動

The glyph denotes a transition from stillness to motion across three primary ranges:

1. Physical Motion: To move, stir, shake, or vibrate; ranges from slight tremors to total change in location.

2. Initiation and Occurrence: To begin, be triggered, or happen; the transition of a situation from dormancy to activity.

3. Emotional/Mental Agitation: Being affected, touched, provoked, or unsettled (encompassing both positive stirring, such as compassion, and negative disturbance).

• Verb: Primary use meaning to move or stir.
• Noun: The act of movement, a specific action, or a state of agitation.
• Causative/Trigger: When associated with an external agent, it can function as "to provoke" or "to stir up."

• vs. 行 (xíng): While 行 emphasizes the process of travel or the execution of a course of action, 動 emphasizes the breaking of stillness.
• vs. 移 (yí): 移 implies displacement from one point to another; 動 can occur without change in location (e.g., a shudder).
• Binary Opposition: In cosmological, meditative, or philosophical contexts, 動 is often positioned against 靜 (stillness/quietude), representing the ontological contrast between equilibrium and agitation or stability and disturbance.

Simplified variant: U+52A8.

In contexts where physical movement is impossible, prioritize senses of "occurrence" (to happen) or "emotional stirring."