introduce
Songyang Academy, located in the north of Dengfeng City, is named because it is located in the Yang (south) of Songshan Mountain. It is backed by Junji Peak, the main peak of Songshan Mountain, facing the gurgling Shuangxi River, and surrounded by mountains on both sides. There are towering ancient cypresses inside and outside the academy, plums, willows, pine, bamboo, ginkgo, etc., everywhere.
Songyang Academy, formerly known as Songyang Temple, was founded in the eighth year of Taihe, Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 484). In the second year of Song Renzong Jinghu (1035 A.D.), it was renamed Songyang Academy. Since then, it has been an educational place for celebrities of all dynasties to teach classics. Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi, Sima Guang, and Fan Zhongyan, the "Luo School" Neo Confucianists of the Song Dynasty, all gave lectures here; part of "Zi Zhi Tong Jian" written by Sima Guang was being completed. When Wang Anshi reformed in the middle of the Northern Song Dynasty, he often argued with Sima Guang and Fan Zhongyan here.
The area of Songyang Academy is not very large, just walk along the central axis after entering the gate. The architectural layout of the academy maintains the style of the Qing Dynasty. After entering the scenic spot, you can first see the Temple of the First Teachers, which is dedicated to the ancestors and sages related to the academy, followed by the lecture hall, the Daotong Temple, and finally the library. On both sides of the axis are the original "Chengzhu Ancestral Hall", Book House, Xue Zhai, etc. In the west side of the academy, you can still see some buildings of the teaching and examination room of Songyang Academy in the Qing Dynasty.
When visiting Songyang Academy, there are several cultural relics that must be seen. After entering the gate, you can see a stele of the Tang Dynasty - "Ode to the Induction of the Holy Virtue of Songyang Guanji in the Tang Dynasty". The matter of alchemy. In the courtyard, you can also see two "general cypresses", which are more than 4,500 years old. It is said that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty bestowed the title of "general" in the first year of Yuanfeng in the Western Han Dynasty (110 BC).
In the library building of the academy, you must not miss the "Golden Slips of Empress Wu". It is said that after Empress Wu Zetian became emperor, she followed the example of the emperors of all dynasties and came to Songshan to worship the heavens, leaving a handwritten gold note to pray to the emperor of heaven, begging the god of Zhongyue Songshan Emperor Wu Zetian was exempted from all crimes, so that the Great Zhou Dynasty would last for thousands of years. What is preserved in Songyang Academy today is a replica.
opening hours
08:00-17:00 all year round
