The Dacheng Hall of Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple

The Dacheng Hall of Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple

The Dacheng Hall of Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple is a cultural relic protection unit of Hebei Province.

The Dacheng Hall is the main structure of the Confucius Temple (also known as the Kong Temple). According to the *Shunde Prefecture Annals*: “The Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple was built during the Tang Dynasty but was soon abandoned.” Originally named the “Wenxuanwang Hall,” the Dacheng Hall of Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple was renamed in the 27th year of the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty (739 AD), when Emperor Xuanzong of Tang posthumously honored Confucius as the “Wenxuan King.” Since then, the principal halls of Confucius Temples throughout the nation have been referred to as “Wenxuanwang Halls.” The term “Dacheng” is derived from *Mencius · Wanzhang Part II*: “Confucius is the one who embodies the culmination of wisdom,” where Mencius praised Confucius for having achieved the supreme state of synthesizing the virtues of ancient sages. In the third year of the Chongning era of the Song Dynasty (1104 AD), Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, revered Confucius for having “embodied the achievements of all previous sages,” and issued an edict renaming the “Wenxuanwang Hall” to “Dacheng Hall.” The plaque above the entrance of Dacheng Halls in Confucius Temples today features the three gilded characters “Dacheng Hall,” inscribed by Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty.

The Dacheng Hall is a brick-and-wood structure, facing south and built atop a rectangular stone platform. It has a spacious front terrace with bluestone flooring, measuring 30.8 meters in length, 1.2 meters in height, and 9 meters in width, with a central stairway. The platform is surrounded by railings and decorative pillars. The terrace is adorned with exquisitely carved balustrades, and beneath it, directly opposite the main hall’s steps, there is a beautifully crafted dragon relief carving.

Exterior Structure. The Dacheng Hall has seven bays (openings) in total, with a width of 30.8 meters—its central bay is 5.8 meters wide, the two adjacent bays are 4.57 meters and 4.55 meters, the side bays are 4.7 meters and 4.47 meters, and the end bays are 3.32 meters and 3.39 meters. It spans three sections in depth, with five bays front to back, a width of 17.16 meters, and an overall height of 14.5 meters. The front corridor is 3.5 meters deep, the rear corridor is 3.46 meters deep, and the other bays are 3.4 meters deep. Confucius Temples across Hebei Province typically have five bays in width and three bays in depth, including the Chengde Rehe Confucius Temple. The grand scale of the Dacheng Hall of the Shunde Prefecture Confucius Temple in Xingtai is the result of two expansions—in the fourth year of the Tianshun era (1460 AD) and the sixth year of the Chenghua era (1470 AD) of the Ming Dynasty—making it the largest single-structure Dacheng Hall among Confucius Temples in Hebei Province.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Hebei Province