Shou (character)

Three of the most important goals in life in Chinese traditional thought are the propitious blessings of happiness (fú ), professional success or prosperity (lù ), and longevity (shòu ). These are visually represented by the three "star gods" of the same names (Fú, Lù, Shòu), commonly depicted as three male figurines (each wearing a distinctive garment and holding an object that enables them to be differentiated), or the Chinese ideographs/characters themselves, or various homophones or objects with relevant attributes. Shòu is instantly recognizable. "He holds in his hand a large peach, and attached to his long staff are a gourd and a scroll. The stag and the bat both indicate fu happiness. The peach, gourd, and scroll are symbols of longevity." His most striking characteristic is his large and high forehead, which earned him the title "Longevity Star Old-pate". that are often depicted in the homophonous rendition of five flying bats because the word for "bat" in Chinese (fú ) sounds like the word for "good fortune" or "happiness" (fú ) or in this case, "blessings". In this arrangement, the shòu ideograph sometimes takes the dominant central position, replacing the fifth bat. Other symbols in Chinese iconography that represent longevity include pine trees, cranes, spotted deer, special collectors' stones (shòushí ), peaches, and tortoises. These are often depicted in small groupings to emphasize the central, symbolic meaning of the picture (for example, cranes standing amongst pine trees). Perhaps the most common Chinese auspicious saying concerning longevity is that found on scrolls in nearly every Chinese calligraphy shop in the world: shòu shān fú hǎi (), which can be translated as "May your life be as steadfast as the mountains and your good fortune as limitless as the seas". Since 2017, version 10 of the Unicode Standard features a rounded version of the symbol (🉢) in the "Enclosed Ideographic Supplement" block, at code point U+1F262 (ROUNDED SYMBOL FOR SHOU). In names As a sign for a resonant cultural concept, the character became a part of many Chinese names (e.g., Palace of Tranquil Longevity in Beijing). The Japanese equivalent is Kotobuki ; (see Nakajima Kotobuki, Tsukasa Kotobuki). See also Jurōjin (Shou Laoren) and Fukurokuju. ==Gallery==

File:Chinese - Pilgrim Bottle with the Character "Shou" (Long Life) - Walters 491685 - Profile.jpg|Chinese pilgrim bottle of "famille rose" porcelain with the character Shou File:Lackkunst Überseemuseum Bremen 2009 PD 20091128 0010.JPG|Song dynasty lacquer art hulu with Shou and a bat on it File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 035.png|Plate 35 from the book Examples of Chinese Ornament by Owen Jones in 1867. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 039.png|Plate 39 from the same book. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 052.png|Plate 52 from the same book. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 058.png|Plate 58 from the same book. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 073.png|Plate 73 from the same book. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Owen Jones - Examples of Chinese Ornament - 1867 - plate 086.png|Plate 86 from the same book. The Shou pattern can be seen. File:Plat au caractère Shou Musée Guimet 2418.jpg|Porcelain dish with a peach tree in the form of Shou, from the Kangxi period in the Qing dynasty File:Shou by Hai Rui.jpg|Shou character written by Hai Rui at Qiandao Lake. The character can be viewed either right-side up or upside down to read "Shou". File:Shou carpet.JPG|Modern carpet File:Shou Yunnan rooftiles.JPG|Roof tiles File:Shou+redbats.JPG|Ceramic with symbol and red bats File:Shou+peach cup.jpg|Cup with symbol within peach ==See also==