地震雷火事親父 jishin kaminari kaji oyaji Earthquakes, Thunderbolts, Fires, Fathers

A list of the fearsome things of this world, read downward from the worst, with the father as the joke at the end. Three disasters come first, and then the man of the house, rhymed to the fire. It is Edo popular speech and a children's chant, a joke that stayed true. The person who chooses it is usually a father or has one. The seven characters can be a warning, a boast, or a family's affectionate teasing. Which it is, is yours. The story that 親父 was once a great wind is a modern guess with no witness. The father is the point.

We want you to be as happy with the meaning as you are with Master Takase's art. To learn more, visit Philology of 地震雷火事親父.

Each design is Master Japanese Calligrapher Eri Takase's hand-brushed calligraphy of the word or phrase on this page, delivered as a PDF you can print. Every PDF includes the line art, so a tattoo artist or a craftsperson can work from the outline as well as the brushed image.

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