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Confucius and the Qin
Illustrations for Xing Tan (Apricot Forum) 		聽錄音 Listen to my recording      杏壇圖
Apricot Forum Pavilion, Qufu     曲阜﹕杏壇閣

Tradition says Confucius taught his students at the Apricot Forum in his home town of Qufu, Shandong province. Since ancient times pavilions have been erected in the Confucian temple there. The inscription with the illustration ends with Confucius reciting a poem that provides lyrics for the version of the melody Xing Tan in Xilutang Qintong, 1549:1

Summer goes, winter comes, spring turns to fall;
Stars and sun set in the west, water flows eastward.
Generals fighting on horseback: now where are they?
Wild grass blocks out the flowers, covering the earth in gloom.

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Woodblock print of Confucius teaching at the Apricot Forum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

1 In Chinese (Section 10 only): 歌詞（第十段）

署往寒來，春復秋；
夕陽西下，水東流。
將軍戰馬，今何在？
野草閑花，滿地愁。
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