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1. 2. Right Resolve / Right Thought / Right Intention / Perfect Resolve
3. You May Learn from Victory, You Will Learn from Failure
4. Clever
7. Experience is the Mother of Wisdom
9. Imagination
11. You May Learn from Victory, You Will Learn from Failure
13. Open the Minds of the Next Generation To Stimulate Thinking
14. Power of Understanding and Wisdom
18. Wisdom comes from Experience
19. Wisdom
21. Wisdom
Samyak Samkalpa / Samma Sankappa
正思唯 is one of the Noble Eightfold Paths of Buddhism. Right Thought, along with the Right View, constitute the path to Wisdom.
In Buddhism, Right Thought, in simple terms, means to free yourself from having ill will towards anyone or anything. It also suggests that you remain harmless to other living creatures.
This can also be defined as “Resolve in favor of renunciation, goodwill, and non-harming of sentient beings.”
There is an ancient/alternate version of the third character for this selection. You can see that alternation third character to the right. If you want your selection to use that older character, just click on the character to the right, instead of the button above.
Note: This term is exclusively used by devout Buddhists. It is not a common term, and is remains an unknown concept to most Japanese and Chinese people.
See Also: Buddhism | Enlightenment | Noble Eightfold Path
The school of hard knocks
挨一拳得一招挨十拳變諸葛 is a Chinese proverb that literally translates as: Receive one blow, [and one] learns a lesson; Receive ten blows, [and one] becomes a great Zhuge [Liang].
You must first understand that a man named Zhuge Liang was one of the great strategists and philosophers in Chinese history. He's known as a man of great wisdom.
Figuratively, this phrase means:
One can learn much from failure or “hard knocks.”
百胜难虑敌三折乃良医 is a Chinese proverb that literally translates as: [Even a general who has won a] hundred victories [may be] hard put to see through the enemy's [strategy], [but one who has] broken [his] arm three [times] [will] be a good doctor.
Figuratively, this means: One cannot always depend on past successes to guarantee future success but one can always learn from lessons drawn from failure.
See Also: Failure - Mother of Success | Experience - Mother of Success | Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 | Hard Knocks
不拘一格 is a Chinese proverb that speaks of exploring different styles and not being stuck in conventional thinking.
It can also be translated as “not sticking to one pattern” or “not limited to one type (or style).” The most simple translation is “being creative” or “unbridled creativity.” Some may also say this means “not being stuck in a rut,” in the context of a designer or artist.
If you translate this, the first two characters mean “not stick to” or “not confine oneself to.”
The second two characters mean “one mode,” “one pattern,” “one form,” “one style,” or “one rule.”
This Chinese philosophy tells of how we continue to learn throughout our lives.
This proverb can be translated in a few ways such as “Study has no end,” “Knowledge is infinite,” “No end to learning,” “There's always something new to study,” or “You live and learn.”
The deeper meaning: Even when we finish school we are still students of the world gaining more knowledge from our surroundings with each passing day.
See Also: An Open Book Benefits Your Mind | Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom
It's been said that wisdom comes from good judgment, and good judgment comes from experience, while experience comes from a series of times when you used bad judgment.
經驗是智慧之母 is a Chinese proverb that makes the simplest connection between experience and wisdom.
See Also: Failure is the Mother of Success | Wisdom | Learn From Wisdom
意見 means idea, thought, opinion, or view in Japanese.
This word also has a similar meaning in Chinese, just often used in China.
想像力 is probably the best way to express “imagination” in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.
It literally means “your strength to imagine.” The last character means strength or ability, while the first two mean imagine or conceptualize. My Japanese dictionary defines this as “The power of imagination.” While my Korean dictionary says, “imaginative power.”
These two characters mean intelligence or intelligent.
The first character means wisdom, intellect, or knowledge.
The second means ability, talent, skill, capacity, capable, able, and can even mean competent.
Together, 知能 can mean “capacity for wisdom,” “useful knowledge,” or even “mental power.” Obviously, this translates more clearly into English as “intelligence.”
Note: This is not the same word used to mean “military intelligence.” See our other entry for that.
In modern Japan, they tend to use a version of the first character without the bottom radical. If your audience for this artwork is Japanese, please click on the Kanji to the right instead of the button above.
You may learn when everything goes right but the lessons learned when everything goes wrong are more vivid and lead to long-lasting wisdom.
Another way to look at this: One cannot always depend on past successes to guarantee future success but one can always learn from lessons drawn from failure.
Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.
(When you see a wise person, try to be like them)
When you meet a wise person, you should learn from them and be inspired to become as wise as they are.
見賢思齊 is a pretty long proverb in English, but in Chinese, it's only four characters.
However, in Chinese, the deeper meaning often surpasses the dictionary definition of each character.
In this case, you should seek wise people to learn from throughout your life...
Always try to learn enough to become equal to them. It also suggests that learning and seeking wisdom is a non-ending cycle.
See Also: Knowledge
This word is often used to describe the idea of opening the minds of the young or the new generation.
See Also: Wisdom | Learning is Eternal | Learn From Wisdom
悟性 means the power of understanding and insight in Chinese.
It is often associated with Neo-Confucianism. In that regard, it means to realize, perceive, or have the perception of man's true nature. It can also mean finding your soul, the soul of others, or the soul of the world. Some will translate this simply as the state of being “savvy.”
In Japanese, this is often translated as wisdom and understanding.
思想 means thought, thinking, or idea in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja. Sometimes it can mean ideology, depending on context.
This can refer to someone's personality - like saying, “he is a thinker.”
In Chinese, 纔智 means “ability and wisdom” or “ability and intelligence.”
纔智 can also be defined as brilliance or genius.
In Japanese, 纔智 takes on a meaning more of “wit and intelligence.”
Note that the ancient/traditional form is shown above. After WWII, in both Japan and China, the first character was simplified. If you want this reformed/simplified version, just click on the characters to the right, instead of the button above. This is a good choice if your audience is Japanese.
You can translate this 不经一事不长一智 Chinese proverb in a couple of ways.
The first is: You cannot gain knowledge without practice.
The second, and perhaps more popular way is: Wisdom comes from experience.
It literally means if you are inattentive to your affairs or situations you encounter, you will not gain or grow any wisdom or intellect.
不經一事 means “You can't gain knowledge without practical experience.”
This is the short form (first half) of a longer Chinese proverb. These 4 characters remind you that wisdom only comes from experience.
智 is the simplest way to write wisdom in Chinese, Korean Hanja, and Japanese Kanji.
Being a single character, the wisdom meaning is open to interpretation, and can also mean intellect, knowledge or reason, resourcefulness, or wit.
智 is also one of the five tenets of Confucius.
智 is sometimes included in the Bushido code but is usually not considered part of the seven key concepts of the code.
See our Wisdom in Chinese, Japanese and Korean page for more wisdom-related calligraphy.
See Also: Learn From Wisdom | Confucius
賢明 is a Japanese word that refers to wisdom, intelligence, and prudence.
賢明 was originally a Chinese word that referred to a wise person or enlightened ruler. It means wise and able, sagacious now in China.
(All-Knowing)
Beyond wisdom, 智慧 can be translated as knowledge, sagacity, sense, and intelligence.
The first character means “wise” or “smart,” and the second character means “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
The simple translation of 知惠 is wisdom, but the more expanded version is “to know all things in their entirety.”
The first Kanji represents “to know” or “to realize.” Combined, these two Kanji mean “learn, know, and understand completely.”
Note: While vaguely understood in Chinese, this is only a real word in Japanese.
Ancient Japanese/Korean version: This is also a word in old Korean Hanja, with a slight difference in the last character - if you want that version (which is also the ancient Japanese version) please click on the character to the right, instead of the button above.
賢 is used to refer to being a wise, trustworthy, and virtuous person. But it also contains the ideas of intelligence, genius, scholarship, virtue, sage, saint, good, and excellent in character.
賢 is used in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja. Also used in a Buddhist context with the same meaning.
Note: Can also be the male given name, Masaru, in Japanese.
