The Three Star God of Fortune, Luxu and Longevity

 

The Three Star God of Fortune, Luxu and Longevity

 

In "Shang Shu·Hong Fan", there are five blessings: one is longevity, two is wealth, three is good health, four is good virtue, and five is good luck. The most popular and widely recognized gods of blessing among the people are the "Three Officials" gods or "Tianguan" among the "Three Yuan Emperors" taught by Taoism, and the "Shangyuan Yipin Blessing Jiewei Emperor".

In the folk New Year paintings, the Heavenly Official has a kind face, five long beards, an official hat, a python robe and a jade belt. He holds a jade Ruyi in his left hand, and opens a long page in his right hand with the words "Blessings from the Heavenly Official" and a bat symbolizing happiness on his head. , or use bats as lace patterns. To pray for happiness to come and long-lasting good fortune. The "Three Officials" originate from the three gases of metal, water and earth. "Ancient and Modern Books Collection·Shenyican" believes that weather is responsible for generation, earth gas is responsible for formation, and water gas is responsible for transformation; metal is for life and controls the weather; soil is for formation and controls the earth's atmosphere. ; Water turns into water and waits for water vapor.

However, in Chinese folklore, the traditional gods of fortune are actually the three gods of fortune, fortune and longevity, which are also collectively known as the three gods of fortune, fortune and longevity.

Before the use of the Gregorian calendar, the beginning of spring was the Spring Festival (the first day of the first lunar month was the New Year or New Year's Day). At the beginning of spring, the starry sky at this time is often the brightest of the year. Around eight or nine o'clock in the evening, I looked up at the starry sky. There were three stars in the south that were very easy to identify. They were close together and connected in a straight line, like a shining belt. That is Rigel, Rigel and Betelgeuse. Chinese folk call these three stars "Lu, Fu, and Longevity", and regard these three stars as three auspicious star officials, respectively in charge of blessings, life span, etc. in the world, also known as the "Three Stars of Fortune, Luxury, and Longevity" .

"Three stars are shining high, and the New Year is coming." When you see three stars shining high in the southern sky at night, it is the time of the Spring Festival.

According to legend, the God of Fortune was originally the star of the year, namely Jupiter, and later gradually became personified. One theory originated from the Heavenly Official among the three officials enshrined in Taiping Dao, and evolved into the theory that the Heavenly Official bestows blessings. It is said that the God of Fortune is Yangcheng, the governor of Tang Daozhou. He was revered as the God of Fortune because of his good governance in resisting the tribute of dwarfs. The most widely circulated and most commendable one is Yangcheng, the God of Fortune.

Yangcheng, whose birth and death dates are unknown, named Kangzong, was born in Xia County, Shaanxi Province (now part of Shanxi) in the Tang Dynasty, and his ancestral home was Beiping, Dingzhou (now Wanxian County, Hebei Province). Throughout his life, he had no fight with the world and had nothing to ask for from others. He was eager to learn and be charitable, and was known for his loyalty, justice and outstanding conduct.

Yangcheng was naturally studious since he was a child, but in the late Tang Dynasty, when the capital declined and politics became dark, his life fell into poverty and he had no money to buy books. Therefore, he requested to be an official of Jixian Academy, took this opportunity to study, closed the door day and night, and persisted in studying.

For 6 years. After Yangcheng became a Jinshi, he couldn't stand the darkness and corruption of the world, so he stopped coveting fame and wealth and lived in seclusion in Zhongtiao Mountain. He lived in poverty with his younger brothers Yangzhi and Yangyu.

Yangcheng is famous in the countryside and respected by people because of its charity. The Shandong Jiedushi envoy heard about his loyalty and sent someone to bring 500 pieces of silk. Yangcheng refused to accept it, so the envoy threw it down and left. Yangcheng sealed the strings and never opened them. When Zheng Chu, a local man, had no money to bury his father, he sent them all away. Zheng Chu was grateful and asked to be Yangcheng's domestic slave to repay his kindness. Yangcheng criticized his behavior and accepted Zheng Chu as his student to teach him knowledge.

Yangcheng was humble, simple and righteous, so he had a high prestige in the village. If there was a dispute in the village, he would not go to the government but ask Yangcheng to mediate.

