Peaceful

by Nao

yasu-raka, yasu-ragi, yasu-ragu, yasu-i, an

Yasu-rakana means peaceful. Yasu-rakana ni means peacefully. The noun, Yasu-ragi, means peacefulness, and calmness. The verb, Yasu-ragu, means to have peace of mind. These words are the same kind as for the meanings, while the adjective, yasu-i, means easy or cheap. So, there are two kinds of words including this character: peace and ease.

Peace: Yesterday, I mentioned Heian jidai. The an of Heian is today’s character. Another meaning of heian is peaceful. Assisted suicide, anraku shi, is in this category.

Ease: Anyi is ease. Both an and yi means easy. The meaning, cheap, can be included in this group because something cheap is easy to buy. Kakuyasu means low prices. We call discount airline tickets kakuyasu kōkūken. Kōkūken is an airline ticket. Budget airlines are called kakuyasu kōkūgaisha. I have never thought what the kaku of kakuyasu means. Probably, it means a range or a class. Retailers’ ad sometimes loudly says, “gekiyasu” meaning super cheap.

The lower part is onna (woman).

1. Draw the dot on the top.
2. Draw the dot on the left.
3. Draw the hook.
4. Begin drawing the lower part. Draw the rotated chevron shape inside.
5. Draw the sweeping stroke heading toward the lower left.
6. Draw the horizontal line from the left to the right. This line is the center of this character.