Jade and Symbolism in Chinese Culture

Since ancient times in Chinese culture, the word “Jade” has been a noble word. In ancient poetry, “Jade” was commonly used to describe all the good people or things. For example, Yu Rong and Yu Mian (both refers to “Jade Face” which means beautiful face), Yu girl (beautiful girl), Yu Shan and Yu Shi (delicious meal), Yu Quan (sweet spring water), etc.; since jade represents beauty, grace and purity, it has been used in quite a long list of idioms or phrases to denote beautiful things and people, many of them are frequently used by the chinese people today in their daily life. Specially, the Chinese character Yu is often used in Chinese names.

On the other side, Jade in Chinese Culture represents:

Its polish and brilliancy represent purity;

Perfect compactness and extreme hardness represent the sureness of intelligence;

Angles represent justice;

The pure and prolonged sound represents music;

Its colour represents loyalty;

Its interior flaws, always showing themselves through the transparency,

Iridescent brightness represents heaven;

Its admirable substance, born of mountain and of water, represents the earth;

Used alone without ornamentation, it represents chastity;

The price that the entire world attaches to it represents the truth.

A delightful Jade vocabulary are popular in Chinese people:
. Jade Gold Speech: Fine Words.
. Jade Wife: Used to refer to your Host’s.
. Let your Jade toes benignly approach: A courteous way of Issuing an Invitation.
. Jade Stalk: The Male Sexual Organ.
. Jade Gate: The Female Sexual Organ.
. To burn both Jade and stone: Complete Devastation in War.
. Jade Step: The Imperial Throne.
. Jade Chariot: The Imperial Transport.
. To Wear the Jade: To serve in the Imperial Bureaucracy.