Benevolence

Jin: (Japanese kana) “benevolence.”

The two strokes on the left are the combining form of the character that means “man”; the two strokes on the right, taken alone, form the character for the numeral “two.”

Something is emanating from the midsection of the man, flowing out between the two parallel lines toward the right, or forward. Benevolence: from Latin, “good willing.”

Thanks to Judy Hoyem for bringing this to my attention. I’m working on “devotion” next; it’s something that comes to mind as I drive past all these crèches that have sprung up around town. I like the idea of devotion, but I’m not sure what it is.