A Journey Through China's Classic Ancient Architecture

Author: Qin Jing, Lu Shuo / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-04-01
Features: The beautiful legend of the royal precinct has always piqued curiosity, and emperors, seeking to ensure the eternal stability of their reign, have devised various justifications. In the open area on the southeastern side of the corridor, there are the "Seven-Star Stones." Legend has it that during the relocation of the capital to Beijing by Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty, he intended to build a temple for worshipping heaven and earth but could not find a suitable location. One night, he dreamed that the Big Dipper fell to this spot, believing it was a sign of divine favor that solved his dilemma, and thus issued an edict to build an altar here. Of course, this is just a folk tale. In reality, the Seven-Star Stones were artificially carved and placed here in the ninth year of the Jiajing reign (1530) of the Ming Dynasty. Emperor Jiajing was deeply devoted to Taoism. A Taoist priest told him that the southeastern area of the Altar of Prayer for Good Harvests was too empty, which was unfavorable for his imperial throne and longevity. Therefore, Emperor Jiajing had the Seven-Star Stones placed here to suppress the Feng Shui.
There is also a legend that when the Altar of Prayer for Good Harvests was being constructed, the authorities gathered over a thousand laborers, working day and night. One day, an elderly man in his late seventies, claiming to be a carpenter, asked to work for a few days to earn some food. The foreman, feeling pity for him, allowed him to work under a carpenter named Liu. Liu took him to his construction site but thought he could do little and made no instructions, focusing on his own work instead. The old man, having nothing to do, volunteered to help. Liu, too lazy to pay attention to him, casually kicked a half-foot-long round log over. The old man didn’t ask any questions, picked up the log, and started working on it. He spent the entire day drawing countless black lines on all four sides of the log.
The next day, when worktime passed, the old man was still nowhere to be seen. Liu, puzzled, walked over to the spot where the old man was working. Annoyed by the strange old man, he kicked the log again, muttering, "What kind of work is this!" Just as he finished speaking, the log suddenly split with a loud crack, turning into numerous wooden wedges, each numbered. Liu froze, realizing something was amiss, and carefully hid the wedges. He thought these items would surely come in handy in the future.
When the Altar of Prayer for Good Harvests was nearly completed, it was time to install the roof. However, the joints of each beam and pillar were not secure. At this moment, Liu suddenly remembered the pack of wedges he had saved. When he used them, they fit perfectly, firmly securing the "Flying Heads" and "Old Eaves." In the end, all the wedges were used up, not one more or less. Under everyone’s questioning, Liu hesitantly revealed the story of the strange old man. From then on, everyone was even more grateful for the care and assistance of their master.
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