夫婦円満 is the plain wish a Japanese wedding guest writes on the card, the phrase a fortune slip promises and a shrine advertises: a marriage that works, said as a wish and as a report, with no author behind it. Its 円満 means harmonious and free of friction, said of people and of dealings as readily as of a marriage; it began as a Buddhist word for merit that lacks nothing.
The classical sister of 夫婦円満 is 比翼連理, wing to wing, branch to branch, from a Tang poem, and its modern one is 家庭円満, a harmonious home.
夫婦円満 is composed of the words 夫婦 (read fūfu) meaning "married couple, husband and wife" and 円満 (read enman) meaning "harmony".
We want you to be as happy with the meaning as you are with Master Takase's art. To learn more, visit Philology of 夫婦円満.