The Imperial Garden (Yuhuayuan)
Located on the northernmost end of the central axis of the Forbidden City, the Imperial Garden covers an area of 12,000 square meters and is the largest garden in the Forbidden City. It served as a recreational and entertainment venue for emperors, empresses, and concubines of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The garden is dotted with multiple buildings. The main building, the Hall of Imperial Peace, once served as a venue for Taoist activities.
To the southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest of the Hall of Imperial Peace stand four pavilions that represent the four seasons—the Pavilion of Myriad Springs (Wanchun ting), the Pavilion of Floating Jade (Fubi ting), the Pavilion of One Thousand Autumns (Qianqiu ting), and the Pavilion of Auspicious Lucidity (Chengrui ting).
On the western side of the garden is a concave-shaped building called the Lodge of Spiritual Cultivation (Yangxing zhai), which symmetrizes the convex-shaped building named the Bower of Crimson Snow (Jiangxue xuan) on the eastern side. Both were used by the emperor as venues for book collection and reading. They add a sense of dynamics and liveliness to the overall symmetrical layout of the garden.
More than 100 ancient trees and artificial rockeries dot the garden in addition to the buildings.
In the northeastern corner of the garden stands the Hill of Accumulated Excellence (Duixiu shan), built of stones of various shapes, where emperors and imperial consorts could enjoy views from atop the hill.
Another feature is grotesque natural rocks such as the Sea Cucumber Rock, the Wood-turned Stone, and the "Zhuge Liang Worshipping the Big Dipper" Rock, which set off each other.
An important part of the Forbidden City, the Imperial Garden was an ideal place for the emperor to handle state affairs, relax, and seek inner peace, reflecting the Chinese pursuit of finding spiritual resonance in natural landscapes.
御花園
御花園位于紫禁城中軸線最北側(cè)，占地12000平方米，是紫禁城中最大的花園，供明清帝后妃嬪休閑娛樂所用。
花園中建筑星羅棋布。主體建筑欽安殿是舉行道教活動的場所。欽安殿東南、東北、西南、西北分布萬春、浮碧、千秋、澄瑞四亭，代表一年四季。花園西側(cè)有“凹”字形建筑養(yǎng)性齋，與東側(cè)“凸”字形建筑絳雪軒呼應(yīng)，二者皆曾用作皇帝藏書、讀書之所，在花園總體對稱的布局中，又顯變化活潑的一面。
除建筑外，花園有古樹一百余棵，另有奇石造景點(diǎn)綴其間。園內(nèi)東北角，為形態(tài)各異的石頭堆砌而成的堆秀山，可供帝后嬪妃登高望遠(yuǎn)。園中還有“海參石”“木變石”和“諸葛拜斗石”，皆天然形成，相映成趣。
御花園作為紫禁城的重要組成部分，是宮廷政務(wù)、生活之余放松身心、陶冶性情的好去處，體現(xiàn)了中國人寄情山水、寓于自然的理想追求。
