2015-08-27

【Aiden in English】

        The sky has been integral to Chinese culture since its inception. I mean, which culture doesn't worship the never-ending blue, whatever-cha-ma-call-it, above its head?

        The Chinese emperors constructed an enormous complex known as the Temple of Heaven, where they could communicate with the heavens, worship them, and observe the celestial bodies. Nowadays, there isn't much sky to watch in Beijing, except for pollution and smog, but that's not the point. The Temple of Heaven comprises three principal buildings, yet not all their purposes for worship are fulfilled. 

        The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests was the emperor's place of worship. With a unique decoration of the phoenix pattern, this triple-gabled round hall built for the sky caught my eye immediately. Of all the Chinese parks or memorial places I've been to, none of them were constructed circularly. The roof was also blue, something I didn't often see. A level of status was indicated by the color of the roof. Blue was the top tier with the gods, and yellow was for the emperor beneath them. It was a pleasant surprise to have a culture where the ruler admitted he was not a god or its equivalent. There are 28 pillars in the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, i.e., four central dragon-well pillars for four seasons, 12 golden pillars in the middle for 12 months of a year, 12 peripheral pillars for the 12 early branches of a day, 24 outer pillars for 24 solar terms, 28 internal pillars for the 28 mansions, 36 backbones of 28 internal pillars and eight upper bronze columns for the 36 Heavenly Spirits.

        The ancient Chinese were stunning architects. One of their most monumental accomplishments was the Echo Wall. The Imperial Vault of Heaven looked circular, but it wasn't a perfect circle. Because of its irregular shape, the sound waves could run around the outer wall and be heard on the opposite side of the circular structure, much like a voice from heaven. For such an ancient civilization, mastering the art of sound was incredible. Today, the outer wall was blocked off because idiots kept carving their names onto the stone. The architecture was exact, but now, the small markings threw the sound off, ruining the magic. 

        The Circular Mound Altar is probably the most famous of the three main buildings. This was where the emperor would chat with the sky, although I'm sure it was not a conversation when only one person was talking. Like the other temple, this platform had three flights of nine steps. No. 9 is the most significant number in Chinese culture, associated with the emperor. Having a number dedicated to you sounds unusual, and it's yours to use exclusively. Then, the platform itself was built around the concept of the number nine. The inner ring of tiles contained nine tiles, the next had 18, the third had 27, and so on. It reached a high of 81. And in the center of this mathematical altar was a single, protruding marble known as the Heart of Heaven. It was the very stone that an emperor stood on to talk about. It made him closer to the sky. Yeah, just by like two centimeters. 

        The sky is one common worshipping theme in all cultures. It can bring rain and sun for nature, heatwaves and acrid cold for us, or droughts and floods for crops. It’s all up to the sky to choose, and it’s wise to try and persuade it to aid, not destroy.

【紅霞譯】

        盤古開天以來，上蒼在中國歷史上占據着重要地位，說實在的，沒有一個文化不祈禱腦袋瓜上頂的那片無邊無際蔚藍色隨你怎麼稱呼的天空。

        於是，中國皇帝便下令修建巨大無比的天壇來祈福民生，在那裡他們能與老天爺聊天，可以祭祀昊天上帝，甚至靜觀天象。如今，北京上空不是污染就是霧霾，難得一見晴朗天空，但這些不是我要談的話題。天壇里有三座主要建築物，並非全部都用來祈谷祭天。

        祈年殿是皇帝親臨祈禱的地方，這個專為敬天禮神而設並特別配以金鳳和璽彩畫裝飾的三重屋檐圓形建築立刻吸引了我的注意力。在本人見過的所有中國祭祀場所從未看到任何像眼前這樣圓形結構。祈年殿頂端被塗成罕見的藍色，顯然，只有特殊建築房頂才會使用這種顏色，藍色暗指上蒼，黃色明指皇帝。令人驚喜地發現，在依靠奉天行事的文化國度里，以真龍天子自居的統治者公然承認藍色至高無上，是天神的化身，而自己不是天神，頂多算作天神的臣民。祈年殿共有廿八根柱子，四根中央龍井柱象徵着春夏秋冬四個季節，十二根中層金柱表示一年十二個月，十二根檐柱代表一天十二個時辰，廿四根外柱意指每年廿四節氣，廿八根內柱襯托天上廿八星宿，由廿八根內柱和八根銅柱組合而成的卅六根頂梁柱體現卅六天罡。

