The Path of the Wealth God

If there is any immortal in our cultural tradition who has been sincerely loved by the masses from ancient times to the present, it must be the God of Wealth. Therefore, the top-ranking auspicious saying during the Spring Festival is definitely "May you be prosperous!" — The beautiful aspiration for wealth has been written into the genes of our nation. Based on this simple and healthy national sentiment, our ancestors actively and optimistically created an immortal in charge of wealth, the God of Wealth. The God of Wealth governs fortune and presides over wealth and prosperity. It is a benevolent god widely worshiped by the people and has always been highly respected and venerated.

The origin of the God of Wealth is rather complicated and there are various opinions, because there is not just one God of Wealth but a group, and each one has a different origin. Among the numerous Gods of Wealth, Fan Li, Bi Gan, Guan Yu, and Zhao Gongming are the most popular and enjoy the most incense offerings. Most of the Gods of Wealth worshiped in temples across the country are these four figures, so they are the most famous and have the widest influence.

This book, in the form of brief biographies, clarifies for readers the life stories of the prototype figures of the Gods of Wealth as well as the origin and development of the God of Wealth culture. It interprets the traditional cultural themes that we love to talk about from a historical perspective and guides readers to draw more spiritual sources of auspiciousness, optimism, and ceaseless struggle from the outstanding traditional culture of our nation.