日本の知恵を、毎日お届けしています
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Meikyō shisui
A clear mirror and still water.
明鏡 (めいきょう / meikyō) is a clear mirror; 止水 (しすい / shisui) is still water. Together they describe a tranquil, clear mind.
Makeru ga kachi
Sometimes losing is winning.
負ける (まける / makeru) means to lose; 勝ち (かち / kachi) means a win or victory. The apparent contradiction makes the lesson memorable.
Yanagi ni yukiore nashi
Snow does not break the willow.
柳 (やなぎ / yanagi) is willow; 雪折れ (ゆきおれ / yukiore) means breaking under the weight of snow. なし means there is none.
Kirei na hana ni wa toge ga aru
Beautiful flowers have thorns.
綺麗 (きれい / kirei) means beautiful or clean; 花 (はな / hana) is a flower; 棘 (とげ / toge) is a thorn. Here 綺麗 describes beauty.
Bunka wa tsumikasane
Culture is built over time.
文化 (ぶんか / bunka) means culture. 積み重ね (つみかさね / tsumikasane) means accumulation or the result of building things up, one layer at a time.
Taru o shiru
Know what is enough.
足る (たる / taru) means to be enough; 知る (しる / shiru) means to know. The phrase turns sufficiency into something we can learn to recognize.
Koten no Hi
Classics Day
古典 (こてん / koten) means a classic or classical work; 日 (ひ / hi) means day. の (no) connects them in 古典の日 (Koten no Hi), Classics Day.
Misoka.
the last day of a month
晦日 (みそか / misoka) means the last day of any month. 大晦日 (おおみそか / Ōmisoka) is specifically New Year's Eve, so the two should not be treated as synonyms in every context.
Shokuhin rosu.
food loss; edible food discarded
食品 (しょくひん / shokuhin) is food products; ロス (rosu) is the loanword loss. Japanese policy uses 食品ロス for food that could still be eaten but is thrown away.
Son shite toku tore.
Accept a short-term loss to secure a larger future gain.
損 (そん / son) is a loss; 得 (とく / toku) is a gain or benefit. The imperative 取れ (とれ / tore) says to take or secure the longer-term gain.
Tsuru mau katachi no Gunma-ken.
Gunma Prefecture, shaped like a crane in flight.
つる (tsuru) is a crane; 舞う (まう / mau) is to dance or wheel through the air; 形 (かたち / katachi) is shape; 群馬県 (ぐんまけん / Gunma-ken) is Gunma Prefecture.
Watashi wa chiisai toki kara, kifuku ni tonda suji no aru monogatari ga daisuki deshita.
Ever since I was little, I have loved stories with strong plots full of ups and downs.
起伏に富んだ (きふくにとんだ / kifuku ni tonda) means full of ups and downs; 筋 (すじ / suji) here means plot; 物語 (ものがたり / monogatari) is story.
Kurayami no naka, hitori sukurīn o mitsumenagara onaji hikari o wakachiau.
In the dark, each of us watches the screen and shares the same light.
暗闇 (くらやみ / kurayami) is darkness; 見つめる (みつめる / mitsumeru) is to gaze at; 分かち合う (わかちあう / wakachiau) is to share.
Momo kuri sannen, kaki hachinen.
Peaches and chestnuts take three years; persimmons take eight.
桃 (もも / momo) is peach; 栗 (くり / kuri) is chestnut; 柿 (かき / kaki) is persimmon. The proverb teaches that different results need different amounts of time.
Dokusho hyappen, i onozukara tsūzu.
Read a text a hundred times and its meaning will become clear.
読書 (どくしょ / dokusho) is reading; 百遍 (ひゃっぺん / hyappen) means a hundred times; 意 (い / i) is meaning; 自ずから (おのずから / onozukara) means naturally; 通ず (つうず / tsūzu) means become understood.
Hima de boyatto iroiro na koto o kangaete iru toki ni, shizen to ukande kuru n desu yo.
They come to me naturally when I'm idly letting my mind wander over different things.
ヒマ (hima) is idle time; ボヤッと (boyatto) is vaguely or absent-mindedly; 浮かんでくる (うかんでくる / ukande kuru) means to come to mind.
Jidai Matsuri.
Festival of the Ages
時代 (じだい / jidai) means historical era; 祭 (まつり / matsuri) means festival. The procession presents successive periods of Kyoto history.
Akari.
light; illumination
あかり (akari) means light or illumination, especially light as experienced in a place. The all-hiragana form feels warm and accessible.
Motto ii kuruma o tsukurō yo.
Let's make ever-better cars.
もっといい (motto ii) means better or even better; つくろう (tsukurō) is the volitional 'let's make'. よ (yo) adds direct emphasis.
Kaze ga fukeba okeya ga mōkaru
When the wind blows, the tub maker profits.
風が吹けば (kaze ga fukeba): when the wind blows. 桶屋 (okeya): a wooden-tub maker. 儲かる (mōkaru): to profit. The proverb points to indirect consequences, sometimes with a skeptical tone.
Tōkei
Statistics
統計 (tōkei) means statistics: collected data organized to show patterns. 数字 (sūji) means numbers; 傾向 (keikō), a trend.
