Wu Collection, Lower Volume Radical: Spirit (shì) 10 strokes Page 842, Entry 07 Pronounced chai. According to the Extensive Dictionary of Rhymes (Guangyun), the Collected Rhymes (Jiyun), and the Collection of Rhymes (Yunhui), the pronunciation is as noted. According to the Correct Rhymes (Zhengyun), the pronunciation is chai. The Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters (Shuowen Jiezi) defines this as burning wood to perform a burnt offering used to sacrifice to the gods of heaven. In the Ganquan Rhapsody (Ganquan Fu) by Yang Xiong, it is written: Reverently perform the burnt offering to the ancestral gods. It is also the same as the character for firewood. In the Classic of History (Shangshu), it is written: Arriving at Mount Tai, he performed the burnt offering. The Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters (Shuowen Jiezi) cites this passage from the Classic of History using this character. According to the Correction of Characters (Zhengzitong), the character was originally written as the character for firewood; later, because it was used for the sacrifice to heaven, the spirit radical was added. For detailed information, see the commentary on the character for firewood under the Wood radical.