An Honest Review of Sacred Attraction- Temple of Heaven

Temple of Heaven is the place you should not miss during the Beijing tour. I have been to there and I want recommend this site to you if you are tours in Beijing

Brief Introduction

Situated in the southern part of the city and was built in 1420, the Temple of Heaven is regarded as one of the greatest architectural structures in the world. Temple of Heaven is a temple of Chinese religion used for imperial ceremonies for five centuries.
Temple of Heaven was registered on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1998. And this organization appraise the Temple of Heaven like this "The Temple of Heaven is a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world's great civilizations."

History

In ancient times, the emperor was regarded as the Son of Heaven. In the form of sacrifices to heaven, the Temple of Heaven was built for ceremonies to show respect to the source of his authority. This building is magnificent and environment is solemn and respectful. Every winter solstice, emperors would come here to pray for good harvests. However, common people are forbidden to catch a glimpse of the great annual procession. They had to bolt their windows and remain in silence indoors throughout the event.

What to See

 

In ancient times, our ancestors think that Earth is square and Heaven is round. And the entire site of Temple of Heaven was endowed with this implication, and temples and altars are round and stand on square bases.
The park can be divided into three main groups of buildings: the Earthly Mount, the House of Heavenly Lord, and the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. All of them are constructed according to strict feng shui demands. 
The central pathway leads straight to the Round Altar, a platform of three marble tiers representing Man, Earth and Heaven. Each tier is made of blocks in various multiples of nine that symbolize both Heaven and Emperor for that the number of nine was seen as the most powerful odd number.
To the east of Temple of Heaven are ruins of a group of buildings used for the preparation of sacrifices.

Now the Temple of Heaven has been a museum open to the public. If you go to the Temple of Heaven in the early morning, you can see groups of people practicing all types of kung fu and Taiji. You can also practice with them if you are so inclined.
Above are what I know, and I want to visit it again when I tour in Beijing next time.