kai t’ou
a thin cloth of red and gold that veils a new bride’s face. Worn by the Ch’ing empresses for almost three centuries
kan pei!
‘good health!’ or ‘cheers!’ – a drinking toast
kang
the Chinese hearth, serving also as oven and, in the cold of winter, as a sleeping platform
k’ang hsi
a Ch’ing (or Manchu) emperor whose long reign (AD 1662–1722) is considered a golden age for the art of porcelain-making. The lavender-glazed bowl in ‘The Sound Of Jade’ is, however, not kang-hsi but Chun chou ware from the Sung period (960–1127) and considered amongst the most beautiful (and rare) wares in Chinese pottery
kao liang
a strong Chinese liquor
Ko Ming
‘revolutionary’. The Tien Ming is the Mandate of Heaven, supposedly handed down from Shang Ti, the Supreme Ancestor, to his earthly counterpart, the Emperor (Huang Ti). This Mandate could be enjoyed only so long as the Emperor was worthy of it, and rebellion against a tyrant – who broke the Mandate through his lack of justice, benevolence and sincerity – was deemed not criminal but a rightful expression of Heaven’s anger
k’ou t’ou
the fifth stage of respect, according to the ‘Book of Ceremonies’, involves kneeling and striking the head against the floor. This ritual has become more commonly known in the West as kowtow
ku li
‘bitter strength’. These two words, used to describe the condition of farm labourers who, after severe droughts or catastrophic floods, moved off their land and into the towns to look for work of any kind – however hard and onerous – spawned the word ‘coolie’ by which the West more commonly knows the Chinese labourer. Such men were described as ‘men of bitter strength’, or simply ‘ku li’
Kuan Hua
Mandarin, the language spoken in mainland China. Also known as kuo yu and pai hua
Kuan Yin
the Goddess of Mercy. Originally the Buddhist male bodhisattva, Avalokitsevara (translated into Han as ‘He who listens to the sounds of the world’, or ‘Kuan Yin’), the Han mistook the well-developed breasts of the saint for a woman’s and, since the ninth century, have worshipped Kuan Yin as such. Effigies of Kuan Yin will show her usually as the Eastern Madonna, cradling a child in her arms. She is also sometimes seen as the wife of Kuan Kung, the Chinese God of War
Kuei Chuan
‘Running Dog’, here the name of a Triad
kuo yu
Mandarin, the language spoken in most of Mainland China. Also rendered here as kuan hua and pai hua
kwai
an abbreviation of kwai tao, a ‘sharp knife’ or ‘fast knife’. It can also mean to be sharp or fast (as a knife). An associated meaning is that of a ‘clod’ or ‘lump of earth’. Here it is used to denote a class of fighters from below the Net, whose ability and self-discipline separate them from the usual run of hired knives
Lan Tian
‘Blue Sky’
Lang
a covered walkway
lao chu
sing-song girls, slightly more respectable than the common men hu
lao jen
‘old man’ (also weng); used normally as a term of respect
lao kuan
a ‘Great Official’, often used ironically
lao shih
term that denotes a genuine and straightforward man – bluff and honest
lao wai
an outsider
li
a Chinese ‘mile’, approximating to half a kilometre or one third of a mile. Until 1949, when metric measures were adopted in China, the li could vary from place to place
Li
‘propriety’. See the Li Ching or ‘Book Of Rites’ for the fullest definition
Li Ching
‘The Book Of Rites’, one of the five ancient classics
liang
a Chinese ounce of roughly 32gm. Sixteen liang form a catty
liu k’ou
the seventh stage of respect, according to the ‘Book of Ceremonies’. Two stages above the more familiarly known ‘k’ou t’ou’ (kowtow) it involves kneeling and striking the forehead three times against the floor, rising to one’s feet again, then kneeling and repeating the prostration with three touches of the forehead to the ground. Only the san kuei chiu k’ou – involving three prostrations – was more elaborate and was reserved for Heaven and its son, the Emperor (see also san k’ou)
liumang
punks
lu nan jen
lueh
‘that invaluable quality of producing a piece of art casually, almost uncaringly’
lung t’ing
‘dragon pavilions’, small sedan chairs carried by servants and containing a pile of dowry gifts
Luoshu
the Chinese legend relates that in ancient times a turtle crawled from a river in Luoshu province, the patterns on its shell forming a three by three grid of numeric pictograms, the numbers of which – both down and across – equalled the same total of fifteen. Since the time of the Shang (three thousand-plus years ago) tortoise shells were used in divination, and the Luoshu diagram is considered magic and is often used as a charm for easing childbirth
ma kua
a waist-length ceremonial jacket
mah jong
whilst, in its modern form, the ‘game of the four winds’ was introduced towards the end of the nineteenth century to Westerners trading in the thriving city of Shanghai, it was developed from a card game that existed as long ago as AD 960. Using 144 tiles, it is generally played by four players. The tiles have numbers and also suits – winds, dragons, bamboos and circles
mao
a unit of currency. See yuan
mao tai
a strong, sorghum-based liquor
mei fa tzu
common saying, ‘It is fate!’
