[mdzs] Detailed story behind Wei Wuxianās name
Continuing from last time where I explained the origins of Lan Wangjiās name, I thought Iād also post one for our beloved Xianxian.
His surname Wei (é) primitively meant āghosts and spiritsā (the radical å§ means spirit and 鬼 means ghost). After it became a royal family name, it is to this day used to describe something as āgrand, tall or mightyā.
His zi, or courtesy name Wuxian (ę ē¾”), comes from the last line of a poem by Ming Dynasty literati Xu Ben. āå³ę ē¾”é±¼åæļ¼å¤ē©éęčæā (jĆ wĆŗ xiĆ n yĆŗ zhƬ, wĆ i wĆ¹ fÄi suĒ qiÄn) translates as āto be free of envy and aspire to greater heights; not be misguided by honorary reputation and personal gainā.
å³ - to seek; aspire
ę ē¾” - to be free of envy
é±¼åæ - derives from the Chinese idiom é²²é¹ä¹åæ, originating from a literary work by Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi meaning āto be ambitiousā
å¤ē© - literally means āobjects external to the bodyā, now used to describe personal gain and external honours
čæ - misguide; led by
To me, this is the perfect embodiment of Xianxianās character. He comes from a lowly background as the son of a manservant, but lived his life not being envious of Jiang Chengās destined position as Sect leader, even sacrificing his lifeās potential for him. He always did what he thought was right, even if it meant going against the will of the majority. He could have easily kept his honour as the almighty Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation at the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, but chose to abandon it all and help the feeble and abhorred Wen clan survivors, as he knew they were wronged.
Bonus trivia: Xianxianās birth name Ying (å©“) commonly means āinfantā, but there is actually another interesting story behind this word. Another meaning for Ying is āto pester, to touchā. This second meaning derives from a famous piece of literature by Western Jin Dynasty official and writer Li Mi called ćéę č”Øć (chĆ©n qĆng biĒo). The first two words éę is also the name of Xianxianās flute. The work describes the story of Li Miās grandmotherās great sacrifice to bring him up and his determination to repay her. Today it is one of the most famous literary works for teaching new generations about filial piety, a key Confucian virtue. Even though éę on the surface has two meanings, (1) āto convey oneās inmost feelingsā (abbreviation of éčæ°č”·ę ) and (2) āformer relationshipā (abbreviation of éę§ēę ä¹) , I think this side story gives the name much more depth. Maybe Xianxian sees his cultivation of the demonic path as a way of repaying the Jiang family for everything theyāve done...
Jiang Chengās name story hereā”ļøšŖ
Lan Sizhuiās name story hereš¶š»š„
