Category Archives: Kotowaza

Somebody remind the CEOs

Isaac Newton: “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.”A plutocrat: “… I went to space. Best day ever!” 一将功成りて万骨枯る(Isshoukou narite bankotsu karu;“A general achieves glory; ten thousand bones dry out”) Definition: For each … Continue reading

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You kiss your mother with that mouth?

“No, but I do eat reptiles.” あの声で蜥蜴食らうか時鳥(Ano koe de tokage kurau ka hototogisu;“With such a sweet voice, do you devour lizards, o lesser cuckoo?”) Definition: You can’t judge a book by its cover. People and things often have aspects that … Continue reading

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Verweilst du in der Welt, sie flieht als Traum

(Goethe) 京の夢大阪の夢(Kyou no yume Osaka no yume;“Capital dreams; Osaka dreams”) Definition: Dreams are mysterious and one can’t expect them to make any sense. Alternately, dreams are where one’s desires are most easily manifested; or by extension, a statement that different … Continue reading

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Squeezed by one’s vices

Crunch crunch crunch 粋が身を食う(Sui ga mi wo kuu;“Worldly pleasures devour the man”) Definition: Too much pleasure will destroy you. A man, specifically, who spends all his time and money on dissolution with geisha (i.e. entertainers who provide music, song and … Continue reading

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Don’t look a gift friend in the mouth

Turns out that’s kind of rude with humans too, eh 背戸の馬も相口(Sedo no uma mo aikuchi;“Even a back-entrance horse has a friend”) Definition: “Even an unruly horse can be tamed.” Even the most unfriendly, poorly-socialized person can become relatively cooperative if … Continue reading

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Party rockers at the gate tonight

Everybody just have a good time? 門前市を成す(Monzen ichi wo nasu;“A market forms before the gates”) Definition: For a place, especially a home, to be so frequented by visitors that the press of people and vehicles at the entrance to the … Continue reading

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No rest for the nebbish

The wicked all too often have a surfeit of leisure 貧乏暇なし(Binbou hima nashi;“Poor, no rest”) Definition: The poor have no free time; when you’re poor, you have to work constantly just to meet your needs and stay alive. When you’re … Continue reading

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Waiting to En-gage

縁と月日は末を待て(En to tsukihi wa sue wo mate;“In relationships and in life, wait for the time to come”) Definition: All things come in their own time; the best strategy is not to rush around in a fluster, but to calmly and … Continue reading

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The Scrooge of the Orchard

The Marley of the barley? 吝ん坊の柿の種(Shiwanbou no kaki no tane;“The miser’s persimmon seed”) Definition: This phrase is used to criticize people who penny-pinch to an unhealthy extreme. The image is of someone so obsessed with never letting anything go that … Continue reading

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Every body has some body

So rock your body right 身は身で通る裸ん坊(Mi wa mi de tooru hadakanbou;“The body, as the body, passes through (life) naked””) Definition: Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses, quirks and skills, station in life, and so on – but we all … Continue reading

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