Custom Humble Chinese & Japanese Calligraphy Wall Scroll

We have many options to create artwork with Humble characters on a wall scroll or portrait.
If you want to create a cool Humble Asian character tattoo, you can purchase that here: Asian / Chinese / Japanese Tattoo Image Service ...and we'll give you many tattoo image templates of the ancient Asian symbols that express the idea of humble.


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  1. Even a fool may sometimes come up with a good idea

  2. Calm and Open Mind

  3. Daughter

  4. Dogen

  5. God Forgive Me

  6. Humble

  7. Humble / Modest

  8. Humble / Modesty / Humility

  9. Humility / Being Humble

10. Korean CKD Virtues

11. Kyojitsu: Falsehood and Truth

12. Mistress / Concubine / Servant

13. Moderation / Temperance

14. Modesty

15. A Wise Man Changes His Mind


Even a fool may sometimes come up with a good idea

 qiān lǜ yī dé
 senryonoittoku
Even a fool may sometimes come up with a good idea Scroll

千慮一得 means “1000 tries, one success,” or “[a] thousand tries [leads to] one success.”

This proverb is a humble way to express your success, ideas, or accomplishments. As if you are a fool who just got lucky in inventing or creating something.

Translations for this proverb include:
Even without any notable ability on my part, I may still get it right sometimes by good luck.
Even a fool may sometimes come up with a good idea.

Compare this to the English idiom, “Even a broken clock is right twice a day.”

Calm and Open Mind

 xū xīn
 ko shin
Calm and Open Mind Scroll

虛心 is a Buddhist term that speaks of being open-minded and/or having a calm and humble mind or heart.

 gu jo
Daughter Scroll

愚女 is a humble title for “daughter” in Japanese.

If you literally define each character, you get “silly girl” or “foolish woman.”

 dào yuán
 dou gen
Dogen Scroll

Usually, when people are looking for 道元 or “Dogen,” they are referring to the Japanese Zen monk by this name.

He lived from 1200-1253. This Dogen name or title literally means “The Way Origin” or “Beginning of the Path.” It is understood to mean “beginning of right doctrine or faith” in the context of his name and work to establish the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan.

To accomplish that task, this humble monk traveled from Japan and across China to find the more original or pure forms of Buddhism.

God Forgive Me

 kami sama o yuru shi wo
God Forgive Me Scroll

神様お許しを is how to write “God Forgive Me” in Japanese.

There is an essence of humble begging or “please” implied in this phrase.


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

 qiān gōng
Humble Scroll

謙恭 means humble in Chinese.

The first character means modest.
The second means respect or respectful.


See Also:  Modesty | Purity

Humble / Modest

 qiān xū
 ken kyo
Humble / Modest Scroll

謙虛 can also be translated as humbleness or humility.

In Chinese and Korean, the first character means “modest.” The second means “empty.” Together these characters reinforce the ideas of modesty and being empty of ego.


虚In Japan, they tend to use a slightly-simplified version of the second Kanji for this word. It also happens to be an alternate/simplified version used in China too. If you want to order the modern Japanese/simplified version, just click in the Kanji image shown to the right, instead of the button above.


See Also:  Moderation

Humble / Modesty / Humility

 qiān xū
 ken kyo
Humble / Modesty / Humility Scroll

謙虚 is the most common way to say humble or modest in Japanese without a derogatory meaning (some other words suggest weakness, but this version holds a better humble meaning).

In Japanese, the first Kanji means self-effacing, humble oneself, and modesty. The second means void or emptiness.


See Also:  Moderation

Humility / Being Humble

 qiān xùn
 ken son
Humility / Being Humble Scroll

謙遜 can also be translated as being modest, humble, or unpretentious.

Being humble is considering others to be as important as yourself. You are thoughtful of their needs and willing to be of service. You don't expect others or yourself to be perfect. You learn from your mistakes. When you do great things, humility reminds you to be thankful instead of boastful.

This Humility title is also used as one of the 8 key concepts of Tang Soo Do. Often romanized as “Kyum Son.”

Also sometimes used in Japanese to express humility with an essence of modesty.


See Also:  Modesty | Humility

Korean CKD Virtues

 qiān xùn zhèng zhí wēn róu rěn nài kè jǐ bù qū
Korean CKD Virtues Scroll

谦逊正直温柔忍耐克己不屈 are the virtues used by Choi Kwang Do Martial Arts.

EnglishHanjaHangulPronunciation
1. Humility (Humble / Modesty)謙遜겸손gyeom son
2. Honesty (Integrity)正直정직jeong jig
3. Gentleness溫柔온유on yu
4. Perseverance (To Endure)忍耐인내in nae
5. Self-Control (Self-Restraint)克己극기geug gi
6. Unbreakable Spirit (Unyielding / Unbending)不屈불굴bur gur

The characters shown here are in the ancient Korean Hanja form of writing. If you wish for a Korean Hangul form of these tenets, we can arrange that with our Master Calligrapher Xing An-Ping (click on the Hangul next to the South Korean flag above to order this in Hangul).

Kyojitsu: Falsehood and Truth

 kyo jitsu
Kyojitsu: Falsehood and Truth Scroll

虚実 is a Japanese word that means “falsehood [and] truth” or “fiction [and] fact.”

This concept is used in warfare, gameplay, and martial arts strategies. 虚実 can be a strategy of real and/or deceptive moves. This gets to some Sun Tzu Art of War stuff where in warfare a strategic move is either a real and serious move or it is a deceptive blow.

