則

Originally a compound ideograph:

鼎 (tripod cauldron) served as the phonetic and semantic base. A 鼎 was a sacred vessel, symbolizing law, authority, and ritual order.

刂 (knife, blade) was added to the side, suggesting carving or engraving rules into the vessel.

Thus, the character depicts “engraving regulations on a ritual cauldron”, extending to the idea of rules, laws, standards.

Over time, 鼎 in this character was simplified into a form resembling 貝, leading to centuries of misinterpretation (thought to mean “money + knife”). Modern paleography has clarified that 鼎 is the true source.

Semantic range:

- law, rule, regulation (법칙, 규칙);

- norm, principle, pattern (원칙, 준칙);

- classical usage: “then, thus” as an adverbial connective;

- by extension: criterion, model, precedent.

법칙 (法則) — natural law, principle

규칙 (規則) — rule, regulation

준칙 (準則) — guideline, standard

則天 (칙천) — “rule under Heaven”

In Confucian texts, 則 is a key marker of normative principles: the standards by which one acts. For example, “君子則仁” — “the noble person uses benevolence as his rule.”

In Daoist writings, 則 often functions adverbially (“thus, then”), marking the flow of reasoning.

In Buddhist translations, it appears frequently in conditional logic: “若人能行此法，則得解脫” — “If a person practices this Dharma, then they attain liberation.”

鼎-based early graphs; simplifications resembling 貝