All Knowing in Chinese / Japanese...

shī bài shì chéng gōng zhī mǔ

실패시성공지모

This Chinese and Korean proverb means, "Every failure that you experience is a chance to learn from it and find success."

Knowing what does not work is just as important as finding out what does work.

See Also:  Experience is the Mother of Wisdom

zhī shi

chishiki

지식

知識 has the very strong meaning of "knowledge" and in some context, "learning."

The first character represents "to know" or "to realize."

The second character alone refers to the ability to "recognize," or "realize" and can also be used to mean "knowing."

See Also:  Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom

shippai wa seikou no haha

This Japanese proverb means exactly what you think.

Every failure that you experience is a chance to learn from it and find success.

Knowing what does not work is just as important as finding out what does work.

Note: This is the Japanese version of an ancient Chinese proverb.

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

See Also:  Experience is the Mother of Wisdom

shén míng

jin myou

신명

In Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja, this title refers to deities or gods (can be singular or plural form). Depending on context, it could also mean "divine."

Specifically in Japanese, this can refer to Amaterasu (as an enshrined deity).

In some Buddhist context, this also means deity but can also refer to "intelligence" (as in all-knowing).

jié zhì

sessei

절제

In short, temperance is knowing when to say "when."

Temperance is the practice of moderation and restraint (in fact, this Asian word is often translated as moderation or restraint).

It was one of the five tenets held to be vital to society in Hellenic culture. It is also one of the Four Cardinal Virtues considered central to Christian behavior by the Catholic Church.

Note: Also considered to be one of the Seven Heavenly Virtues.

tóng xìng liàn

A great way to tell your Chinese friends about your lifestyle, while keeping your Anglo friends in the dark.

Kind of a huge bold sign to say "I'm Gay" without anybody knowing.

同性戀 literally mean "same sex feeling" or "same sex affection" in Chinese.

jué / jiào

gaku / satoru

각

覺 can mean to feel; to figure out; thinking; awake; aware; bodhi; knowing; understanding; enlightenment; illumination; apprehend; perceive; realize.

覺 is a character that is impossible to define in a single word.

This term is often associated with Buddhism where it's understood to be: Illumination, enlightenment, or awakening in regard to the real in contrast to the seeming. However, it can also refer to enlightenment in regard to morality and evil.

Notes:

In Japanese, this can be the personal name Satoru.

In certain context, and only when pronounced as "jiao" in Chinese, it can refer to a nap, sleep or the state of sleeping. However, as a single character on a wall scroll, everyone will read this with the awareness or enlightenment context.

By no means is this the only way to write enlightenment. In fact, you should only choose this character if you are looking more for a word meaning awareness.

See Also:  Enlightenment | Wisdom | Knowledge

tóng xìng ài

douseiai

동성애

A great way to tell your Japanese friends about your lifestyle, while keeping your Anglo friends in the dark.

Kind of a huge bold sign to say "I'm Gay" without anybody knowing.

These Kanji characters literally mean "same sex love." This phrase would also be understood in Chinese but this combination would act to really emphasize the "love" component to a native Chinese person.

xǐng wù

醒悟 / 省悟 is a Chinese word that expresses the idea of reality or coming to understand what is true and real.

The first character means to wake up, awaken, comprehend, introspect, or visit.

The second character means to comprehend or understand (be enlightened).

The meanings of Chinese words are not necessarily the sum of their parts. In this case, at best, you can derive that the characters express "understanding what is real" or "knowing what is real." Any Chinese person will perceive this word in a similar way to how we use "reality" in English.

Note: The first character can also be written in a different form as shown to the right. Same meaning in Chinese, either way it's written.

kuān róng

kanyou

관용

Being tolerant is accepting differences. You don't expect others to think, look, speak or act just like you. You are free of prejudice, knowing that all people have feelings, needs, hopes and dreams. Tolerance is also accepting things you wish were different with patience and flexibility.

寬容 can also be translated as magnanimity, generosity, or leniency.

Note: There is a tiny deviation in the first character when written in Japanese. If you choose our Japanese master calligrapher, the little dot on the lower right of the first character will be omitted. With or without the dot, this can be read in Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean.

See Also:  Patience

lún huí

rin ne

輪回 / 輪廻 is a universal word in Japanese and Chinese that expresses the Buddhist idea of "reincarnation," "transmigration of souls" or "the eternal cycle of birth and death."

In some context, this can also mean "karma," and others will say it represents "samsara."

The first character means wheel, ring, turn, circle, loop or rotate.
The second character can be thought of as a suffix meaning "-times." This second character can also refer to something that revolves, returns, goes back, or a counter for the number of occurrences of some event.
Together the sum supersedes the parts and it means reincarnation. But knowing the seeing the essence of each character may help you understand some of the meaning behind the word.

Shown to the right is the more common way to write the second character in Japanese. It's an alternate form of this character in Chinese (so neither way is technically wrong in either language). If you select a Japanese calligrapher, expect that is will look like the Kanji to the right.

See Also:  Buddhism | Rebirth

xié zuò

kyou saku

협작

協作 is a Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean word that means cooperation or collaboration.

Cooperation is working together and sharing the load. When we cooperate, we join with others to do things that cannot be done alone. We are willing to follow the rules which keep everyone safe and happy. Together we can accomplish great things.

The first character means "united" or "to coordinate." The second character means "to do," "to make," or "to compose." Knowing this, you can understand why together, these characters create a word that can be defined as "cooperation" in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

It is implied that you are cooperating to create some project or product.

See Also:  Partnership

wú wéi

mui

Wu Wei is a Daoist (Taoist) tenet, that speaks to the idea of letting nature take its course.

Some will say it's about knowing when to take action and when not to. In reality, it's more about not going against the flow. What is going to happen is controlled by the Dao (Tao), for which one who follows the Dao will not resist or struggle against.

There is a lot more to this concept but chances are, if you are looking for this entry, you already know the expanded concept.

Warning: Outside of Daoist context, this means idleness or inactivity (especially in Japanese where very few know this as a Daoist concept).

pò lì

hakuryoku

박력

This Chinese word is a form of personal strength.

It is a word that describes a person who is willing to take a risk. In English, we might say, "Someone with guts."

An example might be a person that is not rich but invests a lot of money into something (knowing they could double their money, or lose it all). Win or lose, this is a person that knows or pushes their potential.

Tearing this word apart, the first character means "to compel," urgent, urge, force, imminent, or "spur on." The second means power, strong, bear, or exert.

Note: 迫力 is also a word in Japanese Kanji and Korean Hanja but with a meaning more like force, intensity, appeal, strength, impact, force, or simply power.

zhì huì

chie

지혜

The first character means, "wise" or "smart" and the second character means "intelligence."

I have also seen these two characters translated together as knowledge, sagacity, sense, and intelligence.

Note: 智慧 is used commonly in Chinese and is a less-common word in Japanese and Korean. If your audience is Japanese, I suggest our other Japanese wisdom option.

This means intellect or wisdom in Japanese too but is a more unusual way to write this word (though both versions are pronounced the same in Japanese).

See Also:  Learn From Wisdom