The Ten-Thousand-Ren Palace Wall

The Ten-Thousand-Ren Palace Wall

The Ten-Thousand-Ren Palace Wall is a cultural tourism attraction.

Before you even reach the Confucius Temple, you will see a grand and solemn palace wall uniformly adorned with yellow tiles and red walls. Outside the southern gate stands the Yangsheng Gate, inscribed with four powerful crimson characters: "万仞宫墙" (The Ten-Thousand-Ren Palace Wall). There is an ancient and vivid anecdote behind these four characters.

In the *Analects*, there is a story about Confucius’s disciple Zigong, who once assisted the Duke of Lu in the royal court. On one occasion, Shusun Wu-shu, a high-ranking official of Lu, remarked in court, “Zigong is superior to Confucius.” Upon hearing this, Zigong likened human knowledge to a palace wall. “My wall,” he said, “is only shoulder-high, so people can easily see all that lies within. But my teacher Confucius’s wall is several *ren* high. Unless you find the gate, you cannot glimpse the grandeur of the ancestral temple or the splendor of the halls within.” Hearing this, Shusun Wu-shu was instantly ashamed of his shallowness.

In ancient times, seven or eight *chi* (a traditional unit of length) were called one *ren*. Later generations felt that the phrase “the Master’s wall is several *ren* high” did not fully express their reverence for Confucius. Thus, Hu Zuanzong of the Ming Dynasty inscribed the words “万仞宫墙” (The Ten-Thousand-Ren Palace Wall), which were mounted on the Yangsheng Gate. Later, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, to further show his respect for Confucius, replaced it with a version personally written by himself. Behind the Yangsheng Gate, at the entrance to the Confucius Temple, stands the "Golden Sound and Jade Vibration Archway," its name derived from *Mencius*. Mencius praised Confucius, saying, “Confucius may be called the one who gathered together the complete wisdom of the ancients. To gather together the complete wisdom is to sound the golden bell and beat the jade chime. The golden bell marks the beginning of order, and the jade chime marks the completion of order.” “Golden sound” and “jade vibration” represent the entire process of playing music, symbolizing how Confucius’s philosophy encompassed the best of the ancient sages. A bridge known as “Two Cypress Trees Supporting One Arch” (夹桥耸立，人称“二柏担一孔”) stands nearby. In the second year of the Jin Mingchang era (1191), stone steles were erected on the east and west sides of the bridge, inscribed with the words “All officials and commoners must dismount here,” commonly known as the “Dismount Steles.” Officials of any rank and common people alike had to dismount from horses or step down from sedan chairs when passing here—even the emperor had to do so when coming to worship, demonstrating the profound reverence accorded to this Confucius Temple.