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Category Archives: Japanese
The audacity of crime
盗人猛猛しい (Nusubito takedakeshii; “An impudent thief”) Definition: Remaining calm and self-assured even when doing something wrong. Alternately, when you get caught doing something wrong, acting defiant or even becoming aggressive toward the person who caught you, instead of being properly … Continue reading
Pull your sheep, a good life to keep
牽羊悔亡 ken.you.kai.bou Literally: pull / lead – sheep – regret – perish Alternately: You’ll be unhappy unless you take an active part in shaping things. If you see something through properly instead of just letting it run its natural course, … Continue reading
The ease of TITO
上げ膳据え膳 (Agezen suezen; “Table-clearing; table-setting”) Definition: Not doing anything; having everything done for one. Can be positive, as when describing the service at a luxury resort, or negative, as when describing a friend or family member who isn’t pulling their … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Kotowaza
Tagged ease, Japanese culture, lazy, tradition, 宴会, 据え膳, 上げ膳
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On catching oneself red-handed
赤手空拳 seki.shu.kuu.ken Literally: red – hand – empty – fist Alternately: Doing something on one’s own, without receiving (and often without asking for) help from anybody. Alternately, facing an enemy without any weapons but one’s fists. Notes: This is a … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged alone, イップ・マン 継承, 空手, 空拳, empty-handed, 西遊記, 赤手, from scratch, Journey to the West, Saiyuuki, 徒手
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Save perhaps Eärendil at the Door of Night
送る月日に関守なし (Okuru tsukihi ni sekimori nashi; “Time has no gatekeeper”) Definition: Time passes quickly. There is no guard blocking the paths of months and days, and they cannot be stopped. “Time and tide wait for no one.” Breakdown: We begin … Continue reading
Much travel makes the boatman hoarse
The American version: 車車車車 南船北馬 nan.sen.hoku.ba Literally: south – boat – north – horse Alternately: Going from one place to the next without stop or rest. Always on the go. Wandering restlessly, or traveling busily. Notes: This compound comes to … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Uncategorized, Yojijukugo
Tagged busy, Huainanzi, travel, whole country, 北馬, 南船, 新幹線, 淮南子
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Making light of parental influence
親の光は七光 (Oya no hikari wa nanahikari; “A parent’s light is seven lights”) Definition: Children benefit from their parents’ fame, fortune, and status. This is less about hereditary succession to a position, or straight-up nepotism, than it is about the fact … Continue reading
Poetry. Poetry never changes.
What falls away is always? 不易流行 fu.eki.ryuu.kou Literally: not – simple / divination / change – flow – go Alternately: One of Bashō’s principles for writing haiku: that the essence of haiku lies in both the unchanging (不易) and in … Continue reading
Bear little; bee large
小さく生んで大きく育てる (Chiisaku unde ookiku sodateru; “Birth small; raise large”) Definition: It’s wise to bear a small child and then raise it large. A small baby tends to mean an easier birth, and a child who grows well tends to be … Continue reading
Three men CAN keep a secret
…if they’re tzaddikim and the secret is hidden helpfulness 陰徳陽報 in.toku.you.hou Literally: yin/negative/shadow/secret – virtue – yang/positive/sunlight – reward Alternately: Performing acts of benevolence and charity in secret will nonetheless benefit the doer. It’s tempting to publicize one’s good deeds … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Yojijukugo
Tagged モーシェ・ベン＝マイモーン, ラムバム, cause and effect, 陰徳, 陽報, Huainanzi, karma, secret charity, 淮南子
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