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The Ji-Chou Tai Sui: General Fu You
A rich merchant who opened every granary he owned in a famine and never regretted it.
- Guardian of
- People born in a Ji-Chou year, the Year of the Ox
- Born between
- Jan 26, 2009 – Feb 13, 2010
- Past life (legend)
- Fu You, a traveling merchant of the Yuan dynasty (folk legend)
- Symbol
- A hand pointing forward: "Follow me, I know the way."
If you were born between these dates, you were born in a Ji-Chou year, the Year of the Ox, and General Fu You watches over you.
(A new year starts on Lunar New Year’s Day.)
Double earth
Ji is soft, rich soil that gives without taking. Chou is the cold field after winter where the ox plows step by honest step. Earth on earth makes the deepest, most nourishing ground of all.
General Fu You guards this year. People born in Ji-Chou years are often warm and dependable, the person others think of first when things go wrong. They let their actions do the talking.
A promise is a promise
He wears a fine battle crown with golden flames and a round jewel on top. His wide face, heavy brows and upturned black mustache give him a spirited, no-nonsense look.
He wears colorful heavy armor and a yellow cloak. His left hand points ahead, not as an order, but as if to say, "Come with me. I know where the road is."
Opening every barn
According to legend, he was Fu You, a merchant of the Yuan dynasty who traded across north and south and grew very wealthy. He treated his workers and customers with respect, and every holiday he quietly sent grain or cloth to the poorest families.
Then came a great drought in the north. Crops failed everywhere and people were dying of hunger. Fu You opened all his granaries to anyone in need for free, and used every business contact he had to rush grain up from the south. He lost most of his fortune and saved more lives than anyone could count.
"What was it all for?"
Someone asked if he regretted it. He said, "I saved all my life. If I can't use it when it matters most, what was I saving it for?" He lived modestly in old age and never once regretted it.
Heaven named him the Tai Sui of the Ji-Chou year. A guiding hand and a generous, steady heart: that is his gift to everyone born in the Year of the Ox.
Questions people ask
Who is the Tai Sui for people born in 2009?
People born between Jan 26, 2009 and Feb 13, 2010 were born in a Ji-Chou year, the Year of the Ox. Their Tai Sui is General Fu You.
Who was General Fu You before becoming a Tai Sui?
Fu You, a traveling merchant of the Yuan dynasty (folk legend).
What does General Fu You hold?
A hand pointing forward: "Follow me, I know the way.".
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