‘Money more important than love’: video of worshippers queuing outside God of Fortune temple in China but shunning marriage deity highlights shifting youth trend
- Young Chinese people flock to worship the God of Fortune while shunning the God of Marriage, a viral video has revealed on mainland social media
- The trend coincides with the decline in China’s marriage rate in recent years due to the high costs of weddings and raising children
While worshipping gods at temples has become one of the latest trends among Chinese youth to escape the pressures of daily life, a recent viral video of a long queue outside a temple revealed there is one god they prefer above all others.
The video taken by a young woman at the Baotong Temple in central China’s Hubei province on March 5 showed dozens of people lining up in front of the God of Fortune’s hall. In contrast, she said few people were visiting the nearby hall of the God of Marriage although the temple is famous for bringing people luck in marriage.
The woman, surnamed Zhang, said she found the scene funny: “Making money is more important for us young people.”
Last September, a Weibo user, known as @Shipeilewo, posted comparison photos of wishing plates inside Beijing’s Xiangshan Temple. In a similar scene, there were far more plates hanging from the “promising career” rack than from the “eternal love” and “early birth of a healthy baby” racks.
Zhang’s observation resonated on Chinese social media, where many who saw the video responded with humorous comments.