Approach 'the Eastern Sage' Confucius and appreciate the millennium-old rites and music!

Hidden in the vessels and attire, the ceremonial garb and instruments embody the profound Chinese culture of rites and music. The Confucian rites and music, evolved from the pre-Qin dynasty, have become an important legacy of Chinese ritualistic culture. The Han dynasty's Emperor Wu initiated the imperial tradition of worshipping Confucius, setting a precedent that continued through the ages. Since then, the Confucian ritual instruments, whether bestowed by emperors, supported by local authorities, or crafted by the temple itself, have been passed down through generations at the Que Li Confucian Temple. These instruments, orderly transmitted, well-preserved, and exquisitely crafted, are exemplary of the ritual instruments used in sacrifices across China. For the Confucian sacrifice, the custom-made xun (a type of ocarina) has seven holes, the yang months use the Huang Zhong pitch, and the yin months use the Da Lü pitch. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the refined music played for Confucius' sacrifice was the Zhonghe Shaoyue. The system of Zhonghe Shaoyue began in the early years of the Ming dynasty's Hongwu era, its prototype tracing back to the Shaoyue music of the pre-Qin period. It was performed with instruments made of metal, stone, silk, bamboo, leather, wood, gourd, and clay, harmonized with the musical scales, and integrated rites, music, and dance. The attire worn during the Confucian temple sacrifices played a role in teaching proper etiquette, rectifying people's hearts, ordering social hierarchy, and harmonizing superiors and subordinates. In the Ming dynasty, Confucius was revered and the Confucian scholars were esteemed, with the Duke of Yansheng's rank equivalent to the first rank. Later, the sacrificial garments changed to use dark colors for the upper clothing and green edges for the robes. In the Qing dynasty, the patchwork on the official attire, typically with round collars and flat sleeves, indicated one's rank. Princes and dukes used round patches, while others used square ones. Dukes, marquises, sons-in-law of the emperor, and earls had embroidered qilin and bai ze. Civil officials wore patches with single birds, while military officials had animal patterns. For civil officials, the first rank was the crane, the second rank the pheasant, the third rank the peacock, the fourth rank the wild goose, the fifth rank the white pheasant, the sixth rank the egret, the seventh rank the piti, the eighth rank the oriole, the ninth rank the quail, with the luan bird for miscellaneous positions, and the xiezhi for the censorate officials. For military officials, the first and second ranks had lions, the third and fourth ranks had tigers and leopards, the fifth rank had bears, the sixth and seventh ranks had leopards, the eighth rank had rhinoceroses, and the ninth rank had seahorses. Today, people use the Confucian ritual instruments to remember the most sage teacher and to trace back the thousand-year-old culture of rites and music. Upholding the legacy of rites and music, they aim to rectify the Chinese attire and usher in an era of universal peace.