Learning is Eternal in Chinese / Japanese...

This Chinese philosophy tells of how we continue to learn throughout our lives.

This proverb can be translated in a few ways such as “Study has no end,” “Knowledge is infinite,” “No end to learning,” “There's always something new to study,” or “You live and learn.”

The deeper meaning: Even when we finish school we are still students of the world gaining more knowledge from our surroundings with each passing day.

See Also:  An Open Book Benefits Your Mind | Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom

生涯學習 means “Learning is Eternal” or “Lifelong Learning,” in Japanese.

求學無坦途 is a Chinese proverb that translates as “There is no royal road to learning.”

This suggests that the path of learning can never be smooth, there will be difficulties and troubles along the way.

See Also:  Learning is Eternal

文江學海 is a Chinese proverb that reads, “river of literacy, a sea of learning”

This suggests that there is a lot to learn in the world, with an eternal amount of reading and things to study.

文江學海 is one way to translate the quote from Hippocrates, “ars longa, vita brevis,” meaning “it takes a long time to acquire and perfect one's expertise.”

See Also:  Learning is Eternal

學海無涯 is a Chinese proverb that reads, “sea of learning, no horizon.”

Colloquially, it means there are no limits to what one still has left to learn.

This would be the Chinese equivalent to the quote from Hippocrates, “ars longa, vita brevis,” meaning “it takes a long time to acquire and perfect one's expertise.”

See Also:  Learning is Eternal

不老 is a Japanese word that means “perpetual youth” or “forever young.”

It contains the idea of never getting old. It literally means “never aging,” or “not [getting] old.”

永恆 is the Chinese word for eternity.

The first character means always, forever, and perpetual. The second character holds the meaning of permanent. Together, they create a word that means eternal, eternally, or infinite time.

See Also:  Immortality

The first character here means “love.”

The last two mean forever, eternity, eternal, perpetuity, immortality, and/or permanence.

愛永遠 is the shortest and most universal way to express this idea in Chinese and Japanese.

Japanese note: This sound more like a title than a phrase in Japanese (if that makes any sense). 愛永遠 is a great title for a romantic book, the title of a movie, the name of a perfume, or even a name for a store.

See Also:  Eternal Love | Forever Love

不來不去 is a Buddhist term, originally anāgamana-nirgama from Sanskrit.

This implies that things are neither coming into nor going out of existence.

This can also mean “all things are eternal,” or others will call this the Buddhist concept of the eternal conservation of energy.

This theory predates Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton.

Note: 不來不去 is not a well-known word for both Buddhists and non-Buddhists, so not all will recognize it.

永恆的愛 is the best way to write “Eternal Love” in Chinese.

The first two characters mean eternal, eternally, everlasting, and/or perpetual.

The third character is a possessive article which sort of makes this selection mean “Love of the eternal kind.”

The last character is “love.”

This version is best if your audience is Chinese. We also have a Japanese version of eternal love.

See Also:  Forever Love | Eternal Love (Japanese)

究道無限 or Kyudo Mugen can be translated as “The way of learning has no end,” “The path of study never ends,” or “Infinite Pursuit.”

永遠の幸福 means “eternal happiness” in Japanese.

永遠 means eternal, eternity, perpetuity, forever, immortality, and permanence.

の is a possessive article which sort of makes this selection mean “happiness, of the eternal kind.”

幸福 means happiness, though this word can be translated as truly blessed, joy, happy, welfare, well-being, or fortunate.

永遠の愛 is a great way to write “Eternal Love” in Japanese.

The first two characters mean eternal, eternity, perpetuity, forever, immortality, and permanence.

The third character is a possessive article which sort of makes this selection mean “Love, of the eternal kind.”

The last character is “love.”

Cultural note: Most of the time, it is taboo to use the word “love” in Japanese. For instance, a Japanese man will say, “I like you,” rather than, “I love you,” to his spouse/girlfriend. However, this entry for eternal love is acceptable because of the way it is composed.

