鬯
a kind of sacrificial wine used in ancient times
Closest English meanings
sacrificial wine·smooth
The Calligrapher — Yáng Yīsūn 杨沂孙
Qing seal-script master famed for blending bronze and small seal scripts.
Qing calligrapher (), master of seal script — known for 《文字蒙求》. Qing dynasty
Cultural Story
鬯 is a picture of a vessel holding fragrant millet wine used in sacrifice. The 《説文解字》 describes 秬黍酿郁草, a dark grain wine scented with herbs, 芬芳条畅, fragrant and flowing—hence its second sense of smooth.
Common words & phrases
- 鬯酒 sacrificial wine
- 郁鬯 fragrant sacrificial wine
- 鬯达 smooth · fluent
Read the story behind the character
鬯 is the ritual wine of the ancestors, poured in 鬯酒 and 郁鬯 at altars. Its other life is 鬯达, smooth and fluent, used of prose or feeling that flows without snag. Rare now, it bridges ceremony and ease—the sacred drink and the unblocked mind.
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