How to Write 稷 (jì) — Meaning “millet; God of cereals”

Picture a farmer (禾) standing next to a tall grain stalk that has a little 'ji' sound written on it. Imagine the farmer saying, 'This is the god of millet, named Ji!' This links the radical (禾=grain) to the reading and meaning of millet or agriculture deity.

Pay attention to the left radical 禾: its last stroke is a dot, not a line, and the whole radical is narrow. The right side 畟 has a top 田 (field) that should be compact, and the bottom 夂 (walk slowly) has three strokes: horizontal, short horizontal, and a downward left curve. A common mistake is making the right side too wide.

Unlike 稷 (millet/god of cereals), 稔 (rěn) means 'ripe grain' or 'familiar' and has a phonetic 念 (niàn). 稗 (bài) means 'weed/grass' and has a phonetic 卑 (bēi). Visually, 稷 has the right side 畟 with a 'field' (田) on top, while 稔 has 念 and 稗 has 卑 — both look different.

Today 稷 is rarely used alone; it appears mainly in the word 社稷 (shè jì), meaning 'the state' or 'the nation,' originating from ancient altars to the god of soil (社) and god of cereals (稷). It also appears in the name 后稷 (Hòu Jì), a legendary figure in Chinese mythology credited as the god of agriculture.

Common words containing 稷 include: 社稷 (shè jì) — The state / The nation; 稷子 (jì zi) — proso millet; 后稷 (hòu jì) — Houji (God of Agriculture).