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Eye for an Eye in Chinese / Japanese...

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Eye for an eye

 yǐ yǎn huán yǎn
Eye for an eye Scroll

以眼還眼 is the same proverb that seems to be used in virtually every language and culture worldwide.

Whether you are Arab, Persian, Jewish, European, British, Asian, or American, this proverb is well known as the “original form of justice.”

Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth

 yǐ yá huán yá yǐ yǎn huán yǎn
Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth Scroll

Here's the full proverb, 以牙还牙以眼还眼, with the first and second parts.

However, in Chinese, it's more natural to put the “tooth” part first, so this more accurately reads “Tooth for a tooth, eye for an eye.”

If revenge is important to you, I suppose this is the phase you want on your wall.

Tooth for a tooth

 yǐ yá huán yá
Tooth for a tooth Scroll

以牙還牙 is a phrase that often goes with “An eye for an eye,” even in Chinese. Revenge seems to cross all languages, cultures, and even species (animals are known to take revenge too).

If a Chinese person uses just one part of the full proverb, it will be this “tooth for a tooth” one. Although, we are more likely to say “eye for an eye” alone in English.

Chinese people may also read this with the meaning of “Bite me, and I will bite you back.” However, it literally means “tooth for a tooth” or “you take my tooth, I take yours.”

Islam

(phonetic version)

 yī sī lán jiào
Islam Scroll

伊斯蘭教 both means and sounds like “Islam” in Mandarin Chinese.

The first three characters sound like the word “Islam,” and the last character means “religion” or “teaching.” It's the most general term for “Islam” in China. The highest concentration of Muslims in China is Xinjiang (the vast region in northwest China that was called The East Turkistan Republic until 1949 and is sometimes called Chinese Turkistan, Uyghuristan). Here you will find Uygurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and others that are descendants of Turkmen (possibly mixed with Persians and Arabs). Many of their ancestors were traders who traveled the silk road to buy and sell spices and silk and exchange other goods from the Orient and the Middle East.

I spent some time in Xinjiang and got to know this community. They are strong people who can endure much. They are friendly and love to have a good time. I was a stranger but was treated by villagers (near China's border with Afghanistan) as if I was a good friend.
However, I have heard that it's best not to cross them, as in this land, the law is the blade, and everything is “eye for an eye.” The Chinese government has little control in Xinjiang, with almost no police officers except in the capital of Urumqi (so it's a 60-hour roundtrip train ride to seek the aid of law enforcement in most cases).

While few seem devout, there are at least small mosques in every village. And you will never see a man or woman outside without a head covering.

It should be noted that these people are all citizens of China, but they are officially of the Caucasian race. A visit to Xinjiang will change your idea of what it means to be Chinese.


Not the results for Eye for an Eye that you were looking for?

Below are some entries from our dictionary that may match your Eye for an Eye search...

Characters

If shown, 2nd row is Simp. Chinese

Pronunciation
Romanization
Simple Dictionary Definition

see styles
míng
    ming2
ming
 meishuu / meshu
    めいしゅう

More info & calligraphy:

Light / Bright
bright; opposite: dark 暗[an4]; (of meaning) clear; to understand; next; public or open; wise; generic term for a sacrifice to the gods
(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.

see styles
yǎn
    yan3
yen
 mesaki
    めさき

More info & calligraphy:

Eyeballs / Eyes
eye (CL:隻|只[zhi1],雙|双[shuang1]); (often used with 一[yi1]) a look; a glance; small hole; (bound form) salient point; classifier for wells, cave-dwellings etc
(1) eye; eyeball; (2) (archaism) pupil and (dark) iris of the eye; (3) (archaism) insight; perceptivity; power of observation; (4) (archaism) look; field of vision; (5) (archaism) core; center; centre; essence; (surname) Mesaki
cakṣuh, the eye.

ヤニ

see styles
 yani
    ヤニ

More info & calligraphy:

Yani
(1) resin; (2) (tobacco) resin; tar; nicotine; (3) sleep (in one's eyes, i.e. eye mucus)

佛眼

see styles
fó yǎn
    fo2 yan3
fo yen
 butsugen

More info & calligraphy:

The Eye of the Buddha
The eye of Buddha, the enlightened one who sees all and is omniscient.

心眼

see styles
xīn yǎn
    xin1 yan3
hsin yen
 shingan
    しんがん

More info & calligraphy:

Mind’s Eye
heart; intention; conscience; consideration; cleverness; tolerance
the mind's eye
The eye of the mind, mental vision.

