Also called Jin Chan, Chan Chu, three-legged toad, zhaocai chanchu
A three-legged golden toad sitting on coins with a coin in its mouth, placed in the home or shop to draw in money and keep it from leaving. It belongs to Chinese folk belief and feng shui.
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Take care: Antique bronze figures may contain lead; wash hands after handling and keep them away from small children. This is living Chinese folk practice, so learn its meanings rather than treating it as decor alone.
The immortal Liu Haichan is shown with a string of gold coins, using it to lure the three-legged toad out of a well. Paintings and New Year prints of Liu Hai playing with the toad were hung for wealth.
Uses: string of coins
Elders give money in red envelopes (hongbao, lai see) to children and unmarried relatives. The red wards off bad luck, amounts end in even numbers and avoid four, and since the mid-2010s many are sent through apps like WeChat.
Uses: red envelope, new banknotes
Japan's equivalent shop charm is a cat with a raised paw, set near the entrance to beckon customers and money. It has nothing to do with the toad's origins but serves the same job in the same spot.
Uses: beckoning cat figure
The Jin Chan, or golden toad, is linked with Liu Haichan, a 10th-century official remembered as a Taoist immortal. Folk tales say he tamed a three-legged toad that lived in a well, coaxing it out with coins on a string. The toad appears beside him in Ming and Qing paintings and woodblock New Year prints, and came to stand for wealth that keeps arriving.
Feng shui lore says the toad shows up at the full moon near homes or businesses about to receive good news. Modern figures sit on piles of cash coins with seven spots on the back and a coin in the mouth. They spread with the Chinese diaspora and are now sold worldwide. The red envelope gift at Lunar New Year belongs to the same culture of luck money.
On the new moon night of Diwali, Hindu households clean the home, draw rangoli and small footprints at the door, and light clay lamps so that Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity, will find and bless the house. This entry describes the religious practice respectfully and offers an open lamp-lighting version.
Italians eat lentils, shaped like little coins, near or after midnight on New Year's Eve so the coming year brings money. The more you eat, the richer the year.
Tell us what you need and we will craft a custom spell, charm or reading for it. Or call to book a reading or a road blessing in person.
