Bright in Chinese / Japanese...

guāng míng

kou mei / mitsu haru

광명

光明 is a nice way to say "light" in Chinese, and old Korean Hanja. 光明 is because the word also suggests a bright future or refers so someone who is very promising (great future potential).

The first character means light or bright.

The second character means bright and clear (in this context).

光明 appears in most Japanese dictionaries but it not the most common Japanese Kanji word for light (more commonly used for the name Mitsuharu).

In old Korean Hanja, this can have a meaning of brightness or brilliancy.

In the context of Buddhism, this means, "Light emanating from a Buddha or Bodhisattva, symbolizing their wisdom and compassion"

akarui mirai

This Japanese proverb means, "Bright Future." It suggests a lot of possibility and potential awaits in your future. A great gift for a graduate.

The first part of this proverb literally means bright or light. The second part means future but can also be translated as, "the world to come."

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

guāng

hikari

광

光 is the simplest way to express "light" in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

It can also mean ray or bright. Chinese tend to use a two-character word for light/bright, so this character is probably best if your audience is Japanese. Also, when pronounced Rei, this can be a Japanese female given name.

míng

mei / myou

명

明 means light, bright, clear, clarity, to understand, or wise.

In Chinese this can refer to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) where it can also be the surname Ming.

In Japanese, this can be romanized many different ways when used as surnames or given names. 明 is a partial list of those names: Meishuu, Mei, Min, Myoujin, Myou, Hinata, Haru, Toshi, Tooru, Sayaka, Saya, Satoshi, Asumi, Akera, Akemine, Akesaki, Ake, Akuru, Akiraka, and Akira.

In the Buddhist context, this represents vidyā (knowledge). To expand that, Buddhists understand this to mean bright, clear, enlightenment, wisdom, or to understand. It represents Buddha-wisdom and its revelation; also the manifestation of a Buddha's light or effulgence.

xiān hóng

sen kou

鮮紅 is a Japanese and Chinese title for scarlet or bright red color.

qíng lǎng

seirou / sero

晴朗 is the Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja for sunny and cloudless.

This can also mean: fair; serene; clear and bright.

This usually refers to the clear weather and sunny skies.

péng chéng wàn lǐ

붕정만리

鵬程萬里 is an ancient Chinese proverb used in modern times to wish someone a long and successful career.

It's really about the 10,000 Flight of the Peng (Peng, also known as Roc is a mythical fish that can turn into a bird and take flight).

庄子 - Zhuangzi

Breaking down each character:
1. Peng or Roc (a kind of bird).
2. Journey (in this case, a flight).
3. 10,000 (Ten Thousand).
4. Li is a unit of distance often referred to as a "Chinese Mile," though the real distance is about half a kilometer.

Direct Translation: "Peng's Journey [of] 10,000 Li."
Literal meaning: "The 10,000-Li Flying Range Of The Roc."
Perceived meaning: "To have a bright future" or "To go far."

This proverb/idiom comes from the book of Zhuangzi. It tells the tale of a huge fish which could turn into a gigantic bird. This bird was called "peng" and was many miles long. This legendary size allowed the Peng to fly from the Northern Sea to the Southern Sea in a single bound.

Wishing someone "a Peng's Journey of 10,000 Li," will imply that they will be able to travel far without stopping, and will have great success, a long career, and a prosperous future.

bái

shiro

백

A lot of people search our website for "white." I am not sure the purpose, unless your family name is white.

白 is the universal character for white in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

In certain context, outside of the white definition, it can mean snowy, empty, blank, bright, clear, plain, pure, innocence or gratuitous. In Korean, this can be a family name romanized as Paek or Baeg.

dà guāng míng

dai kou myou

대광명

大光明 is the master symbol "Daikomyo," which is usually associated with the healing practice of Reiki.

This title can be translated as "Great Bright Light." This symbol, as used in Reiki, alludes to "Enlightened Nature" or the radiance of a purified soul or deity.

