Door gods, intended at first, like New Year's firecrackers, to ward off evil spirits, together with their accompanying and later developing door boys and celestial officials reflect two major characteristics of Chinese folk belief: the wish to ward off evil and the desire to call forth good fortune.
總之，最初設置門神像的用意在驅鬼逐祟，意義一如過年時放的爆竹，後來增設天官、門童，用以祈祝平安吉慶、子孫萬代，它們都反映出中國民間信仰中驅邪與祈福的二大特色。