Qilin Platform

　　Qilin Platform, also known as Huolin Platform, was historically called the Ancient Tomb of the Captured Qilin. It is situated seven kilometers east of Juye County — currently within a large depression northeast of Chenhuzhuang Village and north of Houfengqiao in Qilin Town — and is a key county-level cultural relic protection site. This platform marks the spot where Duke Ai of Lu "hunted to the west and captured a qilin." It measures 73 meters in length from east to west and 52 meters in width from north to south, covering an area of 3,800 square meters. Originally, there were several stone steles from the Tang Dynasty here, but they have been destroyed over time due to age. In the 14th year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Jiuxu, a prefectural judge of Jining Prefecture, rebuilt a Qilin stele and erected it beside the Caoji Highway. The character 冢 (tomb) and the date and signature inscribed on the stele are still preserved today. The event of "hunting to the west and capturing a qilin" became famous nationwide, and many place names at the levels of state, county, township, and village — such as the Linqi State of the Tang Dynasty, Jiaxiang County east of Juye, the Huolin Bao (township) and Huolin Ji (market) east of Juye County — were named after this event.

　　The "hunting to the west and capturing a qilin" incident took place in the late Spring and Autumn period in the Daye Marsh area on the western border of the State of Lu. The earliest written historical record of this event appears in the "Spring and Autumn Annals," the earliest chronological history book in China, compiled during the Warring States period. The "Gongyang Commentary" written by Gongyang Gao and the "Guliang Commentary" written by Guliang Chi, both historical works from the Warring States period, also document this event. Zuo Qiuming, a contemporary of Confucius, recorded in "Zuo Zhuan · Volume Twelve": "In spring of the 14th year of Duke Ai’s reign, [the duke] went hunting to the west in Daye. A charioteer of the Shusun clan, named Yueshang, captured a qilin, considered it an inauspicious omen, and gave it to the gamekeeper. Confucius saw it and said, 'It is a qilin.'" The "Romance of the States of the Eastern Zhou" states: "In the 39th year of King Jing of Zhou, Duke Ai of Lu hunted in Daye. A retainer of the Shusun clan, Yueshang, captured a strange beast — it had the body of a deer, the tail of an ox, the hooves of a horse, and a single fleshy horn on its head. They found it bizarre and killed it. Confucius sighed and said, 'It is a benevolent beast, the qilin. Who has brought it here?' He ordered his disciples to bury it. Although the 'Romance of the States of the Eastern Zhou' is a historical novel, its accounts largely align with historical records and are certainly not fabricated."

　　The "Records of the Grand Historian · The House of Confucius" states: "In spring of the 14th year of Duke Ai’s reign, [the duke] hunted in Daye to the west. A charioteer of the Shusun clan, Yueshang, captured a beast, thought it inauspicious, but Confucius saw it and said, 'It is a qilin,' and took it. In his 'Collected Explanations' and 'Correct Meanings,' it is further noted: 'Daye is the name of a marshland, a common hunting ground of the State of Lu, which is likely today’s Juye.'"

　　The "Yanzhou Prefecture Annals · Sacred Land Chronicles" states: "In spring of the 39th year of King Jing of Zhou (the 14th year of Duke Ai of Lu), [the duke] hunted in Daye to the west. A retainer of the Shusun clan, Yueshang, captured a qilin." "They broke its left leg, carried it back. The Shusun clan considered it inauspicious and abandoned it outside the city walls, then sent someone to inform Confucius, saying, 'We found a creature with antlers like a deer — what is it?' Confucius went to see it and said, 'It is a qilin. Why has it come here?' He turned his sleeves to wipe his face, tears soaking his robe. When the Shusun clan heard this, they then retrieved the qilin. Zigong asked, 'Why are you crying, Master?' Confucius replied, 'The arrival of the qilin signifies the coming of a wise ruler. It has appeared out of its proper time and met with harm. That is why I am sorrowful.'"

　　An article titled "On the Qilin" published in "Literary and Historical Knowledge" in 1991 records: "The earliest records of the 'qilin' in ancient Chinese texts are found in the 'Spring and Autumn Annals' and the 'Book of Songs.'" The "Spring and Autumn Annals" is known for its rigorous recording style, never speaking of the strange, supernatural, chaotic, or divine — things that did not happen — nor making unfounded speculations.

　　Other texts such as the "Chronological Compilation of Dynastic Events," "Easy-to-Understand Records of the Dynastic Chronology," "Literary Records of Southern Cao," "Jiaozhou Prefecture Annals," and "Juye County Annals" also provide faithful records of this event.

