19. Temple of Heaven 


Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest
Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest - the icon for BeiJing

Day 14

Our wake-up call was for 6:30 AM and breakfast was at 7:00 AM. We were to be in the lobby by 8:00 AM.

Our local guide told us that the Hotel New Otani was the nicest hotel in BeiJing. From what we experienced, she may be correct. All of the waitresses in the restaurant wore long black dresses with white collars and cuffs and white bib aprons. The pretty young waitress who brought coffee to our table was named Tianxin (say Tyen-SHINg). It means 'sweetheart' or 'honey' -- and she certainly was. Her smile was infectious. 

Groups of women and men did Tai Chi in the beautiful enclosed garden outside the restaurant window while we ate our breakfast. Dressed in satin apparel, they used fans and swords in their routines. 

TaiChi outside the restaurant window

The food was outstanding -- eggs cooked to order using chopsticks, toast without crust, waffles, croissants, rolls, fruit, juices, special dishes for the Japanese and other Asian tourists, etc. Bill was in "breakfast heaven".

BeiJing has many, many modern high-rise apartment buildings. Elevators in these apartment buildings go from the sixth floor up. Those who live on any of the first five floors walk the stairs. Attendants run the elevators until midnight. Those who get home later than midnight walk the stairs, no matter what floor they live on.

Tian An Men Square is the world's largest public square. It is unmistakable -- a gigantic picture of Mao Zedong is displayed there. The plan was to visit there, but it was closed to the public while many groups practiced for National Children's Day -- June 1st. There is no school for the children on that day. 

9-dragon steps
Nine-dragon - an eloquent solution to a simple problem

Temples of various kinds are scattered in Beijing. Well-known are the Temple of Heaven in the south, the Temple of Earth in the north, the Temple of Sun in the east, and the Temple of the Moon in the west. The Temple of Heaven, or Tian Tan, is situated in the Chongwen district -- our bus took us there. 

In ancient china, the emperor was regarded as the Son of Heaven, or TianZi, who administered matters on the earth on behalf of the heavenly authority. To show respect to the heaven, ceremonies for sacrifices to heaven were extremely important to the emperor. The temple was built for the worship of heaven and prayer for good harvests. 

It occupies an area of 273 hectares. Two walls divide the ground into the outer and inner parts. The outer wall is 6,416 meters (21,044 feet) long and the inner wall is 3,292 meters (10,798 feet) long. The northern half is circular and the southern half is square, consistent with the Chinese saying of "Round Heaven and Square Earth". The main buildings on north-south axes are the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest with the Pavilion of Double Ring Longevity on the left clustered at the northern end and the Imperial Vaulted Heaven and Circular Altar at the southern. Four Heavenly Gates were built in the cardinal points.

Corner tower
One of four corner towers, free standing outside outer wall

The 2.5-meter (8 feet) high, 360-meter (1181 feet) long causeway that connects the two parts is called Vermilion Steps Bridge, DanBi Bridge or Sacred Way. A tunnel passes under the path, so it is called a bridge. The southern end of the road is one meter above the ground and the northern end of it is four meters above the ground, thus one will "step upward toward heaven". The central path was reserved for divine gods, the path on the left was reserved for the emperor and the path on the right was used by court officials. 

The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest is a triple-eaved wooden structure with glazed-tiles and colored decorative patterns. It is the most attractive building in the temple and is the symbol of Beijing. It stands 38 meters (125 feet) high and 30 meters (98 feet) in diameter on a triple-tiered circular terrace called the Altar for Grain Prayer. The terrace is edged with marble balustrades carved with dragons, phoenix and clouds. It was constructed without nails, cement or steel rods -- having only wooden mortise and brackets, supported by pillars. The coffered ceiling and the marble slab floor are adorned with dragon and phoenix. 

Hall of Abstinance

Now a park, thousands of people gather here to have fun. They play many kinds of games, dance, sing, play musical instruments or just visit with their friends and relatives. It was a wonderful sight! Wish we could have spent more time here.

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