Introduction: According to legend, the ceremony of the sacrifice to the heavens is very solemn and solemn, and the pomp is very large, the ceremony is dignified, and the number of people is large. As a contemporary Chinese I am afraid that it is difficult to see this kind of ceremony again, and it can only be interpreted by film and television personnel, probably restoring the scene at that time.
Because the Qing Dynasty ended in 1912, there are very few records of celestial sacrifices, and this "high-end operation" can only exist in the imperial court ceremonies of ancient dynasties. It is not surprising that modern society can actually have the privilege of seeing old photos of rituals, which can be said to be quite rare.
Historically, the last dynasty of Vietnam was the Nguyen Dynasty. Founded in 1802, it belonged to the feudal dynasty before 1945, and the rule ended in 1945. The dynasty was divided into independent and colonial periods, with the period of independence from 1802 to 1883.
The period from 1883 to 1945 was colonized by france, and Vietnam was briefly occupied by Japan during World War II. Vietnam's Nguyen Dynasty ritual is the most important of all the dynastic sacrifices, and the participants in the festival are also wearing the most solemn dresses.
The highest level of clothing of the feudal dynasty in the Chinese cycle period was the crown dress, which was worn every year on the winter solstice festival. The Relationship between the Central Plains Dynasty and the ancient Vietnamese dynasties was very imaginative, and even the ceremonies were modeled after the Central Plains.
Therefore, after thousands of years of development, Vietnamese celestial rituals have already possessed many cultural styles in the Central Plains. Vietnam was divided into Jiaotongchina, Annam, and Tokyo at that time, and later Annam and Tokyo became French protectorates, and the Nguyen Dynasty still had the right to administer Annam and Tokyo, while Jiaotong became a complete colony.
On March 23, 1945, the host of the last festival in history was presided over by The Vietnamese Emperor Bao The Great. The purpose of the Vietnamese royal family to perform the ritual of sacrificing the heavens is to announce to the common people that the Vietnamese emperor is the son of heaven and was chosen by the superior.
The celestial sacrifice ceremony is a contemporary emperor who describes to the heavens his obligations as a person under ten thousand people, and reports to the Jade Emperor of Tianguan on his work status throughout the year, so the celestial sacrifice ceremony is a very dignified and solemn ceremony for ancient kings. Moreover, the worship of heaven is different from the worship of ancestors, and the worship of ancestors is to pay homage to the ancestors who have passed away. However, both the worship of heaven and ancestors are vital rituals of the royal family.
Before the start of the ceremony, it is generally necessary to start preparations three months in advance, and two weeks before the start of the ceremony, a special person is assigned to pray, and on the day of the sacrifice, the emperor announces the order, and announces the order in order to remind the people who participate in the sacrifice.
Three days before the sacrifice, the emperor would call on the literati and warriors, and they also needed to fast themselves and participate in the ritual of worshiping the heavens in the best condition. In the end, only the emperor needs to choose a date at the imperial court. Before the celestial ceremony, the emperor's fast is very important.
The emperor would instruct the people to carry the bronze statue to him by a palanquin, and the emperor would sit and meditate in front of the statue and feel god's favor. The Nguyen Dynasty's royal ceremony of worship took the Temple of Heaven on the southern outskirts of Hue as the place of worship, which is not unique to China.
The Temple of Heaven also existed in the royal family of the Vietnamese Dynasty, and its specifications certainly cannot be generalized in the Central Plains Dynasty, and the Anning Society was the first place to build this Temple of Heaven. The emperor's queue set off from the Imperial City Qinzheng Hall on the day of the sacrifice, and to the Temple of Heaven in the southern suburbs, it was necessary to pass through the Right Gate of the Imperial City and take the Hue Noon Gate to hold the sacrifice activities.
During the sacrifice to the heavens, the emperor's honor guard was divided into three sections, each of which was divided into the front army, the rear army, and the middle army. A statue is then accompanied by a musical composition of instruments and weapons. In the heavenly sacrifice team, the former military honor guard took the lead and made preparations, and the Chinese military honor guard was the most grand and grand.
There are various sub-tasks, in addition to displaying various weapons and tools for various ceremonies, and finally various flags. The rear army is relatively simple, and the music is also more relaxed and pleasant. Walking slowly in the middle of the whole procession were the emperor and his retinue.
There were also various officers and soldiers who followed the emperor around. Throughout the ceremony, the emperor marched in a queue of nearly 2,000 people, which took several hours to travel between the cities and then reach the Temple of Heaven on the southern outskirts. It was already noon when he arrived, and the emperor would go into the Palace of The House to fast.
The Vietnamese people who worship are generally thin in stature and have a relatively short average height. Moreover, most of the costumes and rituals, the steps of the rituals of the sacrifice to the heavens, and the tools needed to sacrifice the heavens are mostly imitated by the feudal dynasties of the Central Plains.
Summary: Finally, the August Revolution began on March 23, 1945, five months after the end of the Nguyen Dynasty's last celestial ceremony, and since then the emperor system of the Nguyễn Dynasty has begun to disintegrate, and Vietnam has established a republican system. Since then, this kind of royal high-end operation has been difficult to see again