Sanming TonghuiVol. 1, On the Nature and Fortune of the Sixty Jiazi (verdicts & remarks)
Ren Wu Wood represents the trunk and knots of the willow; it delights in spring and summer. Officer Noble, Nine Uglies, Flying Blade, Flat Head, Deaf and Mute, Suspended Needle. Ren Wu is a supple, harmonious Wood.
Its branches and trunk are tender and frail; while Wood can engender Fire, it dreads seeing Fire in excess, for too much will reduce it to ashes.
Even thriving, engendered Metal cannot harm it, for Metal meets its own defeat upon meeting it, and gaining Metal brings nobility instead. When Water and Earth are abundant, it is likewise noble. It only dreads injury from Jia Wu Metal.
The Essential Discourse on the Five Elements says: "Ren Wu is Self-Dying Wood. When Wood dies and reaches extinction, its soul wanders and its spirit becomes ethereal and exquisite.
Those endowed with it stand upright with serene, luminous virtue and embrace the courage of the benevolent, establishing distinguished achievements; it may well be called tranquil yet brave, prolonging years and expanding longevity."