Experience Hanfu and Confucian Culture at Qufu Nishan Sacred Land

The joy of ascending heights. The elegance of rites and music. The leisure of a refined lodging. All[...]

The joy of ascending heights. The elegance of rites and music. The leisure of a refined lodging. All are found in Nishan.

Culture transforms people, culture carries the way. The revival of China’s excellent traditional culture is in the best era. Hearing that a thousand Hanfu costumes are available for free at the Nishan Sacred Land in Qufu to welcome the new spring, Migo, who has always been eager to experience Hanfu, can’t sit still and asks her parents to take her to Nishan Sacred Land again to experience the journey through time, dress in Hanfu, understand the connotation of Confucian culture, and worship the sage.

Embark on a path of reverence for Confucianism, and live a life of knowledge and propriety. Naturally, her parents are happy to fulfill their daughter’s request, and they set off.

As the hometown of Confucius and the birthplace of Confucian culture, Nishan Sacred Land in Qufu is just over two hours’ drive from Jinan. Having visited Nishan Sacred Land many times, they still come back again and again, indeed because of its full charm. This charm ranges from the large-scale park design to the magnificent buildings and the rich historical and cultural displays hidden within the architecture, all exquisite and attractive.

The highest 72-meter Confucius statue in the world is shaped according to the positioning of ‘amiable, respectable’, ‘teacher, elder, sage’, standing on the mountain top, leading the cultural space of Nishan Sacred Land. Migo, dressed in her best, with full sincerity and respect, worships the sage and hangs her new spring wish tag at the prayer place next to the statue, hoping that her wishes will certainly come true.

The University Hall is the most magnificent building in Nishan Sacred Land, a perfect combination of Confucian wisdom and modern architectural art. Entering the ‘Jixian’ hall, the ‘Way of the Great Learning’ is seen, with eighty-one steps forming a path, with eternal candles on both sides, representing Confucius raising the way of life. The ceremony of the ‘Way of the Great Learning’ is divided into the initial step, the second step, the third step, and the final step, which are the way of moderation, the way of benevolence, the way of goodness, and the way of integrity.

From the Pan Water Bridge to the Supreme Square, from the establishment of the door to the golden sound and jade vibration, Migo measures the steps of the sage with her own feet. The higher she goes, the more humble and respectful she feels in her heart. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and the heart goes where it wants to.

Through the solemn ceremony, Migo and her mother follow the steps of the master of ceremonies, using philosophy as a ladder, climbing step by step, following from shallow to deep, and witnessing the grand temple buildings where tourists are quiet, as if they have traveled back to the profound space of Confucian thought, involuntarily recalling and feeling.

Climbing up the steps of the high mountain, opposite the gate in the center, the ‘Way of the Great Learning’ that Confucius followed throughout his life is hanging high, written on the wall: ‘The way of the great learning is to illuminate virtue, to be close to the people, and to stop at the ultimate good.’ This is the pursuit of the three main goals and eight items of Confucianism, and it is also the key to opening the door to Confucianism. Everyone who comes here will follow this ladder of cultivation step by step, entering the hall and understanding the profound meaning of Confucian classics.

The Seventy-two Sages Corridor, with a depth of a hundred meters and a height of sixteen meters, is particularly spectacular. Two rows of tall statues come to the face, and seeing these vividly carved clay sculptures, it seems that you can hear them discussing the principles of benevolence, or the policies of governing the country. There are elders teaching patiently, or children listening to the book with their heads tilted, just walking, but it feels like they have returned to that time.

You can also enjoy the performance of drum and sheng here, and the elegant ancient music brings thoughts back to a thousand years ago. The se is a traditional Chinese plucked string instrument, and the sheng is a traditional ancient Chinese wind instrument. This is a very high etiquette, used to express the joy of marriage or respect for guests. Listening to such elegant music, walking in the corridor, looking at the sculptures of the sages, it feels as if you have become a member of them and can talk with them.

