It would be amazing to backtrack 500 years, and stare at Beijing from a bird¡¯s eye view. At the heart of the then-new Capital of China, lies the Forbidden City, center of power of the empire under the Ming rule. The Temple of Heaven, where emperors mediate with the gods, stands 3 miles south. To the west and southeast, unfurling to the horizon line, the ramshackle neighborhoods, commercial routes, and the Grand Canal on which the economy of the empire relies. And amid all this, the Temple of Confucius, the great educator of ancient China whose influence on the Chinese culture is as profound as it is far-reaching. Five hundred years ago, the Temple was, as scholars saw it at the time, the nation¡¯s educational and cultural hub.
Confucious Tempple
It was a refreshing, early spring day when I trod in a walk to the Confucius Temple on Guozijian St., a renowned touring site within the 2nd Ring road. I invite you to follow my footsteps closely.
If you take Subway line #2, get off at the ANDINGMEN station. Exit through exit C or D, step out on ANDINGMEN NEIDAJIE (Andingmen Inner St.).
Along the way which leads you to Guozijian, note the joyful parade of shops, and the ancient character of the neighborhood. Right off the subway station, a large Chinese tripod cannot but intrigue you. In ancient China, a tripod meant peace and stability. Hence the name of the station, ANDINGMEN. Two hundred meters away, you reach the intersection with Guozijian St. on the left.
The temple lies close to the street entrance, almost emerging from out of nowhere along this leafy avenue. Confucius lived in an age when education was a privilege reserved to the children of dignitaries. He challenged the status quo by advocating universal education. The tall gate straddling the road near the temple pays homage to the man and his deeds. As history accounts tell us, all government officials had to step off their horses or sedan chair to walk while passing the gate. Even the emperor was not exempt from this form of humility, and had to show his reverence to the great educator.
The Temple is protected by a high-wall enclosure which shields it from the outside world. As the gatekeeper greets you, you enter a mystical, ecstatic refuge. An enchanting music wafts in the air. Memorial towers occupy much of the ground, and the cypress trees lend a sense of age to the whole site. The statue of Confucius stands on a white marble base, set in a humble posture. At its foot, piles of offerings from worshippers.
Confucius lived during the late Spring and Autumn Period (770 ¨C 476 BC), over 2500 years ago. Born in a declining aristocratic family, he was fully educated in public affairs. He held a public office in his home state of Lu, but found no excitement in it and decided to switch to another career ¨C that of educator.
Confucius traveled throughout China, and taught students from all walks of life: fishermen, merchants, peasant farmers, officials. He is said to have taught to as many as 3,000 students, many of whom later became eminent generals, successful merchants, and renowned scholars.
He also worked on compiling books, which became classics. Until some 50 years ago, students would read and be instructed in these textbooks.
In the Hall of Da Cheng (Hall of Ultimate Accomplishment) in the main courtyard, you will see wood signs of Confucius and accomplished Confucian disciples. Above your head, a wood tablet reading: The Way to Build a Harmonious World.
Moderate in character, Confucianism offers us a wise vision of society at large, capable of healing the pains arising from intolerance and hatred which rattle our world one civilization after another. Confucius believed in humanity, and repeated with Buddhism that we should not do onto others what we don¡¯t want others do onto us.
Confucius was a successful educator. He emphasized the duties and obligations of an Emperor to his subjects, and promoted tolerance and mutual care among people. His doctrine appealed to later emperors of China, who made it as the official doctrine to be studied in schools and government offices, a requirement to taking imperial examinations. Confucianism inspired the Chinese culture and the climate in which it thrived, to form ultimately the core of that culture.
Perhaps a more telling evidence of this is the tablets you can see near the entrance inside the temple. These are 190 stone tablets carved with 13 Confucius classic works, official textbooks every student would have to learn before taking the imperial examinations.
The Jinshi Examination, or Keju, concluded by an imperial examination in the country¡¯s capital, was a 3-phase process to select Jinshi scholars from all over the country. Scholars who passed the examination would soon be awarded a public office. In a society which put much emphasis on the glory and dignity ¨C and along with them, the wealth one can thus bring to his family, many scholars deemed this career as the definition of success. The examinations called for many years of hard study. Among tens of thousands of participants each year, only the cr¨¨me de la cr¨¨me could pass. In the Temple, another 198 tablets carved with the names of Jinshi scholars who passed the imperial examinations during the Qing, the Ming, and part of the Yuan dynasties, are the footprints left by those successful dream-pursuers.
To leave you on a lively note before you exit the Temple, do not miss the Yanshui Well, so named by a Qing emperor. As the tale goes, the water in the well can inspire one in his writings during the imperial examinations. Of course, I scoop a small bottle of mine. The gift shops and prayer tags will also tell your family and friends that you left your footprints on revered ground.
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