Fuku no kami (The God of Good Fortune) (福の神)
"Fuku no kami" is a program of Kyogen (farce played during a Noh play cycle). It is a short celebratory play in which contrast is shown between the God's appearance in a gaudy outfit and his secular and worldly characteristics.
Characters
Noh shite (main role) : Fuku no Kami
Ado (second role) : Visitors to shrines
Story line
On the night of New Year's Eve, two men visit a shrine which enshrines Fuku no kami, for Ninen-mairi (visiting a shrine on December 31st and staying there until New Year's Day comes, thus making the visit spread over the nominal two years). When they chant loud, "In with good fortune! Out with the demons", throwing beans, Fuku no kami appears with a big laugh. Fuku no kami demands sake from the two, saying "Give me sake, and you visiting the shrine every year will be rich." When they offer sake to Fuku no kami, the god starts singing. He tells them in his song the secret to becoming rich, "Rise early, be kind to others, welcome guests and get along with your wife."