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Chinese Buddhist Gods of Wealth

From Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia
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The worship of gods of wealth is also common in Tibetan Buddhism. There are various kinds of wealth gods, such as the Heavenly King of Wealth, Yellow Wealth God, Black Wealth God and White Wealth God etc. Umbrella Heavenly King is one of the four heavenly kings in Buddhism, also responsible for wealth management. He holds a treasure umbrella in his right hand. As jewelry can be generated from the turning of the umbrella, the heavenly king is also called "Treasure God". The Yellow Wealth God is derived from Umbrella Heavenly King. He's golden from head to toe, so he's called "Yellow Wealth God". The Black Wealth God is evolved from ancient Indian wealth god and his body is black. And White Wealth God is another god in charge of wealth in Tibetan Buddhism who rides a dragon.

Welcoming the God of Wealth

The fifth day of the first month of Chinese lunar calendar is said to be the birthday of the God of Wealth and also an auspicious day to welcome him. On the night of the fourth day of the first month, every household is expected to prepare a feast for the birthday celebration and to get sacrificial animals, cakes, fruit, incense and candles etc ready. Then, people beat drums and gongs and burn incense to pay tribute to the God of Wealth. On the morning of the fifth day, firecrackers are exploded as a sign of welcoming the God of Wealth. It is a custom for shops to hang red cloth over their signboards and to buy the gold or silver ingot fish, wishing for a good start to the prosperous business. The ingot fish is a string of fish threaded through the backs hanging from the beam, with fish heads facing inside. Red paper bearing shoe-shaped gold or silver ingots is stuck to the fish, symbolizing "bringing in wealth and treasure".

On the second day of the first month of Chinese lunar calendar, sacrificial ceremonies are held across the country, but the ceremonies vary from place to place. In north China, every household welcomes the God of Wealth to the family by buying a portrait of the God for worshipping. Offerings to the God should be presented after incense is burnt. Common offerings include roosters, pig heads and living carps etc. In south China, offerings to the God of Wealth are placed on a total of three tables: the first table is full of fruit; the second table is full of cakes; and the third table presents a formal feast that includes pig heads, whole chickens, whole ducks and fish etc, indicating good wishes for bringing in wealth.


As a god that can bring in wealth and riches, the God of Wealth is worshiped by most Chinese. Each time of the Spring Festival, every family will hang a picture of the god for blessings of great luck and large wealth. It was originally a custom practiced by merchants, which then became popular amongst other folks and villagers. Moreover, people of different times and regions worship their own God of Wealth differently, such as the Civil God of Wealth, the Martial God of Wealth, the Deities of Wealth of Five Directions and the Angel of Fortune, as well as the orthodox one Zhao Gongming. The God of Wealth in folk beliefs is not a singular image but something appears as a group.
The Civil God of Wealth or Caibo Xingjun usually refers to Bi Gan and Fan Li, whose statues and figure paintings are in the look of civilian officials. There are also Martial God of Wealth - Zhao Gongming and Guan Yu in the look of dark face and thick beards wearing iron hat and coat armor. The Deities of Wealth of Five Directions are defined as the Marshal Zhao Gong, the Zhaobao (meaning invite treasure) Lord of Heaven Xiao Sheng, Nazhen (meaning collect treasures) Lord of Heaven Cao Bao, the Herald of Inviting Wealth Chen Jiugong, and Lishi (meaning lucky money) Immortal Officer Yao Shaosi together take over all wealth and treasure and bring luck and fortune to people. The Angel of Fortune often appears in the image of a boy holding a treasure plate or gold ingot and a Ruyi scepter serving the civil and martial gods of wealth, who are often visualized as the Lishi Immortal Officer, the Mammon Boy, Liu Haichan and the Gods of Harmony. In some places, historical figures such as Shen Wansan (a well-known and intelligent merchant prince) are also worshiped as gods of wealth.
The gods of wealth in Tibetan Buddhism are also widely embraced by Tibetans, which include the Heavenly King of Fortune, Yellow Jambhala, Black Jambhala and White Jambhala. Tibetans in Tibet and Qinghai region have always held it a custom to pray for fortune by enshrining gods of wealth.



