Do you ever find yourself in a situation where you can not seem to find the right words to express what you are feeling, or that words do not seem to do justice to the depth of feeling ......
Recently when words failed me I took a few hours out to make a 木製 の 銘板, mokusei no meiban which translates to wooden plaque.
I selected a Yojijukugo 四字熟語 - 一刻千金 Ikkoku senkin, which means every moment is precious and added a few words underneath.
Typically in Japan a motto or saying may be represented as a four character ideogram called a Yojijukugo 四字熟語 these can be either idiomatic or non-idiomatic e.g. the kanji could directly represent the meaning of the saying or bear no relationship at all.
So a direct translation word for word would be pretty meaningless, and although there are over 20,000 Yojijukugo I have select a few and put them in a table below and also made a link to and extensive selection to a few thousand others.
| Kanji | Pronunciation | Meaning |
| 以心伝心 | Ishin denshin | Heart-to-heart communication To have a tacit understanding |
| 一期一会 | Ichigo ichie | Meeting only once in a lifetime Every encounter is treasures, because there may be no reunion |
| 一騎当千 | Ikki tousen | To have capability to be equal to 1000 persons |
| 一刻千金 | Ikkoku senkin | Every moment is precious |
| 一生懸命 | Isshou kenmei | All one's might One's whole heart |
| 一心同体 | Isshin doutai | One flesh / to be one body and soul |
| 一世風靡 | Issei fuubi | To attract people's mind To dominate the world and have a lot of followers |
| 花鳥風月 | Kachou fugetsu | The beauties of nature such as flowers, birds, wind, and moon |
| 完全無欠 | Kanzen muketsu | Absolute perfection / impeccability |
| 奇想天外 | Kisou tengai | Out-of-this-world Fantastic things which cannot be expected at all |
| 堅忍不抜 | Kennin fubatsu | to endure of firm volition and be not perturbed by anything Fortitude |
| 行雲流水 | Kouun ryusui | The free heart without tenacity of purpose Takeing things as they are |
| 山紫水明 | Sanshi suimei | Outstanding natural beauty |
| 色即是空 | Shikisoku zeku | All are phenomena although everything is equipped with various shapes. There is no invariable eternity substance and essence is the empty. (Teaching of Buddhism) |
| 順風満帆 | Junpu manpan | Smooth sailing Everything is going well |
| 自由奔放 | Jiyu honpou | Freewheeling |
| 純真無垢 | Junshin muku | To be pure and innocent |
| 森羅万象 | Shinra banshou | All the things which exist in the universe All of creation |
| 誠心誠意 | Seishin seii | Wholeheartedly |
| 大器晩成 | Taiki bansei | Great talents mature late |
| 天真爛漫 | Tenshin ranman | Simple, naive and innocent |
| 独立自尊 | Dokuritsu jison | To be independent with self-respect |
| 波瀾万丈 | Haran banjou | Many vicissitudes Stormy |
| 百戦錬磨 | Hyakusen renma | To have gained many experiences |
| 風光明媚 | Fuukou meibi | To be beautiful view To be scenic |
| 不言実行 | Fugen jikkou | To practice before words |
| 粉骨砕身 | Funkotsu saishin | To try hard at the sacrifice of self |
| 無念無想 | Munen musou | To banish all other thoughts from one's mind To be free from all distracting thoughts |
| 無我夢中 | Muga muchu | Ecstasy / to forget self and be devoted to something |
| 明鏡止水 | Meikyou shisui | Mind as serene as a polished mirror |
Click on the button below to review the extensive selection of Yojijukugo page
If you would like to order a 木製 の 銘板 - mokusei no meiban - to wooden plaque.
1. Select a Yojijukugo from the table or link above
2. E Mail - sotosabisu@btinternet.com with the details and any custom text that you would like to add and a delivery address.
3. We will E mail you a pro-forma invoice
4. Once payment is received your plaque should be with you in approx 2 to 3 weeks depending on volumes going through the shop.
Current costings can be found in the relevant shop page please click on the button below to view.
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