Fortune Favors the Bold: Welcoming the God of Wealth and the Market Economy (Shanghai City God Temple. Taoism in Modern Perspectives Series)

Author: Liu Zhongyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: This book aims to analyze the specific religious and folk custom of inviting the God of Wealth, revealing certain specific connotations of religious needs in contemporary society, and broadly outlining the motivations and origins behind inviting the God of Wealth. Whether this effort is successful or not is left for the readers to judge. The book includes numerous photographs and illustrations, not only to enhance readability but also because the content genuinely requires them. The belief in the God of Wealth exists in real life, taking a form. Unlike the idolatry of Christianity and other Western religions, traditional Chinese religion has long had the habit of creating images of deities for worship. Therefore, to explain Chinese-style deity worship, appropriate images are crucial, sometimes even irreplaceable. Without images, it is difficult to imagine the various forms of the God of Wealth, and without photographs, it is not easy to appreciate the current fervor of inviting the God of Wealth. It should be noted that the images used here are partly sourced from others' compiled albums, while the majority come from real-life photographs. These include images of the God of Wealth being worshipped by contemporary people, as well as photographs of rituals for inviting and offering to the God of Wealth. The latter are particularly valuable because the God of Wealth is widely seen, while rituals can only be observed in temples or shrines and must wait for the right occasion. Some large-scale rituals are held only once a year. To illustrate the points, our photographs were taken in different regions and temples over the years. During visits to various places for research, we took a photo whenever we encountered an image of the God of Wealth, gradually accumulating this rich collection.