Qufu

Qufu is the birthplace of the great Chinese sage, Confucius (Kongfuzi or Kongzi in Chinese), and is also the ancient capital of Lu State. It bears witness to the importance of Confucian thought in Imperial China to this day. As a famous historical and cultural city, Qufu offers many places of interest such as the Confucius Temple, Kong Family Mansion, and Confucius Cemetery.

For the Chinese, Qufu is a legendary city as the ideas developed by the philosopher still greatly influence education, politics, and the way of thinking of the population. The city is therefore one of the main tourist sites in Shandong and it is an essential stopover for anyone wishing to see how much the philosopher remains revered.

We give you our best advice and information to discover this cult city during your trip to China.

What to visit in the city of Qufu?

Qufu is a famous cultural destination. The most popular and recommended tour itinerary is to take a day trip to see the three famous UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites: Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion.

Temple of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion
The whole represents a huge complex currently covering more than 20 percent of the city of Qufu. Song, Ming, and Qing Dynasty constructions abound throughout the city. It is a real historical and cultural treasure that you discover while walking.

The Temple of Confucius is reached through the main south gate. This is reminiscent of an old fortified castle enclosure. It is the old house of Confucius and it is the second great architectural complex in China after the Forbidden City. The building was first built in 153 and was gradually restored and expanded over the centuries. Today it is a real museum testifying to the philosophy and teaching of Confucius.

Right next to the Temple is a square hosting a lively market offering various snacks.

Next to the Confucius Temple is a maze of living quarters, among which is the Kong Family Mansion. With 560 rooms and 9 courtyards, the mansion was for centuries the most lavish private residence in China. In the imperial era, access to the mansion and temple was restricted to the Kong family and emperors.

Cemetery of Confucius
About 1 km north of the Qufu town of Linda road lies the tranquil cemetery of Confucius (Kong Lin, which means Kong‘s forest in Chinese), pines, and cypresses spread over more than 200 hectares. The place is bounded by a 10 km long wall, built on the foundations of the Zhou Dynasty wall that encircled the ancient capital of Lu State. Confucius and more than 100,000 of his descendants were buried here over the past 2000 years, and it is a tradition still going on.

Where is the city of Qufu located?

Qufu is a city in Shandong Province. The city is 150 km south of Jinan and 85 km from Mount Tai. Regarding major Chinese cities, Qufu is about 530 km from Beijing and 400 km from Qingdao, 740 km from Shanghai.

How to get to Qufu?

You can arrive by plane from many Chinese cities like Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, and Nanjing. Jining Qufu Airport has located about 80 km from the city center. Since Qufu is only about 85 km from Taishan Mountain, many tourists sometimes like to visit the two places from Jinan.

Qufu is also well served by high-speed trains from Beijing, Shanghai, Jinan, and other major cities.

When to visit Qufu?

Qufu is located southwest of Shandong Province. The climate of this region is characterized by rains in summer and autumn and dry winter. The average annual temperature is between 11 and 14 degrees while the annual rainfall is mainly during the summer monsoon.

The best time to visit the region is fall and spring.

Qufu is a famous cultural destination. The most popular and recommended tour itinerary is to take a day trip to see the three famous UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites: Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion.

Qufu and Confucianism

In ancient times, Qufu was the capital of the small independent state of Lu, which flourished from the 6th to 4th centuries BCE. Qufu is best known as the birthplace and residence of Confucius, the founder of Confucianism. In 551 BC, Confucius was born in Nishan Town, 30 kilometers southeast of Qufu City. And another city 20 kilometers south of Qufu, Zoucheng, is the hometown of another great Confucian thinker and philosopher, Mencius.

Indeed, Confucianism, the ancient Chinese art of etiquette, originated in this city, it is the place where Confucius gave his lectures and disseminated his thought. Confucius first advocated teaching without distinction and teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, believing that everyone has the right to receive an education, and this was indeed a feat when education was monopolized by the state and only aimed at the aristocracy. Therefore, he became the pioneer and representative of private education and knowledge facing the civilians at that time, so later generations were revered as “Example for all Teachers” and “Sacred First Teacher”.

Confucius did the same thing as he thought. When Confucius was about thirty years old, some of his first disciples came to him to study. Since then, Confucius has been engaged in education. He has admitted many disciples, according to legend, there are 3,000 disciples, of which 72 are the best. These disciples later organized and carried forward the ideas of Confucius and became Confucianism.

Confucianism is a philosophy rather than a religion. It consists of a series of codes that the Chinese population had to respect. It was hoped that by following such benevolent conduct, people would live together harmoniously under the traditional Chinese system. According to a feudal system of altruistic despotism. The population was supposed to obey their elders (hierarchical paternalism), be altruistic, and fight for the common good. Above all, temperance was placed as a primary virtue. The emperor and those in positions of power were also expected to follow Confucian principles of government. This thus diminishes the claim of the emperor to his divine right. Confucius suggested that rulers should “govern the people with love and train people to learn good manners.” He dreamed that by doing so, the country would be as strong as his ideal, the Western Zhou Dynasty.

Confucianism is a philosophy rather than a religion. It consists of a series of codes of conduct that the Chinese population had to respect. It was hoped that by following such benevolent conduct, people would live together harmoniously under the traditional Chinese system. According to the Confucian ideal system, the population was supposed to obey their elders (hierarchical paternalism), be altruistic, and fight for the common good. Above all, temperance was placed as a primary virtue. The emperor and those in positions of power were also expected to follow Confucian principles of government. This thus diminishes the claim of the emperor to his divine right. Confucius suggested that rulers should “govern the people with love and train people to learn good manners.” He dreamed that by doing so, the country would be as strong as his ideal, the Western Zhou Dynasty.

Although Confucius believed that all people had the right to education, he looked down on the merchant class somewhat. Because he thinks businessmen are too chasing profit and have no morals. This also may be one of the reasons why businessmen in the imperial era of China for more than 2,000 years have been suppressed by the government. But it is quite ironic that today Qufu is overrun with thousands of vendors.

As an important tourist city, it is not difficult to find accommodation. All price and comfort ranges are available. Rates are on average in China and vary depending on the location. Count 30 to 40 dollars for a 3-star hotel.

Related to Shandong cuisine, Qufu cuisine is particularly famous for its street barbecues. The barbecue skewers are delicious vegetarian or with meat; just point and choose. The best places to taste the local gastronomy are in the old town. The barbecue skewers are delicious vegetarian or with meat; just point and choose.

If you want to dine at the table, go to Restaurant Zi Yue Man Ju. This clean and modern restaurant attached to the Zi Yue Man Ju hotel offers fried Chinese dishes and traditional noodles typical of the local cuisine.

Alternatively, the Qing Lv restaurant. One of the few places in town to offer an English menu, this friendly cafe-bar-restaurant attached to the city’s excellent youth hostel offers a mix of Western dishes (pizza, pasta, salads, sandwiches) and Chinese (noodles, dumplings, rice dishes) foods. Also ideal for a coffee in the morning or a beer in the evening around a game of billiards.

You will find more detailed information on Chinese gastronomy on the page: Popular Chinese dishes.

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