A glazed tile memorial archway stands before the temple?s main gate, the Xianshi (Foremost Teacher) Gate, which leads into a courtyard shaded by pines and cypresses. The four courtyards, which make up the temple grounds, occupy a total area of 20,000 square meters. In the first courtyard are a number of pavilions housing a collection of 188 stone tablets bearing the names of scholars from all over China who passed the triennial imperial examinations.

At the northern end of this courtyard is the Dacheng (Great Achievement) Gate, near which stone drums were found. These treasured drums, inscribed with a series of odes reputed to date from the reign of King Xuan (828-782 BC) of the Zhou Dynasty, are now on display at the Palace Museum. The drums near the Dacheng Gate today are reproductions executed during the reign of Emperor Qianlong.

Leading to the central hall, the Dacheng (Great Achievements) Hall, is a pathway flanked by 11 stela pavilions containing stone tablets recording military expeditions ordered by the Qing emperors. The hall name became the Yilun (Ethics) Hall. Here the emperor and other noted scholars gave lectures during the period before the Biyong Hall was built. It is now one of the reading rooms of the Capital Library.