The Calligrapher — Wáng Xīzhī 王羲之

The 'Sage of Calligraphy'; his running script has set the standard for 1,700 years.

Eastern Jin calligrapher (303–361), master of running script/cursive script/regular script — the Sage of Calligraphy; his Orchid Pavilion Preface is the most celebrated work in the tradition, and nearly every later master traces lineage to his hand. Eastern Jin dynasty

Cultural Story

曜 is the shining body. 七曜 the seven luminaries — sun, moon, and five planets — that named the week; 曜日 the day itself. 光曜 the radiance. The word is the bright wanderer and the day it rules. The Shuowen sees the sun and the show. A single character for the light that moves and the day it lends its name to.

Common words & phrases

• 曜日 day of week
• 七曜 seven luminaries
• 光曜 light · radiance
• 昭曜 shine · glorious

Read the story behind the character

曜日 is the day on the Japanese-style calendar; 七曜 the old 'seven luminaries.' You meet it in the astrology post and the timetable. The word names the shining bodies and the week they key — the sun, the moon, the five wanderers. From the horoscope to the schedule, 曜 is the light that orders the days, kept now mostly in the borrowed count.