Chinese people believe in using charms to bring good luck to them and their families. Charms and amulets are also used to dispel evil influences. In ancient China, many of the charms are in the form of coins and it is noted that these Chinese charms include four or eight character inscriptions (legends) that wish for good luck, good fortune, wealth, longevity, a large family, and success in the imperial examination.
Below is a coin charm which is supposed to bring Good Luck and Happiness "According to the Wishes of the Bearer".
The coin above is a very interesting four character charm with the subject of good luck and happiness.
It has four characters written in ancient seal script.
The legend is read top to bottom and right to left as ji qing ru yi (吉庆如意). The first character is ji (吉) which means "lucky", "happy" or "auspicious". The second character is qing (庆) which means "good luck" or "congratulate". The last two characters are ruyi (如意) which means "according to your wishes". The entire inscription can be roughly translated in English to mean "may your happiness be according to your wishes".
Source: http://primaltrek.com/auspicious.html#kuixing
Hmm ... I wonder if I can get my hands on an original coin charm instead of those reproduced for Feng Shui shops.
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