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One Chinese & Japanese Calligraphy Wall Scrolls

If you're searching for "One", it's hard to tell what you migth actually be looking for. The entries below might miss the mark. You can submit a request for a special title via our forum here.


  1. One

  2. Best / Number One

  3. One Day Seems Like 1000 Years

  4. One Good Deed Each Day

  5. One Justice Can Overpower 100 Evils

  6. One Family Under Heaven

  7. Progress Day by Day


One

The number one

 yī
 ichi
 
One Scroll

一 is “one” or “1” in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

People keep searching for “one” but I'm not sure what you want. This would be a strange selection for a wall scroll, so please don't order it. Post a request on our forum if you want a phrase with “one” in it that you can't find on our site.

The “one” character is really simple, it's just one stroke. Two is two strokes and three is three strokes, from four and above, the characters get more complicated.

In some ways, the “one” character is too simple, it could be a stray mark, or added to a banking document. Therefore, the following banking anti-fraud character for “one” has developed over the last 1500 years in China and Japan:
壱 壹 弌

Best / Number One

 ichi ban
Best / Number One Scroll

一番 is often used to mean “best” or “the best” in Japanese.

It actually means “number one” in Japanese.

One Day Seems Like 1000 Years

 yí rì qiān qiū
 ichi jitsu sen shuu
One Day Seems Like 1000 Years Scroll

一日千秋 is a Japanese and Chinese proverb about missing someone.

一日千秋 is often used to express how hard it is to wait for someone's return or to be away from someone.

Some will translate this as “one day feels like a very long time” or “waiting for someone (something) is hard.”

You might see this romanized as a single word, Ichijitsusenshuu, or as “Ichijitsu Senshuu” from Japanese.
If you break down the characters one-by-one, we get:
一 = one/a
日 = day/sun (can also represent time or date)
千 = 1000/thousand
秋 = autumn/fall

Together, 千秋 can mean “autumn comes thousand times” (or 1000 years). It can also be read as 1000 periods of time.
However, it relays the idea of heartache as you wait for someone you miss.

One Good Deed Each Day

 yī rì yī shàn
 ichi nichi ichi zen
One Good Deed Each Day Scroll

一日一善 is a Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja phrase that suggests doing a good deed each day or doing one good turn a day.

It literally reads, “One Day, One Good (Deed).”

One Justice Can Overpower 100 Evils

 yī zhèng yā bǎi xié
One Justice Can Overpower 100 Evils Scroll

一正压百邪 is an ancient Chinese proverb and idiom that means “One Justice Can Overpower a Hundred Evils.”

While this proverb is famous in China, it has been around so long that its origins have been forgotten.

It could be something that Confucius or one of his disciples said, but no one can say for sure.

One Family Under Heaven

 tiān xià yī jiā
 tenka ikka
One Family Under Heaven Scroll

天下一家 is a proverb that can also be translated as “The whole world is one family.”

It is used to mean that all humans are related by decree of Heaven.

The first two characters can be translated as “the world,” “the whole country,” “descended from heaven,” “earth under heaven,” “the public,” or “the ruling power.”

The second two characters can mean “one family,” “a household,” “one's folks,” “a house” or “a home.” Usually, this is read as “a family.”

Note: This proverb can be understood in Japanese, though not commonly used.

Progress Day by Day

 rì jiàn
Progress Day by Day Scroll

This Chinese word means to progress, increase, or change day by day.

It suggests something getting better one day at a time or with each passing day.


The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...

Title CharactersRomaji (Romanized Japanese)Various forms of Romanized Chinese
Oneichiyī / yi1 / yii
Best
Number One
一番ichi ban / ichiban
One Day Seems Like 1000 Years一日千秋ichi jitsu sen shuu
ichijitsusenshuu
ichi jitsu sen shu
yí rì qiān qiū
yi2 ri4 qian1 qiu1
yi ri qian qiu
yiriqianqiu
i jih ch`ien ch`iu
ijihchienchiu
i jih chien chiu
One Good Deed Each Day一日一善ichi nichi ichi zen
ichinichiichizen
yī rì yī shàn
yi1 ri4 yi1 shan4
yi ri yi shan
yiriyishan
i jih i shan
ijihishan
One Justice Can Overpower 100 Evils一正壓百邪
一正压百邪
yī zhèng yā bǎi xié
yi1 zheng4 ya1 bai3 xie2
yi zheng ya bai xie
yizhengyabaixie
i cheng ya pai hsieh
ichengyapaihsieh
One Family Under Heaven天下一家tenka ikka / tenkaikka / tenka ikatiān xià yī jiā
tian1 xia4 yi1 jia1
tian xia yi jia
tianxiayijia
t`ien hsia i chia
tienhsiaichia
tien hsia i chia
Progress Day by Day日漸
日渐
rì jiàn / ri4 jian4 / ri jian / rijianjih chien / jihchien
In some entries above you will see that characters have different versions above and below a line.
In these cases, the characters above the line are Traditional Chinese, while the ones below are Simplified Chinese.


All of our calligraphy wall scrolls are handmade.

When the calligrapher finishes creating your artwork, it is taken to my art mounting workshop in Beijing where a wall scroll is made by hand from a combination of silk, rice paper, and wood.
After we create your wall scroll, it takes at least two weeks for air mail delivery from Beijing to you.

Allow a few weeks for delivery. Rush service speeds it up by a week or two for $10!

When you select your calligraphy, you'll be taken to another page where you can choose various custom options.


A nice Chinese calligraphy wall scroll

The wall scroll that Sandy is holding in this picture is a "large size"
single-character wall scroll.
We also offer custom wall scrolls in small, medium, and an even-larger jumbo size.

A professional Chinese Calligrapher

Professional calligraphers are getting to be hard to find these days.
Instead of drawing characters by hand, the new generation in China merely type roman letters into their computer keyboards and pick the character that they want from a list that pops up.

There is some fear that true Chinese calligraphy may become a lost art in the coming years. Many art institutes in China are now promoting calligraphy programs in hopes of keeping this unique form of art alive.

Trying to learn Chinese calligrapher - a futile effort

Even with the teachings of a top-ranked calligrapher in China, my calligraphy will never be good enough to sell. I will leave that to the experts.

A high-ranked Chinese master calligrapher that I met in Zhongwei

The same calligrapher who gave me those lessons also attracted a crowd of thousands and a TV crew as he created characters over 6-feet high. He happens to be ranked as one of the top 100 calligraphers in all of China. He is also one of very few that would actually attempt such a feat.