Almost always appears in the four-character set phrase
荣华富贵 ('glory, splendor, wealth and rank' — i.e. all the trappings of worldly success), a frequent target of moral critique in Buddhist and Daoist writing: characters renounce
荣华富贵 to seek the simple life.
荣 ('flourish/glory') and
华 ('splendor/flower') were originally synonymous, both botanical, before metaphorically transferring to human success.