Yangcheng's Zhuoxing was well-known far and wide. Li Mi, the Shaanxi and Guo observation envoy, hired him as a government official many times, but Yangcheng never accepted the offer. Li Mi recommended him to Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty and appointed him as Zuo Lang. Li Mi sent Han Jie to join the army to pay an audience with him according to the imperial edict. Yangcheng thanked him because he was weak and sick and could not bear to travel, so he declined the imperial edict. After Li Mi was appointed prime minister, he once again recommended Tang Dezong, and appointed Yangcheng as an admonishment official. He sent Chang'an Wei Yang Ning to bring imperial edicts and silk to hire him. Yangcheng had no choice but to wear coarse clothes and stand in front of the capital to express gratitude and decline. Tang Dezong sent eunuchs to get the imperial robes of Fei Yi, ordered him to change his clothes, and summoned him. He also gave him 50 bolts of silk, which helped Yangcheng move from a life of seclusion into a political career.

At that time, in the eyes of scholars, admonishing officials was regarded as a dangerous path. Seeing Yangcheng's free and easy demeanor, they knew that there would be no good results, so they advised him to do his own thing. Yangcheng was also well aware of the complexity of political struggles in the late Tang Dynasty, and learned the lessons of other admonishers who were tired of Tang Dezong's tedious discussions. He always adopted a cautious attitude and refused to say much when things happened. For this reason, he was criticized by Han Yu in his "Contending Ministers" "On" ridicule. In order to avoid bad luck, Yangcheng stayed drunk and did not talk about political affairs. He served as an admonishment official for 8 years. He never argued with others, and it was difficult for people to predict his good or bad luck.

Although the officials in Yangcheng do not care about political affairs, they are loyal to others and dare to support the good and suppress the evil, even regardless of their own safety. Pei Yanling framed Lu Zhi, Zhang Pang, Li Chong and others in an attempt to squeeze them out of the court in order to monopolize power. Tang Dezong was deceived by Pei Yanling. Although things were unfair, no one dared to speak out. After Yangcheng learned about it, he upheld justice and said that as an admonisher, I could not order the emperor to kill innocent ministers. He asked Wang Zhongshu, the relic collector, to guard Yanying Pavilion, went in to meet Tang Dezong, and made a generous speech, criticizing Pei Yanling's crimes. In order to help this matter be resolved reasonably as soon as possible, he went to plead grievances for Lu Zhi and others every day. Everyone who knew it was afraid, but Yangcheng's loyalty became stronger.

Tang Dezong was furious, summoned his ministers, and ordered Yangcheng to plead guilty. With the rescue of Prince Li Song, he was acquitted and released after a long period of time.

Tang Dezong was still angry about this matter and insisted on making Pei Yanling the prime minister. Yangcheng clearly objected in the court, claiming that if Pei Yanling became the prime minister, he would tear up the edict and cry in the court. Under Yangcheng's dissent, Tang Dezong began to change his view of Pei Yanling and canceled his appointment as prime minister. Historical words: "The emperor does not extend his life, so does the city's strength."

Although Yangcheng was demoted to the position of Guozi Siye because of this incident, he finally redressed the grievances of Lu Zhi and others, which prevented Pei Yanling's conspiracy from succeeding and eliminated the suffering of the people.

Yangcheng is not only upright, but also values loyalty. Xue Yue, an official of the imperial court, was demoted to Lianzhou for offending his words and deeds, and later fled back to live in seclusion at his home in Yangcheng. When the officials came to arrest him, Yangcheng was not afraid and asked the officials to wait outside the door. He drank farewell with Xue Yue and sent him outside the city, holding hands and saying goodbye.

Tang Dezong suspected that Yangcheng was Xue Yue's crony and ordered Yangcheng to be demoted to the governor of Daozhou (today's Daoxian County, Hunan Province). Yangcheng was expelled from the capital because of Xue Yue's involvement. He had no regrets and no complaints, and everyone in the world admired him.

After taking office as a state official, Yangcheng worked hard to govern, cared about the people's sentiments, practiced frugality, and made clear rewards and punishments. History records that he "governs the people as he governs his family. It is appropriate to punish them and to reward them." He lived a very frugal life. Except for keeping enough for his monthly salary, the rest belonged to the government. He often placed the fish and meat prescribed by the government for his own consumption by the roadside for public enjoyment.