　　The "hunting to the west and capturing a qilin" event occurred in the 39th year of King Jing of Zhou, year of Gengshen (the 14th year of Duke Ai of Lu in the Spring and Autumn period), and Confucius’ "Spring and Autumn Annals" was also completed in that very year. At that time, Confucius was already 71 years old and ceased writing thereafter. This fully confirms the authenticity of the story still circulating in Juye today: that "Confucius stopped writing upon capturing the qilin." Objectively speaking, Confucius stopping his writings was due to his advanced age and declining energy. But subjectively, being moved and worried by the qilin was also a significant reason. Legend has it that in 551 BC (the 22nd year of Duke Xiang of Lu), Confucius’ mother, Yan Zhengzai, became pregnant and prayed at Mount Niqiu, where she encountered a qilin and gave birth to Confucius. Because Confucius had a head shape somewhat resembling Mount Niqiu when he was born, he was named Qiu and styled Zhongni. Confucius was born because of the qilin and passed away after seeing one again. He believed this to be an inauspicious omen, so he immediately composed a dirge for the qilin: "In the age of Emperors Tang and Yu, qilins and phoenixes roamed; now is not their time — why have you come? O qilin, o qilin, my heart is full of sorrow." Distressed by the qilin and grieving over the early death of his only beloved son, Kong Li, Confucius was deeply saddened and eventually passed away in the 16th year of Duke Ai of Lu (479 BC). After Confucius’ death, the story of him stopping his writing upon encountering the qilin spread widely. The great Tang poet Li Bai wrote in his poem "Ancient Style": "If one aspires to sainthood and stands firm, their final stroke is written upon the capture of the qilin." The "Book of Rites" states: "Both the phoenix and the qilin dwell in the suburban wilds." In the late Spring and Autumn period, Juye was located in the Daye Marsh area on the western border of the State of Lu. It had plants such as reeds and calamus, which qilins loved to eat, making it a habitat suited to the qilin. Duke Ai of Lu led a hunting party here, and based on the geography, it is referred to as a western hunt. Since ancient times, dragons, phoenixes, turtles, and qilins were regarded as divine creatures, so the western hunt and capture of a qilin became an important theme in literary works. Du Yu, the Grand General of the Jin Dynasty’s Southern Expedition and a historian, wrote in his "Collected Explanations to the Zuo Zhuan of the Spring and Autumn Annals": "The qilin is a benevolent beast, an auspicious sign of a sage ruler." The great Tang Dynasty literary figure Han Yu, in his commentary "Explanation of the Captured Qilin," wrote: "The qilin has one horn and carries flesh, equipped for battle yet harmless." "It roams only in open wetlands, resides only where auspiciousness prevails, does not tread on living insects, nor trample growing grass. When a sage king emerges, it appears alongside the phoenix, turtle, and dragon — collectively called the Four Spirits." As the qilin is one of the Four Spirits, many historical texts and stories — such as the "Classic of the Qilin," "Book of the Qilin," "Golden Wall Stories," the Song Dynasty's "Stories of the Qilin Platform" by Cheng Ju, and the Qing Dynasty's "Pavilion of the Qilin" by Li Yu — use the qilin as their title or central theme. Similarly, ancient imperial reign titles, ancient architecture, and place names often used the character "qilin" as a symbol of good fortune. Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, called the Weiyang Palace the "Qilin Hall," while Emperor Xuan of Han referred to it as the "Pavilion of the Qilin." In the fourth year of the Wude era of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, taking inspiration from the western hunt and capture of the qilin, the Qilin State was established in Juye. Emperor Gaozong of Tang adopted the reign title "Linde," and Empress Wu Zetian renamed the Zhongshu Province as the "Qilin Platform." In the fourth year of the Dali era of Emperor Dezong of Tang, the Qilin Platform Stele was erected on the Qilin Platform. In the seventh year of the Huangtong era of the Jin Dynasty, inspired by the auspicious symbolism of the qilin, the Jiaxiang County (now the Dashantou area of Jiaxiang County) in the Shan Kou Town of Juye established the Jiaxiang County. In the 16th year of the Zhiyuan era of Yuan Emperor Shizu, to signify the qilin’s good omen, the Qilin-Feng Pavilion was built north of the Juye County seat; in the second year of the Zhi Shun era of Yuan Emperor Wenzong, Fan Xun, the magistrate of Juye County, renovated the Qilin-Feng Pavilion. During the Ming Dynasty, Fang Shihua, the magistrate of Juye, built the Ruilin Temple on the Qilin Platform. The Ruilin Temple was grand in construction and magnificent in scale. According to local legend, the temple complex once covered over a hundred acres, housed more than a hundred monks, and had dozens of tenant households. Nearby the temple were shops, stone mills, vegetable gardens, salt fields, and carriage workshops, clearly forming a self-sufficient economic unit. To the south of the Ruilin Temple was a small river called Balih River, which flowed from east to west, lined with rows of willows, murmuring waters, and visible fish. On the southern bank was a ferry crossing, referred to in the "Juye County Annals" as the "Ancient Crossing of the Captured Qilin." Every spring, when the weather was mild and flowers bloomed, scholars, merchants, men, women, and children came here to sightsee in an endless stream. Unfortunately, due to the wars at the end of the Ming Chongzhen era, the entire temple complex became ruins, and today only this overgrown earthen platform remains.