Fortune Buddah or Budai, also known as the Laughing Buddha, is an interpretation of the Bodhisattva Maitreya, the predicted Buddha to succeed Gautama Buddha in the future.

He has become incorporated into Buddhist, Taoist and Shinto culture and is based on an eccentric Chinese Chán monk who lived in the time of the Liang Dynasty. His image graces many temples, restaurants, and amulets. Budai has become a deity of contentment and abundance, when adopted by Religious Taoists. In Japan, Hotei persists in folklore as one of the Seven Lucky Gods. He is almost always shown smiling or laughing, hence his nickname in Chinese, the "Happy Buddha"

Budai is almost always represented as carrying a cloth or linen sack, which never empties, and is filled with many precious items, including rice plants (indicating wealth), sweets for children, food, small mammals, and the woes of the world. Sometimes it can be filled with children, as they are seen as some of those precious items of this world. His duty is patron of the weak, the poor and children. In some Japanese representations, Budai may be found sitting on a cart drawn by boys, or wielding a fan called an oogi (said to be a "wish giving" fan -- in the distant past, this type of fan was used by the aristocracy to indicate to vassals that their requests would be granted).

Let this CelebriDuck add a touch of good fortune and happiness to your bath