Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven is a collection of religious buildings, which was visited by the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and today by thousand of visitors daily.

The temple was open to the public in 1988., and the temple complex is enormous, even bigger than the Forbidden City. The Chinese emperors were regarded as sons of heaven and thus, performed duties on behalf of the gods. It is also the reason their own house couldn't be bigger than that of god's. The features of the temple are quite stunning, especially inside the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, where the emperors prayed twice every year. The Circular Mound Altar is where sacrifices were performed, and is regarded as the temple's most important part. There are other buildings of importance in the complex, such as the Imperial Vault of Heaven, the Palace of Abstinence, Divine Music Administration and Heaven Worship Culture. The extensive parklands around the temple serve many purposes.