Temple of Heaven facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Temple of Heaven |
|
|---|---|
Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, the largest building in the Temple of Heaven
|
|
| Location | Dongcheng, Beijing, China |
| Area | 2.73 km2 (1.05 sq mi) |
| Built | 1406–1420 (Ming dynasty) |
| Official name: Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing | |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | i, ii, iii |
| Designated | 1998 (22nd session) |
| Reference no. | 881 |
| Region | Asia-Pacific |
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Temple of Heaven | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg)
"Temple of Heaven" in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
|
|||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 天坛 | ||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 天壇 | ||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | "Altar of Heaven" | ||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||
The Temple of Heaven (simplified Chinese: 天坛; traditional Chinese: 天壇; pinyin: Tiāntán) is a group of old buildings in central Beijing, China. It was a very important place for the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. They visited it every year to pray to Heaven for good harvests.
This amazing place became a World Heritage site in 1998. It was called a "masterpiece of architecture and landscape design." Its special design also influenced many buildings in the Far East for hundreds of years.
Contents
History of the Temple of Heaven
_Nebeski_hram_~_1898..jpg)
The Temple of Heaven was built between 1406 and 1420. This was during the time of the Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He also built the famous Forbidden City in Beijing.
Later, in the 16th century, the Jiajing Emperor made the complex bigger and gave it the name "Temple of Heaven." He also built three other important temples in Beijing. These were the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of Earth, and the Temple of Moon.
The temple was fixed up again in the 18th century by the Qianlong Emperor. After that, there wasn't enough money for more big repairs during the time of the emperors.
In the past, the temple was sometimes taken over by foreign armies. In 1900, during the Boxer Rebellion, a group of eight nations used the temple as their base for a year. After the Qing dynasty ended, the temple was not cared for. Some of its buildings even fell apart.
In 1914, Yuan Shikai, who was the President of China, held a special prayer ceremony at the temple. He was trying to become the Emperor of China himself. In 1918, the temple became a public park. This was the first time ordinary people could visit it.
Buildings and Design
The Temple of Heaven covers a huge area of about 2.73 square kilometers. It has three main groups of buildings. All of them were built with very specific ideas about the universe in mind.
- The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿) is a beautiful round building. It has three roofs and is 36 meters wide and 38 meters tall. It stands on three levels of white marble stone. Here, the Emperor prayed for good harvests. This building is made entirely of wood, without any nails! The original building burned down in 1889 because of lightning. The one you see today was rebuilt a few years later.
- The Imperial Vault of Heaven (皇穹宇) is a smaller round building with one roof. It is south of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. It looks similar but is smaller. A smooth, round wall called the Echo Wall surrounds it. If you whisper at one end, someone far away on the wall can hear you! The Imperial Vault is connected to the Hall of Prayer by the Vermilion Steps Bridge. This is a 360-meter-long raised walkway that gently goes uphill.
- The Circular Mound Altar (圜丘坛) is an open, round platform. It has three levels of marble stones, decorated with carved dragons. The number nine is very important here. Many parts of the altar, like its steps, are in groups of nine. The very center of the altar has a round stone called the Heart of Heaven. The Emperor prayed here for good weather. The altar's design helps the sound of prayers echo, making it seem like the prayers reached Heaven. This altar was built in 1530 and rebuilt in 1740.
Important Ceremonies
In ancient China, the Emperor was seen as the Son of Heaven. This meant he was believed to rule the world for Heaven. It was very important for him to show respect to Heaven by offering sacrifices and prayers. The Temple of Heaven was built for these special ceremonies, mostly to pray for good harvests.
Twice a year, the Emperor and his many helpers would travel from the Forbidden City to the temple. They wore special robes and did not eat meat. No ordinary person was allowed to watch this procession or the ceremony. Inside the temple, the Emperor would personally pray to Heaven. The most important ceremony happened during the winter. It was believed that even a small mistake during the ceremony would bring bad luck to the whole country.
Hidden Meanings and Symbolism
The design of the Temple of Heaven is full of symbols. A square shape represented the Earth, and a circle represented Heaven. Many parts of the temple show this connection between Heaven and Earth.
The entire temple complex has two walls around it. The outer wall is taller and round at the north end, showing Heaven. It is shorter and square at the south end, showing Earth. Both the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and the Circular Mound Altar are round. They stand on square yards, again symbolizing Heaven and Earth.
The number nine was special for the Emperor. You can see it in the Circular Mound Altar's design. A single round marble plate is surrounded by a ring of nine plates. Then there's a ring of 18 plates, and so on, for a total of nine rings. The very outer ring has 9x9 (81) plates.
The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests has four inner pillars, twelve middle pillars, and twelve outer pillars. These represent the four seasons, twelve months, and twelve traditional Chinese hours. All the buildings in the Temple have dark blue roof tiles, which stand for Heaven.
The Seven-Star Stone Group, near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, represents the seven peaks of Taishan Mountain. This mountain was a very important place for worshipping Heaven in ancient China.
The Park Around the Temple
The park surrounding the Temple of Heaven is very large, covering about 267 hectares. It has playgrounds, exercise areas, and places for games. Many adults, parents, and grandparents bring children here to play. In the mornings, some open spaces are used for singing, traditional dances, and other performances.
How to Visit the Temple
The Temple of Heaven is in the southern part of Dongcheng District in Beijing. The park is open every day from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM. The main buildings inside the park open at 8:00 AM. They close at 5:30 PM from April to October and at 5:00 PM from November to March. There is a small fee to enter, which changes depending on the season. You can buy tickets up to 90 minutes before closing time.
You can reach all four of the park's gates by public transportation:
- East Gate on Tiantan East Road: Beijing Subway Line 5 at Tiantandongmen Station. Many bus routes also stop here.
- West Gate on Tianqiao South Street: Beijing Subway Line 8 at Tian Qiao station. Many bus routes also stop here.
- North Gate on Tiantan Road: Several bus routes stop here.
- South Gate on Yongdingmen East Street: Several bus routes stop here.
See also
In Spanish: Templo del Cielo para niños
- Temple of the Earth, its matching temple in north Beijing
- Temples of the Sun and Moon, in east and west Beijing
- Tian (Heaven) / Shangdi (God)
- Son of Heaven
