Mao Collection, Middle Volume. Radical: Hand (shǒu). Kangxi strokes: 10. Page 430, Entry 13. Pronounced ku. Pronounced ku. The pronunciation is the same as the word for withered. The meaning is to hold or take. Record in the Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial (Yili): In the left hand, one holds the zither, with the head of the zither pointing backward, and the fingers are inserted into the opening on the bottom of the zither, known as the yue, hooking the strings inward. The commentary explains that the hole at the bottom of the zither is called the yue, and inserting the fingers into it is called kua. Also, according to the Collected Rhymes (Jiyun), the pronunciation is ku, the same as the sound of the word for a ring (kou). It has the same meaning as the word for digging out or picking (kou). Textual research: In the original text of the Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial (Yili), the character he in the phrase left-he-zither has been corrected here to the character he based on the original text.