Wu Collection, Lower Volume Radical: Grain (hé) 秉 Kangxi strokes: 8 Page 849, Entry 21 Pronounced bing (rising tone). Refers to a handful of grain gripped in the hand. Book of Odes (Shijing): Where there are fallen handfuls of grain. Commentary: Bing means a single handful. Book of Rites (Liji): Four handfuls are called one ju (a basket unit). Note: Here, bing refers to a handful of grain grabbed during harvest, and ju is a name for a pile of such handfuls; today in the Lai and Yi regions, harvested and bundled rice grain is called a ju. Also refers to a unit of measurement for rice. Book of Rites (Liji): Ten dou are equal to one hu, sixteen dou are equal to one sou, and ten sou are equal to one bing. Additionally, in the Small Erya (Xiao Erya): Two zhong are called one bing, and one bing is sixteen hu. Note: According to the Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial (Yili), the character for bing used for grain and for rice is the same, but the referents differ. Only the Rhyme Dictionary (Yunpu) by Mr. Xu states that two dan are equal to one bing; this is another perspective. Presumably, a dan is a hu. Ranzi was given five bing of millet. Based on calculations from the Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial (Yili), this equals eighty dan, but based on Mr. Xu’s theory, it is only ten dan; the difference in quantity is vast and remains to be verified. Also refers to holding or grasping. Book of Rites (Liji): Heaven holds the yang energy to reveal the sun, moon, and stars; Earth holds the yin energy to manifest through mountains and rivers. Book of Odes (Shijing): The people hold to the constant way. Book of Documents (Shangshu): Hold to virtue and clearly observe troubles. Also pronounced in the departing tone, sound identical to bing (falling tone). Same as the character for handle (bing). Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji): The twenty-eight lunar mansions correspond to the twelve provinces, and the handle of the Northern Dipper governs them. Biography of the Marquis of Jiang (Jianghou Shijia): Xu Fu physiognomized Zhou Yafu and said: In three years you will be ennobled; eight years after being ennobled, you will become a high minister and hold the authority of the state. Also used as a surname. According to the Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters (Shuowen Jiezi), the character bing is composed of hand holding grain; the Correct Meaning Encyclopedia (Zhengzitong) also includes bronze inscriptions, where the character form is repeated. The character originally followed the radical for weapon (shu).