Professional Documents
Culture Documents
D Rajeev
© 2010. Dileep Rajeev. All Rights Reserved. No part of the book may be reproduced without prior permission of the author. The book may
not be redistributed or posted on another source for download.
A phonetic script, being merely a system of transcribing
the spoken form, is incapable of preserving the symbolic
Understanding the Chinese Language purity of language. As the spoken form deviates, the
written form deviates as well.
Evolving with any civilization or a group of humans is a
shared consciousness of concepts whose meaning is Chinese, on the other hand, has a script that is, in itself,
readily perceived by those belonging to the group. The symbolic in nature – its visual form directly evokes in the
manifested form of these concepts carry with them the consciousness the meaning it symbolizes, the concept
characteristic of that group – the unique process of over which it forms a symbolic layer. Such a system of
evolution the collective consciousness of theirs writing ties the language tightly with the collective
underwent. Hence, the manifested form of concepts, be consciousness, preserves the symbolic purity of
they beauty, goodness or strength, differ from language, and increases its potency as a mechanism of
civilization to civilization. exchanging thought. The evolution of the language
becomes directly driven by the evolution of the
Language is a layer of symbols over such a collective collective consciousness.
consciousness. Mechanisms in this shared human psyche
ascribe to concepts in it sound-symbols – sound forms
capable of evoking in the consciousness the concepts
Visual Symbolism
they represent – the words of a spoken language.
Symbolic forms having layers of meaning, any
Spoken forms tend to quickly deviate from a state of
interpretation of a character’s visual form can only serve
symbolic purity, in which each word is a distinct sound-
as a guide to understanding it. The accurate meaning it
symbol for a concept. By phonetic decay, for instance –
represents has to be perceived consciously – through
words spoken in quick succession coalesce together to
direct and objective experience of the meaning its visual
form new words.
form evokes. Layers of meaning can be consciously
2
uncovered, the symbol conveying a deeper meaning at active principle, symbolized by 才, being firm 剛,
each level. strongly manifesting, when it has just acted.
4
postponed till the student has had a reasonable level of
How to use this book familiarity with the language. Chinese can easily be
input in a word editor, through tools such as Microsoft’s
Chinese, contrary to popular belief, is the simplest IME for Chinese, by entering in English the pronunciation
language to learn. It has no complex grammar, the words of the character.
are simple ideograms, each carrying an inherent visual
logic which makes its meaning apparent from its written
Organization of each page
form, and the symbolic sound-forms allow for the
pronunciation to be easily internalized. This completely On each page is given a character, its ancient forms, its
obviates the need for rote memorization often needed pronunciation and an explanation of how the ideogram
when mastering the vocabulary of a new language. symbolizes its meaning.
Each character can allow for different ideographic A system of color codes is used in the book to help you
interpretations, so actively explore the ancient forms, remember the tones. Characters in the first tone, a high
and try to come up with your own interpretations. metallic tone, are shown in a metallic silver color. For the
second tone, the color of fire, yellow-orange is used - the
The sound of Chinese characters are symbolic. That is, sound rises in it as flames do. Third tone characters are
the sound evokes in the mind the meaning suggested by shown in green, the color of plants, of wood – as the
the character. This symbolic quality can be leveraged to sound bends, as wood does, in the third tone. For the
effortlessly learn the pronunciation of the characters: fourth tone, a falling tone, a heavy, deep shade of blue is
Intone each character, repeatedly, with a clam mind, till used. The fifth tone or the neutral tone is colorless.
you develop an intuitive feel for how the sound form Visualizing the characters in their corresponding tone-
brings out the character’s meaning. Attempt to color, as you learn them, would help retain the tone in
consciously perceive the sense conveyed by the sound. memory.
Correlate the meaning you perceive evolving from the
sound form, with the meaning evolving from the visual Different characters having the same pinyin
form. When the same character has multiple phoneticization often differ subtly in the way they are
pronunciations, they are symbolic layers over two closely actually pronounced, in factors such as the stress given
related concepts symbolized by the visual form. to a particular sound. The same character when carrying
different shades of meanings are intoned in ways that
The pronunciation of each character is given in Pinyin, a slightly differ to bring out the meaning through intoned
system for writing Chinese characters in the Roman sound. The reader will develop a natural intuition for the
alphabet. The reader who is not familiar with the system right way to pronounce the characters, and of the role
is urged to avail any one of the several free multimedia played by the tones, as he progresses in study, through
the method outlined here.