達磨


达磨

see styles
dá mó
    da2 mo2
ta mo
 daruma
    だるま

More info & calligraphy:

Daruma / Damo
(1) (kana only) daruma; tumbling doll; round, red-painted good-luck doll in the shape of Bodhidharma, with a blank eye to be completed when a person's wish is granted; (2) (kana only) Bodhidharma; (3) (kana only) prostitute; (personal name) Daruma
dharma; also 達摩; 達麼; 達而麻耶; 曇摩; 馱摩 tr. by 法. dharma is from dhara, holding, bearing, possessing, etc.; and means 'that which is to be held fast or kept, ordinance, statute, law, usage, practice'; 'anything right.' M.W. It may be variously intp. as (1) characteristic, attribute, predicate; (2) the bearer, the transcendent substratum of single elements of conscious life; (3) element, i.e. a part of conscious life; (4) nirvāṇa, i.e. the Dharma par excellence, the object of Buddhist teaching; (5) the absolute, the real; (6) the teaching or religion of Buddha; (7) thing, object, appearance. Also, Damo, or Bodhidharma, the twenty-eighth Indian and first Chinese patriarch, who arrived in China A.D. 520, the reputed founder of the Chan or Intuitional School in China. He is described as son of a king in southern India; originally called Bodhitara. He arrived at Guangdong, bringing it is said the sacred begging-bowl, and settled in Luoyang, where he engaged in silent meditation for nine years, whence he received the title of wall-gazing Brahman 壁觀婆羅門, though he was a kṣatriya. His doctrine and practice were those of the 'inner light', independent of the written word, but to 慧可 Huike, his successor, he commended the Laṅkāvatāra-sūtra as nearest to his views. There are many names with Dharma as initial: Dharmapāla, Dharmagupta, Dharmayaśas, Dharmaruci, Dharmarakṣa, Dharmatrāta, Dharmavardhana, etc.

マーク

see styles
 maagu / magu
    マーグ

More info & calligraphy:

Mark
(1) mark; sign; symbol; emblem; logo; label; brand; (vs,vt) (2) to mark; to put a mark on; (3) (abbreviation) (See トレードマーク) trademark; (noun, transitive verb) (4) paying attention to; keeping one's eye on; watching; marking (a player); guarding; (noun, transitive verb) (5) setting (a record); posting; recording; (personal name) Marg

不動明王


不动明王

see styles
bù dòng míng wáng
    bu4 dong4 ming2 wang2
pu tung ming wang
 fudoumyouou / fudomyoo
    ふどうみょうおう

More info & calligraphy:

Fudo Myo-o / Wisdom King
{Buddh} Acala (Wisdom King); Acalanatha; Fudō Myōō (Myō-ō); fierce Buddhist deity; (place-name) Fudoumyouou
不動尊 Aryacalanatha 阿奢羅曩 tr. 不動尊 and 無動尊 and Acalaceta, 阿奢囉逝吒 tr. 不動使者. The mouthpiece or messenger, e. g. the Mercury, of the Buddhas; and the chief of the five Ming Wang. He is regarded as the third person in the Vairocana trinity. He has a fierce mien overawing all evil spirits. He is said to have attained to Buddhahood, but also still to retain his position with Vairocana. He has many descriptive titles, e. g. 無量力神通無動者; 不動忿怒王, etc. Five different verbal signs are given to him. He carries a sharp wisdom-sword, a noose, a thunder-bolt. The colour of his images is various—black, blue, purple. He has a youthful appearance; his hair falls over his left shoulder; he stands or sits on a rock; left eye closed; mouth shut, teeth gripping upper lip, wrinkled forehead, seven locks of hair, full-bodied, A second representation is with four faces and four arms, angry mien, protruding teeth, with fames around him. A third with necklaces. A fourth, red, seated on a rock, fames, trident, etc. There are other forms. He has fourteen distinguishing symbols, and many dharanis associated with the realm of fire, of saving those in distress, and of wisdom. He has two messengers 二童子 Kimkara 矜羯羅 and Cetaka 制吒迦, and, including these, a group of eight messengers 八大童子 each with image, symbol, word-sign, etc. Cf. 不動佛.

