Notes on Visiting the Confucian Temple of Yuelu Mountain Academy

One day, I took advantage of my lunch break on business 1 more hours, and went to visit Yuelu Mountain Academy hungry. It happened that a book I read a while ago frequently mentioned the architecture of Yuelu Mountain Academy, which tickled my heart. It was nine years ago when I first came here. I hardly remember anything. Not long after entering, I saw the archway leading to the Confucian Temple. I sneaked in and found the layout of the Confucius Temple in the book in front of my eyes. I turned around excitedly. Unfortunately, time was limited and I didn't even take a good photo. But I still want to learn and record.

Among the celebrity temples, the Confucius Temple or the Confucian Temple has the highest specifications and the largest number, and it is dedicated to Confucius, because the ancient ritual system stipulates that whenever there is a school, Confucius should be sacrificed. Confucianism founded by Confucius was promoted to national orthodoxy, and Confucius was honored as "the teacher of saints". The ritual system stipulates that Confucius Temple or Confucius Temple enjoys the royal architectural grade. Therefore, in addition to royal buildings such as the Forbidden City, we can see red walls and yellow tiles, and in Confucius temples all over the country, we can also see the most upscale colors of ancient buildings in China.

Figure: Typical royal colors.

The architectural layout, specifications and even names of Confucian temples are basically unified, but of course a few Confucian temples have been modified. The main buildings of the Confucian Temple are Zhaobi, Chi Pan, Lingxingmen, Left and Right Archways, Dachengmen, Dacheng Hall, Left and Right Wing Rooms, Temple Worship or Temple Opening. , forming a complete building complex.

Photo: Layout of the Confucian Temple (forgive me for painting slag on the car)

Let's talk about the wall. Generally, there is no door in front of the Confucius Temple, and the front is the zhaobi, also called "Wan Ren Palace Wall". This name comes from the Analects of Confucius and is used to describe the incredible knowledge of Confucius' virtue. The same is true of the Confucian Temple in Yuelu Mountain. There is no main entrance, and a statue of Confucius stands in front of the zhaobi, which adds a little silence to the whole courtyard under the shadow of a leafy old tree.

Photo: Confucius statue in front of the wall

The Confucian Temple can only be accessed from the archways on the east and west sides. The archway in the east is called "Depei Tiandi" and the archway in the west is called "Daoguan Ancient and Modern", which is unified throughout the country. The inside of the archway of Confucian Temple in Yuelu Academy is engraved with "Shengqu" and "Xianguan" respectively, and some Confucian temples may be printed with "Ritual Gate" and "Lu Yi". The zhaobi and archway of the Confucian Temple in Yuelu Academy are buildings of Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Photo: the archway in the west ~ Taoist temple in ancient and modern times.

Here, I don't see the shadow of Chi Pan and Lingxingmen, which are unique to the Confucian Temple mentioned in the book. Dacheng Gate is facing the wall. Outside Dacheng Gate, there are a pair of little stone lions, a male and a female, with lovely expressions.

Photo: The courtyard stands on the steps and takes photos forward.

Inside Dacheng Gate is Dacheng Hall, and the quadrangle composed of Dacheng Gate, Dacheng Hall and wings on both sides is the central building of the Confucian Temple. At first glance, it is really a strong "palace style", which is in sharp contrast with the ink painting style academy separated by a wall. The name "Dacheng" comes from the Mencius language "Confucius called it comprehensive achievement".

Photo: Dachengmen

Dacheng Hall is a peak with double eaves, and the kiss on the roof is ethereal and light, showing the romantic temperament of southern architecture. In the middle of the stone steps in front of the temple, there is a dragon carving Dan Yong, which once again shows the extremely high status of the Confucian temple, and only the emperor's buildings can be used.

Photo: Close-up of Dacheng Hall

There is a plaque in the temple that has been a teacher for generations, and a statue of Confucius with the image of a scholar in cloth hangs on the wall. There are also a few statues of Confucius in the Confucius Temple, which are shaped into the image of the emperor. In some Confucius temples, the statues of Confucius are not molded, but memorial tablets are enshrined according to the traditional ancestral temple practice in China.

There is also a temple behind Dacheng Hall, called "Worship Temple" or "Revelation Temple", which is dedicated to Confucius' parents or five generations of ancestors. The "filial piety" in Confucianism is also reflected here. Yuelushan Academy also has a shrine, but time is limited, so I won't say much.

Photo: Overlooking Dacheng Hall

Finally, talk about the age of the Confucian Temple in Yuelu Academy. In the Northern Song Dynasty, there was an auditorium dedicated to Confucius in front of the lecture hall of the Academy. In the first year of Southern Song Dynasty (1 167), it was changed to Xuansheng Temple, which was Hongzhi for eighteen years (1505), renamed Dacheng Hall, and moved to the left side of the academy (1507). Destroyed by war during the Anti-Japanese War, some buildings were later restored./kloc-0 restored Dacheng Hall in the 1980s, and/kloc-0 restored Dacheng Gate in the 1990s. In 2003-2004, Chongsheng Temple and Minglun Temple, which had been destroyed for many years, were designed and rebuilt.

Photo: Standing on the edge of the yard in front of Dacheng Gate.

When visiting, there were not many people. Occasionally two or three people pass by. On a cloudy day, looking up, I feel that I have integrated into this quiet courtyard, surrounded by green hills and ancient trees and rivers, and the tourists remain silent tacitly, as if they were impressed and respected by the Millennium culture. As I paced, I imagined the changes of the four seasons here. Suddenly, the atmosphere was broken by the noise coming from the side. A woman is holding a mobile phone and speaking nonstandard Mandarin aggressively. The content is nothing more than bargaining in business. A girl in a yellow skirt can't stand it anymore, muttering, you can go home and do business! This scene was really dramatic, so I quickly went out and continued to go to the academy. On the way, I looked down at my black suit, which was so out of place with the atmosphere here. I hope I can put on a comfortable cotton skirt and wander around for an afternoon in this Millennium.

Photo: Students hand-painted postcards.

Write about the college next time.