‘No Talents Emerge from Hainan, No Doors to the Dragon Gate’ - A Lament

The temple in Wenchang enshrines Confucius, it is the first county school in Wenchang, it is also the first Confucius temple in Hainan. According to historical records, the temple was built in the Song Dynasty during the reign of Emperor Qianglie in the second year of the Qianglie dynasty (1042), and rebuilt in Ming Hongwu 8th year (1375), it has been renovated more than 30 times, well preserved its original layout, it is a sacred place for Hainan Confucianism, it is called ‘the first temple in Hainan’.

'"'",“”

”'600

The Confucius Temple has a quaint and antique Ming and Qing Dynasty architecture, and the Confucian atmosphere has deeply influenced every generation of Wenchang people.

There is a 'Sacred Gate' in the temple, which is also called the 'Treasure Gate'. It is made of four stone pillars. It symbolizes that Confucius descended from the stars to educate the people and benefit future generations, and to respect Confucius is to respect heaven. It also symbolizes that Confucius could communicate with the heavenly stars and educate talents, compared to the Heavenly Stars, which means that all Confucian scholars and gentlemen gather here, unified under Confucianism.

There is a ancient well at the bridge, called ‘Sacred Spring’. The water in the well is clear and sweet, it has never dried up for hundreds of years, and it is still sweet, every mid-term examination and college entrance examination time, students will come to worship Confucius, they will gently lift the clear spring and drink it, drinking the ‘Sacred Spring’ to pray for inspiration and fluent writing.

The ‘Virtuous Cloud Bridge’ was built more than 600 years ago. It was originally called ‘Step-Dragon Bridge’, which means to step on the dragon’s back to ascend to heaven; later, people called it ‘Merit-Prize Bridge’, which means only those who have achieved success in the imperial examination could pass through the bridge to worship Confucius. Now, countless students like to walk across the bridge to worship Confucius and pray for academic progress.

Confucius’s teaching is like the reconstruction of the Wenchang Confucius Temple in 1993, which was donated by Malaysian overseas Chinese, it is placed in the front court of the Great Completion Gate. Confucius wears a Confucian hat, with broad sleeves and a belt, with his face slightly tilted forward, his hair and beard fluttered, his body leaned slightly forward, with a bow gesture, humble and respectful, Confucian and elegant. It shows that Confucius has no distinction between people and is diligent in educating people.

The ‘Great Completion Gate’ is called ‘Sacred Gate’, the gate is 13.7 meters high, and the eight pillars are 7.2 meters high and 45 cm in diameter, which have been standing firmly for hundreds of years. There are Confucius shrine, statue, emblem, four allied spirits, and couplets inside. There are also the imperial edicts of the Qing Emperor, the Jiaqing Emperor, the Xifeng Emperor, and the Qianlong Emperor, which are all golden-inscribed red banners hanging in the temple. During the late Ming dynasty, nearby houses collapsed due to the earthquake, but the Great Completion Gate remained intact.

In the back courtyard of the Great Completion Gate, there is a ‘Monument to the Sages’, which is illustrated with text and images, telling the life story of Confucius. Confucius initiated the custom of private teaching, and he is the founder of the Confucian school.

Confucius once led a part of his disciples to travel throughout the sixteen states, and he revised the Six Classics in his later years. It is said that he had 3000 disciples, 72 of whom were disciples of the 72 virtuous men, and people later compiled Confucius’s sayings and thoughts into the Confucian classics, namely the ‘Analects’.

The ‘Sacred Hall’ was built in the early years of the Qing Jiaqing ninth year (1804), it is a hall for collecting and reading ancient poems, consulting classic Confucian texts and works, it is divided into two parts, upper and lower halls. Now, there are about 130,000 books in the treasure hall, except for the Four Classics, the most important Confucian texts, there are also local ancient works.

The ‘Sacred Gate’ is also called ‘Dragon Gate’. It was built in the early years of the Qing Jiaqing ninth year (1804), there are two dragons intertwined on it, which means to step on the dragon’s back to ascend to heaven. It is said that people in Wenchang used to make a vow, ‘No merit-prize winners come from the Dragon Gate’ ; later, because Wenchang had never produced a merit-prize winner, the position of the Dragon Gate in Wenchang also didn’t open, so Wenchang Confucius Temple became the only temple in China without a south-facing door, only two side doors.

“”'"

'"”““”

Ticket: 15 yuan.

(Shot on March 25, 2019, Wenchang Confucius Temple)

12357

15

2019325