Sacred geography for a Confucian would be their home altar and the village which contains the burial tomb of their ancestors. These two places are where they connect with Heaven by honoring their ancestors. The Ancestral Stone in a home altar contains the ren, part of their soul, of the Ancestors.
Other Confucian sites are more problematic because of the recent historical dislocation of Confucianism in China. The era of communist China almost destroying Confucianism. The practices of this venerable tradition were pushed underground. In the beginning of the Communist era, Confucianism was denigrated as old-fashioned. However, during the later Great Leap Forward anyone associated with traditional ways was publicly mocked or imprisoned. This story isn't over, with the recent political changes and economic development in China, many Chinese religious observances are coming back. A good discussion of this can be found at Speaking of Faith, in an interview with Mayfair Yang. The Speaking of Faith site has several podcasts and links to interesting websites that document China's very recent opening to its religious past. Confucianism, in the form of rituals and ancestor worship, is returning to China. It is happening so fast that it is hard to find a credible discussion of it; this is one.
Public sites in China are treated more as historical at this point, rather than used as holy sites. A case in point is the temple at Confucius' birth place Qufu in Shandong province. It was sacked during the Cultural Revolution as Confucius was denounced as a class enemy. An enormous statue of Confucius was dragged through the streets and smashed with sledge hammers. His grave was dug up to show he wasn't actually buried there. The temples have since been restored but the statues and ancestral tablets destroyed by the Red Guards have not been replaced. It has been named a UNESCO World Heritage site ( scroll to the bottom of this page and click on the bottom link for a 360 view ). (Hays)
Here is a brief description by UNESCO: "The temple, cemetery and family mansion of Confucius, the great philosopher, politician and educator of the 6th centuries B.C., are located at Qufu, in Shandong Province. Built to commemorate him in 478 B.C., the temple has been destroyed and reconstructed over the centuries; today it comprises more than 100 buildings. The cemetery contains Confucius' tomb and the remains of more than 100,000 of his descendants. The small house of the Kong family developed into a gigantic aristocratic residence, of which 152 buildings remain. The Qufu complex of monuments has retained its outstanding artistic and historic character due to the devotion of successive Chinese emperors over more than 2,000 years." (Hays)
In 2005, a large celebration—with tens of thousand of participants, costumes and 100 scholars discussing the relevance of Confucian—was held in Qufu. In 2007 over 3,000 people showed up in Qufu to celebrate Confucius's 2,557th birthday with speeches, dances, recitations and sacrifices of a pig, a bull and a goat. The dancers wore costume replicas of those worn 2,000 years ago in the Han Dynasty and prostrated themselves in front of the sage’s statue.Recently the state announced that they would do this celebration monthly because it it so popular -- with tourists and the people. (Hays)
It is hard to know what this celebration means. It does show a great deal of interest by the Chinese government in the reconstruction of this site. Goverment sponsorship of Confucianism is not a new thing, it's a long tradition in China. Rather than considering this a worship ceremony, its probably better to consider it the start of official China's reconnection with its past.
Korea
Korea has the most Confucian temples of any country. They are used for historically accurate ceremonies twice a year and are being maintained as tourist sites.
Taiwan
Taiwan takes great care of its Confucian temples. Two of these temples have well designed web sites. The Taipei Confucian Temple gives a complete history of its building, which is not that old. Both the Taipei Temple and the Taiwan Temple are state supported and regularly perform rituals to Confucius -- twice a year. The Taiwan Confucian Temple has a delightful virtual reality tour of its grounds and architectural elements. The Taiwanese government has a political interest in maintaining these temples and it is hard to say based on the health of these two institutions how vital they are to Confucianism in Taiwan.
Other Confucian sites are more problematic because of the recent historical dislocation of Confucianism in China. The era of communist China almost destroying Confucianism. The practices of this venerable tradition were pushed underground. In the beginning of the Communist era, Confucianism was denigrated as old-fashioned. However, during the later Great Leap Forward anyone associated with traditional ways was publicly mocked or imprisoned. This story isn't over, with the recent political changes and economic development in China, many Chinese religious observances are coming back. A good discussion of this can be found at Speaking of Faith, in an interview with Mayfair Yang. The Speaking of Faith site has several podcasts and links to interesting websites that document China's very recent opening to its religious past. Confucianism, in the form of rituals and ancestor worship, is returning to China. It is happening so fast that it is hard to find a credible discussion of it; this is one.
Public sites in China are treated more as historical at this point, rather than used as holy sites. A case in point is the temple at Confucius' birth place Qufu in Shandong province. It was sacked during the Cultural Revolution as Confucius was denounced as a class enemy. An enormous statue of Confucius was dragged through the streets and smashed with sledge hammers. His grave was dug up to show he wasn't actually buried there. The temples have since been restored but the statues and ancestral tablets destroyed by the Red Guards have not been replaced. It has been named a UNESCO World Heritage site ( scroll to the bottom of this page and click on the bottom link for a 360 view ). (Hays)
Here is a brief description by UNESCO: "The temple, cemetery and family mansion of Confucius, the great philosopher, politician and educator of the 6th centuries B.C., are located at Qufu, in Shandong Province. Built to commemorate him in 478 B.C., the temple has been destroyed and reconstructed over the centuries; today it comprises more than 100 buildings. The cemetery contains Confucius' tomb and the remains of more than 100,000 of his descendants. The small house of the Kong family developed into a gigantic aristocratic residence, of which 152 buildings remain. The Qufu complex of monuments has retained its outstanding artistic and historic character due to the devotion of successive Chinese emperors over more than 2,000 years." (Hays)
In 2005, a large celebration—with tens of thousand of participants, costumes and 100 scholars discussing the relevance of Confucian—was held in Qufu. In 2007 over 3,000 people showed up in Qufu to celebrate Confucius's 2,557th birthday with speeches, dances, recitations and sacrifices of a pig, a bull and a goat. The dancers wore costume replicas of those worn 2,000 years ago in the Han Dynasty and prostrated themselves in front of the sage’s statue.Recently the state announced that they would do this celebration monthly because it it so popular -- with tourists and the people. (Hays)
It is hard to know what this celebration means. It does show a great deal of interest by the Chinese government in the reconstruction of this site. Goverment sponsorship of Confucianism is not a new thing, it's a long tradition in China. Rather than considering this a worship ceremony, its probably better to consider it the start of official China's reconnection with its past.
Korea
Korea has the most Confucian temples of any country. They are used for historically accurate ceremonies twice a year and are being maintained as tourist sites.
Taiwan
Taiwan takes great care of its Confucian temples. Two of these temples have well designed web sites. The Taipei Confucian Temple gives a complete history of its building, which is not that old. Both the Taipei Temple and the Taiwan Temple are state supported and regularly perform rituals to Confucius -- twice a year. The Taiwan Confucian Temple has a delightful virtual reality tour of its grounds and architectural elements. The Taiwanese government has a political interest in maintaining these temples and it is hard to say based on the health of these two institutions how vital they are to Confucianism in Taiwan.
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