Construction and defence · rong wei

At a glance

Pinyin

róng wèi

Simplified

荣卫

Literal

榮 róng — here borrowed for what flows through and nourishes: read as the róng of the site's 榮氣 (id 1036), not as the róng of 榮 seen as bloom (id 413). The chapter itself writes it once with water on either side, 滎, which this site reads róng as well, taking it for the same word. 衛 wèi — defence, the outer patrol, which the site has separately as 衛氣 (id 219). Together they are not two things but two directions of one thing: what flows inward to feed, and what circles outward to guard. Chapter 58 never defines them; it only reports whether they are moving. Where they are moving — 以行榮衛，以會大氣 — there is no disease to speak of. Where they stop, the chapter gives two opposite endings, and both are written in the same four words each time: 榮衛不行 and 榮衛不居.

Shuowen

《說文解字》：「榮，桐木也」，引申為華發外見之義；「衛，宿衛也」，引申為護衛於外之義。「榮」讀 róng、**本篇「榮」6見，讀 róng；與第十四篇「榮衞不行」之「營」同實而借字**；「滎」讀 róng、**本篇「滎」1見於「以通滎衛」一句，即「榮」之借字，同讀 róng；第四十四篇「各補其滎」則為滎穴，讀 xíng，同名兩讀**；「衛」讀 wèi、**本篇「衛」7見，讀 wèi**；「稽」讀 jī、**「榮衛稽留」之稽讀 jī；本篇別有「稽首」之稽讀 qǐ，同篇兩讀**；「留」讀 liú、**本篇「留」4見**；「散」讀 sàn、**「衛散榮溢」之散讀 sàn，本篇1見**；「溢」讀 yì、**本篇「溢」6見**；「氣」讀 qì、**「氣竭血著」之氣讀 qì，本篇「氣」10見**；「竭」讀 jié、**本篇「竭」1見**；「血」讀 xuè、**本篇「血」2見，本站一律讀 xuè**；「著」讀 zhuó、**「血著」之著讀 zhuó，本篇1見**；「熱」讀 rè、**「外爲發熱」之熱讀 rè，本篇「熱」5見**；「少」讀 shǎo、**「内爲少氣」之少讀 shǎo，本篇1見**；「疾」讀 jí、**「疾冩無怠」之疾讀 jí**；「冩」讀 xiè、**本篇「冩」4見，讀 xiè；來稿別有寫字三見，已併改从底本之冩**；「通」讀 tōng、**「以通榮衛」之通讀 tōng，本篇2見**；「不」讀 bù、**「榮衛不行」「榮衛不居」，本篇「不」9見**；「居」讀 jū、**「榮衛不居」之居讀 jū，本篇2見**