Wei Collection, Lower Volume Radical: Stilled (gèn) Hardship. Kangxi stroke count: 17. Page 1013, Entry 29. Ancient form: jian. Pronounced jian. As defined in the Analytical Dictionary of Characters (Shuowen Jiezi), it refers to soil that is difficult to cultivate. In the Approach to Etymology (Erya), it is noted that the term implies obstruction and difficulty. In the Book of Documents (Shangshu), the passage referring to the Great Yu states that when the sovereign can foresee the hardship of his position and the ministers can foresee the hardship of theirs. In the Book of Zhou (Zhouguan), it states that only when one is capable of decisive action will there be no subsequent hardship. In the Definitions of Names (Shiming), it is defined as a root, as if describing the root of an object. It also denotes danger. In the Book of Odes (Shijing), it asks who that person is whose heart is full of danger. The Zhu Xi commentary notes that hardship implies danger. In the writings of Wang Jian and Chu Yuan, it is used to describe leaving office due to the hardship of observing mourning for one’s mother; although the situation was prompted by a sense of duty, the emotional bond was equal to natural kinship. In the Supplement to the Rhymes (Yunbu), it is rhymed with the pronunciation jin. In Cui Yin’s Admonition on the Grand Justice, it refers to Confucius who pitied the people, and when Zihan observed the rites, the people of Wei were released from hardship. It is also rhymed with the pronunciation jian. In Ban Biao’s Rhapsody on the Northern Expedition, it laments for the Lord of the West in Youli, mourning the hardship encountered during the Brightness Hiding period, contemplating the changes of the nine and six lines, and enduring long years of confinement in a narrow place.