一切經音義 6.207

6.207

蛇蠆（上時遮反毛詩云惟虺音毀惟虵易曰龍虵之蟄持立反古文象形𱥋小篆作[乙@(、*、)]說文作它隸書作也相因漸變也蔡邕石經加虫作蛇字書云蛇虺毒虫也經文作虵轉變俗字也下勅芥反考聲云蠆蝎也音歇或作𧓵說文蠆毒虫也從虫苗是象形篆書作[((○/○)*弓)/?]象蠍形）。

蛇蠆 (serpents and scorpions: the first character is [pronounced with the fanqie] 時遮. The Mao recension of the Classic of Poetry says: 'Only vipers (虺, [pronounced] 毀), only serpents (虵).' The Book of Changes says: 'The hibernation [持立] of dragons and serpents.' In the ancient script it is a pictograph 𱥋; the small seal writes it as [乙@(、*、)]; the Shuowen jiezi writes it as 它; the clerical script writes it as 也. They gradually changed one after another. Cai Yong's Stone Classics added 虫 to make 蛇. Character dictionaries say: 'Snakes and vipers are poisonous insects.' The sūtra text writes it as 虵, which is a transformed popular variant. The second character is [pronounced with the fanqie] 勅芥. The Kaosheng says: 'The chài (蠆) is a scorpion (蝎, pronounced 歇).' It is also written as 𧓵. The Shuowen jiezi says: 'The chài is a poisonous insect. It derives from 虫 with 苗 as a pictograph.' The seal script writes it as [((○/○)*弓)/?], depicting the shape of a scorpion.)