7
Recommended resources
8
日
Sun, day.
rì日
9
一
One, single, whole, symbol for the number ‘1’.
yī一
3
三
Three.
sān三
4
白
White, plain, clear.
plain and white in color. The character for silk fabric 帛(bó) was
once written with 巾(jīn, the picture of a cloth) underneath
, a silk worm cocoon. In today’s writing, is abstracted to 白.
Note: The form 巾(jīn, ) is said to derive from the image of a kind of
cloth worn by men in ancient China as a pendant waist ornament .
“佩巾也從冂|象系也凡巾之屬皆從巾” – Shuo Wen 5
勺
Spoon, ladle.
sháo勺
7
止
Stop, halt, detain.
zhǐ止
A foot, not moving, conveying the sense: stop, halt, stay, restrain,
etc.
9
早
Dawn, early, sometime ago.
zǎo早
The vertical line represents the skies, the heavens (of yang, active
nature), and the horizontal line the earth (of yin, passive nature).
The ideograph shows the sun breaking through the horizon, where
the skies cross the earth 十.
10
是
Certainly, for sure, right, true, is, the verb ‘to be.’
Note: An ancient variant of the character is: . "从日, 从正, 會意。What was 正
controlled at 日 sun's light... truthfulness, reality, existence" --Wieger.
Shuo Wen, describing the character for sun 日, says: “實也。 太陽之精不虧。 从囗一。
象形。 凡日之屬皆从日。” “True, real, actual. The energy of the sun does not wane…
Pictorial representation.” 11
不
No, not.
bù不
Picture of an infant with the head and body visible, the legs are
covered by swaddling clothes.
13
`
了 le
liǎo了
14
人
A person, human, a man.
rén人
16
戈
A weapon, a kind of halberd used in ancient China.
gē戈
17
我
I, me, the self.
18
才
Talent, potential, faculty, gift, only then.
cái才
When occurring before a stative verb, 才 conveys the sense ‘better than’
– breaking-through the state indicated, and, hence, ‘better than.’
Note: The Shuo Wen interprets the character as a sprout that has just broken
through the ground. “艸木之初也。 从丨上貫一, 將生枝葉。一,地也。
凡才之屬皆从才。 徐鍇曰:上一,初生歧枝也。下一,地也” – Shuo Wen 19
土
Soil, earth, clay, land, crude.
tǔ土
20
在
At, in, on, be, indicating an action in progress.
zài在
21
又 yòu又
22
肉
Meat, flesh, muscle.
ròu肉
23
有
Have, there is.
yòu有
A strip of meat held in the hand – have, there is. Symbol used to
represent the idea in possession of.
24
也
Also, too, as well, either.
yě也
25
他 tā他
26
口 kǒu口
27
干
Offend, interfere, attack, invade, trunk, stem.
gān干
28
上
Above, over, top, previous.
shàng上
Chinese philosophy held that man must follow Heaven; that any
individual intent could be against the Will of the Heavens. Hence,
辛 was chosen to represent the individual will or intent.
31
行
xíng 行
háng行
32
辵 chuò辵
33
這
This, here.
zhè這
34
`
中 zhōng中
zhòng中
35
大
Immense, big, vast, great.
dà大
37
或
Perhaps, probably, maybe, either.. or.
huò或
38
囗 wéi囗
39
國
Obstinate, firm.
guó國
40
十
Ten.
shí十
41
古
Ancient, age-old.
gǔ古
From 十 (shí, ten) over 口 (kǒu, mouth). That which has passed
through ten 十 mouths 口 - a tradition dating back ten generations.
Note:“故也。从十、口[𠙵]。識前言者也。凡古之屬皆从古。
臣鉉等曰:十口所傳是前言也。” – Shuo Wen
42
固
Obstinate, firm.
gù固
43
竹
Bamboo.
zhú竹
44
個
A measure word.
gè個
45
至 zhì至
47
到
To, towards, reach, up until.
dào到
48
八
Eight.
bā八
50
說
Speech, talk, say.
shuō說
51
門
Opening, door, gate.
mén門
52
們 men
53
象
Elephant, form, appearance, shape.
xiàng象
54
爲
wèi爲
wéi爲
Wèi: Stand for, support, on account of, for. Wéi: Govern, guide
towards, take to, become, by, guided by, acting as.
