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Names have power: Taoist master helps Chinese parents choose a name
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The 2010 World Cup mascot is named Zakumi, with
"ZA" standing for South Africa and "kumi" translating
into "ten" in Swahili. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
The choice of a meaningful and auspicious name for a newborn is vitally important in traditional Chinese culture, and a Taoist master was the one who finally offered two parents a pleasing name for their baby girl born in October 2008. The parents, both college graduates, were dismayed by an online numerology profile of their newborn daughter’s future, based on the I Ching concept of the eight characters of her birth: two characters marking the time, two characters marking the date, two characters marking the month, and two characters marking the year. They struggled to choose a name that would help balance the misfortune suggested by the numerology profile, reaching out to one of several local “naming shops” for help.
Finally they found a senior Taoist priest who assured them that an auspicious name would be Zhirui, which combines the characters for “knowledge” and “intelligent.” Both parents were very pleased with the suggested name for their daughter, and Zhirui’s mother said, “I believe he (the priest) is a real master, and that the name he has given is really good.”
Names and the naming process have carried power in history and legends around the world. In the fairy tale “Rumpelstiltskin,” a queen learns a dwarf’s name in time to save her first-born child. In the Superman comic book, the evil Mxyzptlk is sent back to his own dimension when tricked into saying his name backwards. From a sales perspective, it can be very difficult to sell a Chevy Nova to Spanish-speaking customers when “Nova” means “No go” in Spanish. From a social perspective, people can gain credibility or a higher status by name-dropping. In short, names have power:
- “Names have power....No cause, issue, or crusade has a follower until it has a name. A good name evokes images, emotions. A well-named issue becomes uncontestable. (Who is really opposed to ‘family values’, anyway?)” – Michael Nygard
- “Names can have great power, and the power of naming is a great power. History and law, as well as literature and politics, are activities of naming. The Bible tells a story of God giving Adam the power to name the animals and other parts of creation. An important part of the Judeo-Christian creation story is a power of naming that is a power over creation.” - Peter d'Errico
- "Crazy Horse passed on his name to his son, who took the name Worm as he got older. So, we can pass on names, too. The idea is that you’re not stuck with the name you were given at birth. In western society, it’s almost as if you can’t change; you can’t evolve; you can’t grow. From a native perspective, your name reflects who you are. White Deer of Autumn reflects what I’ve done. But as I go on in life, I may want to let go of that and take another name. I have that right. So, naming is the ability to evolve and change in your identity. I think this is healing, both physically and emotionally." - White Deer of Autumn
It might have taken eight months for Baby Zhirui to receive her name from a Taoist master, but her parents understood the power of naming and strove to wield that power well. We too have the power to wisely choose our own name or nickname, the name of a business or product, the name of a child, the name of a pet, and other names in our lives. Names have power.
For all of us in South Florida who know hurricanes all-too-well, here is a great 1.5-minute video from The Weather Channel about naming major storms: Weather Channel Video: The Power of a Name.
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