Speaking of Confucius, one must not leave ‘benevolence’. The largest Ren Hall in the University Hall is centered on this idea. Here, every day, the shocking ‘Return to Benevolence’ light show is staged, with exquisitely designed sound, light, and electricity, whichThe charm of Confucianism is a moment in a thousand years. The harmony of ancient and modern, the interweaving of sound, light, and electricity are all in front of the eyes.

The eternal green, the true meaning of Nishan Sacred Land is here. The world returns to benevolence, and the words are forgotten between the pen and the paper. You can get a pen and a copybook here, read the Analects, copy the classics, accompanied by elegant ancient music, and calm down to trace the characters, and the heart will be quiet in an instant.

‘Righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trust’ four halls surround the Ren Hall, and also represent the four directions of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise. Whether it is murals, roofs, or sculptures, every design reflects the content of Confucius’s thoughts. Migo, dressed in gorgeous Hanfu, walks through each hall, and the camera changes to a wide-angle lens, and all kinds of colors are good-looking in photos.

After satisfying the shock of vision and hearing, of course, you also have to make some exquisite small items by hand. In the Hundred Crafts Workshop, Migo, dressed in Hanfu, is sitting and experiencing one of the many hand-made projects here, movable type printing, oil roller ink, attached to a piece of Xuan paper, topological light hammer, and in a short time, a movable type version of the Analects famous sentences is obtained. Under the sunset, like being surrounded by the infinite warmth of the classics. There are many projects in the Hundred Crafts Workshop, such as hand-painted round fans, wooden New Year paintings, paper-cut printing projects, especially children must be unable to refuse to like, and must come to experience.

Located in the first floor of the University Hall, the grand ceremony performance ‘Golden Sound and Jade Vibration’ is being performed now. ‘Ji Dacheng also, golden sound and jade vibration also.’ Golden sound also, the beginning of order also; jade vibration also, the end of order also. The beginning of order is the affair of wisdom; the end of order is the affair of sainthood. The Phoenix comes to the ceremony to open the prelude, and a ‘from ordinary to saint’ life drama is slowly told.

The undulating stage design and the perfect combination of sound, light, and electricity show the whole process of life from childhood, learning in school, youth, starting a family, building a career, retiring, teaching, and aging, which makes people immersed in the deep touch of Confucian culture and the inheritance of Chinese culture. Migo watches with unwavering eyes, also laughing and frowning, for children, such a concentrated life drama should bring some insights.

Nishan Sacred Land is wonderful, but besides here, there is also a place that must not be missed, Nishan Academy Hotel, which is also a place that our family will choose to stay every time. Gray tiles, yellow walls, red columns, wooden fences, bamboo forests, and deep courtyards. It is said that the elegance of lodging should have the Nishan Academy Hotel.

Walking here, the two-courtyard system, light tile roofs, exquisite screens, transparent glass, and wooden grilles that blend with the sunlight, as if you have come to the Tao Yuanming’s ‘Tao Yuanming’, fresh air is full of quiet valleys, wearing gorgeous Hanfu here to welcome the New Year, which is the best.

Knock on the wooden door, push the door into the courtyard, and the Zen life begins. Each room is a separate courtyard, decorated with new Chinese style, with a full set of wooden furniture for tables and chairs, and all the details of ink, paper, and inkstone are also complete, and you can write at any time when you are in the mood. It is like a quiet and beautiful farming village, a place to indulge in the city’s hustle and bustle.

The path is secluded, with birds and flowers, clear streams, laughter and joy, and time is beautiful.

Walking through the houses, following the stream of water upstream, on the hillside, by the spring of the Virgin Mother, the book bar, take a moment to read, and suddenly the time has a different way of opening. From the soul to the body, taste the quiet mountains and the emptiness, far away from the city’s hustle and bustle, in front of you is a poetic tranquility.

Wearing a Hanfu, draped in a cloak, walking in winter, dreaming back to a thousand years. Do you also want to light up the beauty of this new spring like Migo? As long as you come to Nishan Sacred Land on New Year’s Day, a thousand Hanfu costumes are waiting for you to wear for free, and the colorful experience is waiting for you to come, to play well, to take beautiful photos, to live well,