qing emperors used this building to announce the beginning of the new year. qing emperor qianglong changed the original name of this announcement ceremony from ban li(announcement of calendar)to ban shou(announcement of new moon )to avoid coincidental association with another emperor` s name, hongli, which was considered a taboo at that time. qing dynasty emperors also used this place to hold audience and for other important ceremonies. for example,when the imperial army returned victoriously from the battlefield ,it was here that the emperor presided over the ceremony to accept prisoners of war.
(after entering the meridian gate and standing in front of the five marble bridges on golden water river)
now we are inside the forbidden city.before we start our tour, i would like to briefly introduce you to the architectural patterns befour us .to complete this solemn, magnificent and palatial complex, a variety of buildings were arranged on a north-south axis, and 8-kilometer-long invisible line that has become an inseparable part of the city of beijing. the forbidden city covers roughly one –third of this central axis. most of the important building in the forbidden city weree arranged along this line. the design and arrangement of the palaces reflect the solemn dignity of the royal court and rigidly –stratified feudal system.
the forbidden city is divided into an outer and an inner count.we are now standing on the southernmost part of the outer count. in front of us lies the gate of supreme harmony .the gate is guarded by a pair of bronze lions ,symbolizing imperial power and dignity. the lions were the most exquisite and biggest of its kind. the one on the east playing with a ball is a male, and ball is said to represent state unity. the other one is a female. underneath one of its fore claws is a cub that is considered to be a symbol of perpetual imperial succession. the winding brook before us is the golden water river. it functions both as decoration and fire control .the five bridges spanning the river represent the five virtues preached by confucius :benevolence, righteousness, rites, intellence and fidelity. the river takes the shape of a bow and the north-south axis is its arrow. this was meant to show that the emperors ruled the country on behalf of god.