Kannamesai
Kannamesai, the new-grain offering rite
神嘗祭 (かんなめさい / Kannamesai) is the Ise Jingu rite in which the year's new grain is first offered to Amaterasu Ōmikami in gratitude.
Sekai Shokuryō Dē
World Food Day
世界 (sekai) means “world”; 食料 (shokuryō), food or food supplies; デー (dē) is the borrowed word “day.”
Ichiyō ochite tenka no aki o shiru
One falling leaf tells of autumn across the land.
一葉 (ichiyō) means one leaf; 落ちて (ochite), falling; 天下 (tenka), the world under heaven; 秋 (aki), autumn; 知る (shiru), to know. The proverb describes recognizing a wider trend from a small early sign.
Shasei
Sketching from life; faithful observation
写生 (shasei) means sketching from life. Start with what you can observe, then put it into words.
Satsumaimo.
sweet potato
さつまいも (satsumaimo) means sweet potato. 焼きいも (やきいも / yakiimo) is baked sweet potato, a familiar autumn snack.
Akogareru no o yamemashō.
Let’s stop putting them on a pedestal.
憧れる (あこがれる / akogareru) means to admire or look up to someone. 尊敬する (そんけいする / sonkei suru) means to respect. やめましょう (yamemashō) means “let’s stop.” Here, he asks the team to set aside awe for this game and compete as equals.
Ten takaku, uma koyuru aki.
The sky is high, and horses grow stout in autumn.
天 (てん / ten) is the sky; 肥ゆる (こゆる / koyuru) is a literary form meaning to grow fat. In present Japanese the saying evokes autumn's clear sky and comfortable season.
Boku wa dejitaru ni yotte, āto no gainen o kakuchō dekiru to shinjite imasu.
I believe digital technology can expand the concept of art.
概念 (がいねん / gainen) means concept; 拡張する (かくちょうする / kakuchō suru) means to expand. ～と信じています (...to shinjite imasu) states a considered belief.
Ato no matsuri.
Too late to be of use.
後 (あと / ato) means after; 祭り (まつり / matsuri) means festival. As an idiom, 後の祭り describes action taken only after it can help.
Kanro.
Cold Dew
寒 (かん / kan) means cold; 露 (ろ / ro) means dew. 寒露 (かんろ / kanro) is one of the twenty-four solar terms.
Niwasaki mawari.
neighborhood courtyard rounds
庭先 (にわさき / niwasaki) is the area in front of a home; 回り (まわり / mawari) means making rounds. In Nagasaki Kunchi, performance groups carry the festival into town through these rounds.
Tabi wa michizure, yo wa nasake.
On the road, a companion; in life, compassion.
道連れ (みちづれ / michizure) is a travelling companion; 情け (なさけ / nasake) is compassion. The proverb links practical companionship with humane treatment through life.
Mamotte kureru basho mo aru kedo jiyū mo aru
There is somewhere that protects you, and freedom too.
～てくれる frames protection as something received. Repeated も means both qualities are present; けど gives a conversational contrast. Readings: ～てくれる (-te kureru) も (mo) けど (kedo)
Benkyō mo kenkyū mo omoshiroi no desu
Both learning and research are fascinating.
勉強 means learning or study; 研究 investigates a question. Repeated も means both, while のです adds an explanatory tone. Readings: 勉強 (べんきょう / benkyō) 研究 (けんきゅう / kenkyū) も (mo) のです (no desu)
Jiyū kattatsu
Free and open-minded
自由 means free; 闊達 suggests an open, broad-minded disposition. Together the expression describes a culture in which people can think and speak freely. Readings: 自由 (じゆう / jiyū) 闊達 (かったつ / kattatsu) 自由闊達 (じゆうかったつ / jiyū kattatsu)
Tōfu
Tofu
豆 (mame) means bean when used on its own; in 豆腐 (tōfu), it is read tō. October 2 plays on tō for ten and fu for two. This is 語呂合わせ (goroawase): matching numbers with sounds.
Kamosu
To brew; to create an atmosphere
醸す (kamosu) means to brew through fermentation. It also means to create a mood or atmosphere: 雰囲気を醸す (fun'iki o kamosu). The same verb connects making something in a brewery with shaping how a room feels.
Me no mae no kekka ga shinjitsu
The result in front of you is the truth.
目の前 (me no mae) means right before your eyes; 結果 (kekka) means result; 真実 (shinjitsu) means truth. Yamanaka pairs openness to an unexpected result with repeated experiments to check whether it holds up.
Kuru fuku
Good fortune coming your way
来る (kuru) means to come; 福 (fuku) means good fortune. Together, 来る福 (kuru fuku) suggests good fortune arriving. 招き猫 (maneki-neko) is the beckoning cat associated with this playful reading of September 29.
Toranu tanuki no kawazan'yō
Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
捕らぬ (toranu) means not caught. 狸 (tanuki) is a raccoon dog. 皮算用 (kawazan'yō) pictures gains before they are secured.
Senshūraku
The final day of a tournament or run
千秋楽 (senshūraku) names the last day of a sumo tournament or the closing day of a performance run.