真剣 shinken Real Sword

真剣 is a real sword, a live blade rather than a wooden practice sword. In everyday Japanese it means serious and earnest, doing a thing for real.

The Japanese word 真剣 meaning "Real Sword" is composed of the kanji 真 (read shin) meaning "true" and 剣 (read ken) meaning "sword".

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.

If you need your design again later, ask us for it and we will send it.