Exponentially Entertaining

Let's start with a quiz!

One Joyo kanji is associated with all of these definitions:

1. to load (a gun, etc.)

2. to put into (e.g., emotion, effort)

3. to include (e.g., tax in a sales price)

4. to enshroud

5. (for a gas, smell, etc.) to fill a room

6. to be muffled (e.g., a voice)

Which kanji do you think it might be (and note that I've presented primary definitions here):

a. 雲 (cloud)

b. 籠 (basket)

c. 引 (to pull)

d. 情 (emotion)

e. 込 (to move inward)

I'll block the answer with a preview of the newest essay:

Well, that preview was a dead giveaway! I've been immersed in the world of 籠, so it should come as no surprise that that kanji (answer b) has a relationship to all the verbs I mentioned above. 

And yet ... what a surprise it really is! I mean, take a look at this basket-bag (籠), which my talented friend Masumi-san papier-mached with her gorgeous calligraphy:

It's very hard to make a mental connection between that creation and the aforementioned topics. And yet 籠 plays a role in this verb:

込める or 籠める or 罩める (こめる: (1) to load (a gun, etc.); to charge; (2) put into (e.g., emotion, effort); (3) include (e.g., tax in a sales price); (4) hang over; shroud; enshroud; envelop; screen)

Of course, it's far more common to write it with 込, but 籠 is the runner-up (and the non-Joyo 罩 comes in dead last!). Accordingly, one can render the こめる (or こめて) in all the following compounds with 込 or 籠:

心を込めて or 心を籠めて (こころをこめて: wholeheartedly; with all one’s heart)
     heart + to put into

言い込める or 言い籠める (いいこめる: to talk down; argue down)     talking + to put into

立ち込める or 立ち籠める (たちこめる: to hang over; shroud; enshroud; envelop; screen)     rising + to hang over

垂れ込める or 垂れ籠める (たれこめる: (1) to hang low over (e.g., clouds); (2) seclude oneself (behind screens, a curtain, etc.))     hanging + to hang over

The first two terms showcase the second meaning of こめる (to put into (e.g., emotion, effort), whereas the last pair puts the final definition (to hang over) into action.

Let's return to the six definitions I presented in the quiz:

1. to load (a gun, etc.)

2. to put into (e.g., emotion, effort)

3. to include (e.g., tax in a sales price)

4. to enshroud

5. (for a gas, smell, etc.) to fill a room

6. to be muffled (e.g., a voice)

The verb こめる covers the first four meanings, and the similar-sounding こもる accounts for the last two:

こもる (籠もる or 隠る: (1) to shut oneself in (e.g., one’s room); be confined in; seclude oneself; hide away; stay inside (one’s shell); (2) be filled with (emotion, enthusiasm, etc.); (3) (for a gas, smell, etc., to) fill a room; be heavy with (e.g., smoke); be stuffy; be dense; (4) be muffled (e.g., a voice); (5) confine oneself in a holy place to pray)

As I've shown by putting the hiragana outside the first parenthesis, people usually write this term in hiragana, not in kanji. Note that when it comes to possible kanji renderings of こもる, 込 has fallen out of the picture, which is why it's not the answer to the quiz question. By contrast, 籠 is still relevant, as in these compounds:　

陰に籠もる (いんにこもる: (1) to keep discontent bottled up; (2) (for a person, object, or place to) have a melancholy or gloomy appearance)
     gloominess + to be filled with

心が籠もる (こころがこもる: to be thoughtful (of a gift, etc.); be from the heart; be made with loving care)     heart + to be filled with

情の籠もった (じょうのこもった: warm-hearted; sympathetic)
     sympathy, kindness + filled with

These three terms reflect the second sense of こもる (to be filled with (emotion, enthusiasm, etc.)).

I have included all these fascinating terms in essay 1983 on 籠, but I can't help feeling that I couldn't give them their due there. The essay is 22 pages, and even so, I had such an immense amount of material to cover that I couldn't linger over everything that interested me (which was practically everything)! Even now I somehow feel I can't "stretch out" and delve into each term above, but I'll have my way with this one, my favorite of the lot:

陰に籠もる (いんにこもる: (1) to keep discontent bottled up; (2) (for a person, object, or place to) have a melancholy or gloomy appearance)     gloominess + to be filled with

How great is that first definition?!

Primarily, says Halpern, 陰 means "shade," as in the cool darkness cast by a tree. This kanji can also mean "to darken," as in 陰る (かげる: to darken, be clouded), so it makes sense that 陰 can represent "gloomy, melancholy, dejected," as in the next words:

陰気 (いんき: gloominess, cheerlessness)

陰鬱 (いんうつ: gloominess, melancholy)

陰惨 (いんさん: sadness and gloom)

If "gloom" is a logical extension of 陰 as "shade" or "to darken," melancholy still isn't what I immediately associate with 陰, just as the meanings of こもる will never pop into my mind when I first see 籠. 

Thus, I'm quite sure that if I ever encountered 陰に籠もる out in the world and zeroed in on the two kanji so as to suss out the meaning of the phrase, I would initially imagine that it had to do with the cool "shade" in the dark interior of a basket. Or I might get tripped up on the idea that 陰 has strong connections to genitals! Then again, 陰 exudes gratitude in お陰さまで (おかげ: thanks to you), so I might muse about someone filled with gratitude.

Each of these two kanji offers so many possibilities that one could misinterpret 陰に籠もる in an exponential number of ways. Is that discouraging? Not to me. When even the mistakes are entertaining, you know you have some rich material on your hands!

Catch you back here next time.

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