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Daoism / Taoism
Literally: The Way or Road
道 is the character “dao” which is sometimes written as “tao” but pronounced like “dow” in Mandarin.
道 is the base of what is known as “Taoism.” If you translate this literally, it can mean “the way” or “the path.”
Dao is believed to be that which flows through all things and keeps them in balance. It incorporates the ideas of yin and yang (e.g. there would be no love without hate, no light without dark, no male without female.)
The beginning of Taoism can be traced to a mystical man named
Lao Zi (604-531 BC), who followed, and added to the teachings of Confucius.
More about Taoism / Daoism here.
Note that this is pronounced “dou” and sometimes “michi” when written alone in Japanese but pronounced “do” in word compounds such as Karate-do and Bushido. It's also “do” in Korean.
Alternate translations and meanings: road, way, path; truth, principle province.
Important Japanese note: In Japanese, this will generally be read with the road, way, or path meaning. Taoism is not as popular or well-known in Japan so Daoist/Taoist philosophy is not the first thing a Japanese person will think of when they read this character.
See our Taoism Page
Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark
信唸是在黎明前的黑闇中能感到光明的鳥 is a philosophical poem/quote from Indian Poet and Philosopher, Rabindranath Tagore.
Rabindranath Tagore, 1915
This quote is not sourced, and therefore several variations exist in English. Some suggest the original was in the Bengali language.
This, of course, is the Chinese translation that has the meaning of, “Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark.”
More about Rabindranath Tagore
Time and Tide Wait for No Man
光陰矢の如し is a Japanese proverb that means “time flies like an arrow.” It's very similar to the English idiom, “time and tide wait for no man,” or “life is short.”
The Kanji breakdown:
光陰 = Time (the cycle of light and dark).
[and an]
矢 = Arrow
の = are
如し = Alike
Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.
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Below are some entries from our dictionary that may match your light dark search...
| Characters If shown, 2nd row is Simp. Chinese |
Pronunciation Romanization |
Simple Dictionary Definition |
明 see styles |
míng ming2 ming mei / me めい |
More info & calligraphy: Light / Bright(1) (ant: 暗) brightness; (2) discernment; insight; an eye (for); (3) (See 明を失う) eyesight; vision; (prefix) (4) (abbreviation) (See 明治) nth year in the Meiji era (1868.9.8-1912.7.30); (surname) Meishuu vidyā, knowledge. ming means bright, clear, enlightenment, intp. by 智慧 or 聰明 wisdom, wise; to understand. It represents Buddha-wisdom and its revelation; also the manifestation of a Buddha's light or effulgence; it is a term for 眞言 because the 'true word' can destroy the obscurity of illusion; the 'manifestation' of the power of the object of worship; it means also dhāraṇīs or mantras of mystic wisdom. Also, the Ming dynasty A. D. 1368-1644. |
蒼 苍 see styles |
cāng cang1 ts`ang tsang souji / soji そうじ |
dark blue; deep green; ash-gray (n,adj-no,adj-na) (1) blue; (2) green; (3) (abbreviation) green light; (4) black (horse coat color); (prefix) (5) immature; unripe; young; (personal name) Souji Azure; the heavens; grey, old. |
十二 see styles |
shí èr shi2 er4 shih erh tooji とおじ |
