永

Continuity and the absence of an end; a state or action that persists without cessation (uninterrupted flow).

• Adverbial: Modifies a verb to indicate that an action will persist indefinitely; often functions as a modal claim about the future.
• Attributive: Modifies a noun to denote its permanent nature.
• Negative Construction: When paired with a negative (such as 不), it functions as a strong "never," denoting a prohibition or a state that will not occur at any point in time.

• 永 vs 久 (jiǔ): 久 typically refers to a duration of time or the length of a state (a span). 永 is more absolute and prospective, denoting permanence or eternity.
• 永 vs 長 (cháng): 長 primarily describes spatial length or distance; when used temporally, it refers to the extent or stretch of a period. 永 is almost exclusively temporal and carries a weight of inevitability or fixedness.

Fanqie reading: 于憬; Tang-period reading: *hiuæ̌ng.

• Register: Avoid over-translating as "eternal" in contexts where the claim is practical rather than metaphysical; consider "permanently," "for good," or "continuously."
• Connotation: In ritualistic or legal texts, the glyph often implies stasis (something fixed forever). In philosophical contexts, particularly Daoist, it may lean toward the image of a continuous, fluid process.