Detailed explanation of the meaning of jade carving

Auspicious Beasts

Dragon: Its image is deer horns, ox head, python body, fish scales, eagle claws, with whiskers beside the corners of its mouth and a pearl under its jaw. It can be big or small, can contain or be bright, can make rain with clouds, and subdue demons. It is a symbol of bravery, authority and dignity. It has been used by royal families of all dynasties and is now regarded as sacred, auspicious and auspicious by the people. It is a walking dragon, a cloud dragon with clouds around it, a round dragon, a straight dragon with its head facing forward, a sitting dragon with its head sideways, and a rising dragon with its head upward and its tail downward. Since ancient times, there is a saying that "a dragon gives birth to nine sons but none of them become dragons". They are:

Qiuniu——A good musical instrument, symbolizing joy

Yazi (yá zì) - a good weapon, which means mighty

Chaofeng - a good inkstone, symbolizing good luck, exorcising evil spirits and eliminating disasters

Bo Lao - a good bell button, which means the bell sounds loud and clear, and the reputation is far-reaching.

Suan Ni (suān ní) – likes fireworks, implies prosperity

Baxia, also known as Bixi (bì xì) - good at carrying heavy loads, symbolizing longevity

Bìn (bì àn) - like to be decorated in government halls, symbolizing justice

Fuxi (fù xì) – a good stone tablet, which means solemnity

Chiwen (chī wěn), also known as Chiwei or Chiwen - a good roof ridge, meaning fire extinguishing and disaster relief

Phoenix: A divine bird, its head is like a pheasant, its body is like a mandarin duck, it has the wings of a roc, the legs of a crane, the beak of a parrot, and the tail of a peacock. It is the king of all birds, symbolizing beauty and peace. It is regarded as the representative of the highest female in the royal family. Together with the dragon, it is a symbol of good luck and festivity.

Qilin: Its body is covered with scales, it has an ox tail, wolf hooves, a dragon head and a single horn. It is a symbol of kindness and peace. There is also a saying that "Qilin brings a child", which means that the boy brought by Qilin must be a virtuous minister.

Lion: It has a majestic appearance, is a supporter of the Dharma, and is the guardian of sacred buildings. It is the mythical animal that Manjushri Bodhisattva rides on. If its left front paw is stepping on a hydrangea, it is a male lion, and if it is stepping on a lion cub, it is a female lion. It symbolizes auspiciousness, sacredness, joy, and wisdom.

Tiger: As the king of beasts, it can drive away evil spirits, protect the body and ward off evil, so as to ensure happiness and peace.

Turtle: It is a symbol of longevity, wishing people longevity and health. There is a saying that a turtle can live as long as a crane.

Four gods: Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird and Black Tortoise guard the four directions.

Deer: It is a long-lived fairy beast, often guarding the Ganoderma lucidum fairy grass together with the crane and the God of Longevity. It symbolizes "lu", indicating longevity and prosperity.

Sheep: "Sheep" and "auspicious" are used interchangeably, meaning auspicious and auspicious.

Crane: A fairy bird, it is said that “cranes live a thousand years” and it is a symbol of good luck and longevity.

Butterfly: beautiful and light, a metaphor for beauty and auspiciousness. The flower-loving butterfly is a metaphor for harmonious love and a happy marriage, while the cat-and-butterfly is homophonic with “耄耋”, which means blessing the elderly with longevity and wealth.

Bat: It symbolizes "blessing", meaning "blessings as vast as the East Sea", "blessings are at hand", and "five blessings are coming".

Fish: It means “surplus”, indicating wealth, good fortune and luck.

Mandarin ducks: They have gorgeous feathers, and the male and female live together inseparable. They were called "Pi Niao" in ancient times, symbolizing the love between husband and wife that will never separate.

Magpie: Red plum blossoms welcome the festival, magpies climb on branches to sing about a good harvest, golden roosters step on osmanthus trees to write about weddings, magpies climb on plum trees to announce good news. It means seeing happiness every day. "Happiness is at hand" there is an ancient coin in front of the magpie: "Joy on the eyebrows" the magpie is on the eyebrows; "Three yuan of good news" the magpie and three longans; "Overjoyed" there is a magpie in the sky and a badger on the ground.

Elephant: symbolizes "good luck".

Toad: It means good luck and can bring wealth to people.

Monkey: It sounds the same as “hou” in Chinese, so a monkey riding a horse means “to be granted title of nobility soon”, and two monkeys mean “to be granted title of nobility for generations”.

Spider: It is an animal that can predict happy events. Spider represents "good luck from heaven" and "joy from the sky".

