Methods To Avoid Offence
There were three ways to avoid using a taboo character:
- Changing the character to another one which usually was a synonym or sounded like the character being avoided. For example, the Xuanwu Gate (玄武門：the Black Warrior Gate) of the Forbidden City was renamed as "Shenwu" (神武門：Gate of Divine Might) in order to avoid the Kangxi Emperor's name Xuanye (玄燁).
- Leaving the character as a blank.
- Omitting a stroke in the character, especially the final stroke.
Compare to the writing of G-d or L-rd in Judaism.
Read more about this topic: Naming Taboo
Famous quotes containing the words methods, avoid and/or offence:
“How can you tell if you discipline effectively? Ask yourself if your disciplinary methods generally produce lasting results in a manner you find acceptable. Whether your philosophy is democratic or autocratic, whatever techniques you use—reasoning, a “star” chart, time-outs, or spanking—if it doesn’t work, it’s not effective.”
—Stanley Turecki (20th century)
“The best way to avoid punishment is to fear it.”
—Chinese proverb.
“A kind of Pythagorean terror, as though the irrationality of pi were an offence against the deity, not to mention his creature.”
—Samuel Beckett (1906–1989)