The Calligrapher — Mǐ Fú 米芾

Song eccentric genius of dynamic, 'flying' running script.

Song calligrapher (1051–1107), master of running script — Song eccentric genius ('crazy Zhang, idiot Mi') whose running script alternates discipline with glee. Song dynasty

Cultural Story

尽 shows a hand wiping a vessel dry, meaning exhaust or all; the Shuowen gives to exhaust. One gave 尽情 (to one's heart's content) at a feast, and duty was done to the 尽头 (end, limit). 尽量 (as much as possible) and 尽管 (although, feel free to) softened commands into everyday courtesy between friends.

Common words & phrases

• 尽量 as much as possible · try one's best
• 尽管 although · feel free to
• 尽头 end · limit
• 尽情 to one's heart's content · freely
• 尽力 do one's best · try hard

Read the story behind the character

You try 尽量 (as much as possible) to eat well, and 尽管 (although, feel free to) ask if lost. At the 尽头 (end) of the line the concert lets you 尽情 (to your heart's content) sing, and you 尽力 (do your best) on the exam. The word runs from empty bowl to full effort.

Why this character belongs on skin

To the last drop, the last breath, the bottom of the cup — that is 尽, exhausted, complete, all that there is. The simplified form still holds the old gesture of a thing emptied out. We meet 尽 in the phrases: 尽力, give your all; 尽管, go ahead and do it anyway. It is the ethic of holding nothing back. The warrior spends the arrow. The lover says everything in the final letter. The saint empties the self so the light can enter. To tattoo 尽 is to promise yourself you will not leave the tank half full, that you will arrive at the end used up and unashamed. There is a melancholy in it — the recognition that everything finishes — and a fire. Carry 尽 and you carry the courage of completion, the refusal to hoard your days. The ink is a vessel turned upside down. It means: I poured it all. There is nothing left to regret.