mei hua
‘plum blossom’
mei mei
sister
mei yu jen wen
‘subhumans’. Used in Chung Kuo by those in the City’s uppermost levels to denote anyone living in the lower hundred
men hu
literally, ‘the one standing in the door’. The most common (and cheapest) of prostitutes
min
literally ‘the people’; used (as here) by the Minor Families in a pejorative sense, as an equivalent to ‘plebeian’
Ming
the dynasty that ruled China from 1368 to 1644. Literally, the name means ‘Bright’ or ‘Clear’ or ‘Brilliant’. It carries connotations of cleansing
mou
a Chinese ‘acre’ of approximately 7,260 square feet. There are roughly six mou to a Western acre, and a 10,000-mou field would approximate to 1,666 acres, or just over two and a half square miles
Mu Ch’in
‘Mother’, a general term commonly addressed to any older woman
mui tsai
rendered in Cantonese as ‘mooi-jai’. Colloquially, it means either ‘little sister’ or ‘slave girl’, though generally, as here, the latter. Other Mandarin terms used for the same status are pei-nu and yatou. Technically, guardianship of the girl involved is legally signed over in return for money
nan jen
common term for ‘Man’
Ni Hao?
‘How are you?’
niao
literally ‘bird’, but here, as often, it is used euphemistically as a term for the penis, often as an expletive
nu er
daughter
nu shi
an unmarried woman, a term equating to ‘Miss’
Pa shi yi
literally ‘Eighty-One’, here referring specifically to the Central Council of the New Confucian officialdom
pai nan jen
literally ‘white man’
pai pi
&
nbsp; ‘hundred pens’, term used for the artificial reality experiments renamed ‘Shells’ by Ben Shepherd
pan chang
supervisor
pao yun
a ‘jewelled cloud’ ch’a
pau
a simple long garment worn by men
pau shuai ch’i
the technical scientific term for ‘half-life’
pi-p’a
a four-stringed lute used in traditional Chinese music
Pien Hua!
Change!
p’ing
an apple, symbol of peace
ping
the east
Ping Fa
Sun Tzu’s The Art Of War, written over two thousand years ago. The best English translation is probably Samuel B. Griffith’s 1963 edition. It was a book Chairman Mao frequently referred to
Ping Tiao
levelling. To bring down or make flat. Here, in Chung Kuo, it is also a terrorist organization.
p’o
The ‘animal soul’ which, at death, remains in the tomb with the corpse and takes its nourishment from the grave offerings. The p’o decays with the corpse, sinking down into the underworld (beneath the Yellow Springs) where – as a shadow – it continues an existence of a kind. The p’o is believed to come into existence at the moment of birth (see also hun)
sam fu
an upper garment (part shirt, part jacket) worn originally by both males and females, in imitation of Manchu styles; later on a wide-sleeved, calf-length version was worn by women alone
san
three
San chang
the three palaces
san kuei chiu k’ou
the eighth and final stage of respect, according to the ‘Book Of Ceremonies’, it involves kneeling three times, each time striking the forehead three times against the ground before rising from one’s knees (in k’ou t’ou one strikes the forehead but once). This most elaborate form of ritual was reserved for Heaven and its son, the Emperor. See also liu k’ou
san k’ou
abbreviated form of san kuei chiu k’ou
San Kuo Yan Yi
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, also known as the San Kuo Chih Yen I. China’s great historical novel, running to 120 chapters, it covers the period from AD 168 to 265. Written by Lo Kuan-chung in the early Ming dynasty, its heroes, Liu Pei, Kuan Chung and Chang Fei, together with its villain, Ts’ao Ts’ao, are all historical personages. It is still one of the most popular stories in modern China
sao mu
the ‘Feast of the Dead’
shang
the south
shan shui
the literal meaning is ‘mountains and water’, but the term is normally associated with a style of landscape painting that depicts rugged mountain scenery with river valleys in the foreground. It is a highly popular form, first established in the T’ang dynasty, back in the seventh to ninth centuries AD
shao lin
specially trained assassins, named after the monks of the shao lin monastery
shao nai nai
literally, ‘little grandmother’. A young girl who has been given the responsibility of looking after her siblings
she t’ou
a ‘tongue’ or taster, whose task is to safeguard his master from poisoning
shen chung
‘caution’
shen mu
‘she who stands in the door’: a common prostitute
shen nu
‘god girls’: superior prostitutes
shen t’se
special elite force, named after the ‘palace armies’ of the late T’ang dynasty
Shih
