There are different accounts for the origins of the ju-i, but according to Chuang Po-he, a researcher of Chinese cultural forms, the most representative account is that the ju-i began as a "scratching-rod" for relieving itches, and was variously known as Do-It-Yourself, Ever-Faithful and The Soother.
關於如意的來源，說法不一，不過研究中國造型的莊伯和以為，最具代表性的說法應該就是抓癢的「爪杖」，又叫做不求人、孝順或是養和子。