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
2. Right Resolve Right Thought Right Intention Perfect Resolve | 正思唯 | sei shi yui seishiyui | zhèng sī wéi zheng4 si1 wei2 zheng si wei zhengsiwei | cheng ssu wei chengssuwei |
Wisdom from Hard Knocks | 挨一拳得一招挨十拳變諸葛 挨一拳得一招挨十拳变诸葛 | ái yī quán dé yī zhāo ái shí quán biàn zhū gě ai2 yi1 quan2 de2 yi1 zhao1 ai2 shi2 quan2 bian4 zhu1 ge3 ai yi quan de yi zhao ai shi quan bian zhu ge | ai i ch`üan te i chao ai shih ch`üan pien chu ko ai i chüan te i chao ai shih chüan pien chu ko |
|
You May Learn from Victory, You Will Learn from Failure | 百勝難慮敵三折乃良醫 百胜难虑敌三折乃良医 | bǎi shèng nán lǜ dí sān zhé nǎi liáng yī bai3 sheng4 nan2 lv4 di2 san1 zhe2 nai3 liang2 yi1 bai sheng nan lv di san zhe nai liang yi | pai sheng nan lü ti san che nai liang i | |
Clever | 敏 | bin | mǐn / min3 / min | |
Unbridled Creativity | 不拘一格 | bù jū yī gé bu4 ju1 yi1 ge2 bu ju yi ge bujuyige | pu chü i ko puchüiko |
|
Learning is Eternal | 學無止境 学无止境 | xué wú zhǐ jìng xue2 wu2 zhi3 jing4 xue wu zhi jing xuewuzhijing | hsüeh wu chih ching hsüehwuchihching |
|
Experience is the Mother of Wisdom | 經驗是智慧之母 经验是智慧之母 | jīng yàn shì zhì huì zhī mǔ jing1 yan4 shi4 zhi4 hui4 zhi1 mu3 jing yan shi zhi hui zhi mu jingyanshizhihuizhimu | ching yen shih chih hui chih mu | |
Idea Thought | 意念 / 意唸 意念 | yì niàn / yi4 nian4 / yi nian / yinian | i nien / inien | |
Idea Thought | 意見 | i ken / iken | yì jiàn / yi4 jian4 / yi jian / yijian | i chien / ichien |
Imagination | 想像力 | souzouryoku sozoryoku | xiǎng xiàng lì xiang3 xiang4 li4 xiang xiang li xiangxiangli | hsiang hsiang li hsianghsiangli |
Intelligence Intellect | 智能 / 知能 智能 | chinou / chino | zhì néng / zhi4 neng2 / zhi neng / zhineng | chih neng / chihneng |
You May Learn from Victory, You Will Learn from Failure | 勝って得るものも有れば負けて得るものも有る | katte erumono mo areba makete erumono mo aru | ||
Learn from Wisdom | 見賢思齊 见贤思齐 | jiàn xián sī qí jian4 xian2 si1 qi2 jian xian si qi jianxiansiqi | chien hsien ssu ch`i chienhsienssuchi chien hsien ssu chi |
|
Open the Minds of the Next Generation To Stimulate Thinking | 啟迪 启迪 | qǐ dí / qi3 di2 / qi di / qidi | ch`i ti / chiti / chi ti | |
Power of Understanding and Wisdom | 悟性 | gosei | wù xìng / wu4 xing4 / wu xing / wuxing | wu hsing / wuhsing |
Thought Thinking Idea | 思想 | shisou / shiso | sī xiǎng / si1 xiang3 / si xiang / sixiang | ssu hsiang / ssuhsiang |
Wisdom Intelligence | 慧 | e / kei | huì / hui4 / hui | |
Wisdom Brilliance | 纔智 才智 | sai chi / saichi | cái zhì / cai2 zhi4 / cai zhi / caizhi | ts`ai chih / tsaichih / tsai chih |
Wisdom comes from Experience | 不經一事不長一智 不经一事不长一智 | bù jīng yī shì bù zhǎng yī zhì bu4 jing1 yi1 shi4 bu4 zhang3 yi1 zhi4 bu jing yi shi bu zhang yi zhi bujingyishibuzhangyizhi | pu ching i shih pu chang i chih puchingishihpuchangichih |
|
Wisdom comes from Experience | 不經一事 不经一事 | bù jīng yī shì bu4 jing1 yi1 shi4 bu jing yi shi bujingyishi | pu ching i shih puchingishih |
|
Wisdom | 智 | chi / tomo | zhì / zhi4 / zhi | chih |
Wisdom Intelligence | 賢明 贤明 | ken mei / kenmei | xián míng xian2 ming2 xian ming xianming | hsien ming hsienming |
Wisdom | 智慧 | chie | zhì huì / zhi4 hui4 / zhi hui / zhihui | chih hui / chihhui |
Wisdom | 知惠 知恵 | chie | zhī huì / zhi1 hui4 / zhi hui / zhihui | chih hui / chihhui |
Wise and Virtuous | 賢 贤 | ken | xián / xian2 / xian | hsien |
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. |
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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.
Check out my lists of Japanese Kanji Calligraphy Wall Scrolls and Old Korean Hanja Calligraphy Wall Scrolls.
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