Harbin Confucius Temple

Harbin Confucius Temple

The Harbin Confucius Temple is a national AAA-level tourist attraction and a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.

The Harbin Confucius Temple is the largest Confucian temple in Northeast China. Located on Dazhi Street East in Nangang District, Harbin, it was initially built in 1926 and completed in 1929. Covering an area of 23,000 square meters with a built-up area of 4,418 square meters, it is the most intact ancient-style building still existing in Heilongjiang. The structure consists of three courtyards aligned from north to south and features a typical architectural style of the Qing Dynasty.

The front courtyard is the first courtyard, where lush pines and cypresses stand and red walls wind around. To the south of the courtyard lies a moon-shaped Pan Pond with a rainbow bridge spanning over it and delicate white marble railings. South of the pond stands the "Ten Thousand Ren Wall" (commonly known as the screen wall), inlaid with glazed carved bricks, measuring 44.80 meters in length and 5.9 meters in height. North of the pond is the Lingxing Gate, a three-bay, four-pillar wooden memorial archway adorned with the imperial-exclusive harmony-red color scheme and topped with yellow glazed tiles on its hip-and-gable roof. On the east and west sides of the courtyard are two archways, together with the Lingxing Gate, collectively referred to as the "Three Arches." Passing through the Lingxing Gate leads to the main courtyard’s entrance hall, the Dacheng Gate, which has five bays, a single-eave glazed tile hip-and-gable roof, and is encircled by white marble railings at the front and back. Flanking it on the left and right are the eastern and western side gates, presenting a well-organized layout. The middle courtyard is the main part of the Confucius Temple. The main hall, the Dacheng Hall, exceeds the Qufu Confucius Temple’s Dacheng Hall in width, which has nine bays, with eleven bays (nine halls and two side chambers) in a double-eave hip-and-gable roof structure. Its platform is also encircled by marble railings, and the corridors are richly decorated in splendid colors, exuding a majestic and solemn aura. The hall enshrines statues and plaques of Confucius and his four attendants, as well as twelve sages. On both sides of the main hall are two side halls housing plaques of Confucius’ disciples.

In the southeast corner of the courtyard stands a stele-bearing turtle, inscribed with the “Inscription of the Harbin Confucius Temple” written by the renowned patriotic general Zhang Xueliang. In the northwest corner is a stone stele inscribed with the “Record of the Establishment of the Harbin Confucius Temple in the Eastern Provinces Special Region,” authored by then-administrator of the Eastern Provinces Special Region, Zhang Jinghui. The reverse side of the stele lists the names and donation amounts of contributors. The rear courtyard houses the Chongsheng Shrine, which has seven bays and a single-eave hip-and-gable roof. Originally dedicated to the five generations of Confucius’ ancestors, it was later converted into a reading hall, with side halls on the east and west. In 1985, the Heilongjiang Provincial Museum of Ethnic Groups was established here. The main structures have since been restored and opened to the public.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level