The Chao Pho Kuan U Shrine in Bangkok's Minburi District is located adjacent to the Chatuchak 2 Market and is dedicated to Kuan U (กวนอู), which is the Thai-Chinese name for Guan Yu (关羽), the Tiger General of Shu, who lived between AD 160 and 219. He was the blood brother of Liu Bei (刘备), the warlord under whom he served during the late Eastern Han Dynasty, as well as of General   Zhang Fei, with whom he accompanied Liu Bei on most of his early exploits. Liu Bei was a benevolent warlord in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms Period and became its first ruler. He was a fearsome fighter, yet famous for his virtuousness and loyalty, a brave and faithful warrior in the  Romance of the  Three Kingdoms. Kuan U is  posthumously worshipped as the deity who teaches righteousness and is traditionally portrayed as a warrior with a long lush beard and a dark red face, or shades thereof. In ngiw, Chinese opera, the colour red represents loyalty and righteousness. He is often depicted holding the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, a type of traditional Chinese weapon, called kuantao (关刀), i.e. the ‘Blade of Kuan’ and which consists of a heavy blade on a long  ̶ usually wooden ̶  pole. He is also frequently portrayed with this long weapon in combat atop his horse known in Thai as Sek Tao (เซ็กเธาว์), a name that derives from the pronunciation of its Chinese name Chi Tu (赤兔) in the Chinese Southern Min dialect and which means ‘Red Hare’, and which purportedly was the fastest horse in the Three Kingdoms at the time. Both this horse and this traditional Chinese long weapon, that has been named after Kuan U, are displayed at this shrine. Inside, behind the altar and shielded by glass is a statue of Kuan U, stroking his beard with one hand and holding a book in the other, a pose in which the General is known as Mei Ran Gong (美髯公), which freely translates as ‘Lord with the Beautiful Beard’. Being the Tiger General of Shu, he is here portrayed seated on throne on top of a tiger skin. Behind the throne are gilded carvings of five-clawed dragon, a symbol of power and sovereignty. To the left of Kuan U is warlord Chou Tsang (周仓), the General's black-faced, fierce looking, loyal aide-de-camp, who is typically depicted holding the General's kuandao battle blade, whilst to his right is Kuan Ping (关平), the General's adapted son, who is portrayed with a pink face and holding a present in the form of a gift box. To the left of the main altar are some statues of Kuan Yin (觀音), the Chinese goddess of mercy, who in Thai is referred to as Phra Mae Kwan Im (พระแม่กวนอิม), while in the background are golden bas-reliefs of cranes, birds that symbolize longevity and are considered messengers of wisdom. To the right of Kuan U's altar is a statue of the Chinese wealth god Cai Shen (财神) holding some boat-shaped Chinese gold ingots, with in the background a golden dragon surrounded by clouds. The colourful murals on the gable, roof and eves of the shrine depict a variety of animals, trees and plants and fruits, all with a highly symbolic meaning, such as goldfish, which in Chinese are called yú (鱼), a word with the same sound as yú (逾) meaning ‘to exceed’ and yú (余), meaning ‘surplus’. Due to this, their symbols are typical Chinese good luck charms, especially goldfish, as those are called jīnyú (金鱼) which sounds the same as jīnyú (金逾) or jīnyú (金余) and can be translated as ‘surplus of money’ or ‘gold in excess’. Other images include lotuses, called lián (莲), a word that is homophonous with lián (連), that means ‘successively’ and thus a symbol for sequence or repetition; bamboo, a symbol for durability, strength, flexibility and resilience, and hence another Chinese symbol of longevity; fingered citrons, considered to be a fruit of abundance and since this fragrant lemon-like citrus fruit consists of segmented, yet partly fused, finger-like sections, was given the nickname Buddha's Hand; peony flowers, i.e. the national flower of China, etc. The murals also have several famous and often popular figures from Chinese and Taoist mythology, such as the Eight Immortals depicted on a raft crossing the ocean from their home in the Taoist paradise to worship Xi Wangmu (西王母), Queen Mother of the West and mother of the Jade Emperor, after attaining their Enlightenment, with Ho Hsien-ku (何仙姑), the only woman in the group following behind on the back of a Common Crane; several paintings with scenes from the lives of Kuan U, Chou Tsang and Kuan Ping, one depicted in the company of a Mahayana Buddhist monk; etc. The floor has a large painting of cranes and a pine tree, both symbols of longevity, and the door panels have Chinese door gods, i.e. two military generals, that are painted in pair on either door of the double-door entrance, facing each other, as it is considered bad luck to place the figures back-to-back. The circular front windows have lattices in the form of the Chinese character foo (福), one of the most popular Chinese characters meaning ‘blessing’, ‘good luck’ and ‘happiness’, and which is here surrounded by four bats, who are in Chinese called similarly fu (蝠) and as such are homophonous, i.e. sound the same as foo (福) and as such are also symbols of good luck. The windows on the side have a decorative frame iresembling the Chinese character sang-i (囍), which stands for ‘double happiness’. Beside this, there are the typical dragon pillars, the dragon roof, and a large round incense pot decorated with dragon figures, as well as a number of Chinese lanterns. In front of a hall adjacent to the shrine is the national flag of Thailand and the Theravada Buddhist flag of Thailand. Whereas the three colours of the former symbolize the nation (red), the monarchy (blue) and religion (white), the Thai Buddhist flag consists of a yellowish orangey field with a reddish orange dhammachakka, i.e. the Buddhist ‘Wheel of Law’. Behind it is a klot (กลด) umbrella under which are two white banners called thong kathin (ธงกฐิน), one depicting a mermaid holding lotus flower, individually known as thong nang matcha (ธงนางมัจฉา), and it symbolizes delusion or infatuation; the other of a crocodile with lotus flowers in its mouth, known on its own as thong jorakae (ธงจระเข้), and representing greed. These banners are placed at temples during the kathin ceremony indicating their participation, in which pious laymen bring gifts and robes to all the monks of a temple. 回