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In Chinese cosmological thought, 巽 is the fifth of the Eight Trigrams (Bagua), corresponding to the element of wind and the quality of mildness or yielding. The character is an ideogrammic compound: two kneeling figures (卩) are set above the component 共 (together), depicting two people kneeling together in obedience. This visual origin gives the character its core meanings of obedience, subservience, and the soft, all-pervasive nature of wind. In practical terms, 巽 also serves as a directional term, traditionally designating the southeast.
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