This entry is only appropriate if your audience is Japanese. We also have a Chinese version of this eternal love.

永恆的美 is how to write “Eternal Beauty” in Chinese.

幸福永恆 is a short way to say eternal happiness in Chinese.

Breaking down the parts:
幸福 means happiness, happy, blessed, blessedness, joy, and/or well-being.
永恆 means eternal, everlasting, and/or forever.

Another way to write this is 永恆的幸福. It reverses the word order and adds a possessive article. I prefer the shorter version, which is slightly more natural in Chinese.

永遠の友 is a Japanese phrase about eternal friendship.

The first two characters mean eternal, eternity, perpetuity, forever, immortality, and permanence.

The third character is a possessive article which sort of makes this selection mean “Love, of the eternal kind.”

The last character is “friend” or “Friendship.”

See Also:  Best Friends

永平 is a way to write “eternal peace” in Chinese and Japanese.

This may also refer to Yongping county in Dali Bai autonomous prefecture. 永平 is also a Japanese surname that romanizes as Nagahira.

永遠的朋友 means friends that are eternal or a friendship that will last forever - you will remain the best of friends as long as you live.

The first two characters mean forever, eternal, eternity, perpetuity, immortality, and/or permanence.

The middle character links the words (it's a possessive article).

The last two characters represent friendship, or simply “friends.”

法輪 is the Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja title, “The Eternal Wheel of Life,” in Buddhism.

Also known as the wheel of the law, or Buddha-truth, which can crush all evil and all opposition. It is likened to Indra's wheel, which rolls on from man-to-man, place-to-place, age-to-age.

Colloquially used in some sects to mean preaching or spreading Buddha-truth.

永久 is a Japanese, Chinese, and old Korean word that means everlasting, perpetual, lasting, forever, permanent, eternity, perpetuity, and/or immortality.

This can also be a female given name Haruku in Japan.

This Japanese phrase means “perpetual youth and longevity.”

It contains the ideas of never getting old and eternal life.

無限大の愛 is a Japanese title meaning infinite great love, unlimited great love, or eternal love.

無 means never, not, or like a prefix “un-.”

限 means limited, restricted, or bound.
大 means great or big.
の is a possessive article.
愛 means love or affection.

永遠的愛 refers to love that will last forever.

The first two characters mean forever, eternal, eternity, perpetuity, immortality, and/or permanence.

The third character is a possessive article which sort of makes this selection mean “The forever kind of love.”

The last character is “love.”

See Also:  Eternal Love Always

無限愛 is the Chinese and Japanese title meaning infinite love, unlimited love, or unbounded love.

The first character means never, not, or like the prefix “un-.”

The second means limited, restricted, or bound.

The third means love or affection.

默而识之学而不厌诲人不倦何有于我哉 is a quote from the Analects of Confucius that translates as:

To quietly recite and memorize the classics,
to love learning without tiring of it,
never be bored with teaching,
How could these be difficult for me?

This is a suggestion that for a true scholar, all of these things come with ease.

This was written over 2500 years ago. The composition is in ancient Chinese grammar and phrasing. A modern Chinese person would need a background in Chinese literature to understand this without the aid of a reference.

永生 are the last two words from John 3:16 in the Chinese Union Bible.

Although not specifically Christian, this is the way to express ever-lasting life or eternal life in Chinese.

In Japanese, this can either mean eternal life or immortality.

See Also:  Eternity | Rebirth | Reincarnation | Immortality

好學近乎知力行近乎仁知恥近乎勇 is a Saying from Confucius which relates certain actions to virtues.

A more verbose translation:
To love learning is akin to knowledge,
to study diligently is akin to benevolence,
to know shame is akin to courage.

好好學習天天向上 is a famous proverb by Chairman Mao Zedong that sounds really strange when directly translated into English.

I include it in our database of phrases to illustrate how different the construction and grammar can be between Chinese and English. The direct translation is “Good Good Study, Day Day Up.” In Chinese, a repeated character/word can often serve to reinforce the idea (like saying “very” or suggesting “a lot of”). So “good good” really means “a lot of good.” While “day day” can be better translated as “day in day out.” The idea of “up” has a meaning in China of “rising above” or “improving.”

