Confucius Temple (Main Temple)
Confucius Temple (Main Temple) is located in the south gate of Qufu City, Shandong Province. It is the first temple to worship Confucius, with a longitude of 116°58'30"- ---35°36'42” north latitude. It was first built in 478 BC, using the former residence of Confucius as a temple and built to the specifications of an imperial palace. It is one of the three major ancient building complexes in my country and occupies an important position in the history of world architecture. Qufu Confucius Temple is the main temple dedicated to Confucius. It is the first and model of more than 2,000 Confucius temples distributed in China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, the United States and other countries. It is said that the Confucius Temple was built in 478 BC, after Confucius died. In the second year (478 BC), Duke Ai of Lu converted his former residence into a temple. Since then, successive emperors have continued to consecrate Confucius and expand the temple. In the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Yongzheng ordered major repairs and expansion to a modern scale. There are nine courtyards in the temple, with the north and south as the central axis, divided into three roads: left, middle and right. It is 630 meters long and 140 meters wide. It has more than 460 halls, halls, altars and pavilions, and 54 gates. There are 13 "Imperial Stele Pavilions", more than 100 various buildings, more than 460 rooms, and a huge building complex covering an area of ??about 95,000 square meters. The Holy Relics Hall, the Thirteen Stele Pavilions and the east and west verandas of the Dacheng Hall in the Confucius Temple display a large number of stone inscriptions. In particular, the number of Han steles preserved here is the largest in the country. There are also many treasures in the past dynasties. The number of inscriptions is only Second to the Forest of Steles in Xi'an, it is known as the second Forest of Steles in my country. The Confucius Temple is the largest existing ancient building complex in China second only to the Forbidden City. It can be regarded as a model of large-scale temple architecture in ancient China.
The overall design of the Confucius Temple is very successful. There is a Shinto in front, with junipers planted on both sides, creating a solemn atmosphere and cultivating the reverence of those who visit the temple. The main body of the temple runs through a central axis, with symmetry on the left and a rigorous layout. There are nine entrances to the courtyard from the front and back. The first three entrances are guiding courtyards with only some smaller doorways. The courtyard is planted with rows of pines and cypresses, which block out the sun with thick shade, creating an environment that makes people pure and peaceful. The tall and tall ancient cypress trees A deep corridor has been opened between the cypresses, which not only makes people feel the long history of the Confucius Temple, but also highlights the profound thoughts of Confucius. The plaques posted high above the gates extol the achievements of Confucius, leaving a strong impression on people and making them feel admiration. After entering the fourth courtyard, the majestic buildings, yellow tiles, red walls, and green trees complement each other, which not only symbolizes the profoundness of Confucius' thoughts, but also the great achievements of Confucius. The height of 166 meters also indicates the long history of Confucianism.
The ancient building area of ??Confucius Temple is about 16,000 square meters. The main buildings include the Jin-Yuan Stele Pavilion, Ming Dynasty Kuiwen Pavilion, Xing Tan, Dejiu Tiandi Square, etc., and the Dacheng Hall and Dormitory Hall rebuilt in the Qing Dynasty. The large wooden structure of Jinjin Pavilion has many characteristics of the Song Dynasty. The dougongs are sparse and clear, the lengths of melon-seed gongs, linggongs, and slow arches increase in sequence. Six pavilions are skipped by two pavilions. The appearance of the pillar paving and the tween paving are the same. The combination of the main hall and courtyard surrounded by verandas is a rare example of the closed ancestral temple form commonly used in the Song and Jin Dynasties. Dacheng Hall, Dormitory Hall, Kui Wen Gong, Xing Tan, Dacheng Gate and other buildings adopt a mixed structure of wood and stone, which is also a relatively rare form. The arrangement and details of the dougongs are flexible. According to the needs, the number, density and length of the dougongs of each room are different. In order to make up for the visual vacancy, the side gongs, ten thousand gongs and melon gongs are even lengthened. Two adjacent dougongs in the same building have different lengths, and the lengths of the two sides of the same stigma are very different. This is a unique approach to Confucian temple architecture.
The Confucius Temple preserves 1,044 inscriptions from all dynasties since the Han Dynasty. There are records of feudal emperors pursuing posthumous titles, bestowing titles, worshiping Confucius, and building Confucius temples. There are also poems and inscriptions of emperors, generals, ministers, and scholars visiting the temple. The texts include Chinese, Mongolian, Pasiba and Manchu scripts are written in real cursive and official seal scripts. They are precious historical materials for studying feudal social politics, economy, culture and art. There are more than 20 Han steles and Han Dynasty inscriptions among the inscriptions. It is the place with the largest number of Han Dynasty inscriptions preserved in China. The Yiying Stele, the Ritual Vessel Stele, the Kongqi Stele, and the Shichen Stele are representative works of the Han Dynasty, while the Zhang Menglong Stele and the Jia Shijun Stele are models of the Wei style. In addition, there are calligraphy works by Sun Shifan, Mi Fu, Dang Huaiying, Zhao Mengfu, Zhang Qiyan, Li Dongyang, Dong Qichang, Weng Fanggang and others, inscriptions by Yuan Haowen, Guo Zijing and others, and a large calligraphy series of 584 stones by Kong Jishu. Yuhonglou Dharma stickers, etc. The Confucius Temple inscriptions are a treasure trove of ancient Chinese calligraphy art.
The famous stone carving artworks in the Confucius Temple include Han Dynasty portrait stones, Ming and Qing carved stone pillars, and Ming and Ming carved sacred sites.
There are more than 90 stone portraits of the Han Dynasty, with a wide range of themes, including records of people's social life and reflections of historical stories, myths and legends. There are various carving techniques, including line carving and relief carving. Line carving can be reduced, scratched, plain or line carving. Relief carving can be deep or shallow, smooth or rough. The style may be rigorous and delicate, or bold and rough, with smooth lines and graceful shapes. There are a total of seventy-four carved stone pillars in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, of which fifty-six are carved on the ground and eighteen are carved in high relief. Most of the engraved patterns on the ground are small clouds, dragons, phoenixes and peonies. They were inscribed in the seventh year of Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty. Peonies, pomegranates, lotus and other flowers are carved in Chongsheng Temple. The composition is beautiful and they are relics of the seventeenth year of Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty. The exquisite stone carvings are relief dragon pillars; the ten pillars on the front eaves of Dacheng Temple are the tallest, with each pillar being six meters high. The two pillars of the Chongsheng Temple are the highest in level with their vigorous dragon postures and lively cloud shapes. In addition, the bas-relief Yunlong Shibi at Shengshimen, Dachengmen and Dacheng Hall also have high artistic value. The holy relic was added to the Song and Jin woodcuts of the Confucius Temple in the 20th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1592). It was painted by Mao Fengyi Huixiao, a Confucian student from Qufu, Yang Zhi from Yangzhou, and the stone was painted on the stone by Suzhou stone masonry. There are 120 paintings. It vividly reflects the life deeds of Confucius. It is one of the earlier large-scale comic strips in my country and has high historical and artistic value. For more than two thousand years, the Confucius Temple in Qufu has been destroyed and renovated, but has never been abandoned. Under the protection of the state, it has developed from a private residence of Confucius into a huge building complex with a scale and shape similar to that of an imperial palace. Over time, it has been recorded Feng can be said to be an isolated example in the history of human architecture.