lion, the seat of a famous priest
猊 centers on a lion, specifically in a Buddhist context where it refers to the lion seat of a high priest, symbolizing authority and the Buddha's teachings.
猊 combines 犭 (beast) with 兒, which likely provides the sound ゲイ and relates to a child or small creature. The compound originally referred to a mythical lion-like beast, later used in Buddhist terminology for the lion seat.
The beast radical 犭 beside 兒 suggests a powerful animal associated with a child-like figure, but here it represents the lion, the king of beasts, serving as the seat of a revered priest.
For ゲイ, imagine a lion giving a loud 'gay' roar as it guards the priest's seat: gay -> ゲイ.
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