After understanding all of this, we come up with a slightly better translation of “With a lot of good study, day in and day out, we raise above.”

The more natural translation of this proverb would be something like, “study hard, and keep improving.”

鑿壁偷光 is a Chinese proverb that means “Bore a hole in the wall to make use of the neighbor's light to study.”

This is a nice gift for a very studious person.

Kuang Heng was born during the Western Han period. He has been very fond of reading ever since he was young. However, he could not attend school since his family was poor, and he had to borrow books from people to learn.

To borrow these books, he normally did chores for people who had them. When he became older, he had to work in the field from sunrise to sunset since his family's financial situation did not improve. Thus, he tried to study at night, but he had no lamp.

One day, he noticed the light from the neighbor's house coming through a crack in the wall. This made him very happy, so he dug a larger hole from the crack and read in the light that shone through. This diligent study eventually made him an accomplished person.

There are several ways to translate this ancient proverb. Translated literally and directly, it says, “Open roll has/yields benefit.”

To understand that, you must know a few things...

First, Chinese characters and language have deeper meanings that often are not spoken but are understood - especially with ancient texts like this. Example: It's understood that the “benefit” referred to in this proverb is to the reader's mind. Just the last character expresses that whole idea.

Second, Chinese proverbs are supposed to make you think and leave a bit of mystery to figure out.

Third, for this proverb, it should be noted that roll = book. When this proverb came about (about two thousand years ago), books were rolls of bamboo slips strung together. The first bound books like the ones we use today did not come about until about a thousand years after this proverb when they invented paper in China.

開卷有益 is a great gift for a bookworm who loves to read and increase their knowledge. Or for any friend that is or wants to be well-read.

Some other translations of this phrase:
Opening a book is profitable
The benefits of education.

三人寄れば文殊の知恵 literally means “when three people meet, wisdom is exchanged.”

Some will suggest this means when three people come together, their wisdom is multiplied.

That wisdom part can also be translated as wit, sagacity, intelligence, or Buddhist Prajna (insight leading to enlightenment).

In the middle of this proverb is “monju,” suggesting “transcendent wisdom.” This is where the multiplication of wisdom ideas comes from.

Note: This is very similar to the Chinese proverb, "When 3 people meet, one becomes a teacher."

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

永遠 is the Chinese, Korean and Japanese word for forever.

If we take this word apart, the first character means always, forever, or perpetual. While the second character means far or distant.

See Also:  Immortality

三人行必有我师 means “when three people meet, one becomes the teacher.”

This famous Chinese philosophy suggests that when people come together, they can always learn from each other.

One person must be the teacher and others learn. And in turn, the others become the teachers of the knowledge they possess.

It is important to remember that we all have something to teach, and we all have something to learn as well.

The most literal translation to English of this ancient 前事不忘后事之师 Chinese proverb is:
“Past events not forgotten serve as teachers for later events.”

However, it's been translated several ways:
Don't forget past events, they can guide you in the future.
Benefit from past experience.
Past experience, if not forgotten, is a guide for the future.
Past calamity is my teacher.
A good memory for the past is a teacher for the future.
The remembrance of the past is the teacher of the future.
If one remembers the lessons of the past; They will serve as a guide to avoid mistakes in the future.

The origin:
This proverb comes from the 5th century B.C., just before the Warring States Period in the territory now known as China.
The head of the State of Jin, Zhi Bo, seized power in a coup. He did this with help from the armies of the State of Han and Wei. Instead of being grateful for the help from Han and Wei, he treacherously took the land of Han and Wei. Never satisfied, Zhi Bo employed the armies of Han and Wei to attack and seize the State of Zhao.

The king of Zhao took advice from his minister Zhang Mengtan and secretly contacted the Han and Wei armies to reverse their plans and attack the army of Zhi Bo instead. The plan was successful, and the State of Zhao was not only saved but was set to become a powerful kingdom in the region.

