Water in Chinese / Japanese...

水 is the symbol for water in in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

Water is one of the five elements that ancient Chinese believed all things were composed of. These elements are also part of the cycle of Chinese astrology. Every person has both an animal sign, and one of the five elements according to the date of their birth. See also Five Elements and Chinese 12 Animals / Zodiac.

This quote is sometimes presented as, "Be like water".

However, this is an ancient quote from the great philosopher Lao Tzu. It basically suggests that the ultimate goodness and purity (in the world) is water. Many take this as a suggestion to be like pure/good water.

若水 is part of a very old saying from Lao Tzu.

It these two characters, there is a suggestion to be like water. The full phrase is about the goodness and purity of water. So, when this suggests being like water, it is actually a suggestion to be a good person (one who does not dishonor himself/herself etc).

水球 is the Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja title for water polo.

The literal meaning of the characters is "water ball".

像水一樣 is a short quote from a much longer statement by Bruce Lee.

He was summarizing how people should be flexible to all circumstances, attacks, or situations. At the end, he exclaims, "Be like water my friend". 像水一樣 is the, "Be like water" part alone, since that seems to be what most people want.

水の心 is the Japanese Buddhist and martial arts phrase, "mizu no kokoro", which means, "mind like water" or "heart of water".

The phrase is a metaphor describing the pond that clearly reflects it's surroundings when calm but whose images are obscured once a pebble is dropped into its waters.

水虎 means "water tiger" in Chinese and Japanese.

This old Asian proverb means "flowers in a mirror and the moon reflected in the lake" or "flowers reflected on a mirror and the moon reflected on the water's surface".

Literally, 鏡花水月 reads "Mirror Flower, Water Moon".

Figuratively this can be used to represent a lot of different ideas. It can be used to express an unrealistic rosy view or viewing things through rose-tinted spectacles. So you can use it to relay an idea about something that is visible but has no substance, something that can be seen but not touched, or something that is beautiful but unattainable such as dreams or a mirage.

This expression is used to describe things like the subtle and profound beauty of poems that cannot be described in words.

鏡 = Mirror (or lens)
花 = Flower(s)
水 = Water
月 = Moon

Can also be written 水月鏡花 (just a slight change in word/character order).

頓悟之前砍柴挑水。頓悟之後砍柴挑水。 means, "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water; After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.

This Chinese proverb is attributed to 吴力 (Wú Lì) who lived between 1632 and 1718 - living part of his life as a devout Buddhist, and many years as a Catholic Jesuit Priest in China - what an interesting life!

This has been explained many times in many ways. I am a Buddhist, and here is my brief take on this proverb...

Before enlightenment, one may find daily chores mundane, tedious, and boring. However, upon reaching enlightenment one is not relieved of the details of daily life. An enlightened person will, however, see such chores as a joy, and do them mindfully.

There is another version floating around, which is 在你領悟之前砍柴、運水。在你領悟之後，砍柴、運水。
If you want this other version, just contact me. The meaning is the same, just different phrasing.

四大元素 is the title for the four classical chemical elements (fire, earth, air and water) in Japanese.

四大 = four great/big. 元素 = elements. So 四大元素 literally means "Four Great Elements".

This Chinese proverb means, "fire [and] water have-not mercy".

This serves to remind us that the forces of nature are beyond human control.

Some may also translation this as, "implacable fate".

杯水車薪 is a warning against a futile effort.

This proverb literally refers to one who is "trying to put out a burning cart of wood with a cup of water", or "throw a cup of water on a cartload of wood". The lesson to be learned is about using the right measure or tool for the job, and not to waste your effort if you are inadequately equipped for the task at hand - in other words the postscript should be "go get a bucket or a fire hose".

Many things have opposite properties. The water you drink can also drown you. Pork may nourish you and keep you alive but under-cook it and it could kill you. Potassium nitrate is often used as a fertilizer to grow the food that sustains us but it's also been used as an explosive to topple buildings and destroy us.

This concept is easily associated with "yin yang" where an element has two opposite properties that are as different as night and day.

This proverb's meaning can be summed up this way: "Anything that can lead you to success may also contain great risks".

This phrase is known in literary circles by Korean people (scholars or literature). It is therefore also a valid proverb in Korean Hanja, though most Koreans would not be able to make sense of it.

Please note that there is an unwritten rule when the same character appears twice in the same phrase, the calligrapher will alter the appearance so that no two characters are exactly alike in the same piece. This calligraphy has two repeating characters that will be written differently than they appear here.

This proverb suggests that one should always be grateful to those who helped you succeed.

And remember your ancestors and those that came before you whose sacrifices made your present life better.

Some Chinese will separate the intended meaning from this proverb and translate this as "Don't forget the people who once helped you". In Modern China, this idiom is virtually never used to refer to an actual well.

Note: This can be pronounced in Korean but it's not a commonly used phrase.

This title for water dragon is the hornless or scaled dragon. 蛟龍 is the king of all aquatic animals with the ability to control rain and floods.

In Japanese, the rain dragon can represent hidden genius. This dragon's domain is the deep murky water, thus with hidden potential. This can also be the Japanese given name Kouryuu.

蟠龍 is sometimes seen as a lower level of dragon, or a dragon that has not-yet-reached its potential.

蟠龍 is often defined as a "lake dragon" that has not ascended to heaven.
Another way to put that is a dragon coiled on the earth, which has not yet ascended to the sky.

This literally translates as: Troops/soldiers/warriors have no fixed [battlefield] strategy [just as] water has no constant shape [but adapts itself to whatever container it is in].

Figuratively, this means: One should seek to find whatever strategy or method is best suited to resolving each individual problem.

This proverb is about as close as you can get to the military idea of "adapt improvise overcome". 兵無常勢水無常形 is best way to express that idea in both an ancient way, and a very natural way in Chinese.