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Beijing's Temple of Heaven

Another of my many favorite places to visit in Beijing is the Temple of Heaven. It is very different from some of Beijing’s other imperial sites, because it feels like a large public park with amazing architectural wonders sporadically placed throughout. It covers a huge area and most of it is covered with forests of ancient cypresses. I like wandering amongst them. I got to travel there earlier this summer with China Odyssey Tours, the company I work for on an inspection tour.


The Temple of Heaven was where the Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty would go to offer prayers to heaven. It was a huge event because the Emperor believed that his reign was ordained by heaven, so he had to do a lot to appease the heavenly gods. The buildings in the Temple of Heaven are placed quite far apart from each other. The architecture is spectacular and the buildings there are really unique. The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests is the building everyone has seen. It is really spectacular. It was recently restored and looks like it did during the Qing Dynasty. The interior is amazing. Every inch is painted with beautiful designs and dragons are all over the place. Another area, the Imperial Vault of Heaven was where the Emperor’s predecessors’’ spirit tablets were placed and the reigning Emperor would go there to pray to their ancestors. Surrounding the vault is a high round wall. It is called the echo wall because apparently when you stand on one side and whisper, the person standing on the other side can hear your whisper coming from the wall. I am told it really works, but I couldn’t tell because of all the people whispering at the wall. The building is like a shorter version of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. I then checked out the Circular Mount Altar. It is where the main rites to heaven were performed. The area is really impressive. It is a multi tiered platform made entirely of white marble. Everything on it is made in sets of nine. Another area I really enjoyed, which I don’t think many people get to visit because of time is the Hall of Abstinence. It is a huge complex where the Emperor would go to fast before performing the rites. It is a really beautiful area and because it is rarely visited, it is quite quiet and peaceful. It looks like a home with little garden areas and many gates, one after the other which make for amazing photos. It is a great place to take a rest.


When buying tickets I had the choice of buying just an entrance ticket, or an all inclusive ticket. The entrance ticket just lets you into the Temple of Heaven, but not the main sites. The all inclusive ticket lets you into all of the different sites, altars, and temples. Even though the Temple of Heaven is filled with people, it doesn’t really feel like it due to the distances between things. The park is always filled with locals practicing martial arts, playing music, playing with balls and paddles, and just sitting around chatting and watching their children play. The balls and paddles are really cool. The paddle looks like a small racket with a cloth covering. The people use them to throw and catch the ball, but they do it in the most artistic way they can and it is funny to watch old grandmas dancing around with their rackets, catching and throwing the ball around. I was invited to join them, but thought I’d just make a fool out of myself. I did try a type of top that many of the men were playing with. It is kind of like two tops glued together at the pointed end and a string between two sticks is used to spin and throw the top. The top has holes in it which whistle when you get it spinning fast. There was one old man who looked to be in his 80’s who could get that thing to fly so high. I couldn’t get it half as high as he could, which he took great joy in. He was a lot of fun and I talked to him for a while. He said he’d been playing with the top for over 60 years. I guess that would explain it. I met another woman teaching her daughter to play the Pipa. They stopped and offered to play a duet together. I sat on the ground and had my own private concert. I’m not sure if it is the majesty of the place, or the beauty, but the people seem to be so friendly, and unassuming. They treated me like I was an old friend they haven’t seen in a long time.


If you go to Beijing try to make sure you have plenty of time in the Temple of Heaven not just to see the sites, but jut stroll around and enjoy the people. It is a wonderful experience.

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