Zhang Mengtan immediately submitted his resignation to a confused king of Zhao. When asked why, Zhang Mengtan said, “I've done my duty to save my kingdom, but looking back at past experience, I know sovereign kings are never satisfied with the power or land at hand. They will join others and fight for more power and more land. I must learn from past experiences, as those experiences are the teachers of future events.”
The king could not dispute the logic in that statement and accepted Zhang Mengtan's resignation.

For generations, the State of Zhao continued to fight for power and land until finally defeated and decimated by the State of Qin (which led to the birth of the Qin Dynasty in 221 B.C.).

自行束脩以上吾未尝无诲焉 means, for anyone who brings even the smallest token of appreciation, I have yet to refuse instruction.

Another way to put it is: If a student (or potential student) shows just an ounce of interest, desire, or appreciation for the opportunity to learn, a teacher should offer a pound of knowledge.

This quote is from the Analects of Confucius.

This was written over 2500 years ago. The composition is in ancient Chinese grammar and phrasing. A modern Chinese person would need a background in Chinese literature to understand this without the aid of a reference.

When you meet a wise person, you should learn from them and be inspired to become as wise as they are.

見賢思齊 is a pretty long proverb in English, but in Chinese, it's only four characters.
However, in Chinese, the deeper meaning often surpasses the dictionary definition of each character.

In this case, you should seek wise people to learn from throughout your life...
Always try to learn enough to become equal to them. It also suggests that learning and seeking wisdom is a non-ending cycle.

See Also:  Knowledge

溫故知新 is a proverb from Confucius that is used in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean cultures.

It can be translated in several ways:
Coming up with new ideas based on things learned in the past.
Examine things of the past, and obtain new knowledge.
Developing new ideas based on the study of the past.
Gain new insights through restudying old issues.
Understand the present by reviewing the past.
Learning from the past.
Review the old and know the new.
Taking a lesson from the past.
Taking a lesson from the wisdom of the ancients.
Follow the old ways.

The direct translation would be, “By asking old things, know new things.”
The Character meanings breakdown this way:
溫故 = ask old
知新 = know new

Explained: To learn new things that are outside of your experience, you can learn from old things of the past. You can find wisdom in history.

VS.

Note: Japanese use a variant of the first Kanji in modern times.
Therefore if you order this from a Japanese calligrapher, expect the first Kanji to look like 温 instead of 溫.

In addition to 温故知新 as mentioned above, this is sometimes written as 温古知新 in Japan.

讀萬卷書行萬里路 is a lifelong suggestion for expanding your horizons by gaining knowledge, experience, and seeing the world.

Of course, this was written long ago when it was hard to travel 10,000 miles (at least 1000 years before the invention of the airplane).
With air travel and the business I'm in, I often achieve that lifetime goal on a monthly basis.
However, I am a little behind in the book count.

Note: An ancient Chinese mile (里 or lǐ) referred to in this proverb is about a third of a British/American mile. However, at that time, this was a great distance to travel.

愛永恆 is the shortest way to express the idea of “love eternally” in Chinese.

The first character here means “love”

The last two mean eternal, eternally, everlasting, and/or perpetual.

See Also:  Love Forever

It's been said that wisdom comes from good judgment, and good judgment comes from experience, while experience comes from a series of times when you used bad judgment.

經驗是智慧之母 is a Chinese proverb that makes the simplest connection between experience and wisdom.

See Also:  Failure is the Mother of Success | Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom

失败是成功之母 is a Chinese and Korean proverb that means “Every failure that you experience is a chance to learn from it and find success.”

Knowing what does not work is just as important as finding out what does work.

See Also:  Experience is the Mother of Wisdom

失敗は成功の母 is a Japanese proverb that means exactly what you think.

Every failure that you experience is a chance to learn from it and find success.

Knowing what does not work is just as important as finding out what does work.

Note: This is the Japanese version of an ancient Chinese proverb.

