西(xī)
The sun sets in the west. After a day of work, people return home. And the birds, too, return to their nests. Therefore, the character “西” originally depicted a bird’s nest. Many metals are produced in the western part of China and the Chinese people believe that the west possesses “metallic characteristic”. Therefore, the west represents “金(jīn)—metal”. The westerly winds of autumn are also called “金风jīn fēn?—golden wind or metal wind”.

Since all metals reflect a white light, the west is represented by the color white. There is a Chinese idiom that goes “if…the sun will rise from the west” to emphasize the impossibility of the decision, action and so on. It is quite common in the daily conservations. If we put “东” and “西” together (dōn? xi), it means “things or objects”.