The Ziwei Dadi 紫薇大帝 One of the "Six Imperial Gods"

Ziwei Dadi, also known as "Zhongtian Ziwei Beiji Dadi", "Ziwei Beiji Dadi", "Beiji Dadi", "Beiji Xingjun", etc., is one of the "Six Imperial Gods".

The worship of Ziwei Dadi originated from the ancient Chinese worship of stars. The North Pole is the abbreviation of Polaris, also known as "Beichen" or "Tianshu", which is located in the Ziwei Enclosure (a constellation in ancient Chinese astronomy). The Book of the Later Han states: "There is a Ziwei Palace in the sky, which is where the Supreme God resides." Therefore, the Ziwei Enclosure is also called the "Ziwei Palace", and later the place where emperors lived was called the "Forbidden City" (Zijincheng), deriving from this.

Taoism holds that the North Star is an eternally motionless star, located in the very center of the heavens, with the highest and most revered position. It is regarded as the "ruler of all stars" and the "origin of all gods", hence it is highly venerated. The Book of Jin·Treatise on Astronomy I says: "The five stars of the North Pole and the six stars of Gouchen are all in the Ziwei Palace. The North Pole is the most revered among the celestial lords; its small stars are the pivot of the heavens." It is also regarded as "the seat of the Great Emperor" and "the permanent abode of the Son of Heaven".

Kong Yingda of the Tang Dynasty annotated in Shu·Shuomingzhong: "The Big Dipper revolves around the North Pole, just as the ministers and officials surround and guard the Son of Heaven; the five planets move among the constellations, just as the provincial governors inspect the feudal lords; the twenty-eight constellations are distributed in the four directions, just as the feudal lords guard the land for the Son of Heaven. The phenomena of the heavens all embody the principles of distinguishing superiority and inferiority."

Taoist scriptures point out that the functions of Ziwei Dadi are: governing the celestial longitude and terrestrial latitude, leading the gods of the three realms, stars, mountains and rivers; being the sovereign of all phenomena; and being able to summon wind and rain, and command thunder, lightning, ghosts and gods.

Ziwei Dadi was worshipped by emperors of all dynasties, especially in the Song Dynasty, where he was often enshrined together with the Jade Emperor. The image of Ziwei Dadi is dressed in imperial attire, accompanied by majestic military generals as guards, appearing extremely noble and authoritative. It is said that the birthday of Ziwei Dadi is the 18th day of the fourth lunar month.