Let's explore each character in more depth:

was originally written (there is a very subtle difference in the strokes at the bottom of the character) and means unpreparedness, falsehood, emptiness, void, abstract theory, empty or unoccupied, diffident or timid, false, humble or modest, virtual, or in vain.
In the Buddhist context, 虛 represents the Pali/Sanskrit word “śūnya,” meaning empty, vacant, unreal, unsubstantial, untrue, space, humble, or in vain.
In ancient Eastern/Chinese astronomy, 虛 represents the “Emptiness” constellation (one of the 28 mansions in the sky).

was originally in Chinese (they currently write it as in Simplified Chinese) with the meaning, truth, reality, sincerity, honesty, fidelity, and substance.
The Buddhist context is similar, adding real, true, honest, really, solid, definitely, sincere, solid, fixed, full, to fill, fruit, kernel, verily, in fact, the supreme fact, or ultimate reality to the definition.

Mistress / Concubine / Servant

 qiè
 mekake / sobame / onname
 
Mistress / Concubine / Servant Scroll

妾 is the most simple way to say concubine or mistress in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

Sometimes this can mean servant. Occasionally, a woman may use this title in place of “I” or “me” to say “your humble servant” in a self-deprecating way.

Moderation / Temperance

 jié zhì
 sessei
Moderation / Temperance Scroll

節制 means moderation or temperance in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

Moderation is creating a healthy balance in your life between work and play, rest and exercise. You don't overdo or get swept away by the things you like. You use your self-discipline to take charge of your life and your time.

節制 can also be translated as sobriety or self-restraint.

This is often used as part of the Seven Heavenly Virtues to represent sobriety and/or temperance.


See Also:  Prudence | Ethics | Humility

 qiān xùn
 kenson
Modesty Scroll

Depending on the context, 謙遜 can be translated as modesty, humbleness, or humility.

The first character means modesty, while the second means yielding. Together, it could be stated as “yielding modesty.”


See Also:  Chastity | Prudence | Moderation

A Wise Man Changes His Mind (but a fool never will)

 kun shi hyou hen su
A Wise Man Changes His Mind (but a fool never will) Scroll

君子豹変す is a Japanese proverb that suggests that a wise man is willing to change his mind, but a fool will stubbornly never change his.

The first word is 君子 (kunshi), a man of virtue, a person of high rank, a wise man.

The second word is 豹変 (hyouhen), sudden change, complete change.

The last part, す (su), modifies the verb to a more humble form.

The “fool” part is merely implied or understood. So if wise and noble people are willing to change their minds, it automatically says that foolish people are unwilling to change.


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

Title CharactersRomaji (Romanized Japanese)Various forms of Romanized Chinese
Even a fool may sometimes come up with a good idea千慮一得
千虑一得
senryonoittokuqiān lǜ yī dé
qian1 lv4 yi1 de2
qian lv yi de
qianlvyide
ch`ien lü i te
chienlüite
chien lü i te
Calm and Open Mind虛心
虚心
ko shin / koshinxū xīn / xu1 xin1 / xu xin / xuxinhsü hsin / hsühsin
Daughter愚女gu jo / gujo
Dogen道元dou gen / dougen / do gendào yuán / dao4 yuan2 / dao yuan / daoyuantao yüan / taoyüan
God Forgive Me神様お許しをkami sama o yuru shi wo
kamisamaoyurushiwo
Humble謙恭
谦恭
qiān gōng
qian1 gong1
qian gong
qiangong
ch`ien kung
chienkung
chien kung
Humble
Modest
謙虛
谦虚
ken kyo / kenkyoqiān xū / qian1 xu1 / qian xu / qianxuch`ien hsü / chienhsü / chien hsü
Humble
Modesty
Humility
謙虚ken kyo / kenkyoqiān xū / qian1 xu1 / qian xu / qianxuch`ien hsü / chienhsü / chien hsü
Humility
Being Humble
謙遜
谦逊
ken son / kensonqiān xùn / qian1 xun4 / qian xun / qianxunch`ien hsün / chienhsün / chien hsün
Korean CKD Virtues謙遜正直溫柔忍耐克己不屈
谦逊正直温柔忍耐克己不屈
qiān xùn zhèng zhí wēn róu rěn nài kè jǐ bù qū
qian1 xun4 zheng4 zhi2 wen1 rou2 ren3 nai4 ke4 ji3 bu4 qu1
qian xun zheng zhi wen rou ren nai ke ji bu qu
ch`ien hsün cheng chih wen jou jen nai k`o chi pu ch`ü
chien hsün cheng chih wen jou jen nai ko chi pu chü
Kyojitsu: Falsehood and Truth虚実kyo jitsu / kyojitsu
Mistress
Concubine
Servant
mekake / sobame / onnameqiè / qie4 / qiech`ieh / chieh
Moderation
Temperance
節制
节制
sessei / seseijié zhì / jie2 zhi4 / jie zhi / jiezhichieh chih / chiehchih
Modesty謙遜
谦逊
kensonqiān xùn / qian1 xun4 / qian xun / qianxunch`ien hsün / chienhsün / chien hsün
A Wise Man Changes His Mind (but a fool never will)君子豹変すkun shi hyou hen su
kunshihyouhensu
kun shi hyo hen su
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.



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