Tainan Confucian Temple Audio Guide

Tainan Confucian Temple: what does the audio guide cover?

1. 01

   Welcome to Tainan Confucian Temple

   Welcome to the Tainan Confucian Temple, which sits on Nanmen Road in the West Central District of Tainan. Its Chinese nickname, Quan Tai Shou Xue, means the First Academy of Taiwan. That is a bold claim, and over the next few minutes you will see why the temple earned it. This is not only a place of worship. For centuries it was the highest official institution of learning on the island, a spot where scholars were trained and Confucian values were taught. It also has more buildings than any other Confucian temple in Taiwan, so there is plenty to wander through. Here is how the story unfolds. We begin with the temple's founding in the days of the Kingdom of Tungning. Then we step through its gateways and pools, and finally we look at the ceremonies that still bring the place to life every year.

2. 02

   From Tungning Kingdom to Qing Academy

   Tainan Confucian Temple: Two features here carry it, the Stone Arch of the Higher Learning Institution and the ceremonial pool.

   The temple's story starts in the era of the Kingdom of Tungning. Accounts differ by a year, with some giving 1665 and others 1666. They agree on the people behind it. Cheng Ching, son of the famous Koxinga, approved a proposal from his chief of general staff, Chen Yung-hua, to build a Confucian temple on this very site. It was a statement that the new island kingdom would nurture learning as well as defend itself. Then history turned. By 1683, when the Qing dynasty first made contact with Taiwan, the old temple had largely collapsed. In 1684 Taiwan was annexed to the Qing realm, and the first regional chief administrator, Chou Chang, began efforts to renovate the temple and turn the Dacheng Hall into a prefecture academy. For the rest of the Qing period, this was the highest official institution of higher learning in Taiwan. The compound was renovated and expanded several times along the way. That layering of rebuilding is a big part of why you see such a large and varied complex today.

3. 03

   Gates, Pools and a Dismounting Stele

   Tainan Confucian Temple: The temple has been renovated many times over some 300 years, most recently between 1987 and 1989.

   Pay attention to the entrance, because the temple announces its rank before you even step inside. Above the entrance gate hangs a plaque with four bold golden characters, Quan Tai Shou Xue, the First Academy of Taiwan. Nearby stands a dismounting stele, placed at the entrance on imperial orders in 1687. Visitors were meant to dismount here out of respect for Confucius. It is the oldest and best preserved of the four that remain in Taiwan. Then look for the word pan. Two features here carry it, the Stone Arch of the Higher Learning Institution and the ceremonial pool. In the past, higher learning institutes were called pangong, and they were always built with a semicircular pond. A stone arch and a pool with that word in their names tell you this was a school of real standing. The arch once served as the outermost gateway of the temple, and the garden-side wall of the pool bears a stone plaque reading Pleasure at the Pool. Inside, a horizontal stone tablet is inscribed with school rules from the days when the temple was a center of Confucian studies. Students here were expected to learn Confucian ethics and virtues, and the rules still speak across the centuries.

4. 04

   Rebuilt, Repurposed, Renewed

   After 1895, when Japan began its rule of Taiwan, the temple's role changed sharply. It was used again as a public school and as military barracks, and it was considerably damaged. A major renovation in 1917 tore down some parts of the construction, and it gave the temple the scale and structure you can see today. The temple has been renovated many times over some 300 years, most recently between 1987 and 1989. Even so, it is regarded as the oldest and best preserved Confucian temple in Taiwan, and it has largely kept its original structure. The overall design follows the style of ancient palace architecture, with typical southern Chinese features. The temple is also a keeper of objects. Inscriptions recording repairs through the ages, horizontal boards awarded by emperors of successive dynasties, and ceremonial and musical instruments from the early Qing period are all still preserved. Together they form a rare record of how the state honored this place.

5. 05

   Before You Head Off

   The temple is not a museum frozen in time. It still preserves ancient Confucian ceremonies, which are conducted on a regular basis. Each year on September 28th, the birthday of Confucius and Teachers' Day in Taiwan, the Tainan municipal government holds a grand memorial ceremony following the old rituals, with thousands of worshippers attending. One of the temple's buildings, Yi Cheng School, serves as its office of ritual music, so the music is part of the living tradition too. As you explore, notice how many layers the place holds. There are the Tungning foundations, the Qing academy, the Japanese-era changes and the careful modern renovations. Look for the stone tablets, the golden plaque and the old stele, and ask yourself which period each one speaks for. There is more to discover in the surrounding neighborhood too, since the National Museum of Taiwan Literature stands only a short distance away. Where will your curiosity take you next?