The Net FamilyRadical 网
The net of heaven is vast; loose-meshed, yet nothing slips through
ShuowenShuowen: “Net (网), knotted cords for fishing, made by Paoxi. From 冂, with crossed cord-marks below.”
The oracle form of 网 is an open net, cords crossing. In high antiquity Mang of Paoxi knotted cords into nets — the ancestors watched a spider weave, and invented the first tool of hunting and fishing. Later the net climbed out of the water onto the page: 罗 is the bird net, 罪 the fish net, 署 the spreading of nets, 置 the net held open — the characters of judgement all came out of nets. 天网恢恢，疏而不漏: the net is both a livelihood and the shape of justice.
The Root Character · Reading “网” in Three Layers
See the form
The oracle net: cords crossing — plain pictograph.
Read the logic
The 罒 “net top” characters all concern nets: 罗, 罟, 罪, 罚, 署, 置, 罢, 羁 — tools of the catch that became the vocabulary of justice.
Grasp the wisdom
“The net of heaven is vast — loose-meshed, yet nothing slips through.” However wide the mesh, heaven’s order does not leak. The net is a livelihood, and the shape of justice.
The Making of a Glyph
- Oracle boneCords crossing — pure pictograph.
- BronzeThe knots thicken; the net fills.
- Small sealOrdered into crossed cords under a frame.
- Clerical & regularSimplified to the 罒 net-top.
Glyphs are schematic reconstructions, not rubbings.
The Chain of Nets & Justice
The same net, fishing in the water and trying cases in the hall — this chain walks the net’s journey from tool to justice.
From netting birds to trying casesA bird net — to net birds.
“You could net sparrows at the gate” — 罗 is the net strung at the door: desolation and bustle, both read by it.
Character Assembly · Two Parts Become One
When two parts walk toward each other, a new character is born. Watch how they meet.
罪 zuì
FormA net (罒) over “wrong” (非) — taking what should not be taken.
LogicShuowen: “罪, a bamboo fish net.” The surface is a net; the meaning is a fault.
Wisdom罪 reminds you: the fault is not in the net, it is in the “wrong” — between right and wrong lies one thin line.
置 zhì
FormThe net (罒) held open for the “straight” (直).
LogicThe root meaning is release: for the upright, hold the net open.
Wisdom置办, 搁置, 置换 — 置 began in mercy: first open a way of escape, then talk of settling.
罚 fá
FormTrying the case (罒) with words (讠) and knife (刂).
Logic罚 takes net, speech and knife: convict on evidence, hear fairly, act with care.
Wisdom罚 has a procedure: net, hear, cut — miss one step and it is not punishment, it is cruelty.
蜀 shǔ
FormA big-eyed worm (a silkworm) under a net (罒).
LogicShuowen: “蜀, the silkworm in the mallows.” 蜀 is the wild silkworm — hence Shu brocade.
WisdomInside 蜀 lives a silkworm eating mulberry leaves: the patron saint of Shu’s brocade industry lived in the character top (see the Silk Family).
Branches of the Family
Hover (or tap) a character to see what it means.
Kinds of Nets
The gear of fishing and fowling, each its own net.
- 罟
- 罾
- 罥
- 罕
- 羁
- 罿
- 罽
- 蜀
The Net on the Bench
The net walked from the water into the courtroom.
- 罪
- 罚
- 署
- 置
- 罢
- 羁
- 罗
- 罥
「The net of heaven is vast — loose-meshed, yet nothing slips through.」
—— Laozi
「He opened the net on three sides, mercy reaching even to beasts and birds.」
—— Records of the Grand Historian