The Laughing Buddha, known as Hotei in Japan, and Pu-Tai in Chinaures embodies the ideals of health, happiness, prosperity and longevity. When seated, The Laughing Buddha represents love and compassion. He is named after the bag he carries - a pu-tai (Japanese Hotei) or cloth-bag. Thus he came to be known as Pu-tai Hoshang or hemp-bag monk. There is a legend that in this bag he carried candy for the children. Over time, the Buddhist ideals of happiness based on self-mastery and enlightened insight were fused with popular Chinese notions of happiness through material prosperity, thus today the hemp sack is often interpreted as being filled with gold, happiness, health, and other aspects of abundance.