As a god that can bring in wealth and riches, the God of Wealth is worshiped by most Chinese. Each time of the Spring Festival, every family will hang a picture of the god for blessings of great luck and large wealth. It was originally a custom practiced by merchants, which then became popular amongst other folks and villagers. Moreover, people of different times and regions worship their own God of Wealth differently, such as the Civil God of Wealth, the Martial God of Wealth, the Deities of Wealth of Five Directions and the Angel of Fortune, as well as the orthodox one Zhao Gongming. The God of Wealth in folk beliefs is not a singular image but something appears as a group.
The Civil God of Wealth or Caibo Xingjun usually refers to Bi Gan and Fan Li, whose statues and figure paintings are in the look of civilian officials. There are also Martial God of Wealth - Zhao Gongming and Guan Yu in the look of dark face and thick beards wearing iron hat and coat armor. The Deities of Wealth of Five Directions are defined as the Marshal Zhao Gong, the Zhaobao (meaning invite treasure) Lord of Heaven Xiao Sheng, Nazhen (meaning collect treasures) Lord of Heaven Cao Bao, the Herald of Inviting Wealth Chen Jiugong, and Lishi (meaning lucky money) Immortal Officer Yao Shaosi together take over all wealth and treasure and bring luck and fortune to people. The Angel of Fortune often appears in the image of a boy holding a treasure plate or gold ingot and a Ruyi scepter serving the civil and martial gods of wealth, who are often visualized as the Lishi Immortal Officer, the Mammon Boy, Liu Haichan and the Gods of Harmony. In some places, historical figures such as Shen Wansan (a well-known and intelligent merchant prince) are also worshiped as gods of wealth.
The gods of wealth in Tibetan Buddhism are also widely embraced by Tibetans, which include the Heavenly King of Fortune, Yellow Jambhala, Black Jambhala and White Jambhala. Tibetans in Tibet and Qinghai region have always held it a custom to pray for fortune by enshrining gods of wealth.


According to historical records, Bi Gan was the uncle of King Zhou of the Shang Dynasty. He was a faithful and righteous minister. According to Fengshen Yanyi or The Creation of the Gods, Bi Gan's heart was dug out by Daji, King Zhou's most favored concubine, but he didn't die thanks to the panacea offered by Jiang Ziya. Later, Bi Gan went into the midst of the common people to distribute treasure. Legend has it that merchants under the blessing of Bi Gan all did honest business, never cheating anyone. That's why Bi Gan was widely praised and worshiped. The usual portrait of Bi Gan is a man dressed like a civil official who wears a minister's gauze cap and embroidered robe, with a ruyi (an S-shaped ornamental object, usu. made of jade, formerly a symbol of good luck) in his hand and gold or silver ingots under his feet.

Fan Li was an outstanding statesman, thinker and strategist of the Spring and Autumn Period. He was also a businessman that had the knack of making money. After his resignation, he lived in seclusion with his family in Taodi, where he amassed lots of wealth though farming, livestock raising and doing business, becoming an extremely rich man. Later, he distributed his wealth to local people. His business operating wisdom and generosity was highly praised by the people, who worshiped him as the God of Wealth.

Apart from martial and civil gods of wealth, the side god is also worshipped among the people. The name of the god comes from the position of the portrait, which is often placed on the side. The side god is usually referred to what's called "Five-Road God". The five roads are the east, west, south, north and the middle. It is believed that with the blessing of the "Five-Road God", good fortune will come to someone when he or she goes out.


Young Gods of Wealth include the Divine Market-Boosting Official, Liu Haichan and Twin Gods etc. The images of these gods are usually young children holding treasure trays or gold (silver) ingots or ruyi standing beside marshal and civil gods of wealth.

Source

www.cultural-china.com