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While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Tudi Gong, in Chinese religion, a god whose deification and functions are determined by local residents. The chief characteristic of a Tudi Gong is the limitation of his jurisdiction to a single place—e.g., a bridge, a street, a temple, a public building, a private home, or a field. In the case of private homes, the Tudi Gong is often identified with the god of riches (Cai Shen). In all cases, a Tudi Gong is subservient to the Cheng Huang, the City God or spiritual magistrate.
In most cases these gods originated as historical persons who in life came to the assistance of their respective communities in times of need. It is supposed that, by deifying such persons and offering sacrifices to them, they will be moved to show similar solicitude after death. If misfortunes visit a locality, the Tudi Gong is judged to have lost interest and a new patron is chosen.
Some Chinese refer to Tudi Shen (“God of the Place”) and Tudi Ye (“Venerable God of the Place”), but there is nothing special about their name or function to distinguish them from any other “Place God.”
This article was most recently revised and updated by Matt Stefon.
A Tudigong (Chinese: 土地公; lit. 'Lord of the Land') is a kind of Chinese tutelary deity of a specific location. There are several Tudigongs corresponding to different geographical locations and sometimes multiple ones will be venerated together in certain regions.
, in Chinese religion, a god whose deification and functions are determined by local residents. The chief characteristic of a Tudi Gong is the limitation of his jurisdiction to a single place—e.g., a bridge, a street, a temple, a public building, a private home, or a field.
Each god has certain responsibilities or powers, with Tudi Gong perhaps having more responsibilities than most. Essentially, Tudi Gong protects the people of his locality. Because he is in every locality, he protects individuals in different ways and against different threats.
Shangti was considered the great ancestor of all Chinese, who gave the people culture, architecture, skill in battle, agriculture, controlled the weather, regulated the seasons, and was king over the other gods, human beings, and nature.
Hou Tu, in Chinese mythology, the spirit of the earth, first worshipped in 113 bce by Wudi, a Han-dynasty emperor. Hou Tu as sovereign earth became identified with the dual patron deity of the soil and harvest, Sheji, and so received sacrifices under this title.
Ancestor worship and reverence to family are fundamental elements of Confucianism. Rituals to honour ancestors are extremely important and must be performed in precise ways. By carrying them out properly, an individual can receive the aid and cooperation of deceased relatives.
There are several Tudigongs corresponding to different geographical locations and sometimes multiple ones will be venerated together in certain regions. They are tutelary (i.e. guardian or patron) deities of locations and the human communities who inhabit it in Chinese folk religion, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism.
Religion in China is diverse and most Chinese people are either non-religious or practice a combination of Buddhism and Taoism with a Confucian worldview, which is collectively termed as Chinese folk religion.
The veneration of ancestors is known in many religious communities (e.g., Confucianism, Shintō); shrines in honour of the ancestors were maintained in Greek and Roman homes in antiquity.
The most powerful Chinese god is believed to be Shangdi, the god of victory in war and harvest. He is said to be the most powerful because of his Shang and Zhou influences.
Shangdi was considered to be the supreme deity during the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 century bce), but during the Zhou dynasty (1046–256 bce) he was gradually supplanted by heaven (tian).
An earth spirit is a mythical beast with the body of a lion and the legs and cloven hooves of a deer with flame-like wings, and a human featured head. The Chinese actually thought of the earth spirits as celestial guardians.
Beliefs and practices tied to Confucianism, Taoism and Chinese folk religions generally fall into three broad areas: filial piety (xiao 孝) and ancestor worship (ji*zu 祭祖), veneration of deities and ghosts, and beliefs that involve supernatural forces, such as fengshui (风水).
Four imaginary sacred animals regarded in China as guardian deities of the four directions from the Han dynasty on. The blue dragon Seiryū (Ch.Qinglong) is to the east, the red peaco*ck Suzaku (Zhuque) to the south, the white tiger Byakko (Baihu) to the west and the black tortoise Genbu (Xuanhu) to the north.
God, Source of all hope and love Hear our prayers for our ancestors. May the road they walked in pursuit of peace and joy in you Mirror for us the same peace and joy we long for.Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.
Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism were the three main philosophies and religions of ancient China, which have individually and collectively influenced ancient and modern Chinese society.
There were over 200 gods in the Chinese pantheon whose names were recorded during and after the Shang Dynasty. Above all was Shangti, the god of law, order, justice, and life, known as "The Lord on High". Some form of Nuwa, goddess of humankind, existed as early as the Shang Dynasty.
A god of the lowest rank, Tudigong receives wishes from worshippers and grants them according to their deeds. Hence his more formal name, Fude Zhengshen, the Right God of Blessing and Virtue. In many places he is worshipped before the burial of the dead, for using his land to return their bodies to the earth.
She is credited with creating humanity and repairing the Pillar of Heaven. As creator of mankind, she molded humans individually by hand with yellow clay. In other stories where she fulfills this role, she only created nobles and/or the rich out of yellow soil.
Guan Gong (關公), originally Guan Yu (關羽), the red-faced, bearded hero of Romance of the Three Kingdoms and symbol of loyalty. He is the patron god of policemen, war, fortune, law, and gangsters, as he shows forgiveness, and often also serves as "Wu Sheng".
He is shown to have vast, superhuman strength, being able to cleave an entire mountain with his axe to save his mother in just one stroke and being capable of 72 Transformations (sometimes said to be 73 Transformations), meaning he can transform into virtually anything he wants.
Introduction: My name is Geoffrey Lueilwitz, I am a zealous, encouraging, sparkling, enchanting, graceful, faithful, nice person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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