sound of footsteps
跫 centers on the audible result of walking: the sound of footsteps. It is a specific sensory word for the noise made by feet on a surface.
跫 combines 足 (foot) with 巩, which likely contributes the sound. The character expresses the sound produced by feet.
The bottom part 足 means foot, and the top part 巩 looks like a person working. Imagine a worker's heavy boots making loud footsteps on a hard floor.
For キョウ, picture a giant foot stepping in Kyoto, its footsteps echoing through the old streets: Kyoto -> キョウ.
—