Art of Fighting in Chinese / Japanese...

闘気 is an alternate Japanese title for “fighting spirit.”

This one is more like “fighting energy.” The second character is “ki,” the same “ki” in Aikido. This “ki” is the spiritual energy that all martial arts practitioners must master and focus on.

闘魂 is an alternate title with the meaning “fighting spirit” or “the will to fight.”

This literally means “fighting spirit” or “the will to fight.”

As in the spirit that a warrior, soldier, athlete, or fighter must possess.

斗志 literally means fighting spirit in Chinese.

As in the spirit that a warrior, soldier, athlete, or fighter must possess.

Note: There is more than one way to write the first character of this word. It is sometimes written like the version shown to the right (yes, it's completely different but has the same meaning & pronunciation). If you have a preference, please let us know in the special instructions about your order.

拳擊 is the term used in Chinese to refer to the original Olympic sport of combat and fighting.

If you like to strap on your boxing gloves and go a few rounds or are just a fan of boxing, this could make a nice wall scroll for you.

Note that Japanese use the same first character (which means fist) but a different Kanji for the second. Please see our Japanese boxing entry for that version.

奮鬥 means strive (as in to put great effort into something or a cause).

It can also be translated as a struggle.

The second character of this word can also be written as shown to the right. Yes. it’s very different. If you want this alternate version, just let us know when you place your order (in the special instructions).

奮闘 is the Japanese version of a word that means strive (as in to put great effort into something or a cause).

It can also be translated as a struggle. There's a very similar version used in Chinese with the same meaning.

避其鋭氣擊其惰歸 is a Chinese proverb that literally translates as: Avoid [your enemy's] fighting spirit [and] attack [when] his [morale is] declining.

Figuratively, this means: Avoid the enemy when his morale is high and strike him when his morale is flagging.

挌闘 is a Japanese word that means hand-to-hand fighting, grappling, or scuffling.

In the old days, this might refer to a street fight but now it can apply to martial arts and MMA techniques or bouts.

Sometimes written as 挌闘 instead of 格闘 (first Kanji varies slightly)

兵在精而不在多將在謀而不在勇 is a proverb that informs how it is better to have warriors of quality, rather than just a large quantity of warriors in your army/force.

This literally means: [Just as] warriors [are valued for their] quality and not [just] for quantity, [so] generals [are valued] for their tactics, not [just] for [their] bravery.

See Also:  兵在精而不在多

風林火山 is the battle strategy and proverb of Japanese feudal lord Takeda Shingen (1521-1573 AD).

This came from the Art of War by Chinese strategist and tactician Sun Tzu (Sunzi).

You can think of this as an abbreviation to remind officers and troops how to conduct battle.

風林火山 is a word list: Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain.

The more expanded meaning is supposed to be...

“Swift as the wind, quiet as the forest, fierce as fire, and immovable as a mountain”

“As fast as the wind, as quiet as the forest, as daring as fire, and immovable as the mountain”

“Move as swift as the wind, stay as silent as a forest, attack as fierce as fire, undefeatable defense like a mountain”

“Move swiftly like the wind, stay silent like the forest, attack fiercely like fire, take a tactical position on the mountain”

See Also:  Art of War

百折不撓 is a Chinese proverb that means “Be undaunted in the face of repeated setbacks.”

More directly translated, it reads, “[Overcome] a hundred setbacks, without flinching.” 百折不撓 is of Chinese origin but is commonly used in Japanese and somewhat in Korean (same characters, different pronunciation).

This proverb comes from a long, and occasionally tragic story of a man that lived sometime around 25-220 AD. His name was Qiao Xuan, and he never stooped to flattery but remained an upright person at all times. He fought to expose the corruption of higher-level government officials at great risk to himself.

Then when he was at a higher level in the Imperial Court, bandits were regularly capturing hostages and demanding ransoms. But when his own son was captured, he was so focused on his duty to the Emperor and the common good that he sent a platoon of soldiers to raid the bandits' hideout, and stop them once and for all even at the risk of his own son's life. While all of the bandits were arrested in the raid, they killed Qiao Xuan's son at first sight of the raiding soldiers.