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

See Also:  Experience is the Mother of Wisdom

百胜难虑敌三折乃良医 is a Chinese proverb that literally translates as: [Even a general who has won a] hundred victories [may be] hard put to see through the enemy's [strategy], [but one who has] broken [his] arm three [times] [will] be a good doctor.

Figuratively, this means: One cannot always depend on past successes to guarantee future success but one can always learn from lessons drawn from failure.

See Also:  Failure - Mother of Success | Experience - Mother of Success | Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 | Hard Knocks

愛は全てを完全に結ぶ帯である is a Japanese phrase that suggests we (or a couple) are bound together by love.

I searched the web and found all of these English translation variations for this phrase:

Have love; The only way in which you may be completely joined together.

Love is the sash that perfectly binds us together.

Love is what binds us together

Love binds all things together in perfect unity.

This same Japanese phrase is used as part of Colossians 3:14 in at least one version of the Japanese Bible.

A few Biblical versions include:

...Charity, which is the bond of perfectness. (KJV)

...Love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (NIV)

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

來世 is a word that can be used in many different ways.

It is often used to express the next life (life in heaven or wherever your soul is bound for). So it does have a religious overtone. However, it can also be used to express your life in the future - perhaps during your present lifetime.

It can also be translated as “the next world,” “the next generation,” “the time that is to come,” “otherworld,” or simply “posterity.”

See Also:  Eternity | Rebirth | Reincarnation | Immortality

挨一拳得一招挨十拳變諸葛 is a Chinese proverb that literally translates as: Receive one blow, [and one] learns a lesson; Receive ten blows, [and one] becomes a great Zhuge [Liang].

You must first understand that a man named Zhuge Liang was one of the great strategists and philosophers in Chinese history. He's known as a man of great wisdom.

Figuratively, this phrase means:
One can learn much from failure or “hard knocks.”

This word is often used to describe the idea of opening the minds of the young or the new generation.

See Also:  Wisdom | Learning is Eternal | Learn From Wisdom

慧 is a single character that can be translated as wisdom but it has more of an “intelligent” flavor. This can also mean cleverness or wit.

Japanese note: 慧 is understood in Japanese but seldom seen as a lone Kanji.

See Also:  Knowledge | Learning | Read

講道館 is a title that refers to a certain kind or school of Judo martial arts.

Here's how the characters break down in meaning for this one:
1. Mutual Assistance or Association. Can also refer to a lecture, speech, or explaining something (as in teaching).
2. Way / Path (the Tao/Dao as in Taoism/Daoism)
3. Schoolroom / Building / Establishment / Mansion / Small Castle / Hall (of learning)

Altogether, you get something like, “The Path of Mutual Learning Hall.”

More about Kodokan from the Institute of Kodokan.

Shuhari represents the three stages of mastery: Learning the fundamentals, breaking with tradition, and creating one's own techniques.

永恆之美 means Timeless Beauty, Eternal Beauty, or Beauty Forever in Chinese.

閱 is a Chinese character that means to read. It can also refer to observing (the world, and learning from it), or gaining life experiences. 閱 is a good character to relay the idea of being “well-read,” which can include reading books, studying, and learning through experience.

The dictionary definition also includes: to inspect; to review; to peruse; to go through; to experience.

Technically, this is also a Japanese Kanji but only some Japanese Buddhists use it (most of the population will not recognize it).

In Chinese and Japanese Buddhism, this means examining, inspecting, and/or looking over.

This is Mugendo or Mu Gen Do, a Japanese martial arts style that means “unlimited way,” “unbounded way,” “eternal way,” or “limitless way.”

旧弘道館 is the Japanese title, Kyukodokan.

kind of means “Old Great Way Hall.” The hall part is kind of implied to be a dojo or place of learning.

感激 is thankfulness or being grateful for what you have.

It is an attitude of gratitude for learning, loving, and being. Appreciate the little things that happen around you and within you every day. Think positively. Thankfulness brings contentment.

Different meaning in Japanese - more like "deep emotion," "impression," "inspiration" - not recommended for a Japanese audience.

