Page 403 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols 396
number is killed. Among the neighbouring Turkic peoples the wolf is a sacred animal and
even ranks as ancestor of their race. The forebears of Chinggis Khan were a grey wolf
(boz kurt) and a white hind. Turkish tribes carried a banner with a wolf’s head on it, or a
standard with a wolf’s head. In the Ordos area in North China they tell a story about an
exposed child which was raised by a wolf, to which the child turns for advice in later life
– that is to say, a parallel to the Romulus and Remus myth. It is also said that hunting
wolves can imitate the voices of small children, calves and lambs to attract unsuspecting
prey.
A ‘sex-wolf’ (se lang) is a lecher.
Wood Oil Tree Wood Oil Tree

tong

Several trees, including Paulownia and Firmiana, are described as tong. They are all
sources of a valuable oil, obtained from the sap. The word tong is phonetically identical
with the word tong = in common, joint. Pictures showing one or another of these trees
coupled with another object express a clear message. For example, a magpie (xi)
perched on a tong expresses a wish for ‘shared (tong) joy (xi)’.
Wu-tong Wu-tong

The wu-tong belongs to the Paulownia family of trees and is usually known as Paulownia
imperialis. Formerly, a material was woven from its flowers and its oil is known as a

valuable preservative for all sorts of timber. Its own wood has been widely used for the
manufacture of lutes (qin).
The wu-tong is native to China and Japan, and is regarded as the tree par excellence,
favoured by the phoenix when it wishes to alight. For this reason it often used to be
planted in courtyards in the hope that a phoenix would come and bring luck to the whole
family.