480531170

1997
磨
MA, migaku
polish, scour, rub
L2
16 strokes
KENMAgrinding
MAMETSUwear and tear
kutsumigakishoeshine
Seal ( 䃺 ): . A late graph (Shuowen). Seal
form has 47 ‘stone’, with (NJK, ‘split
open; small; scatter’ [see 1996 Note]) as
phonetic with associated sense ‘rub, grind’,
giving ‘mill grindstone’. By extension, ‘grind,
polish’. Although originally denoting use of
a grindstone, this graph and 1996 show a
degree of interchangeability in meaning and
use. Already in clerical script, the top element
was commonly regularized in shape
to 1995 (‘hemp, flax’). DJ2009:v2:761;
OT1968:715; SS1984:809; AS2007:389.
Mnemonic: POLISH A STONE FOUND UNDER
HEMP
1998
魔
MA
demon, devil
L1
21 strokes
MAJOwitch, sorceress
JAMAobstacle, in the way
MARA (vulgar)demon, penis
A late graph probably of post-Shuowen
date. Evolved during the monumental
process of translating the Buddhist canon
from Sanskrit into Chinese, which appears to
have begun in the 2 nd century AD, at first on
just a small scale. was devised by taking
1179 ‘devil, demon’ and adding 1995
(‘hemp, flax’) as phonetic for its sound value
to transliterate from Sanskrit Māra ‘Māra,
demon who leads humans astray’, then giving
the generalized meaning ‘devil, demon’.
The meaning ‘penis’ may relate to rites.
OT1968:1141; KJ1970:868.
Mnemonic: HEMP CAN BE A DEVIL
1999
昧
MAI
dark, foolish
L1
9 strokes
AIMAIvague
GUMAIignorant, stupid
MŌMAIunenlightened
Bronze ; seal . Has 66 ‘sun, day’, with
617 (‘not yet’) taken in one view as phonetic
with associated sense ‘indistinct, hard to
see, small’, giving ‘sunlight indistinct/still indistinct’,
and ‘dark’ as extended sense. Another
interpretation, based on the bronze forms
which typically have on top of , is ‘luxuriant
growth covers/obscures sun’, likewise
giving ‘dark, not yet light’ as extended sense.
‘Foolish’ is related to darkness and ignorance.
OT1968:467; MS1995:v1:618-9; TA1965:732-6;
GY2008:839.
Mnemonic: IT IS DARK AND IS STILL NOT DAY
The Remaining 1130 Characters 597