Confucius Temple and Family Residence in Quzhou

I visit Quzhou in southern Zhejiang on September 28, 2010. September 28 is the anniversary of the birthday of Confucius, the greatest scholar of China, who was born 2561 years ago.

A visit to Confucius Temple and Family Residence in Quzhou, a two-in-one large compound, is always impressive to me. On the morning of the great scholar’s birthday anniversary, I am in the old downtown of Quzhou, a very ancient city. On one side are ordinary folk houses whereas on the other stand the Confucius Temple and Family Residence. In the large compound huge trees and ancient houses stand tall, indicating how far back into history we can travel in my mind and how these ancient buildings can bring history back to me. I walk around following the paths. The buildings there were built by descendents of Confucius. I am amazed by the energy of these descendents put into the architecture.

I begin to imagine how in the early 12th century Kong Duanyou (1078-1132) and his family members followed the footsteps of the emperor southward, carrying the wood statues of Confucius and his wife from Qufu all the way to Quzhou. The Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) settled down in Hangzhou and the descendents of Confucius finally ended their 1,000-km odyssey in Quzhou where the temple and residence were built. The great architecture has been around for more than eight hundred years. And it is more than a temple and a residence, more than a continuance of the Confucius family. The elite scholars of the family brought culture to this part of China and they played a big part in bringing education to ordinary people in the south.

Innovative Memorial Ceremony

On the birthday of Confucius, a memorial ceremony is conducted at the temple in commemoration of the 2561st anniversary of the birthday of Confucius.

Memorial ceremonies in honor of Confucius have been conducted across China, but the memorial ceremony held at the Confucius Temple in Quzhou present outstanding features I don’t see anywhere else.

The ceremony at the temple was totally redesigned in 2004 in celebration of the 2555th anniversary of the birthday of Confucius. The preparations went on for three years. While people at other memorial services get themselves dressed in ancient garments in honor of Confucius, people in Quzhou don their modern dress to attend the ceremony, for it emphasizes today. Moreover, the memorial is simplified. Attendees in Quzhou no longer need to perform ancient rites and no longer stage an ancient dance. Instead of presenting three animals as sacrifices, the attendees in Quzhou present five sorts of cereals. Instead of staging an ancient dance, the attendees read Confucius’ great quotations. The idea underpinning this ritual modernization is that it is modern people who conduct this ceremony and it is the spirit of Confucianism that the modern people aim to promote and carry forward to the future.

I learn that the memorial ceremony at the Confucius Temple was inscribed in 2005 as a provincial intangible cultural heritage of Zhejiang and inscribed in 2010 on the list of state intangible cultural heritages under the national protection.

I witness this ceremony on the 2561st birthday of Confucius in Quzhou on the morning of 28 September 2010.

The ceremony begins with bells pealing. Music plays; incense and five cereals are offered. Representatives from the city government, Confucian scholars, guests from some overseas Confucius academies, representatives from all walks of life of Quzhou City present flower baskets to the statue of Confucius. Quzhou Mayor Shang Qing makes a keynote sacrificial address in honor of Confucius. In the wake of this address, students from Second Middle School of Quzhou begin to read excerptions from “The Analects of Confucius”, followed by teams of foreign Confucius Academies, local farmers, city residents and children taking part in Chinese classic studies, a study program hosted by the Confucius Temple. Afterwards, a special postal stamp titled “Confucius Temple, Confucius Family Residence and Confucian Garden” is officially launched. The curtain descends on the ceremony when all present sing in unison “Ode to Great Harmony”.

Mr. Kong Xiangkai

Kong Xiangkai, the 75th-generation descendent of Confucius, serves as director of the Administrative Committee of Confucian Temple and Residence in Quzhou of the Southern Branch of the Confucius Family. The man looks noble and serene; he is earnest and amiable, known as “Grandpa” everywhere in Quzhou. Local residents give a thumbs-up sign when his name is mentioned. In the eye of the local public, he is a man of thought and capability.

He is the mastermind of the innovative memorial ceremony. He had thought about the new celebration for a long while. The proposal was made to the Quzhou City Government three years before the big memorial in 2004. He wanted it to be international. It would be the first ever international memorial in Quzhou. Moreover, he wanted it to be a ceremony that would reflect the present-day spirit and point to future. His idea was embraced warmly by the local government. He overhauled the ceremony, wrote the sacrificial address, wrote the lyrics of “Ode to Great Harmony” and set the words to music himself, and conducted the music band. After the great success in 2004, Professor Liu Weihua, executive director of Confucius Foundation, commented to Kong Xiangkai, “You’ve created a new memorial ceremony in China.”

Foreign Guests

At the memorial ceremony on September 28, 2010, I see many foreign faces. They are executives of Confucius Academies from Morocco, Spain, France, Iceland and 30 schoolmasters from Daejeon City, Republic of Korea.

I find it great fun to talk with these people, learning how Confucius academies operate in their respective countries and how Confucianism and Chinese culture have spread internationally through these international education organizations.

Local Endeavors

I also run into Pan Zhiqiang, principal of Quzhou No. 2 Middle School. No other organization in Quzhou is more busily engaged in international cultural exchanges in Quzhou than the school.

Pan used to be a teacher of English and he busily interprets for attending foreign guests during their visit to Quzhou. Chatting about international cultural exchanges, he enthuses: “Quzhou and Red Wing, a city in Minnesota, USA became sister cities in 1994. A teacher named Daisy from Red Wing came to teach English at Quzhou Second Middle School and I visited Red Wing as a cultural envoy. The mutual visit started the cultural exchanges between the two cities.” Since his return from Red Wing, he has been committed to oral English programs designed to improve Chinese students’ ability to communicate in English. Thanks to his endeavors and initiatives, various summer camps and friendship events have been organized to promote international cultural exchanges. He says, “These activities are challenging, but they are also opportunities to promote our local culture highlighted by Confucianism in Quzhou.”