twelve; 12 12; twelve; (given name) Tooji dvātriṃśa. Thirty-two. 三十二應 (or 三十二身) The thirty-two forms of Guanyin, and of Puxian, ranging from that of a Buddha to that of a man, a maid, a rakṣas; similar to the thirty-three forms named in the Lotus Sūtra. 三十二相三十二大人相 dvātriṃśadvaralakṣaṇa. The thirty-two lakṣaṇas, or physical marks of a cakravartī, or 'wheel-king', especially of the Buddha, i. e. level feet, thousand-spoke wheel-sign on feet, long slender fingers, pliant hands and feet, toes and fingers finely webbed, full-sized heels, arched insteps, thighs like a royal stag, hands reaching below the knees well-retracted male organ, height and stretch of arms equal, every hair-root dark coloured, body hair graceful and curly, golden-hued body, a 10 ft. halo around him, soft smooth skin, the 七處, i. e. two soles, two palms, two shoulders, and crown well rounded, below the armpits well-filled, lion-shaped body, erect, full shoulders, forty teeth, teeth white even and close, the four canine teeth pure white, lion-jawed, saliva improving the taste of all food, tongue long and broad, voice deep and resonant, eyes deep blue, eyelashes like a royal bull, a white ūrnā or curl between the eyebrows emitting light, an uṣṇīṣa or fleshy protuberance on the crown. These are from the 三藏法數 48, with which the 智度論 4, 涅盤經 28, 中阿含經, 三十ニ相經 generally agree. The 無量義經 has a different list. 三十二相經 The eleventh chapter of the 阿含經. 三十二相經願 The twenty-first of Amitābha's vows, v. 無量壽經. 三十三 trayastriṃśat. Thirty-three. 三十三天忉利天; 憺梨天, 多羅夜登陵舍; 憺利夜登陵奢; 憺利耶憺利奢 Trayastriṃśas. The Indra heaven, the second of the six heavens of form. Its capital is situated on the summit of Mt. Sumeru, where Indra rules over his thirty-two devas, who reside on thirty-two peaks of Sumeru, eight in each of the four directons. Indra's capital is called 殊勝 Sudarśana, 喜見城 Joy-view city. Its people are a yojana in height, each one's clothing weighs 六鐵 (1; 4 oz. ), and they live 1, 000 years, a day and night being equal to 100 earthly years. Eitel says Indra's heaven 'tallies in all its details with the Svarga of Brahminic mythology' and suggests that 'the whole myth may have an astronomical meaning', or be connected, with 'the atmosphere with its phenomena, which strengthens Koeppen's hypothesis explaining the number thirty-three as referring to the eight Vasus, eleven Rudras, twelve Ādityas, and two Aśvins of Vedic mythology'. In his palace called Vaijayanta 'Indra is enthroned with 1, 000 eyes with four arms grasping the vajra. There he revels in numberless sensual pleasures together with his wife Śacī... and with 119, 000 concubines with whom he associates by means of transformation'.; dvādaśa, twelve. |
幽冥 see styles |
yōu míng you1 ming2 yu ming yū mei ゆうめい |
dark; hell; netherworld; hades semidarkness; deep and strange; hades; the present and the other world; dark and light darkness |
幽明 see styles |
yōu míng you1 ming2 yu ming yuumei / yume ゆうめい |
the hidden and the visible; that which can be seen and that which cannot; darkness and light; night and day; wisdom and ignorance; evil and good; the living and the dead; men and ghosts semidarkness; deep and strange; hades; the present and the other world; dark and light; (given name) Yūmei darkness and light |
支謙 支谦 see styles |
zhī qiān zhi1 qian1 chih ch`ien chih chien shiken しけん |
(personal name) Shiken Chih-ch'ien; name of a Yueh-chih monk said to have come to Loyang at the end of the Han dynasty and under the Wei; tall, dark, emaciated, with light brown eyes; very learned and wise. |
暗淡 see styles |
àn dàn an4 dan4 an tan |
dark; dim (light); dull (color); drab; (fig.) gloomy; bleak |
曙光 see styles |
shǔ guāng shu3 guang1 shu kuang shokou / shoko しょこう |
the first light of dawn; (fig.) glimmer of hope after a dark period; a new beginning (1) dawn; daybreak; first light of day; (2) (fig. as in 〜の曙光) first indication; glimpse; gleam; flash; prospects; (female given name) Hikari |
濃淡 浓淡 see styles |
nóng dàn nong2 dan4 nung tan noutan / notan のうたん |
shade (of a color, i.e. light or dark) (1) light and shade; shade (of colour, color); (2) depth (of flavor); complexity; strength and weakness (of flavor) thick and thin |
