thuan and their wives) is located on the left side of Thai Hoa Palace, in isolated areas surrounded by walls. In addition to the main temples, there are also small temples worshiping meritorious mandarins of the Nguyen Lords.

Altar of Nguyen Dynasty kings in The To Mieu

Among the temples in the Hue Imperial City, The To Temple is the most important. This is the largest temple complex, in addition to the main temple, there are many dependent structures with artistic and historical value such as the Nine Urns; Hien Lam Pavilion (where the merits of the gods, kings and mandarins of the Nguyen Dynasty are honored); Ta and Huu Tung Tu (where the mandarins are worshiped); Canh Bieu Dien (worshiping Confucius, now demolished); Tho Cong Temple. This is also the place that preserves the most complete ancient vestiges compared to other temples in the Hue Imperial City.

Setting up the altar of Nguyen Dynasty kings

In the temple, the altars of the Nguyen Dynasty kings are set up, each king is worshiped in each compartment. The structure of the altars in The To Temple follows the general model of how to set up altars for kings and lords under the Nguyen Dynasty.

According to the Nguyen family law, kings considered "deposed emperors" and "deposed emperors" were not worshiped in this temple, so before 1958, inside The To Temple there were only 7 altars of the following kings: The To Cao Hoang De (King Gia Long) and the 2 queens Thua Thien and Thuan Thien in the middle room. Thanh To Nhan Hoang De (King Minh Mang) and the queen in the leftmost room (first room on the left, counting from the middle room). Hien To Chuong Hoang De (King Thieu Tri) and the queen in the rightmost room (first room on the right, counting from the middle room). Duc Tong Anh Hoang De (King Tu Duc) and the queen in the leftsecond room (second room on the left). Gian Tong Nghi Hoang De (King Kien Phuc) in the rightsecond room (second room on the right). Canh Tong Thuan Hoang De (King Dong Khanh) and the queen in the leftthird room (third room on the left). Emperor Hong Tong Tuyen (King Khai Dinh) and the Queen in the third room on the right.

Place of worship of patriotic kings

In October 1958, the altars of the three patriotic kings who were considered to be former emperors, Ham Nghi, Thanh Thai and Duy Tan, were brought by the Nguyen Phuc Clan Council to be worshiped at The To Temple. Currently, the altar of King Ham Nghi is placed in the fourth room on the left. The altar of King Thanh Thai is placed in the fifth room on the left, and the altar of King Duy Tan is placed in the fourth room on the right. The altars of King Duc Duc, Hiep Hoa and Bao Dai are still not present in The To Temple.

Every year, tourists from all over the world come to enjoy the beautiful scenery, admire the ancient architectural works in Hue Imperial Citadel, and set foot here to worship and learn about a historical period of the country under the reign of the Nguyen Dynasty kings.

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/the-to-mieu-noi-tho-phung-cac-vi-vua-trieu-nguyen-100393.html