A very unique structure located in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, is known for its iconic temple, Mot Cot pagoda, aka One Pillar pagoda. It is a historic Buddhist temple that was built by Emperor Ly Thai Tong, 1028-1054. Legend said Ly Thai Tong was childless and dreamt that he met the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, who handed him a baby son while seated on a lotus flower. He then married a peasant girl who then bore him a son. Having been told by a monk names Thien Tue, the emperor constructed the temple in gratitude for this in 1049. Mot Cot pagoda was built by erecting a pillar in the middle of a lotus pond, similar to the one he saw in the dream. The temple is built of wood on a single stone pillar 1.25 m in diameter and 4 m in height, and it is designed to resemble a lotus blossom, which is a Buddhist symbol of purity. Before the pagoda was opened, prayers were held for the longevity of the monarch. A Buddha-bathing ceremony was held annually by the monarch, it attracted monks and laymen alike to the ceremony. The monarch would then free a bird, which was followed by the people. In 1954, unfortunately the French Union fouces destroyed the pagoda before withdrawing from Vietnam after the Fiest Indochina War, it was rebuilt afterwards.
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