A rice plant upon which is depicted a pendant ripe ear with grains.
56
和
And, with, harmony.
hé和
57
入
Enter.
rù入
58
尔 ěr 尔
59
爾
Thou.
ěr爾
The bronze script forms show a fine silk garment spread out on a
loom. 㸚 are the gaps between the threads through which light is
shining. An ancient meaning of the character was - resplendent,
elegant, fine, majestic. The character was later borrowed to
symbolize ‘thou.’
60
你
You.
61
地
Earth, land, field, place, ground.
dì地
62
出
Emit, emerge.
chū出
63
首
Head, leader, chief.
shǒu首
64
道
Way, path, doctrine, reason.
dào道
65
寸
A Chinese inch; measure.
cùn寸
Originally represented distance between the place on the wrist where the pulse
is felt (indicated by the line in the seal script forms) and the palm. Occurring as
component, it conveys different meanings: to measure, restraint, etc.
Another explanation is that the character shows the hand held with the last two
fingers folded. Holding the palm such was considered an expression of restraint
in ancient China.
66
時
Time, period.
shí時
Note: The ancient forms, in fact, had 之, the image of a foot stepping forth from a line
– which, together with the image of the sun 日, gives forth the sense ‘in
68
年
Year.
nián年
69
貝
Shellfish, cowrie, money.
bèi貝
70
得
de
dé得
děi得
Note: When 得(děi) symbolizes ‘should’, the symbol of the cowrie conveys
71
the sense “that which is to be achieved.”
乙
The second of The Ten Heavenly Stems.
yǐ乙
73
京
Capital of a country.
jīng京
74
就
Just, simply, right away.
jiù就
75
女
Women, female.
nǚ女
Picture of a woman.
76
要
Want, need, seek, ask for, required.
yào要
77
下
Beneath, go down, next (that which follows).
xià下
78
以
Using, so as to, in order to.
Wen. From 巳(sì, , the picture of an embryo or fetus) turned upside down. An
embryo or a fetus coming to birth - taking on a solid, substantial form. Hence
value, use. In later forms the image of a person receiving the fetus as it is being
born was added on the right. ‘So as to’ and ‘in order to’ are extensions of the sense
‘an object’s substantial use, for a particular purpose.’
The character 已(yǐ, finish/already) evolved from the same ancient form .
已(yǐ, already): that which has already taken form.
"This very ancient character is supposed to represent the exhalation of the breath, the
virtue that emanates from any object, its action, its use. By extension, use till exhaustion,
to terminate…”- Wieger
79
生
Living, life, existence, give birth.
shēng生
80
田
Field, a farmland.
tián田
81
曾
Once, in the past.
céng曾
Note: Later, by the time of Shuo Wen, the character came to be interpreted as from: dispersal 八,
and speech 曰( ): . Expansion and dispersal of breath as words emerge from the mouth.
Words already spoken. The田 got corrupted to 𡆧 and was interpreted as a phonetic component.
“詞之舒也。 从八从曰, 𡆧聲。” – Shuo Wen. The ancient forms more accurately convey the 82
meaning.
jí
83
會
Meet, can, able, understand, come together, a gathering.
Note: Certain ancient forms of the character, such as do not have 田 but show food laid
out, as during a banquet – to meet over food. The ancient form of 甘(gān, tasty) was .A
seal script form, of the character, given in the Shuo Wen, has not but ( the ancient
form of 曰(yuē, say), image of words emerging from a mouth.) To meet in a region 田 for
84
discussion, for exchanging ideas. The characters 甘 and 曰(yuē) will be explained in detail
later on and the reader may ignore such details at this stage of learning.
自
Self, oneself, from, since.
zì自
85
者
One who, -er.
zhě者
86
草
Grass, straw.
cǎo草
87
zhe
著
zhù著
zháo著
88
去
Go, leave, depart.
qù去
89
之
‘s . Similar to 的. A classical pronoun - it.
zhī之
一 (yī, one) also conveys the sense “whole“ from which emerges
止 a part. 止 (zhǐ) is phonetic as well. An alternate ancient form
of the character is . The Shuo Wen interprets the character as a
plant emerging from the ground.