學生 is how to write “student” in Chinese, pre-WWII Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

If you are a “student of life,” this might be an interesting wall scroll to hang in your reading room.

The first character means “study” or “learning.”
The second character means “life” or “birth.” Don't read too much into that second character unless you decide that this means “the birth of studies” or “the life of learning.” Everyone in China, Japan (and those who can read Hanja in Korea) will just read this word with the meaning of “student.”

If you put the character for “little” in front of this word, it becomes “elementary school student.” Prefixed with “middle,” it becomes “middle school student.” Prefixed with “big,” it becomes “university student” (though when these two characters for student are seen alone, it often suggests “university student”). The term “high school student” is written differently.

There is a very common simplified version of the first character for this word. You will see this form in modern Japan and mainland China, Singapore, and other places. If you want this simplified version, please click on the character shown to the right instead of the "select and customize" button above.

不老泉 is a fountain of youth in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

不老 directly means not [getting] old. 不老泉 is usually translated as eternal youth.

泉 means fountain.

This text is the first chapter of the Daodejing / Tao Te Ching.

The text reads:
道可道、非常道。名可名、非常名。 無名天地之始 有名萬物之母。故常無欲以觀其妙、常有欲以觀其徼。此兩者同出而異名。同謂之玄。玄之又玄、衆妙之門。

This classical Chinese passage comes from the Mawangdui (馬王堆帛書) text.

知識 has the very strong meaning of “knowledge” and, in some contexts, “learning.”

The first character represents “to know” or “to realize.”

The second character alone refers to the ability to “recognize” or “realize” and can also be used to mean “knowing.”

See Also:  Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom

永遠在我心 means “forever in my heart” or “always in my heart” in Chinese.

This is the shorter, somewhat lyrical version of this phrase.

永遠 forever/eternal
在 at/in/exists
我 me/myself/my
心 heart/mind/soul

不朽 means immortal or immortality in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

The literal translation is “without decay” or “never rotting.” This title speaks of something or someone who never dies and thus never rots or decays.

This can also be translated as everlasting, eternal, or imperishable.

失敗並非一種選擇 is probably the best way to say, “Failure is not an option,” in Chinese.

Just don't forget that some ancient Chinese proverbs suggest that failure is a learning opportunity that leads to success or innovation. So don't plan to fail but failure is only a waste if nothing is learned from the failure.

See Also:  Failure is a Stepping Stone to Success | Failure is the Mother of Success

永遠的家 is a special phrase that we composed for a “family by adoption” or “adoptive family.”

It's the dream of every orphan and foster child to be formally adopted and find their “forever family.”

The first two characters mean forever, eternal, eternity, perpetuity, immortality, and/or permanence. The third character connects this idea with the last character which means “family” and/or “home.”

See Also:  Family

般若 means great wisdom or wondrous knowledge.

In the Buddhist context, this is prajna or prajñā, to know, to understand, to have the wisdom required to attain enlightenment.

Since this is a wisdom that transcends the realm of logic, the pure, absolute wisdom beyond the reach of words and concepts, it is not obtained through learning but is realized for the first time through a religious experience.

情定終身 is a pledge of eternal love in Chinese.

This can also be a colloquial way to refer to the act of exchanging marriage vows.

If you and your mate want to express how committed you are to your life-long love, this will be a great piece of calligraphy for your wall. Also, a nice phrase to celebrate an anniversary.

The first character means “eternal” or “forever,” and the second means “not” (together, they mean “never”). The last two characters mean “give up” or “abandon.” Altogether, you can translate this proverb as “never give up” or “never abandon.”

Depending on how you want to read this, 永不放棄 is also a statement that you will never abandon your hopes, dreams, family, or friends.

See Also:  Undaunted | No Fear | Hope

光道館 is Kodokan.

This is the title of an Aikido dojo, studio, or hall.

Be careful in selecting the correct Kodokan, as there are a few different titles that romanize as Kodokan.

