天国 tengoku Heaven

天国 is heaven, the world above where God and the angels are. In Christianity it is the place of eternal blessing. It is also any place that is a paradise for those in it, as in 歩行者天国 (hokōsha tengoku), a street closed to cars. Read amakuni, the same kanji are the name of a swordsmith said to be the founder of Japanese sword-making.

The Japanese word 天国 meaning "Heaven" is composed of the kanji 天 (read ten) meaning "heavens; sky" and 国 (read koku) meaning "country; kingdom". Together they are read tengoku, because the sounds change where the characters meet: 国 koku becomes goku after 天.

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.

Your purchase includes a personal-use license: use the design as a tattoo reference, frame it, engrave it, print it for yourself, or make it into a gift. For more information see Licensing, which also covers commercial-use options that may be purchased separately.

Your PDF is available for download the moment your order completes, and a copy is attached to your emailed receipt.

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