Shang ti Chinese term meaning ‘high ancestor’, ‘God’. Shang ti – synonymous with t’ien, in the sense of a powerful anthropomorphic entity – is responsible for such things as the political fortunes of the state. Some speculate that shang ti was originally only a Shang deity, later identified by the Chou conquerors with their t’ien. The term shang ti is also used as a translation of ‘God’. See also T’IEN. B.W.V.N.