Rooster: literature, martial arts, courage, benevolence and trustworthiness. The crowing of the rooster represents "merit and fame". The tall and fiery red comb represents "being awarded an official position" and "promotion". The five chicks and the rooster together represent "five sons passing the imperial examinations", wishing for success in the imperial examinations.

Catfish: It means "abundance every year", and together with orange it means "good luck every year".

Goldfish: Goldfish in the pond represents "a house full of gold and jade", which means wealth and happiness, as well as outstanding talent and profound knowledge.

Ao: It is the "giant turtle" in the sea in legend, which means "to be the first" and represents success in the imperial examination.

Eight Auspicious Objects: Dharma Conch: represents the auspicious sound of Buddha and symbolizes good luck.

Dharma Wheel: represents the circular rotation of the Buddha's teachings, and is likened to the endless sound of the universe.

Precious umbrella: It means being able to stretch and relax freely, and is likened to protecting all living beings.

White cover: represents the universe and symbolizes the liberation of the masses from illness and poverty.

Lotus: Growing out of the mud without being stained, it symbolizes holiness.

Aquarius: It represents the perfection of blessings, success, fame, wealth, peace and harmony.

Pisces: represents firmness and liveliness, symbolizes happiness and wards off evil.

Pan Chang: It means penetrating everything and symbolizes longevity and infinity.

The transformation of fish into dragon: it is a auspicious beast with a fish body and a dragon head, which represents striving to make progress and those who have the will can achieve their goals.

Auspicious Plants

Plum blossom: With its icy skin and graceful figure, it retains its fragrance despite the cold weather and inspires one to strive for excellence. It is also an auspicious symbol for the coming of spring and good news.

Bamboo: Green and tall, with a unique shape, it is lush all year round, symbolizing vigorous growth, lofty aspirations, and continuous advancement. It is also a reputation as a "gentleman".

Pine: The symbol of longevity.

Orchid: It symbolizes "orchid friendship", nobleness, elegance, and the friendship between gentlemen.

Chrysanthemum: good luck, longevity, and combined with magpie it represents "family happiness."

Lotus: The Buddha's seat is also called the lotus seat. It grows out of the mud but is not stained. It is straight inside and outside, clean and not evil. The lotus represents a gentleman, and is also an omen of "longevity and prosperity" and a symbol of pure love. It sounds the same as "lian", which means "happy marriage".

Peony: graceful and charming, elegant and luxurious, it embodies the beauty of color, fragrance and charm. "Peony is the most luxurious flower", "its beauty and fragrance are the most beautiful in the world" and "the flower blooms with wealth and honor" symbolize prosperity, happiness and peace.

Apricot blossoms: They are a portrayal of spring. In ancient times, the imperial examinations were held every year. Apricot blossoms bloomed in February and were compared to "passing flowers", implying smooth progress in the imperial examinations and hope of passing, so they were called "spring swallows in the apricot forest".

Ganoderma Lucidum: Also known as "Ruyi", it means auspiciousness, longevity and satisfaction.

Pomegranate: Pomegranates have many seeds, so people wish for many children, happiness and longevity. “石” is homophonic with “世”, which represents generations. When combined with the official hat, it means “official position is inherited from generation to generation.”

Dates and chestnuts: symbolize the good wish of having a child early.

Peach: It symbolizes longevity and wishes people a long life.

Buddha's hand: It looks like a palm and has the same pronunciation as "Fu", which means blessing. It is a blessing for good fortune and peace.

Grapes: Spreading branches and leaves, and abundant fruits, symbolize a good harvest, wealth, and longevity.

Gourd: It is a treasure carried by Taoist priests. It is homophonic with “福福” (meaning fortune and luck), which symbolizes fame, wealth, happiness and well-being.

Melon: It has many seeds and long vines, which symbolizes "descendants for generations", "long generations", "eternity" and "a bountiful harvest".

Orange: It is homophonic with "吉", and together with persimmon, it means "everything goes well".

Ancient coins: symbolize wealth and fortune.

Knot: It means "knotting a knot", "friendship", "abundant blessings" and "good luck", and it is a symbol of happiness and auspiciousness.

Yuanbao: It means getting rich and having a lot of money.

Aquarius: symbolizes protection and peace.

Auspicious God

God of Fu: Fu can be interpreted as good fortune, blessing, luck, happiness, etc. The God of Fortune originally came from star worship. The so-called lucky star, namely Jupiter, was later personified as the "Heavenly Official", which was the belief in "Three Officials" advocated by Zhang Ling and his son Zhang Heng in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Namely, the Heavenly Official bestows blessings, the Earthly Official forgives sins, and the Water Official relieves disasters. His image is a court official dressed in plain clothes, a red robe, a jade belt embroidered with dragons, a large golden hook in his hand, court boots on his feet, with kind and pleasing eyebrows, five long beards fluttering in front of his chest, a happy expression, and an image of elegance and luxury. People worship him devoutly, hoping that his family will be blessed and have long good fortune.

