Once inside the Gate of the Altar of Agriculture Park there are multiple directions to choose from. Luckily, there are convenient dual language road signs in English and Chinese available to Guide visitors through the Park.
Follow the main crowd further into the Park or take a more direct route to your destination within the Park making use of the Giant Map on Display near each Gate. Apart from the Altar of the Earth (Fangze Tan), there are various Temple remnants open to visit such as the Hall of Deities and Royal Ancestors (Huang Qi Shi), the repository of Sacred Statues and Sedan Chairs (Shen Ku), the depository for sacred ritual utensils (JiQi Ku), a store house for musical instruments (YueQi Ku), the Pavilion
Turn Left and West from the Gate onwards and pass along the main route into the Park. Here, a spacious walkway leads along a red chalked wall in which there are two Gates. The First of these Gates leads into a large Courtyard at the center of which stands a medium sized but double-roofed Pavilion. The Pavilion is currently home to the One Moon Art Gallery, and inside is a modest exhibition of modern Chinese Art. The set-up of the Art Gallery does not look
Beijing Citizens and local Traders busy between Book Stalls adjacent the South Gate of Ditan Park.
History of the Altar of Earth (Fangze Tan)
The Altar of Earth - Di Tan (simplified Chinese: 地坛) was one of the 8 ancient Holy Altars in the Ancient Capital of the
A Busy ongoing market and fair inside the South Gate at Ditan Park in Beijing.
One of the Blessings of the Olympic planning for Beijing: a dual language road map for the entire Park in English and Chinese.
stay, you are advised to take considerable Time to enjoy the various dishes on the Menu.
Have your picture taken in front of the colorful dining hall and/or head outside again to continue down the Path to the Main historic attraction of the Earth Altar.
As might be expected, there are some public toilets available near the Restaurant, just a bit further west along the main walkway.
like much but the Pavilion is certainly worth having a look at.
Carry on to the next Gate for a visit to another much larger and greener courtyard in which one finds the Park's Restaurant serving Traditional Dishes in the Ming Dynasty style. It is a large facility which caters to groups of Tourist that are offloaded by Bus outside of the Ditan Park South Gate. At most Times visitors are welcome to pop-in and have a look at the small garden, the dining Hall and its traditional exterior, however - for a quick diner, this Restaurant is not the place to go. Most clients served come in groups and book in advance. If you
Overview of the Area inside the South Gate of Ditan Park in Beijing (November 2007).
Gate of the Double-Roofed Pavilion housing the One Moon Art Gallery annex Exhibition.
Capital, but was built over a 100 years later in the year 1530 AD, the 9Th Year of the Jiajing Reign (1521 AD - 1567 AD)(Emperor Shizong) of the Ming Era (1368 AD - 1644 AD). Thus, the Altar of Agriculture was not one of the two original and Central Altars, which were the Temple of Heaven with the Altar(s) of Heaven and its twin the Temple of Agriculture and Altar of Agriculture (Xian Nong Tan), but was an entirely new invention and implicated a new way of doing things. Although today it may seem as if this was a question of mere symbolic importance, at the time this was regarded as a grave and important decision. Naturally, it was hoped the arrangement would bring new benifits.
Both these earlier and older Altars were located in the southern Districts outside the City Wall and served the most crucial Ritual Roles. One to communicate with The Heavens directly, with the Dragon Stone inside the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest serving a function as transmitter, and one to Woe the Gods into providing another Good Season for the central industry in the Empire, Agriculture.
The original Altars were built in 1420 AD on orders of third Ming Emperor Yongle who also founded much of the current city. Since 1420 AD The Emperor communicated with the Heavens Solely through these two Altars by offering
Chinese Empire. In its kind it was the largest ever constructed in Chinese Feudal History. Its altar alone once measured 37.3 hectares in size and the surrounding Park and gardens were far larger than today. Thus, it is regarded as a monument of traditional Chinese Architecture. Even today Ditan Park is the second largest Temple complex in Beijing -after The World Heritage Temple and Altar of Heaven (Tian Tan)- with a total surface area of 42.7 Hectares of the original grounds remaining.
The Most important of the ancient Altars are -clockwise around the City- the Altar of Earth (Fangze Tan), the Altar of the Sun (Ri Tan), the Altar & Temple of Heaven, the Altar of Agriculture and last the Altar of the Moon. The lesser Altars of the Gods of the Sky (Tianshentan), the Altar of the Gods of the Earth (Diqitan) and the Altar dedicated to the Goddess of Silk Worms complete the list. Two of the Altars were destroyed and are lost.
As can be seen on the schematic Map of the City, the Altar of Earth was located North of the City outside the Wall. It was slightly offset from the Central Axis of the City and was "balanced" according to Feng Shui (geomancy) requirements by the intermediate Temple and Altar of Agriculture (XianNongTan) and the most Important Altar of the Heavens at Temple of Heaven Park (Tiantan Gongyuan).
Photos of the exterior of the Green Tiled and Double-Roofed Pavilion housing the One Moon Art Gallery.
A schematic lay-out of the Imperial City of Beijing during the Ming Dynasty, clearly showing the relation of the main 5 of the 8 total of 8 Altars to the Palace at the Center of the City.
Park visitors have their Photograph taken in front of the Colorful Hall that serves as a Dining Hall for Tour Groups (November 2007).
in the south of the city, and that Fangzetan (Square Stream Altar) be constructed for the worship of Earth in the Northern City.
The original name Fangze Tan was changed to Ditan upon official opening in 1534 AD.
Today's Park remains in the original State, except for large-scale reconstruction and enlargement during reign of the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644 AD - 1911 AD).
The Temple to the Goddess of Earth were later additions to the Imperial Capitals' lay-out, being built in conjunction with changes to The original Temple of Heaven, construction of the Temple and Altar of the Sun (Ri Tan), and another Temple Complex and Altar to worship The Forces of the Moon. It can be said that the Three Altars built during the Jiajing Reign served to strengthen the mystical powers of the Imperial City and Throne. In a way the Priest and Designers of the 1530 AD Jiajing Altars were fine-tuning the connection with the Heavens, in order to better control or at least predict and understand events in The Netherworld on Earth. The Emperor may have been all powerful to his many subjects, however the Nation had its enemies and The
Schematic Overview Map of DiTan Park depicting all Structures and Buildings within the Park (Nov 2007).
- Click the Links on the Map for Easy Navigation ! -
Emperor and Government would let no method untested
in order to keep the upper hand in the ongoing struggle for survival of the Dynasty and Nation. Life was unpredictable and the People including the Emperor and Ministers highly superstitious. Prosperous years were followed by horrible ones inevitably, and it was the Imperial Responsibility to rule wisely using the sophisticated methods.
constructed during the Third Reign of the Ming Dynasty during the creation of Beijing as the Imperial
sacrifices to Heaven at the annual winter solstice and to Earth at the summer solstice.
Later, having received a suggestion to worship Heaven and Earth separately, in 1530 AD Emperor Jiajing (1522 AD - 1566 AD) ordered that the architectural masterpiece of the Circular Mound Altar be constructed for the worship of Heaven in Tiantan (now generally dubbed the Temple of Heaven)
