恢

Primarily signifies expansiveness — of space, spirit, or emotion.

It can mean “broad” in a physical or figurative sense, and by extension “to restore,” as something that returns to its full breadth or vitality.

Phono-semantic compound consisting of:

心 (마음 심) — semantic component, meaning “heart, mind, feelings.”

灰 (재 회) — phonetic component, providing the sound hoe (회) and the imagery of “ash” — what remains after fire.

Together, they express “a mind as open and calm as cooled ashes,” suggesting vastness, tolerance, and restoration.

In early usage, 恢 meant both broad-minded and revived in spirit, as from a quieted or purified heart.

恢復 (회복) — to recover; restoration to original state

恢宏 (회홍) — vast; magnificent; grand in scale

恢闊 (회활) — spacious; wide and open

恢然 (회연) — relaxed; open-minded; magnanimous

恢擴 (회확) — broad and extensive

恢弘 (회홍) — broad-minded; expansive and noble in thought

恢漠 (회막) — vast and empty; tranquil and wide

恢復力 (회복력) — power of recovery, resilience

In classical philosophy, 恢 often describes the magnanimous heart — one that is open, inclusive, and unshaken by hardship.

It embodies breadth of spirit (寬宏之心), a virtue praised in Confucian and Daoist texts alike.

「恢恢乎其於天下也，無所不容。」

“Vast indeed is the one who embraces all under Heaven.”

The “broad heart” (恢心) stands in contrast to the “narrow heart” (狹心) — where the former forgives, the latter clings.

「恢心者，萬物皆親。」

“For one with a broad heart, all beings are kin.”

Because 灰 (ash) implies both purification by fire and quietness after burning, 恢 also carries the sense of renewal — as life or vigor returning after destruction.

Hence the common compound 恢復 (restoration): to regain what was lost, to recover wholeness.

恢 captures the paradox of strength through openness —

a heart made vast not by control, but by release.

It is the calm after passion, the expanse after confinement,

the renewal that follows exhaustion.

「灰盡而心明，恢然若天。」

“When the ashes settle and the heart grows clear, it becomes vast like Heaven.”

Thus, 恢 stands for both greatness of heart and the power to heal —

to recover from loss, and to embrace all things in serene vastness.