God of Fortune: He is named Zhang Xian and is very popular among the people. Themes such as "promotion in salary", "happiness, wealth and longevity", "promotion in official rank", "immediate title of nobility", "promotion in rank", and "promotion by three levels" express people's hopes for good fortune, a promotion to a high position, wealth and everything going well. 1. God of Joy: He is the god of luck and festivity, with no specific image or fixed direction of existence. Folks regard the direction of the crowing of roosters on the morning of New Year's Day as the direction of the God of Joy. People go to meet the God of Joy to comfort their inner pursuit of a happy marriage, health and happiness.

God of Wealth: The literary God of Wealth is Bigan, who wears a prime minister's gauze hat, holds a golden hook, wears a dragon robe, and has ingots on his feet. He has a kind demeanor, a serious face, a gaunt face, a pure heart, and is straightforward and selfless. The Fifth God of Wealth refers to Zhao Gongming, who wears an iron crown, holds an iron whip, has a black face with gold beard, and rides a tiger. He has four righteous gods under him, namely, Attract Wealth, Accept Treasures, Attract Treasures, and Profit. He also has the function of granting wealth. "The Complete Collection of Inquisition of Gods" says, "When buying and selling for wealth, Gong can make it beneficial and harmonious. As for fair matters, you can pray to the gods, and everything will go well." People also regard Guan Gong as the God of Wealth, and there is a saying that goes "Open the door at five o'clock in the morning on New Year's Day and happily welcome the God of Wealth, a golden horse is tied to the money tree, and a golden man stands in the treasure bowl."

The Star of Longevity: Also known as the Old Man of South Pole or the Immortal of South Pole, he is an old man with short stature, hunched back, kind eyes, a sweet smile, white hair, a high forehead, a long head, a fresh peach in his hand, and a cane. He blesses people with happiness as vast as the East Sea, a life as long as the Southern Mountains, a name as high as the Big Dipper, and a long and peaceful life.

Zhong Kui: He was a famous ghost-slaying god in ancient times. He replaced the status of door gods after the Song and Yuan Dynasties. Legend has it that his mother, Tan, became pregnant after swallowing a red sun and gave birth to a baby with brilliant light and purple air. She named him Zhong Kui. He has an upright heart, upright behavior, and unshakable noble sentiments. He is in charge of the good and evil in the world and subdues all demons in the world. Wearing it can drive away evil spirits and protect oneself from harm. Zhong Kui brings blessings.

Liu Hai, the God of Auspiciousness: "Liu Hai Playing with Golden Toad" is Liu Hai teasing a three-leaved toad, which is regarded as a spiritual creature. This auspicious picture represents joy and a wealthy life. There is a folk saying that "Liu Hai plays with golden toad and catches money at every step." Therefore, Liu Hai is regarded as a god who fishes for money and distributes wealth, in order to bring good luck, wealth and happiness.

The Two Immortals of Harmony and Unity: In folk culture, they are regarded as gods of joy, referring to Hanshan and Shitou, who are very good friends and often recite poems and sing, as close as brothers. One of them holds a lotus, which is homophonic with “和” (harmony), meaning "harmony"; the other one holds a box, which is homophonic with “合” (he), meaning "good", symbolizing harmony and auspiciousness, as well as the love between husband and wife and the friendship between gentlemen.

Guanyin: Guanyin Bodhisattva is the chief of all Bodhisattvas in the Buddhist world, with great influence and reputation in the world. He is dignified and graceful, charitable and peaceful, and compassionate. He saves all living beings, frees people from all suffering, and is the incarnation of all desires. Guanyin is always with people to comfort their souls and fulfill their wishes.

The fisherman gains profit: A fisherman caught a big fish while fishing. Legend has it that when the snipe and the clam were quarreling, the fisherman walked by the river beach, climbed the mountain and caught them together. Since then, people use “When the snipe and the clam quarrel, the fisherman gains profit” to illustrate that merchants value profit too much, and they especially desire profits by chance. "The fisherman gains profit" becomes a good omen.

Sudhana Boy: "Avatamsaka Sutra, Entering the Dharma Realm Chapter" records that there was an elder in Fucheng who gave birth to 500 boys. When one of them was born, all kinds of treasures naturally emerged, so the fortune teller named him Sudhana. Later, Sudhana asked Manjushri Bodhisattva for the true meaning of Buddhism, and finally attained the Dharma Realm. Wearing it will bring blessings and wealth, and a prosperous life.

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