90
過
Pass, go by, undergo a process.
辶 indicates a process.
guò過
92
豕
Pig, boar, hog.
shǐ豕
"Boar, hog. The head is replaced by a line; on the left side, the belly
and the paws; on the right side, the back and the tail;
彘也。象。頭, 足, 而後有尾。It has many compounds, e.g. 逐
zhú, to drive or push out pigs, to expel in general" – Wieger.
93
家
Family, household, domesticated.
jiā家
94
學
Study, learn.
xué學
爻(yáo) – the solid and broken lines that form the eight trigrams or
the Ba Gua which symbolize patterns of change in nature. The
symbol of "mutual action and reaction,” according to Wieger.
95
對
Correct, proper, adjust, as regards.
duì對
96
丂
A component symbolizing breath, exclamation, sigh, hiccup,
difficulty in breathing.
The ideograph shows the flow of the vital energy (氣, qi) or breath,
qiǎo丂
Note: The precise sense conveyed by the symbol, when occurring as a component,
depends on the context. In some characters, it merely symbolizes an expansion of energy
and the ‘一’ above symbolizes the expanding surface.
“气欲舒出。ㄣ上礙於一也。丂,古文以爲亏字,又以爲巧字。凡丂之屬皆从丂。”
– Shuo Wen 97
可
Can, may, a possibility, be worth.
kě可
From 田 (tián, field) and 土 (tǔ, earth) – the place 土 where the
fields 田 are – a village. Places 土 within the expanse of a field 田
– a neighborhood, a region.
100
裏
Inside, interior, internal.
lǐ裏
101
么
Small, tiny, insignificant.
yāo么
102
夊
Walk slowly.
suī夊
In dictionaries based on the Kang Xi system, the component 夊 (suī, walk slowly)
is distinguished from 夂 (zhǐ, restrained movement) for the purpose of
organizing characters, though both forms are interpreted as depicting a man
whose movement is restrained, and convey a very similar meaning. As a
component, both forms are generally written夂. In Kang Xi based dictionaries,
when夂 occurs on top of a character, it is interpreted as the radical 夂(zhǐ) and,
103
at the bottom, as夊 (suī).
後
After, later, offspring.
hòu後
105
麻
Hemp.
má麻
106
麼 me
107
心
Heart, mind, feeling.
xīn心
108
夕
Evening, sunset.
xī夕
109
多
Many, much, more, more than required, too much.
duō多
110
天
Heaven, sky, day.
tiān天
Note: 大(dà), immense, according to the Shuo Wen, symbolizes the plane of
Man(天大地大人亦大). Heavens are the planes of existence above man, according to
Chinese traditions. 111
而
And, furthermore.
ér而
112
能
Can, be able, capable.
néng能
113
好
Good.
hǎo 好
hào好
The image of a mother playing with a child conveys the sense “all is
well” – a meaning the character often conveys in usage.
114
邑
City, town.
yì邑
Those who 者 come under rule of the capital city 邑 – all. Or, those
who 者 live within the city 邑 – all its inhabitants.
117
犬
Dog.
quǎn犬
118
然 rán然
119
水
Water.
shuǐ水
120
沒
Méi: Not.
mò沒
Note: Here 回 shows an abyss of water, according to the Shuo Wen. “回, 淵水也.” "To
dive, while 回 turning on one's self, in order to get something under water, the head
being below; 入水有所取也。从 在回下。會意。By extension, to disappear, to be
no more." --Wieger.
121
今
Now, present.
122
方
Side, square, method. As an adverb: then, just then.
fāng方
A boat docking with another, on its side. The boats’ heads are shown in the
pictograph. Some ancient forms show the image of a boat docking at a jetty. Yet
others derive from the image of boats tied together to form a square or
rectangular pontoon – with a boat which forms a side of such a pontoon, given
prominence in the pictograph. The various symbols are now abstracted to the
same form ‘方.’
The adverbial usage - then, just then - derives from the sense ‘to meet with’-
something met or encountered – note how the imagery of a boat docking with a
harbor conveys the sense. 方知: Discover. The meaning method, prescription
follows from that a particular procedure, a method, was to be followed when
boats dock with one another or at a harbor, to ensure safety.