        古代中華建築師一直享有盛名，最具造詣的傑出作品之一就是回音壁。皇穹宇呈圓形，其弧度畢竟不像圓那樣規範。正因如此，聲波能夠沿着牆壁折射向前，將耳朵貼在牆壁外面可以清楚地聽到身處另外一端人發話，着實體味“天人感應”。對於古代文明，先輩們如此精通高深技術令人驚嘆不已。如今回音壁的傳聲功能已大大消退，原因出自有些無法無天的人在石牆上刻字，從而破壞了牆壁表面的平滑性，使得神奇效果蕩然無存。

        在三座主要大殿中名聲最響的是圜丘壇，這是皇帝與老天爺套近乎的地方，當然我敢保證所謂拉呱莫過於一個人自言自語。正如其它祭殿，圜丘壇共分三層，每一層有九級台階，因為九是中國文字中最大的陽數，所以也成了皇帝專用數字，世上竟有一數字為你而設，而且被你化為己有，聽起來該有多彆扭。祭壇嚴格貫徹“九”（久）字精神。內圈有九塊瓷磚，第二圈有十八塊瓷磚，第三圈有廿七塊瓷磚級，最後一圈共有八十一塊瓷磚。在計算精密的同心圓中心鑲嵌着天心石，那可是“上天垂象，億兆景從”一呼百應的大理石，皇帝站在上面頓覺與老天爺拉近了距離，哪怕僅有兩厘米之別。

        世上所有民族文化都格外崇拜穹蒼，它讓大自然充滿雨露陽光，給人類帶來酷暑嚴寒，讓農作物耐受旱亢瀝澇，說來真是想幹什麼就幹什麼。因此明智的做法就是，要好好利用它為我們造福，而不要違背天理與它對立。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2016 MontCo Youth Field Day(2016年蒙郡青少年野營日)

2014: GHCS Camp─Origami(光華夏令營摺紙)

Double-Ring Longevity Pavilion, Symbolizing the Harmony between Heaven & Earth

(雙環長壽亭·象征着天地之間的和諧 04-13-1986)

Imperial Vault of Heaven, Representing Heaven in Circular Shape & Continuing the Complex's Theme of Connecting Earth & the Cosmos

(皇穹宇·以圓形代表天堂，並延續了建築群連接大地與宇宙的主題 04-13-1986)

Echo Wall, Allowing Whispers to Travel Clearly across Its Large, Circular Circumference, Creating a Unique "Wireless" Communication Effect due to Its Smooth Surface & Eaves Reflected Sound

(回音壁·牆體寬大的圓形輪廓能讓耳語清晰地傳播，光滑的表面和屋檐反射聲波，營造出獨特的“無線”通訊效果 04-13-1986)

Double-Ring Longevity Pavilion, Originally Built by Qing Emperor Qianlong for His Mother's 50^th Birthday

(雙環長壽亭·由清朝乾隆皇帝為慶祝母親五十歲生日而建 02-05-1987)

Ancient Pine, the 1,300-Year-Old Nine-Dragon Pine along a Path Shaded by Ancient Cypresses

(被古老柏樹遮蔽的小路旁樹齡1300年的九龍松 05-04-1987)

Circular Mound Altar w/ Its Unique Numbered Stone Patterns & Open-Air Structure

(圜丘壇·擁有獨特的編號石紋和露天結構 05-04-1987)

Circular Mound Altar, Symbolizing the "Round Heaven, Square Earth" Cosmology

(圜丘壇·象征着“天圓地方”的宇宙觀 05-04-1987)

Hall of Prayer w/ Its Unique Circular, 3-Tiered Design Built Entirely w/o Nails, Symbolizing the Connection between Heaven & Earth

(祈年殿·獨特的圓形三層結構完全未使用釘子建造，象徵着天地之間的聯繫 11-24-1988)

Hall of Prayer, a 15^th-Century Triple-Gabled Circular Bldg 

(祈年殿·建於15世紀三重山牆的圓形建築 11-24-1988)

Hall of August Harvest @ West Side

(西配殿·八月豐收廳)

Echo Wall w/ Smooth, Polished Surface & Curved Shape Perfectly Reflecting Sound

(回音壁·牆壁光滑、拋光的表面和弧形形狀完美地反射聲音，使聲音能夠沿着牆壁的路徑傳播 11-24-1988)

Circular Mound Altar for Imperial Sacrifice

(圜丘壇·古代帝國祭祀 11-26-1987)

Circular Mound Altar, the focal point for Ming & Qing emperors to Perform Solemn Winter Solstice Rituals

(圜丘壇·明清兩代皇帝舉行莊嚴冬至祭祀儀式的核心場所 09-30-1999)

Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests for Ming & Qing Emperors to Carry out Annual Rituals & Pray to Heaven for Abundant Harvests 

(祈年殿·明清兩代皇帝每年舉行祭祀儀式、祈求上天賜予五穀豐登的地方 07-26-2019)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

China(出遊中國)

6th Grade(初中一年級)