無常 mujō Impermanence

Impermanence in Japanese is 無常 which is read mujō

無常 (mujō): impermanence.

無常 is the Buddhist teaching that nothing holds its form: all that arises changes and passes. 無 is without and 常 is constant, always the same, so the word says simply not constant. It is a truth about the world, not a feeling of doubt. In Japanese it can also mean a death, and its poems give it a feeling English has no single word for. Whether you hang it as a comfort or as a reminder to treasure what is here now is yours.

The word is older than Buddhism, meaning without constancy in the 易 and the 孫子, and the translators of the sutras took it for the Sanskrit anitya, the impermanence of everything that arises, which is the sense it carried into Japan, where a poet of 750 already reads it as 常なし.

We want you to be as happy with the meaning as you are with Master Takase's art. To learn more, visit Philology of 無常.

Your scroll is brushed when you order it and completed within 1 to 3 business days. It ships by USPS Priority Mail from Master Takase's studio in Washington State, boxed and ready to hang, with a printed page giving the art's English, romaji and Japanese.

Sending it as a gift? Tell us when you order and we will include your message.

Shipping is calculated at checkout from your address; within the United States it is $13 to $22. We ship worldwide, and any import charges for your country are shown at checkout before you pay.

Every order is covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee. If your scroll arrives damaged, or we made an error, we replace it or refund you in full, including shipping. Refund policy

Master Japanese Calligrapher Eri Takase brushes your scroll by hand when you order it. Each scroll bears her red seal, 英利, and her signature.

The scrolls are 12 1/4" W × 43" H (31 × 109 cm) with real silk borders and Japanese paper that are layered so the scroll hangs straight and will not warp over time. The scrolls themselves are made by Sankō (株式会社三幸) in Gifu prefecture, which has been making high quality scrolls since 1947, and we have worked with Sankō for over two decades.

Eri Takase was born and raised in Osaka, Japan, and holds the rank of Shihan, the highest rank in Japanese calligraphy, from the Bokuteki-kai and the Bunka-shodo. About Master Takase