The Calligrapher — Wáng Ānshí 王安石

Song statesman and reformer famed for his vigorous running script.

Song calligrapher (), master of running script — known for 《楞严经旨要》. Song dynasty

Cultural Story

The Analects warns of the man who '暴虎冯河' — barehanded fights the tiger and wades the river without a boat, dying without regret; Confucius would not join him. The 冯 line was a northern clan of scholars. The name is a surname first, a risky bravado second, carved in the same two strokes.

Common words & phrases

• 冯姓 the Feng surname
• 冯先生 Mr. Feng
• 暴虎冯河 reckless bravery · foolhardy

Read the story behind the character

A 冯姓 family runs the corner shop; 冯先生 signs for the parcel. The phrase 暴虎冯河 heads a safety poster as a warning against foolhardy courage. A student meets Mr. 冯 at the tutorial. The character is mostly a name now, read and written without thought of the river it once meant to ford.

Why this character belongs on skin

There is an old phrase that pictures a man who would fight a tiger with his bare hands and cross a river on foot — 暴虎冯河 — reckless, yes, but charged with a terrible, clean courage. The 冯 in it means to ride the water, to step into the current and trust yourself to it. As a name it has been carried by scholars and soldiers for two thousand years. To wear it is to claim that courage — not the wise kind that calculates, but the kind that moves before fear finishes speaking. We are trained to be careful, to count the crossings, to stay on the safe bank. But 冯 remembers the one who stepped in. Carry this character as a private emblem of nerve: the moment you chose the river over the planning, the gamble that was foolish and free, and the part of you that, given the choice again, would still wade.