Forbidden City

Landmarks

If ever there was a palace that deserved the name of a prison,

it is that palace in the Forbidden City. - Reginald Johnston

Sweet Forbidden.

For almost 500 years, the Forbidden City in Beijing, China served as the home of emperors and their household as well as the ceremonial and political center of  government. It was so-called because no one could enter or leave the palace without the emperor's permission, and also because ordinary people had to be authorized for entry.

Today it is no longer forbidden, as it has been transformed into a public museum, and I'm one of the hundreds of wide-eyed spectators who are stepping onto its threshhold.

As I eagerly glance inside, I see the light breaking through. I shade my eyes with my hands as I study the replica of the Purple Palace where the Celestial Emperor was thought to live in Heaven. It is enclosed by a 33-foot high wall, heavily guarded in the past at each corner with a magnificent watchtower.

A complex with over 180 acres, 980 buildings, 90 palaces and courtyards, and 8,704 rooms! I let out a gusty sigh.

From across an expansive brick-paved square, I reach the Meridian Gate which is the main entrance to the palace. Proceeding to the Golden Stream Bridge onto the outer court, I pass through the hall of Preserving Harmony.

I keep wondering, Can it really impart inner serenity?

I raise my eyebrows quizzically, but there is no time to test its claim. Out the hall and straight ahead, I spot the Gate of Heavenly Peace, the main passage to the inner living court and the emperor and concubines' sleeping quarters. 

So magnificent.

And yet a hollow feeling hits me. The emperor could not leave the palace grounds without an official escort and usually not unless it was to attend an official function or to travel to another palace. Being female, the empresses and concubines led even more sheltered lives because they could not be seen by any males outside the immediate family circle.

How like a cage it must have felt to them, I mumble with a heavy sigh.

With a wry smile, I contemplate how their hearts must have been heavy hidden behind these walls. So painfully, so suffocatingly small.

My voice falls as I mutter. Imagine being kept under scrutiny from the moment they rose to the moment they retired for the night. They must have slept deeply, but without dreams.

From behind the Imperial Garden, I exit through the Gate of Divine Might.­­­ I open the door a crack and gaze yearningly beyond. For me, all of the morning's buoyancy has faded. I feel a slow but familiar sinking feeling of having seen one of the saddest places ever. 

I turn away, leaving my  bitter-sweet memory to haunt the soft, diffused light of a celestial sky.