Tu Di Gong (also known as Tu Di, Tu Gong, Tudi Yeye and Dabo Gong), is a Chinese earth god worshipped by Chinese folk religion worshippers and Taoists. A more formal name for Tu Di Gong is Fude Zhengshen , literally the 'God of Fortunes and Virtues'
In China, every village[citation needed] had a shrine to Tu Di Gong. It was this deity who was in charge of administering the affairs of a particular village. In traditional times, village concerns were primarily agricultural or weather-related. This god was not all-powerful, but was a modest heavenly bureaucrat to whom individual villagers could turn in times of drought or famine.
A large statue of Tu Di Gong at the Hongludi Temple in Zhonghe District, Taiwan.
Today, he is still worshipped by many Chinese, with many housing small shrines with his image, commonly located under the main altar, or below the house door. Many worships make prayers to him for wealth and their well being. He is also traditionally worshipped before the burial of deceased persons to thank him for using his land to return their bodies to the earth
Commoners often called Tu Di Gong 'Grandpa' (yeye), which reflects his close relationship to the common people.
Tu Di Gong is portrayed as an elderly man with a long white beard, a black or gold hat and a red or yellow robe, which signifies his position as a bureaucrat. He carries a wooden staff in his right hand and a golden ingot on the left