From the Sui Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, there was a dwarf coward in Daozhou who paid tribute every year to achieve customs. After Yangcheng took office, he mourned the separation of his father and son, and petitioned to banish it. From then on, Daozhou abolished the bad policy of offering sacrifices to dwarfs. The people of the state were so grateful that they named their descendants after Yangcheng.

The former governor of Daozhou was offended and imprisoned for a long time. In order to absolve themselves, other officials reported the original illegal activities to Yangcheng and put all the blame on the governor. Although Yangcheng hated corrupt officials who brought disaster to the country and the people, he looked down upon such people who threw stones into the well, and ordered that anyone who reported or evaded responsibility would be killed.

In the late Tang Dynasty, the feudal vassal towns were divided, the political situation was turbulent, and taxes could not be paid on time. The observation envoys sent people to Daozhou to press for rent taxes, and the people were unable to make a living under heavy rent and miscellaneous labor. Yangcheng felt deeply guilty about this. When evaluating the performance of governors in various states, he signed a comment on himself with a pen: "It is hard to write words, but I am clumsy in pursuing science and administration, and I have failed in the exams." He expressed his opposition to the government's behavior of forcing taxes.

Later, the observers sent judges to Daozhou to force rent, but Yangcheng closed the door and told the state officials that if they asked where he was, they would tell the governor that he was guilty and imprisoned himself. The judge stayed for several days, and Yangcheng stood outside the palace gate during the day and slept inside the palace gate at night to await his punishment. The judge had no choice but to leave, and the observation envoy sent someone to deal with the matter. Yangcheng did not want to be imprisoned, and under the cover of the people Later, he abandoned his official position and went into seclusion.

Being an official was not Yang Cheng's concern. He was happy to be a distinguished scholar outside the court, so he gave up his official career and became a professor. Before he became an official, he taught at Zhongtiao Mountain and was well-known far and wide. There was an endless stream of scholars who came to study as his disciples. "Far and near admire his conduct, and scholars who come here will follow his path." At that time in Yangcheng, even though he had neither food to satisfy his hunger nor clothing to cover his body, he still "kept talking". Yangcheng's strict requirements and diligent training of students have gained high prestige among students.

When Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty demoted Yangcheng to Daozhou, more than 200 people including imperial students He Fan, Li Chan, Wang Lushi, and Li Chen knelt outside the palace to plead for him, hoping that the emperor could keep Yangcheng in the capital. After Liu Zongyuan heard the news, he was very excited and wrote to He Fan. He was extremely sad about Yangcheng's demotion and praised the spirit of the imperial students. He Fan and others knelt outside the palace gate for several days, and the memorial was shelved. Get results. On the day of his departure from Yangcheng, hundreds of students from the Imperial Academy came to bid farewell to him. They all cried and set up stones in honor of him.

After Yangcheng retired from Daozhou, he has been living in seclusion, isolated from the world, and it is difficult for people to know where he is.

After Emperor Shunzong of the Tang Dynasty came to the throne, he issued an edict to conquer Yangcheng and return to Beijing to serve. However, he had passed away at the age of 70. He was given a permanent attendant of Zuo Sanqi and 200,000 yuan in money, and was buried by the government.

Yangcheng is a noble man who does not covet fame and wealth. Although he is very poor, he is willing to help others and is not bowed down by money. This was commendable in the era of bribery and excessive extortion in the late Tang Dynasty. He came to serve out of necessity, so he drank every day and talked little in order to avoid being involved in the whirlpool of internal struggles among the ruling class in the late Tang Dynasty. But he was still able to uphold justice and fight against evil. Especially after he became the governor, he cared about the people's sentiments, put an end to bad government, acted with integrity, and opposed the government's pressing for rent and debt, and invading the people. This was rare in the feudal era.

Why is Yangcheng revered as the God of Fortune and the first of the three-star God of Fortune? Because Yangcheng is honest and forthright, he loves the people and loves to give, he studies hard, he is knowledgeable, he does not pursue fame and wealth, and he does not fight against the world. His happiness lies in winning the hearts of the people, his happiness lies in gaining self-improvement, and his happiness lies in acquiring knowledge. With knowledge and ability, With the support of the people and achievements, if this is not a blessing, what is it? If you want to be blessed, learn from Yangcheng, be an upright person, work diligently, be studious and upright, this is the source of happiness. Money is just an external possession.