中文摘要：

蒸始于“曾”。“曾”字为远古先民所造蒸器之象形，在以甑熟食的过程中，先民又感悟出蒸气腾升、以气化熟的气化形式，其古汉字的初形就是“烝”。先民在蒸食工艺的实践中认知了蒸气的神奇作用，并引发了对“气”从物象渐渐地转入精神层面的思考。这可从两个方面得以体现，一是“曾”、“烝”、“蒸”等字的本义转化；二是先哲对“气”的哲学思辨。先民蒸食烹饪所产生的气成为后世哲学意义上的“气”之概念的源头。

英文摘要：

Chinese character ＂蒸＂ steaming, originates from ＂曾＂, a pictograph representing the steam- ing utensil made by the ancients. When cooking with ＂甑＂ an earthen utensil used for steaming rice by our ancestors, they realized vaporized steam cooked food and created the ancient Chinese pictogram ＂烝,＂ meaning to rise as steam. The realization of the magic function of steam in cooking practice led the ancients gradually to speculate on ＂ Qi＂ not from its physical image any more but from its spiritual dimensions. Two manifestations for the above inference ： meaning shifts of Chinese characters as ＂曾＂, ＂烝＂, and ＂蒸＂ ; phil- osophical thoughts of the great thinkers on ＂Qi＂ （the vital energy）. Qi steam produced when ancients cooked by steaming became the origin of ＂Qi＂ in late philosophy.