Near the end of his career, a new Emperor came to power, and Qiao Xuan reported to him that one of his ministers was bullying the people and extorting money from them. The new Emperor refused to listen to Qiao Xuan and even promoted the corrupt Minister. Qiao Xuan was so disgusted that in protest, he resigned from his post as minister (something almost never done) and left for his home village.

His tombstone reads “Bai Zhe Bu Nao” which is now a proverb used in Chinese culture to describe a person of strong will who puts up stubborn resistance against great odds.

My Chinese-English dictionary defines these 4 characters as “keep on fighting despite all setbacks,” “be undaunted by repeated setbacks,” and “be indomitable.”

Our translator says it can mean “never give up” in modern Chinese.

Although the first two characters are translated correctly as “repeated setbacks,” the literal meaning is “100 setbacks” or “a rope that breaks 100 times.” The last two characters can mean “do not yield” or “do not give up.”
Most Chinese, Japanese, and Korean people will not take this absolutely literal meaning but will instead understand it as the title suggests above. If you want a single big word definition, it would be indefatigability, indomitableness, persistence, or unyielding.

See Also:  Tenacity | Fortitude | Strength | Perseverance | Persistence

This is the title for Shinkakutō-ryū or Shin Kakuto Ryu in Japanese martial arts.

新格闘流 or Shinkakutō-ryū means “New Standard Fighting Style” or just “New Fighting Style.”

斗 is how to express the act of fighting in Chinese.

Generally, this means fighting against someone or some force whether physically or metaphorically.

Note: There is more than one way to write this character. You will notice variations on the next page after you click “Select and Customize.” If you have a preference, please let us know when you place your order.

Please note that there is a secondary pronunciation and meaning of this character. It can also mean “measuring cup” or in Japanese “sake dipper” or even “The Big Dipper.” In Japanese and Korean, this does not have the fighting meaning associated with it. You should, therefore, select this character only if your audience is Chinese, or you are a big fan of sake dippers or The Big Dipper (as that is how it will be read by Japanese and Korean people).

拳闘 is the term used in Japanese Kanji to refer to the original Olympic sport of combat and fighting.

This can also be translated as prizefighting.

The first Kanji means fist. The second means fight. So when literally translated, this means “fistfight” (though understood in Japanese as a more refined sport, versus street fighting).

Note: A completely different second character is used in the Chinese word for boxing but a Chinese person would still be able to guess the meaning of these Kanji.

新陰流 is the title for “Shinkage-Ryu,” and the style of Japanese fencing or sword fighting.

以色列格斗術 is the title for “Krav Maga” or “קרב מגע” in Chinese (Mandarin).

以色列 = Israel/Israeli.

格斗術 = Fighting Techniques.

ソバット is the Japanese Katakana for the French word, Savate, meaning “kick-fighting” or “French boxing.”

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Katakana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

格闘空手 is Kakutō Karate and means Fighting Karate and/or Combat Karate.

闘魂流 is the name of the Japaense style of Karate known as Toukon-Ryu.

The meaning is “Fighting Spirit Style.”

爭 is the way to express the idea of fighting for a goal.

This can also mean struggling or arguing. 爭 is okay for a Chinese audience, and while it is a word in Korean, this character is seldom seen alone in Korean grammar.

張飛 is the name of General Zhang Fei, of the Shu Kingdom. He was blood-brother of Liu Bei in the semi-historical novel “Romance of the Three Kingdoms.” Zhang Fei is famous for his heroic and fearsome fighting and his love of wine.

In Japanese, this can be the name Chouhi.

実戦古武道 is the title Jissen Kobudo in Japanese Kanji.

Jissen or 実戦 means combat, battle, or fighting.

Kobudo or 古武道 is the title used for Okinawan martial arts. The literal translation would be something like “Old Martial Way.”

This is the martial arts title Zendokai.

The first two characters refer to Zen ascetic practices or Zen teachings. Noting that Zen or 禅 means meditation and Dou/Do or 道 means way.

Kai or 会 (originally written 會) in this context means society, association, or club.