茶色 see styles |
chá sè cha2 se4 ch`a se cha se chairo ちゃいろ |
dark brown; tawny (noun - becomes adjective with の) light brown; tawny |
蘇方 see styles |
suou / suo すおう |
(1) (kana only) sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan); (2) sappanwood dye (red in colour) (color); (3) layered colour (light brown on the front, dark red beneath) |
蘇枋 苏枋 see styles |
sū fāng su1 fang1 su fang suou / suo すおう |
sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan) (1) (kana only) sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan); (2) sappanwood dye (red in colour) (color); (3) layered colour (light brown on the front, dark red beneath) |
蘇芳 see styles |
sohou / soho そほう |
(1) (kana only) sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan); (2) sappanwood dye (red in colour) (color); (3) layered colour (light brown on the front, dark red beneath); (given name) Sohou |
麻椒 see styles |
má jiāo ma2 jiao1 ma chiao |
an extra strong type of Sichuan pepper, dark green when ripe but light brown after air drying |
黑燈 see styles |
hēi dēng hei1 deng1 hei teng |
dark; unlit; a blacklight; an ultraviolet light |
光と影 see styles |
hikaritokage ひかりとかげ |
(exp,n) (idiom) rise and fall; ups and downs; shame and glory; bright side and dark side; light and shadow |
水明り see styles |
mizuakari みずあかり |
faint reflection of light upon the water in the dark |
宵衣旰食 see styles |
xiāo yī gàn shí xiao1 yi1 gan4 shi2 hsiao i kan shih |
to dress before light and not eat before dark (idiom); diligently attending to official matters |
棄暗投明 弃暗投明 see styles |
qì àn tóu míng qi4 an4 tou2 ming2 ch`i an t`ou ming chi an tou ming |
to renounce the dark and seek the light; to give up one's wrong way of life and turn to a better one |
水明かり see styles |
mizuakari みずあかり |
faint reflection of light upon the water in the dark |
白黑布薩 白黑布萨 see styles |
bái hēi bù sà bai2 hei1 bu4 sa4 pai hei pu sa byakukoku fusatsu |
light and dark uposatha, the observances of the waxing and waning moon, cf. 白月. |
Variations: |
yuumei / yume ゆうめい |
semidarkness; deep and strange; hades; the present and the other world; dark and light |
Variations: |
mizuakari みずあかり |
faint reflection of light upon the water in the dark |
Variations: |
suou / suo すおう |
(1) (kana only) sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan); (2) sappanwood dye (red in colour); (3) layered colour (light brown on the front, dark red beneath) |
Variations: |
suou; suou / suo; suo すおう; スオウ |
(1) sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan); (2) sappanwood dye (red in colour); (3) layered colour (light brown on the front, dark red beneath) |
Variations: |
ashimotonoakaruiuchini あしもとのあかるいうちに |
(exp,adv) (1) while it is light; before dark; (exp,adv) (2) while the going is good; before things get worse |
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
| Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
| Daoism Taoism | 道 | michi / -do | dào / dao4 / dao | tao |
| Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark | 信唸是在黎明前的黑闇中能感到光明的鳥 信念是在黎明前的黑暗中能感到光明的鸟 | xìn niǎn shì zài lí míng qián de hēi àn zhōng néng gǎn dào guāng míng de niǎo xin4 nian3 shi4 zai4 li2 ming2 qian2 de hei1 an4 zhong1 neng2 gan3 dao4 guang1 ming2 de niao3 xin nian shi zai li ming qian de hei an zhong neng gan dao guang ming de niao | hsin nien shih tsai li ming ch`ien te hei an chung neng kan tao kuang ming te niao hsin nien shih tsai li ming chien te hei an chung neng kan tao kuang ming te niao |
|
| Time and Tide Wait for No Man | 光陰矢の如し 光阴矢の如し | kouinya no goto shi kouinyanogotoshi koinya no goto shi | ||
| 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. | ||||
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