Students in traditional Han costumes perform at the ceremony, in Harbin, on Sept 28. [Photo/my399.com]

The Confucian Temple in the city of Harbin, Heilongjiang province held a grand ceremony to commemorate the 2,566th birthday of the Chinese philosopher Confucius, on Sept 28, with hundreds of people turning up, from ordinary folk to experts to followers of Confucianism, and everybody else.

Students wearing the hanfu, a traditional costume, performed the Ba Yi dance, an ancient dance that dates back to the Zhou Dynasty (c. 11th C - 256 BC), to show respect to Confucius.