In the year after Confucius' death (478 B.C.), King Lu had the sage's residence turned into the Confucius Temple (kong miao). Since then, it has undergone renovation and expansion, the emperors of successive dynasties all competing in their veneration of the great sage. It was not until during the reign of Emperor Yongzheng that the temple took on its current look, containing over 460 halls, altars, towers and pavilions, 54 archways and 13 steles bearing calligraphy by various emperors. Apart from the royal steles, the temple also boasts a variety of others,especially those made in the Han Dynasty.

On entering the temple, the path takes us through a stretch of grassland containing a variety of steles, many held upon the back of stone bixi, turtle like creatures that are alleged to be the offspring of dragons. After a succession of gates the magnificent Kuiwen Pavilion can be found. A place where the emperors performed sacrificial ceremonies, the building is an impressive and unique architectural style of triple layered roofing and curved eves. Through the 13 stele pavilions in the courtyard beyond and continuing north, visitors finally come across the Hall of Great Success (dacheng dian), tucked behind the Apricot Altar in the central part of the temple.

In the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), the Hall of Great Success was a five-room hall called "the Hall of King Wenxuan". In 1104, Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty gave the hall its present name, a partial quote from "the Collection of Mencius' works": Confucius had great success. The double-eaved roof and nine-spine buildings are covered with green and yellow tiles and the columns are made from polished stone and decorated with dragons and clouds. The 28 stone pillars are carved with relief dragons, considered so impressive that they had to be covered by silk on imperial visits, in danger of surpassing the splendour of the Forbidden City. Altogether there are more than 3000 stone carvings in the temple.The words the Hall of Great Success inscribed on the entrance board were written by Emperor Yongzheng. At 48.5m wide, 24.8m high and 45.69m long, the Hall of Great Success is the highest building in the temple and is one of the three biggest ancient halls in China.

Approximately halfway along the north-south axis stands the Great Pavilion of the Constellation of Scholars, a triple-roofed Jin Dynasty (265-420 AD) wooden structure designed for ceremonies. Further north through Dacheng Gate and to the right is a juniper, allegedly planted by Confucius. A little farther away is the small Xintan Pavilion commemorating the place where Confucius is said to have taught under the shade of an apricot tree. At the upper northern end of the temple is Shengjidian, a memorial hall containing a series of stones engraved with scenes from the life of Confucius and tales about him.

How to get there: Located in the center of the city, just up the road from the main bus station, the Temple is easily accessible by foot.
Cost: RMB30.
Opening hours: 8am-5pm.