Mao Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Heart (xīn) 悳 Kangxi strokes: 12 Page 388, Entry 41 Pronounced de. Shuowen Jiezi (Shuowen): To receive from others externally, and to attain within oneself. Composed of the characters for straight and heart. The Essence of the Six Writings (Liushu Jingyun): A straight heart is the original form of de. When the nature of life is straight, and one walks the path and attains something in the heart, that is de. In Small Seal script, the character for step is added, conveying the meaning of walking and returning to a state. Long Jian: In the Analects (Lunyu), the phrase to requite injury with straightness and requite de with de indicates that straightness is indeed de. It is commonly confused and used interchangeably with the character for virtue (de), which is incorrect. Because the common script style is flourished and dense, the original form of de has nearly fallen out of use. Yin Fuchun says: For the de in Dao de, the Shuowen indicates it is composed of straight and heart. The character for virtue (de) is composed of step and the sound component for rising. Today, the de in Dao de is always written as virtue, and the original form of de has become merely an ancient variant. See the detailed entry for the character for virtue.