Fang Xiang
Li Bing
李丙
Huang Chengyi Z
丞乙
Zhou Deng
周登
Liu Hong
劉供
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The Spirit who is the Bearer
of News
The Spirit who Superintends the Year
The Spirit who Superintends the Month
The Spirit who Superintends the Day
The Spirit who Superintends the Period
The Iconography of Taisui
In a few temples Taisui is represented simply by an image of the President, Yin Jiao,* where he is depicted as a fierce figure with eight arms and a third eye. In the majority of temples there is either a lone image or more usually in southern China, sixty images or sixty tablets representing each of the Taisui, one for each of the years within the sixty-year cycle of years.¥ The cycle was known as Hua Jia Hua Jiazi¥, which was the measurement of time during Imperial days.
In a few temples a large deeply carved gilded tablet dedicated to Taisui stands in the centre of the Taisui hall, in addition to the one or sixty images.
In Fukienese communities in Taiwan and South-east Asia his single image tends to stand alone, an awesome deity, whereas in Cantonese, Chaozhou and Hainanese communities his image either stands alone, a benign conventional young man, sitting holding either a ruyi [sceptre] or, more usually, an extended scroll bearing Chinese characters. The Taisui can also be portrayed in a group of sixty each one of whom is again usually a benevolent young or middle-aged man. Each of the sixty serves for one year, in rotation, within the Chinese sixty-year cycle. All sixty images are generally carefully carved and decorated, each being different, some being radically different. An aspect of Taisui