Here's how the characters break down in meaning for this one:
1. Light / Bright
2. Way / Path (the Tao/Dao as in Taoism/Daoism)
3. Schoolroom / Building / Establishment / Mansion / Hall (of learning)

Altogether, you get something like “The Path of Light Establishment.”

自強不息 is a proverb or idiom that suggests that the pursuit of self-improvement is eternal. It can also be a suggestion to strive unremittingly in life.

The first two characters mean inner strength with the idea of self-improvement. The last two characters mean “never rest” or “striving without giving up.”

Some will translate these four characters as “Exert and strive hard without any let-up.”

永駐我心 is one of a few ways to write “always in my heart” or “forever in my heart” in Chinese.

The first character means eternal, forever, or always.

The second character means resides, in, or stationed (in the case of troops).

The third character means me, my, or mine.

The last character means heart (but can also mean mind or soul).

學 is “study” or “learn” in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

學 is a very broad character that can mean a lot of things related to scholarship. It can refer to a school (in fact, if you put the character for “big” in front of this, you have “college” or “university,” if you put the word for “middle,” you have “middle school.” This can also mean science; the process of acquiring knowledge; learning; scholarship; erudition; knowledge. It can also add the Chinese or Japanese version of “-ology” (the study of) too many words.

There is a very common simplified version of this character. You will see this form in modern Japan and mainland China, Singapore, and other places. If you want this simplified version, please click on the character shown to the right instead of the "select and customize" button above.

弘道館 is a Japanese title that romanizes as Kodokan.

There are a few martial arts titles that are romanized as Kodokan, so be careful to choose the correct one. This one kind of means “Great Way Hall.”

In the old Buddhist context, the 弘 Kanji can mean vast, great, to enlarge, spread abroad, or widely to proclaim.

The 道 part is the “Way,” as seen in many martial arts titles. It is the root character of Taoism/Daoism (romanized as Tao or Dao from Chinese, but Do in Japanese).

The 館 or hall part is implied to be a dojo or place of learning.

前車之覆后車之鑒 is a Chinese proverb that suggests looking at the circumstances and toils of those you proceeded before you and learning from their experience.

This more literally means “the cart in front overturns, a warning to the following cart.”

This is figuratively translated as “draw a lesson from the failure of one's predecessor,” “learn from past mistakes,” or compared to the English idiom, “once bitten twice shy.”

Other more-direct translations:
Make the overturning of the chariot in front a warning for the chariot behind.
Learn caution through an unpleasant experience.
The wrecked coach in front should be a warning.
The overturned cart in front serves as a warning to the carts behind.

古道 is the Japanese word meaning “The Old Way.” The first character means old or ancient. The second character means “the way” and is the same character as used in Taoism / Daoism (Taoism literally means “the way”).

This second character can also be translated as “method,” as in a way of doing things.

古道 is sometimes Romanized as “Kodo,” though officially, the Romaji should be “Kodou.”

My Japanese-English dictionary further translates this word as the old road, ancient methods, ancient moral teachings, and the way of learning.

Note that this would be understood differently in Chinese. Most Chinese people would just read this as “The old road” without the other meanings derived in Japanese.

輪回 is a universal word in Japanese and Chinese that expresses the Buddhist idea of “reincarnation,” “transmigration of souls,” or “the eternal cycle of birth and death.”

In some contexts, this can also mean “karma,” and others will say it represents “samsara.”

The first character means wheel, ring, turn, circle, loop, or rotate.
The second character can be thought of as a suffix meaning “-times.” This second character can also refer to something that revolves, returns, goes back, or is a counter of the number of occurrences of some event.
Together the sum supersedes the parts, and it means reincarnation. But knowing the essence of each character may help you understand some of the meaning behind the word.

Shown to the right is the more common way to write the second character in Japanese. it’s an alternate form of this character in Chinese (so neither way is technically wrong in either language). If you select a Japanese calligrapher, expect that is will look like the Kanji to the right.

See Also:  Buddhism | Rebirth

初心 is often translated in Japanese as “beginner's mind” or “beginner's spirit.”