Pronunciations in Chinese and Korean are included above but this title has no meaning except when used by a Reiki practitioner. In fact, this title is not that well known by those outside the Reiki community in Japan.

In Chinese, this would be interpreted as "Great Bright Future" (the second two characters alone create a word that means "bright future" in Chinese).

hóng bǎo shí

紅寶石 is the Chinese word for Ruby (as in the bright red gem).

shi ken ha ra mitsu dai kou myou

This is "shiken haramitsu daikōmyō," a famous Japanese Buddhist mantra.

四拳 = shi-ken = four fist (many translate this as "four hearts").
波羅蜜 = ha-ra-mitsu = A loanword representing pāramitā, or entrance into Nirvana. Awkwardly, it also means jackfruit.
大光明 = dai-kou-myo = big/great light bright (great bright light).

Shiken represents four hearts:
1. The Merciful Heart - Love and caring for all living things.
2. The Sincere Heart - Pursues righteousness, or the right path - sincerely trying to do what is right.
3. The Attuned Heart - Knows that nature and fate have their ways, and thus stays in tune with the universe.
4. The Dedicated Heart - Steadfast on the chosen path to the end.

míng jìng

mei kyou

명경

While this means mirror in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja, it's commonly used as a metaphor for something beautiful and bright or something that provides clarity and insight.

bái lóng

白龍 is a sophisticated or scholarly way to say, "White Dragon." 白龍 is the title you'd expect in ancient Chinese literature.

The first character means white, pure, or bright.

The second character means dragon.

The White Dragon represents a king who is virtuous and pure.

kou dou kan

光道館 is Kodokan. 光道館 is the title of an Aikido dojo, studio, or hall.

Be careful in selecting the correct Kodokan, as there are two different titles that romanize as Kodokan.

Here's how the characters break down in meaning for this one:
1. Light / Bright
2. Way / Path (the Tao/Dao as in Taoism/Daoism)
3. Schoolroom / Building / Establishment / Mansion / Hall (of learning)

Altogether, you get something like, "The Path of Light Establishment."

qīng

sei

청

清 means clarity or clear in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja. Looking at the parts of this character, you have three splashes of water on the left, "life" on the top right, and the moon on the lower right.

Because of something Confucius said about 2500 years ago, you can imagine that this character means "live life with clarity like bright moonlight piercing pure water." The Confucian idea is something like "Keep clear what is pure in yourself, and let your pure nature show through." Kind of like saying, "Don't pollute your mind or body, so that they remain clear."

This might be stretching the definition of this single Chinese character but the elements are there, and "clarity" is a powerful idea.

Korean note: Korean pronunciation is given above but this character is written with a slight difference in the "moon radical" in Korean. However, anyone who can read Korean Hanja, will understand this character with no problem (this is considered an alternate form in Korean). If you want the more standard Korean Hanja form (which is an alternate form in Chinese), just let me know.

Japanese note: When reading in Japanese, this Kanji has additional meanings of pure, purify, or cleanse (sometimes to remove demons or "exorcise"). Used more in compound words in Japanese than as a stand-alone Kanji.

xǐ

囍 is a common gift for Chinese couples getting married or newly married couples.

As we say in the west, "Two heads are better than one" Well, in the east, two "happinesses" are certainly better than one.

Some will suggest this is a symbol of two happinesses coming together. Others see it as a multiplication of happiness because of the union or marriage.

囍 is not really a character that is pronounced very often - it's almost exclusively used in written form. However, if pressed, most Chinese people will pronounce this "shuang xi" (double happy) although literally there are two "xi" characters combined in this calligraphy (but nobody will say "xi xi").

If you select this character, I strongly suggest the festive bright red paper for your calligraphy. Part of my suggestion comes from the fact that red is a good luck color in China, and this will add to the sentiment that you wish to convey with this scroll to the happy couple.

See Also:  Happiness