Zendokai Karate beyond the normal fighting skills invites the practitioner to notice and observe their own body with mindfulness and self-awareness and can re-acquire and hone their genuine self.

海軍陸戰隊 is the Chinese way to express “Marine Corps.” This could be the Marine Corps of virtually any country that has an amphibious military force.

Let me know if you want a more specific title, such as British Royal Marines or U.S. Marine Corps.

The Chinese title for Marines is very verbose...
Breaking down each character this means:
“ocean/sea military/arms shore/land fighting/war/battle corps/team/group.”

See Also:  Military

海軍陸戰隊員 is the Chinese way to express “Marine.” (as in a member of the Marine Corps). It is not country-specific, so it could be the Royal Marines, U.S. Marines, Chinese Marines, etc.
In Australian English, they would translate this as “Naval Infantryman.”

Breaking down each character this means:
“ocean/sea military/arms shore/land fighting/war/battle corps/team/group person/member.” Note that the first two characters are presented together but outside of this phrase mean “navy” (sea military).

See Also:  Warrior | Military | Navy | Art of War

古武道 is the title for Kubudo, which can be defined as Okinawan weapons fighting.

The literal translation would be something like “Old Martial Way.” The last two characters are often translated as “martial arts” so “Old Martial Arts” is another possible translation.

Please note that even though these are Chinese characters and can be pronounced in Chinese, this is a Japanese-only title. It is not often used nor understood in Chinese. So please consider this to only be appropriate for a Japanese audience.

国家忠诚父母孝道朋友有信杀生有择临战无退 are the five codes of Tang Soo Do.

I suggest you have this arranged in five columns when you get to the options page for your custom calligraphy wall scroll.

Here are my translations of each of the five codes:
國家忠誠 Be loyal to your country.
父母孝道 In regards to parents, behave in a filial way.
朋友有信 Be faithful in friendship.
殺生有擇 When fighting for life and death, make noble choices.
臨戰無退 No retreat in battle.

Note: “Tang Soo Do” is a romanization of 唐手道. It's 당수도 in Korean Hangul. It can also be romanized as “Tangsudo” or “Dangsudo.”

影武者 is the title for Shadow Warrior in Chinese and Japanese.

This may refer to a few video games that share this English title, or a Japanese movie called Kagemusha.

If you are looking for the Japanese TV show, that was originally 影の軍団 (Kage no Gundan), which more literally means “Army of Shadows,” but was re-titled Shadow Warrior when released outside Japan in English.

In Japan, this title can also refer to a body double or decoy of an army general or leader used to avoid assassination. It can also be somebody who does all the work (or fighting) behind the scenes (not getting much, if any, credit).

猴拳 literally means what you think, it's the “Monkey Fist” school of Kung Fu. A style that mimics the punches and movements of monkeys and apes.

Becoming popular during the Qing Dynasty, this style can trace its origins back to as early as the Song Dynasty. Some of the romance and popularity of this style comes from the novel “Journey to the West” which features the Monkey King and his fighting skills.

This novel and martial arts style has spawned a stream of Hong Kong movies featuring the Monkey King and other Kung Fu style variations such as “Drunken Monkey” and “Monkey Stealing Peaches” (a technique of disabling your opponent by grabbing and yanking on his testicles).

Note: This kind of makes sense in Korean Hanja and Japanese Kanji but probably unknown by all Koreans and Japanese except those who have an interest in this form of Kung Fu.

南派螳螂 can be translated literally as “Southern School Praying Mantis” or “Southern Style Praying Mantis.”

Despite its name, the Southern Praying Mantis style of Chinese martial arts is unrelated to the Northern Praying Mantis style. Southern Praying Mantis is instead related most closely to fellow Hakka styles such as Dragon and more distantly to the Fujian family of styles that includes Fujian White Crane, Five Ancestors, and Wing Chun.

This style of martial arts focuses more on fighting skills rather than aesthetics.

Of course, you already knew that if you were looking for this term.

Note: This title can be pronounced and does have meaning in Korean but only to Koreans familiar with Chinese martial arts.