以眼還眼


以眼还眼

see styles
yǐ yǎn huán yǎn
    yi3 yan3 huan2 yan3
i yen huan yen

More info & calligraphy:

Eye for an eye
an eye for an eye (idiom); fig. to use the enemy's methods against him; to give sb a taste of his own medicine

情人眼裡出西施


情人眼里出西施

see styles
qíng rén yǎn lǐ chū xī shī
    qing2 ren2 yan3 li3 chu1 xi1 shi1
ch`ing jen yen li ch`u hsi shih
    ching jen yen li chu hsi shih
lit. in the eyes of a lover appears 西施[Xi1 shi1] (idiom); fig. beauty is in the eye of the beholder

百聞は一見に如かず

see styles
 hyakubunhaikkennishikazu
    ひゃくぶんはいっけんにしかず

More info & calligraphy:

Seeing is Believing
(expression) seeing is believing; one eye-witness is better than many hearsays; a picture is worth a thousand words

see styles
jìng
    jing4
ching
 sakae
    さかえ
border; place; condition; boundary; circumstances; territory
(1) border; boundary; (2) turning point; watershed; (3) area; region; spot; space; environment; (4) psychological state; mental state; (1) border; boundary; (2) area; region; spot; space; environment; (3) psychological state; mental state; (4) (Buddhist term) cognitive object; something perceptible by the sense organs or mind; (surname) Sakae
viṣaya; artha; gocara. A region, territory, environment, surroundings, area, field, sphere, e.g. the sphere of mind, the sphere of form for the eye, of sound for the ear, etc.; any objective mental projection regarded as reality.

see styles
 tsubosaki
    つぼさき
(out-dated or obsolete kana usage) (1) jar; pot; vase; (2) dice cup; (3) depression (i.e. the basin of a waterfall); (4) (archaism) target (when aiming an arrow); (5) (kana only) (figurative) bull's-eye; (6) (kana only) key point (of a conversation, etc.); (7) (kana only) acupuncture point; moxibustion point; (8) (kana only) nodes on a fingerboard (of a shamisen, etc.); hu (ancient Chinese vessel shaped like a vase, usually used to store alcohol); (surname) Tsubosaki


see styles

    hu2
hu
 tsubosaki
    つぼさき
pot; classifier for bottled liquid
(out-dated or obsolete kana usage) (1) jar; pot; vase; (2) dice cup; (3) depression (i.e. the basin of a waterfall); (4) (archaism) target (when aiming an arrow); (5) (kana only) (figurative) bull's-eye; (6) (kana only) key point (of a conversation, etc.); (7) (kana only) acupuncture point; moxibustion point; (8) (kana only) nodes on a fingerboard (of a shamisen, etc.); hu (ancient Chinese vessel shaped like a vase, usually used to store alcohol); (surname) Tsubosaki


see styles
kǔn
    kun3
k`un
    kun
 tsubo
    つぼ
    tsuho
    つほ
    tsufu
    つふ
palace corridor; fig. women's quarters; women
(irregular kanji usage) (1) jar; pot; vase; (2) dice cup; (3) depression (i.e. the basin of a waterfall); (4) (archaism) target (when aiming an arrow); (5) (kana only) (figurative) bull's-eye; (6) (kana only) key point (of a conversation, etc.); (7) (kana only) acupuncture point; moxibustion point; (8) (kana only) nodes on a fingerboard (of a shamisen, etc.); (irregular kanji usage) (out-dated or obsolete kana usage) (1) jar; pot; vase; (2) dice cup; (3) depression (i.e. the basin of a waterfall); (4) (archaism) target (when aiming an arrow); (5) (kana only) (figurative) bull's-eye; (6) (kana only) key point (of a conversation, etc.); (7) (kana only) acupuncture point; moxibustion point; (8) (kana only) nodes on a fingerboard (of a shamisen, etc.)

see styles
shǐ
    shi3
shih
 ki
    ばば
feces; excrement; a stool; (bound form) secretion (of the ear, eye etc)
(child. language) (kana only) pooh-pooh; poop; something dirty; (interjection) (1) (colloquialism) bullshit; shit; damn; (2) (colloquialism) feces; excrement; dung; (can act as adjective) (3) damn; damned; blasted; stupid; (4) (slang) very; extremely; (adverb) (5) (slang) a lot
Excrement.

