The Temple of Heaven (Tian Tan) was built in 1420 A.D., during the reign of Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty. Ming-era and Qing-era Emperors who followed Yongle also came year every year to offer sacrafices to heaven while praying for good harvests. It was meant to be the exact meeting place of heaven and earth and as such, was strictly for the Son of Heaven--the Emperor--to use in prayers on behalf of the earth.

Tian Tan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The selection committe gave three reasons.

• Criterion i: The Temple of Heaven is a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmology of great importance for the evolution of one of the world's great civilizations.
  
• Criterion ii: The symbolic layout and design of the Temple of Heaven had a profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East over many centuries.
  
• Criterion iii: For more than two thousand years China was ruled by a series of feudal dynasties, the legitimacy of which is symbolized by the design and layout of the Temple of Heaven

South prospect toward the Imperial Vault of Heaven and the Altar of Heaven

Tian Tan is 2km square, which makes it the largest single religious site in the world. It is one of Beijing's main tourist attractions for both Chinese tourists visiting the capitol and for foreign visitors.

The large parklands surrounding Tian Tan are also popular with the people of Beijing as a place for Tai Chi, to sing in the style of the Bejing Opera, and to practice playing the Erhu.


Erhu players and Opera singers in Tiantan Park

However, the people I heard were not nearly as accomplished as Jia Peng Fang, my favorite Erhu player and composer. (If you have RealAudio player, you can enjoy the opening of his beautiful Sirius at that web site.)

The Temple of Heaven is enclosed with a long wall. The northern part within the wall is semicircular symbolizing the heavens and the southern part is square symbolizing the earth. The northern part is higher than the southern part. This design shows that the heaven is high and the earth is low and the design reflected an ancient Chinese thought of "Heaven is round and the earth is square".