Page 193 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

K

King

wang

In the Zhou Dynasty, wang was the title of the supreme ruler; later it was adopted by the
rulers of feudal states, and still later extended to princes in general. Nowadays, ‘Great
King’ is an expression meaning ‘tailor’, and indeed, in general, the term can be used of
anyone using a specialised skill. ‘King Eight’ is a strong expletive, comparable to
‘cuckold’. There is a not very convincing explanation for this, to the effect that the
character wang should be written as wang = to forget: then the expression would refer to
a person who has ‘forgotten’ the eighth (virtue) – feeling of shame. Among the Hakka, a
non-Han minority in South China, ‘King’ is a metaphor for ‘fish’.

Kingfisher

fei-cui

The kingfisher looks like a swallow, we are told in ancient texts, and is mainly found
in South China and Vietnam. Because of its malachite-hued plumage it was highly
prized, and came indeed to symbolise beauty. The eyebrows of a beautiful

woman are described as ‘kingfisher-eyebrows’. One of the 30 positions used in the
Chinese art of love-making is known as the ‘kingfisher-contact’. In general, the bird
symbolises sexual enjoyment and conjugal happiness.

Kiss

qin-zui

Among the Chinese and Japanese, kissing is not such a common practice as it is in the
West. It is indeed mentioned in early texts, but always as pars pro toto, i.e. as
symbolising sexual intercourse. It is in this sense too that it is understood throughout