Sanxing (deities)

Sanxing
Shou, Lu, and Fu gods at a Chinese folk religious temple in Mong Kok, Hong Kong
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese福祿壽
Simplified Chinese福禄寿
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinFú Lù Shòu
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationFūk Luhk Sauh
JyutpingFuk1 Luk6 Sau6
Southern Min
Hokkien POJHok-lo̍k-siū
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabetPhúc Lộc Thọ
Chữ Hán福祿壽
Japanese name
Kanji福禄寿
Transcriptions
RomanizationFuku Roku Ju

The Sanxing (Chinese: 三星; pinyin: sānxīng; lit. 'Three Stars') are the gods of the three celestial bodies considered essential in Chinese astrology and mythology: Jupiter, Ursa Major, and Canopus. Fu, Lu, and Shou (traditional Chinese: 祿; simplified Chinese: 寿; pinyin: Fú Lù Shòu; Cantonese Yale: Fūk Luhk Sauh), or Cai, Zi and Shou (財子壽) are also the embodiments of Fortune (Fu), presiding over the planet Jupiter, Prosperity (Lu), presiding over Mizar (ζ Ursa Majoris), and Longevity (Shou), presiding over Canopus. They have emerged from Chinese folk religion. Their iconic representation as three, old, bearded, wise men dates back to the Ming dynasty,[1] when the gods of the three stars were represented in human form for the first time. They are sometimes identified with other deities of the Chinese religion or of Taoism.

The term is commonly used in Chinese culture to denote the three attributes of a good life. Statues of these three gods are found on the facades of folk religion's temples, ancestral shrines, in homes and many Chinese-owned shops, often on small altars with a glass of water, an orange or other auspicious offerings, especially during Chinese New Year. Traditionally, they are arranged right to left (Shou on the left of the viewer, Lu in the middle, and Fu on the far right), just as Chinese characters are traditionally written from right to left.

  1. ^ (in Chinese) 福禄寿星 Archived 2006-07-22 at the Wayback Machine. British Taoist Association.