‘Master’. Here used as a term of respect somewhat equivalent to our use of ‘Mister’. The term was originally used for the lowest level of civil servants, to distinguish them socially from the run-of-the-mill ‘Misters’ (hsian sheng) below them and the gentlemen (ch’un tzu) above
shou hsing
a peach brandy
Shui Hu Chuan
Outlaws of the Marsh, a long historical novel attributed to Lo Kuan-chung but re-cast in the early sixteenth century by ‘Shih Nai-an’, a scholar. Set in the eleventh century, it is a saga of bandits, warlords and heroes. Written in pure pai hua – colloquial Chinese – it is the tale of how its heroes became bandits. Its revolutionary nature made it deeply unpopular with both the Ming and Manchu dynasties, but it remains one of the most popular adventures among the Chinese populace
siang chi
Chinese chess, a very different game from its Western counterpart
Ta
‘Beat’, here a heavily amplified form of Chinese folk music, popular amongst the young
ta lien
an elaborate girdle pouch
Ta Ssu Nung
the Superintendency of Agriculture
tai
literally ‘pockets’ but here denoting Representatives in the House at Weimar. ‘Owned’ financially by the Seven, historically such tai have served a double function in the House, counterbalancing the strong mercantile tendencies of the House and serving as a conduit for the views of the Seven. Traditionally they had been elderly, well-respected men, but more recently their replacements were young, brash and very corrupt, more like the hoppoes of the Opium Wars period
t’ai chi
the Original, or One, from which the duality of all things (yin and yang) developed, according to Chinese cosmology. We generally associate the t’ai chi with the Taoist symbol, that swirling circle of dark and light supposedly representing an egg (perhaps the Hun Tun), the yolk and the white differentiated
tai hsiao
a white wool flower, worn in the hair
Tai Huo
‘Great Fire’
T’ai Shan
Mount T’ai, the highest and most sacred of China’s mountains, located in Shantung province. A stone pathway of 6,293 steps leads to the summit and for thousands of years the ruling emperor has made ritual sacrifices at its foot, accompanied by his full retinue, presenting evidence of his virtue. T’ai Shan is one of the five Taoist holy mountains, and symbolizes the very centre of China. It is the mountain of the sun, symbolizing the bright male force (yang). ‘As safe as T’ai Shan’ is a popular saying, denoting the ultimate in solidity and certainty
Tai Shih Lung
Court Astrologer, a title that goes back to the Han dynasty
T’ang
literally, ‘beautiful and imposing’. It is the title chosen by the Seven, who were originally the chief advisors to Tsao Ch’un, the tyrant. Since overthrowing Tsao Ch’un, it has effectively had the meaning of ‘emperor’
Ta Ts’in
the Chinese name for the Roman Empire. They also knew Rome as Li Chien and as ‘the land West of the Sea’. The Romans themselves they termed the ‘Big Ts’in’ – the Ts’in being the name the Chinese gave themselves during the Ts’in dynasty (AD 265–316)
te
‘spiritual power’, ‘true virtue’ or ‘virtuality’, defined by Alan Watts as ‘the realization or expression of the Tao in actual living’
t’e an tsan
‘innocent westerners’. For ‘innocent’ perhaps read naive
ti tsu
a bamboo flute, used both as a solo instrument and as part of an ensemble, playing traditional Chinese music
ti yu
the ‘earth prison’ or underworld of Chinese legend. There are ten main Chinese Hells, the first being the courtroom in which the sinner is sentenced and the last being that place where they are reborn as human beings. In between are a vast number of sub-Hells, each with its own Judge and staff of cruel warders. In Hell, it is always dark, with no differentiation between night and day
Tian
‘Heaven’, also, ‘the dome of the sky’
tian-fang
literally ‘to fill the place of the dead wife’; used to signify the upgrading of a concubine to the more respectable position of wife
tiao tuo
bracelets of gold and jade
T’ieh Lo-han
‘Iron Goddess of Mercy’, a ch’a
T’ieh Pi Pu Kai
literally, ‘the iron pen changes not’, this is the final phrase used at the end of all Chinese government proclamations for the last three thousand years
ting
an open-sided pavilion in a Chinese garden. Designed as a focal point in a garden, it is said to symbolize man’s essential place in the natural order of things
T’ing Wei
the Superintendency of Trials, an institution that dates back to the T’ang dynasty. See Book Eight, The White Mountain, for an instance of how this department of government – responsible for black propaganda – functions