see styles
gēn
    gen1
ken
 nemawari
    ねまわり
root; basis; classifier for long slender objects, e.g. cigarettes, guitar strings; CL:條|条[tiao2]; radical (chemistry)
(1) root (of a plant); (2) root (of a tooth, hair, etc.); center (of a pimple, etc.); (3) root (of all evil, etc.); source; origin; cause; basis; (4) one's true nature; (5) (fishing) reef; (personal name) Nemawari
mūla, a root, basis, origin; but when meaning an organ of sense, indriyam, a 'power', 'faculty of sense, sense, organ of sense'. M.W. A root, or source; that which is capable of producing or growing, as the eye is able to produce knowledge, as faith is able to bring forth good works, as human nature is able to produce good or evil karma. v. 五根 and 二十二根.

see styles

    di1
ti
 shizuku
    しずく
to drip; to let drip; to apply (eye drops etc); (bound form) a drop (of liquid); classifier for drops of liquid
(counter) counter for drops of liquid; (female given name) Shizuku

see styles
móu
    mou2
mou
 mu
    む
barley; to moo; to seek or obtain; old variant of 侔[mou2]; old variant of 眸[mou2]
(surname) Mu
To low (as an ox); overpass; barley; a grain vessel; weevil; eye-pupil; translit. mu, ma.

see styles

    di4
ti
 yukuha
    ゆくは
(bound form) bull's-eye; target
(1) mark; target; (2) object; subject; focus; (3) point (e.g. of argument); (personal name) Yukuha
main point

see styles

    mu4
mu
 mokuzaki
    もくざき
eye; (literary) to look; to regard; eye (of a net); mesh; mesh size; grit size (abbr. for 目數|目数[mu4 shu4]); item; section; list; catalogue; (taxonomy) order; name; title
(1) {biol} order; (2) item (of a budget revision, etc.); (counter) (3) {go} counter for played stones; counter for surrounded points; (surname) Mokuzaki
cakṣṣuḥ, the eye; the organ of vision; the head or chief; translit. ma, mu.

see styles
miǎo
    miao3
miao
 byou / byo
    びょう
blind in one eye; blind; tiny; humble; to stare
(adj-t,adv-to) (1) (obsolete) (See 眇たる・びょうたる) small; minute; tiny; little; insignificant; (2) (obsolete) (See 眇・すがめ) squint eye; cross-eye; strabismus

see styles
shěng
    sheng3
sheng
cataract of the eye; error


see styles

    zi4
tzu
 manajiri
    まなじり
(anatomy) corner of the eye; canthus
corner of the eye

see styles

    zi4
tzu
 manajiri
    まなじり
variant of 眥|眦[zi4]
corner of the eye

see styles
chī
    chi1
ch`ih
    chih
(bound form) sleep (dried mucus in the corner of the eye)

see styles
kuàng
    kuang4
k`uang
    kuang
(bound form) eye socket; Taiwan pr. [kuang1]

see styles
móu
    mou2
mou
 mu
    む
pupil (of the eye); eye
(noun - becomes adjective with の) (1) pupil (of eye); (2) eye; (personal name) Mu

see styles

    ya2
ya
(literary) corner of the eye; canthus

see styles
jīng
    jing1
ching
 hitomi
    ひとみ
eye; eyeball
(female given name) Hitomi

Click here for more Eye for an Eye results from our dictionary

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

Title CharactersRomaji (Romanized Japanese)Various forms of Romanized Chinese
Eye for an eye以眼還眼
以眼还眼
yǐ yǎn huán yǎn
yi3 yan3 huan2 yan3
yi yan huan yan
yiyanhuanyan
i yen huan yen
iyenhuanyen
Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth以牙還牙以眼還眼
以牙还牙以眼还眼
yǐ yá huán yá yǐ yǎn huán yǎn
yi3 ya2 huan2 ya2 yi3 yan3 huan2 yan3
yi ya huan ya yi yan huan yan
yiyahuanyayiyanhuanyan
i ya huan ya i yen huan yen
iyahuanyaiyenhuanyen
Tooth for a tooth以牙還牙
以牙还牙
yǐ yá huán yá
yi3 ya2 huan2 ya2
yi ya huan ya
yiyahuanya
i ya huan ya
iyahuanya
Islam伊斯蘭教
伊斯兰教
yī sī lán jiào
yi1 si1 lan2 jiao4
yi si lan jiao
yisilanjiao
i ssu lan chiao
issulanchiao
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.


Dictionary

Lookup Eye for an Eye in my Japanese & Chinese Dictionary


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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.


Check out my lists of Japanese Kanji Calligraphy Wall Scrolls and Old Korean Hanja Calligraphy Wall Scrolls.

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