How to Write 巽 (xùn) — Meaning “the Xun trigram / southeast / mild”

Imagine two people (two 己 radicals) bowing politely to each other, creating a gentle breeze between them. The repeated '己' suggests self-restraint, which matches the mild and yielding nature of the Xun trigram representing wind.

Write the top '己' slightly smaller than the bottom one, and make sure the horizontal stroke in the middle connects both sides firmly. A common mistake is writing the two '己' parts too far apart or forgetting the horizontal stroke, which changes the character's balance.

While 巽 has two '己' radicals with a horizontal stroke across the top, 巸 (yí) has a '己' on top and a '巳' (already) on bottom, and means 'peaceful' or 'completion'. 巽 is used in Feng Shui and divination, whereas 巸 is rare and found only in classical texts.

巽 is mainly used in traditional Chinese philosophy and Feng Shui to refer to the southeast direction or the wind trigram. You might see it in words like 巽位 (southeast position) or 巽风 (gentle wind), but it rarely appears in everyday conversation.

Common words containing 巽 include: 巽位 (xùn wèi) — the southeast position; 巽风 (xùn fēng) — southeast wind / gentle breeze; 巽卦 (xùn guà) — the Xun trigram (representing wind).