蒔かぬ種は生えぬ
(Makanu tane wa haenu; “Unsown seeds don’t sprout”)

Definition:

Nothing happens without a reason for it to happen. Nothing comes of nothing. Plants don’t grow without seeds. Alternately, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Nothing comes without effort. If you want seeds to grow into plants and produce flowers or fruit, you must plant them.

Breakdown:

We begin with the verb 蒔く (maku), “to sow seeds.” It appears in imperfective form, with negative suffix ず (zu) in prenominal form so that the verb can attach to and modify the noun 種 (tane), “seed.” This noun is marked by the particle は (wa) as the topic of discussion, with an implicit contrast that sets it apart from seeds that have been sown. Finally, the main part of the sentence consists of a single verb, 生える (haeru), “to grow,” “to sprout,” again with a negative suffix.

In classical-grammar terms the final verb is properly 生ふ (hau) and the form it would take here would be 生ひず (haizu), with the suffix in sentence-final form. However, today’s phrase is of no greater antiquity than the Edo era. While the ぬ suffixes feel old-fashioned from a contemporary perspective, there is about twice as much time between the phrase’s origin and the Tale of Genji as between its origin and this blog post.

Notes:

This is the ma entry in the Kyoto iroha karuta set.

This saying is attributed to Matsue Shigeyori’s 1645 haiku collection 毛吹草 (Kefukigusa).

A synonymous saying asserts that 打たぬ鐘は鳴らぬ (Utanu kane wa naranu), “An un-struck bell doesn’t ring.”

Example sentence:

「ケンちゃん、ゲームはもう止めて英語の勉強しなさい。蒔かぬ種は生えぬと言うでしょう。勉強しないと、英語、上手にならないわよ。」

(“Ken-chan, geemu wa mou yamete eigo no benkyou shinasai. Makanu tane wa haenu to iu deshou. Benkyou shinai to, Eigo, jouzu ni naranai wa yo.”)

[“Ken, stop playing video games and study your English already. They say seeds that aren’t planted can’t grow, right? If you don’t study it, you’ll never get good.”]