In Chinese, the dictionary definition is “one's original intention.”

The first character means first, initial, primary, junior, beginning, or basic.

The second character means heart, mind, soul, or essence.

初心 is one of the five spirits of the warrior (budo) and is often used as a Japanese martial arts tenet. Under that context, places such as the Budo Dojo define it this way: The state of shoshin is that of a beginners mind. It is a state of awareness that always remains fully conscious, aware, and prepared to see things for the first time. The attitude of shoshin is essential to continued learning.

自他共栄 can be translated in a few different ways. Here are some possibilities:
Benefit mutually and prosper together.
Mutual welfare and benefit.
A learning concept of mutual benefit and welfare (that applies to all fields of society).
Mutual prosperity.

The first two characters are easy to explain. They are “self” and “others.” Together, these two characters create a word that means “mutual” (literally “me and them”).

The third character can have different meanings depending on context. Here, it means “in common” or “to share.”

The fourth character suggests the idea of “prosperity,” “flourishing,” or becoming “glorious.”

It should be noted that these Kanji are used almost exclusively in the context of Judo martial arts. 自他共榮 is not a common or recognized Japanese proverb outside of Judo.

You may see this romanized as Jita-Kyoei or Jitakyoei.

In modern Japanese Kanji, the last character looks like instead of . If you want the older/traditional version, please let us know when you place your order.

無常 is the state of being “not permanent,” “not enduring,” transitory, or evolving.

It can also mean variable or changeable. In some contexts, it can refer to a ghost that is supposed to take a soul upon death. Following that, this term can also mean to pass away or die.

In the Buddhist context, this is a reminder that everything in this world is ever-changing, and all circumstances of your life are temporary.
If you take the Buddhist philosophy further, none of these circumstances are real, and your existence is an illusion. Thus, the idea of the eternal soul is perhaps just your attachment to your ego. Once you release your attachment to all impermanent things, you will be on your way to enlightenment and Buddhahood.

Language notes for this word when used outside the context of Buddhism:
In Korean Hanja, this means uncertainty, transiency, mutability, or evanescent.
In Japanese, the definition orbits closer to the state of being uncertain.

In the most basic translation, 中道 means road through the middle or middle road.

The expanded meaning can be moderation or the golden mean.

But if you are looking for this title, you are probably seeking the Buddhist definition, which is more complex.

中道 is the middle way or middle path of Buddhism. This has various interpretations. In general, it denotes the mean between two extremes and has special reference to the mean between realism and nihilism, or eternal substantial existence and annihilation.

The Buddha teaches that one should not take things to extremes. Don't be extremely evil and engage in debauchery and murder. But do not spend every waking out trying to be a perfect saint. Instead, take the middle path, try to help others, show loving kindness wherever you can, and try not to do harm. If you inadvertently harm another being, make amends if you can, and move on. Realize you are not perfect, but in time, a path of moderation lead toward proper living and enlightenment.

空 is a single character that means empty, void, hollow, vacant, vacuum, blank, nonexistent, vacuity, voidness, emptiness, non-existence, immateriality, unreality, the false or illusory nature of all existence, and being unreal.

In the Buddhist context, this relates to the doctrine that all phenomena and the ego have no reality but are composed of a certain number of skandhas or elements, which disintegrate. The void, the sky, space. The universal, the absolute, complete abstraction without relativity. The doctrine further explains that all things are compounds, or unstable organisms, possessing no self-essence, i.e. are dependent, or caused, come into existence only to perish. The underlying reality, the principle of eternal relativity, or non-infinity, i.e. śūnya, permeates all phenomena making possible their evolution.

From Sanskrit and/or Pali, this is the translation to Chinese and Japanese of the title śūnya or śūnyatā.

In Japanese, when pronounced as “ron” (sounds like “roan”) this can be a given name. It should be noted that this Kanji has about 5 different possible pronunciations in Japanese: kuu, kara, sora, ron, and uro. 空 is also an element in the Japanese version of the five elements.