Hai Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Horse (mǎ) Entry: Zhan Kangxi stroke count: 22 Page 1445, Entry 09 According to the Zhengzitong, it is pronounced zhan (rising tone). The state of a horse not equipped with a saddle or bridle is called zhan. In the Chuiwanji, zhan refers to riding a horse without a saddle. From the poem Youthful Conduct (Shaonianxing) by Linghu Chu: In my youth, I was accustomed to being wild and unrestrained in the frontier provinces, riding horses of the Hu people without saddles to hunt yellow sheep. Now that I am old and infirm, lacking the strength I once had, I can only lean alone against the gate of the military camp, counting the lines of wild geese as they fly past.