God of Wealth

One of the Chinese beliefs and culture is to pray to the Wealth of God, hoping to 'catch' Him and bring wealth for the year. Apparently, it is not an easy task to bring the luck in. Here are the steps if one wishes to 'receive' the God into their homes :
1. Close all doors at 11pm on the eve of Chinese New Year
2. Bathe and change into new clothes
3. Place offerings for the God in the centre of the living room
4. Offerings should include
- a portrait of the God of Wealth
- Incense paper
- Fresh Flowers
- Fruits (like bananas, pineapple, apple, pear and mandarin oranges etc.)
- Sweet cakes
- 3 bowls of sweet desserts “Tang Yuan”
- 3 cups of Chinese Tea
- 3 cups of White rice wine
5. At exactly 6:18am on Chinese New Year, the eldest male in the home should open the door and invite the God of Wealth
6. Upon opening the main door, offer 3 incense and say aloud your wishes for the new year. Visualizing the God of Wealth walking through the main door carrying loads of gold, jewelry and good fortune in His hands and that His body is glowing with golden light is a must.
7. The main door should remain open for at least ½ an hour before closing.
8. At the end of the prayers, write down your name, address, dates and wishes on the incense paper and burn it together with the other paper offerings.

Kudos to those who are welcoming the God of Wealth into their homes. I am happy enough seeing the Guan Gong statues and dog figurines slowly being cleared out of my office space and selling them off on the website.

Happy Chinese New Year!