124
于 yú于
“於也。象气之舒亏。从丂从一。一者,其气平之也。凡亏之
屬皆从亏。 今變隸作于。” – Shuo Wen
125
巳
A fetus.
sì巳
126
走
Go, walk.
zǒu走
127
起
Rise, start, raise, build.
qǐ起
128
還
huán還
hái還
129
分
Divide, separate, distinguish, a part.
fēn分
130
殳
Component meaning beat, hit, etc..
shū殳
131
弓
A bow, bend.
gōng弓
132
發
Send out, emit, develop, expand.
fā發
133
丁
Fourth of the 10 Heavenly Stems, fourth in a series.
dīng丁
134
成
Complete, finish, accomplish.
chéng成
135
事 shì事
136
隹 zhuī隹
137
隻 zhī隻
138
只
Only, merely.
zhǐ只
141
作
Do, make, work.
zuò作
142
向
Towards, to, face.
xiàng向
143
尚
Esteem, honor, value, noble, lofty.
shàng尚
The ridge pole on the roof of a house, which dispels 八 the wind –
lofty, superior, high, noble.
144
當
dāng當
dàng當
145
木
Tree, wood, timber.
mù木
146
目
Eye, look.
mù目
147
相
Appearance , mutual , each other .
xiāng相
148
想 xiǎng想
149
看
kàn看
kān看
Pronounced kān, the character means look after, tend, keep under
surveillance.
150
文
Civilized, cultured, literary, literature, writing.
wén文
151
無
Nothingness, not have, without.
From 亡 and
wú無
Note: The Shuo Wen says has a meaning similar to myriad; the character
豐(fēng,abundant) is used to describe . Symbol shows a thick forest, according to
the Shuo Wen. From 大 immense; and 廿( niàn, twenty ,symbol made of two
十(ten)s ) combined with 木 tree on each side. A thick forest; by extension,
152
abundant, myriad, etc.
開
Open, start, begin.
kāi開
153
卜
Foretell, predict, to divine, consult an oracle.
bǔ卜
154
用
Use, employ, apply.
yòng用
A divination卜 that has hit the mark 中. Of use, that which can be
employed for a purpose.
155
主
Lord, master, main.
zhǔ主
A lamp with a flame giving light. That which guides, principal, main.
156
如
Be like, following, in accordance with.
rú如
157
舟
Boat, ship.
zhōu舟
158
前
Front, forward, former, preceding.
qián前
The sense “in front of,” in the context of flow of time, is before,
former, previous, etc.
159
斤
Half a kilogram, an axe.
jīn斤
Earliest forms were the picture of an axe-head. By bronze script writing, the
161
本
Basis, origin, volume, root, stem.
běn本
162
見
See, catch sight of, view, opinion.
jiàn見
163
玉
Jade, gems, beautiful.
yù玉
164
現
Manifest, appear, display.
xiàn現
165
糸
A silk thread.
sī糸
166
壬
Ninth of the ten heavenly stems.
rén壬
168
巠
Underground water courses.
jīng巠
Below川 is not 工(gōng, work) but the ancient form of 壬 (rén, 9th
of the 10 heavenly stems), conveying the sense ‘to hold up.’
169
經 jīng經
171
頭
Head, chief, main, leading, top/end of something.
tóu頭
172
公
Public, collective.
gōng公
173
同
Same, similar, concord, harmony.
tóng同
174
匕 bǐ匕
176
老
Old, venerable, of long standing, always.
lǎo老
The hair 毛 changing 匕 color: old. Or, the hair 毛 turning 匕 grey.
“考也。七十曰老。从人、毛、匕。言須髮變白也。凡老之屬
皆从老。” A 70 year old is referred to as 老, according to the
Shuo Wen.
177
從
From, follow, obey, attend to, join.
cóng從
178
力
Strength, force.
lì力
179
東
East.
dōng東
180
重
Heavy, weighty, important.
From
zhòng重
Wieger points out an old [seal script] variant of the character which
resembles a weighing machine, with weights piled on each other:
.
181
動
Move.
dòng動
182
兩
Two, both, 50 grams.
liǎng兩
183
長
Cháng: long. Zhǎng: grow, increase, a chief.
cháng長
zhǎng長
184
矢
An arrow.
shǐ矢
Picture of an arrow.
185
知
Know, realize, sense.
zhī知
186
187