By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
Speculation is mounting over ``Ismail Ax,'' the words written on one of the arms of Cho Seung-hui, the shooter in the campus massacre at Virginia Tech.
According to reports, Cho wrote the words on his arm in red ink in his dormitory after killing two people there before heading to Norris Hall where he murdered another 30.
People suspect the words may be a clue to his motive for the killing spree.
Some guess it is related to Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, Ismail is the son of Ibrahim who broke icons with an ax in order to abolish idol worship.
From the doctrine, some people interpret that Ismail Ax represents ``holy punishment.''
From the fact that Cho was an English major, others say the words mean Ishmael Bush, the hero of James Fenimore Cooper's novel ``The Prairie.'' Ishmael is the English version of Ismail.
Ishmael, trying to escape from civilization, crosses over the Prairie, taking a gun and an ax. People guessed ``Ismail Ax'' symbolizes Cho's desire to destroy American civilization and escape from it.
According to Webster's English dictionary, Ishmael has a meaning of ``exile'' or ``outcast,'' so others suspect Cho chose the words as metaphor for himself.