This demon title comes from the ancient Sanskrit word Asura.

阿修羅 is often used in Buddhism when describing various demons. Sometimes defined as “Fighting and battling a giant demon.”

In the context of Buddhism: This title originally meant a spirit, spirits, or even the gods (perhaps before 1700 years ago). It now generally indicates titanic demons, enemies of the gods, with whom, especially Indra, they wage constant war. They are defined as “not devas,” “ugly,” and “without wine.” There are four classes of asuras, separated according to their manner of rebirth. They can be egg-born, womb-born, transformation-born, and spawn- or water-born. Their abode is in the ocean, north of Sumeru but certain of the weaker dwell in a western mountain cave. They have realms, rulers, and palaces, as have the devas.

In terms of power, Asuras rank above humans but below most other deities. They live near the coastal foot of Mount Sumeru (on the northern side). Their domain is partially or wholly in the ocean.

忍術 is the “art of the ninja” in Japanese. Most Japanese people associate ninjas with romance and reverence for Japan's ancient past. But most will accept that the ninja is an idea or way of life whose time has passed. However, this has not stopped floods of movies about ninjas and dojos offering Ninjutsu training from keeping the idea of the ninja alive in modern times.

My modern Japanese dictionary defines this as “assassination, stealth, and combat techniques” or “fighting art of the ninja.”

Note that when writing this as Kanji, Japanese tend to write the first character in the form shown to the right. Because this is specifically a Japanese title, we only suggest a Japanese calligrapher for this selection - and you will get the form shown to the right if you do that (please ignore the fact that some of the images you see during the following pages in the options process will be the Chinese/alternate form).

Miyamoto Musashi is probably the most famous Samurai in all of Japanese history.

武蔵 is the short title for a man long in legend. While coming from a lower class, his new sword and fighting techniques put him on par with the best that feudal Japan had to offer. His long career started with his first duel at age 13!

He is credited with using two swords at once and never losing a single battle in his career. After becoming a Buddhist, and getting older, like many old warriors, he took up a peaceful and solitary life until his death around 1645 A.D.

Note: Technically, Musashi is his given name, and Miyamoto is his surname. However, it's suggested that he assumed both of these names and had a few other names in childhood, as well as being given a Buddhist name. It's hard to know what to call him, as with most Kanji, there are multiple pronunciations. The characters for Musashi can also be pronounced Takezō. But everyone in modern times seems to know him by the name Musashi.

Hapkido or 合氣道 is a mostly-defensive martial art in Korea.

Hapkido has some connection to the Aikido of Japan. They are written with the same characters in both languages. However, it should be noted that the Korean Hanja characters shown here are the traditional Chinese form - but in modern Japan, the middle character was slightly simplified.
Note: You can consider this to be the older Japanese written form of Aikido. Titles on older books and signs about Aikido use this form.

The connection between Japanese Aikido and Korean Hapkido is muddled in history. The issue is probably due to the difficult relationship between the two countries around WWII. Many Koreans became virtual slaves to the Japanese during that period. After WWII, many things in Korea were disassociated from having any Japanese origin. The relationship has greatly mellowed out now.

Looking at the characters, the first means “union” or “harmony.”
The second character means “universal energy” or “spirit.”
The third means “way” or “method.”
One way to translate this into English is the “Harmonizing Energy Method.” This makes sense, as Hapkido has more to do with redirecting energy than fighting strength against strength.

More Hapkido info

More notes:
1. Sometimes Hapkido is Romanized as “hap ki do,” “hapki-do” “hab gi do” or “hapgido.”

2. Korean Hanja characters are actually Chinese characters that usually hold the same meaning in both languages. There was a time when these characters were the standard and only written form of Korean. The development of modern Korean Hangul characters is a somewhat recent event in the greater scope of history. There was a time when Chinese characters were the written form of many languages in places known in modern times as North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, and a significant portion of Malaysia. Even today, more people in the world can read Chinese characters than English.

3. While these Korean Hanja characters can be pronounced in Chinese, this word is not well-known in China and is not considered part of the Chinese lexicon.