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拳禪一如 is a Japanese phrase that is often translated as “train both body and spirit.”
Here's the breakdown of the words in this phrase:
拳 means fist.
禅 is zen, which means meditation.
一如 is a word that means “to be just like,” “oneness,” “true nature,” or “true character.”
So to get to the translation of “train both body and spirit,” you must understand that “fist” is representing “body” and the idea of meditation is representing “mind.”
I have to say, this is not how I would translate this. To me, it's really about training with your mind and remembering that meditation is a huge part of training, not just your fist. As the Shaolin Buddhist monks show us, meditation is just as important as physical training in martial arts.
気剣体一致 is the title Ki Ken-Tai Icchi.
気 = energy, 剣 = sword, 体 = body, 一致 = synchronization/unity. So, “energy, sword, and body in unison” would be one way to translate this. Sometimes written with the possessive article, の, making it 気剣体の一致 or “Ki Ken-Tai no Icchi.” Let me know in the special instructions if you want that の character added by the calligrapher.
君子の拳 is “Kunshi no Ken” in Japanese.
The meaning is literally “Noble Fist” or “Fist of Nobility” but it's often used to describe the effort to concentrate on cultivating oneself to become a well-rounded, respectful individual.
You will see 君子の拳 sometimes written in the full Kanji form of 君子之拳. Both versions mean the same thing. If you want this more traditional Kanji version, just let me know when you place your order.
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
Kaio-Ken | 界王拳 | kai ou ken / kaiouken / kai o ken | jiè wáng quán jie4 wang2 quan2 jie wang quan jiewangquan | chieh wang ch`üan chiehwangchüan chieh wang chüan |
Kaio-Ken | 界王拳 | kai ou ken / kaiouken / kai o ken | jiè wáng quán jie4 wang2 quan2 jie wang quan jiewangquan | chieh wang ch`üan chiehwangchüan chieh wang chüan |
Ken | ケン | ken | ||
Kaio | ケーオ | keeo / keo | ||
Aiki-Ken | 合気剣 | ai ki ken / aikiken | ||
Ken | 肯 | kěn / ken3 / ken | k`en / ken | |
Ken Zen Ichi Nyo | 拳禪一如 拳禅一如 | ken zen ichi nyo kenzenichinyo | ||
Ki Ken-Tai Icchi | 気剣体一致 | ki ken tai icchi kikentaiicchi ki ken tai ichi | ||
Kunshi no Ken | 君子の拳 | kun shi no ken kunshinoken | ||
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Some people may refer to this entry as Kaio-Ken Kanji, Kaio-Ken Characters, Kaio-Ken in Mandarin Chinese, Kaio-Ken Characters, Kaio-Ken in Chinese Writing, Kaio-Ken in Japanese Writing, Kaio-Ken in Asian Writing, Kaio-Ken Ideograms, Chinese Kaio-Ken symbols, Kaio-Ken Hieroglyphics, Kaio-Ken Glyphs, Kaio-Ken in Chinese Letters, Kaio-Ken Hanzi, Kaio-Ken in Japanese Kanji, Kaio-Ken Pictograms, Kaio-Ken in the Chinese Written-Language, or Kaio-Ken in the Japanese Written-Language.