Konfuzius und sein Kult (Confucius and His Cult, 1928)

Abstract

The present article deals with a monograph by the German Divine Word Missionary Franz Xaver Biallas (1878–1936) on the Temple of Confucius in Qufu and the rites performed there in veneration of the Chinese sage. Biallas was the first academically trained Sinologist of his congregation and founder of the Sinological journal Monumenta Serica. His book Confucius and His Cult: A Contribution to the Cultural History of China and a Guide to the Native Place of Confucius was published in German in 1928. It includes an introduction to Chinese culture, a presentation of Confucius and the historical development of Confucianism, as well as a detailed description of the temple and the grave of Confucius in Qufu. Richly illustrated, the work features photographs taken by Biallas himself and maps drawn according to his and his confrere Andreas Mohrbacher’s measurements made during their extended stays in Qufu. Following a biographical sketch of Biallas and a description of the genesis and contents of his book on Confucius, the Sinological value of the work is explored in the context of contemporary reviews. Finally, the present article assesses the academic relevance of Biallas’s book today as a thorough study of the Temple of Confucius and an eyewitness account to the performance of the Confucian rites in Republican times.