Proverbs and Maxims

念願は人格を決定す継続は力なり · nengan wa jinkaku o ketteisu, keizoku wa chikara nari Your Heart's Desire Decides Who You Are; Continuing Is Strength

夏はいかにも涼しきやうに、冬はいかにも暖かなるやうに · natsu wa ikanimo suzushiki yō ni, fuyu wa ikanimo atatakanaru yō ni In Summer, as Cool as Can Be; in Winter, as Warm as Can Be

七転八起 · nana korobi ya oki Fall Down Seven, Get Up Eight

雨降って地固まる · ame futte ji katamaru The Ground Becomes Firm After Rain

運命の赤い糸 · unmei no akai ito The Red Thread of Fate

言わぬが花 · iwanu ga hana Not Saying Is A Flower

明日は明日の風が吹く · ashita wa ashita no kaze ga fuku Tomorrow Is Another Day

逢うは別れの始め · au wa wakare no hajime Meeting is only the beginning of separation

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

一石二鳥 · isseki nichō Kill two birds with one stone

石の上にも三年 · ishi no ue ni mo sannen On a stone for three years

水に流す · mizu ni nagasu Forgive and Forget

蛇の道は蛇 · ja no michi wa hebi Snakes Follow The Way Of Serpents

多芸は無芸 · tagei wa mugei Too Many Accomplishments Make No Accomplishments

見猿聞か猿言わ猿 · mizaru kikazaru iwazaru See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil

人生は短い · jinsei wa mijikai Life is Short

住めば都 · sumeba miyako Home Is Where You Live

塵も積もれば山となる · chiri mo tsumoreba yama to naru Even dust if piled can become a mountain

勇者は幸運に恵まれる · yūsha wa kōun ni megumareru Fortune Favors The Brave

十人十色 · jūnin toiro Ten People, Ten Colors

人間万事塞翁が馬 · ningen banji saiō ga uma All is Saiō's Horse

笑う門には福来る · warau kado ni wa fuku kitaru Fortune Comes To Those Who Smile

果報は稲で待て · kahō wa ine de mate Wait for Good Fortune in the Rice

知らぬが仏 · shiranu ga hotoke Not Knowing is Buddha

上の田も下の田も穂に穂が咲いて一粒万倍 · kami no ta mo shimo no ta mo ho ni ho ga saite ichiryū manbai In the Upper Field and the Lower, Ear upon Ear in Flower: One Grain, Ten Thousandfold

運命を制す · unmei o seisu I Control My Destiny

油断大敵 · yudan taiteki Carelessness is one's greatest enemy

灯台下暗し · tōdai moto kurashi It Is Darkest at the Foot of the Lamp

晴耕雨読 · seikō udoku Plow in the Sun, Read in the Rain

仕方が無い · 仕様が無い · 仕方無い · shikata ga nai · shiyō ga nai · shikatanai It Cannot Be Helped · It Can't Be Helped

瑞気集門 · zuiki shūmon Gathering of Good Omens

心頭滅却すれば火もまた涼し · shintō mekkyakusureba hi mo mata suzushi Empty the Mind of Thought, and Even Fire Is Cool

少年老い易く学成り難し · shōnen oiyasuku gaku narigatashi Youth Grows Old Quickly, and Learning Is Hard to Win

自業自得 · jigō jitoku You Reap What You Sow

一期一会 · ichigo ichie Each Moment Only Once

肉を切らせて骨を断つ · niku o kirasete hone o tatsu Let Them Cut Your Flesh, and Cut Their Bone

礼に始まり礼に終わる · rei ni hajimari, rei ni owaru Begins and Ends with Courtesy

腹八分目 · hara hachibunme Eating Until Eight Parts Full

三人寄れば文殊の知恵 · sannin yoreba monju no chie If three people gather, the wisdom of Monju

急がば回れ · isogaba maware In a Hurry, Go the Long Way Round

苦は楽の種 · ku wa raku no tane No Pain, No Gain

一寸の虫にも五分の魂 · issun no mushi ni mo gobu no tamashii Even the Smallest Has Its Pride

善は急げ · zen wa isoge If It's Worth Doing, It's Worth Doing Promptly

能ある鷹は爪を隠す · nōaru taka wa tsume o kakusu The Hawk with Talent Hides its Talons

花は桜木人は武士 · hana wa sakuragi hito wa bushi Among Flowers the Cherry, Among Men the Warrior

猿も木から落ちる · saru mo ki kara ochiru Even Monkeys Fall Out Of Trees

一眼二足三胆四力 · ichigan nisoku santan shiriki First the Eye, Second the Feet, Third Courage, Fourth Strength

鬼は外福は内 · oni wa soto, fuku wa uchi Devils Go Out Fortune Come In

Five sayings attributed to Japan, but not Japanese

交剣知愛 · kōken chiai Cross Swords, and Come to Know Love

天は自ら助くる者を助く · ten wa mizukara tasukuru mono o tasuku Heaven Helps Those Who Help Themselves

実るほど頭の下がる稲穂かな · minoru hodo atama no sagaru inaho kana The Riper the Rice, the Lower It Bows Its Head

継続は力なり · keizoku wa chikara nari Persistence Is Strength

因果応報 · inga ōhō Karma

大願成就 · taigan jōju A Great Wish Fulfilled

努力に勝る天才なし · doryoku ni masaru tensai nashi Hard work trumps natural ability

初志貫徹 · shoshi kantetsu Carry Your First Aim Through to the End

笑門来福 · shōmon raifuku Fortune Comes to a Home Full of Laughter

商売繁盛 · shōbai hanjō Thriving Business

一粒万倍 · ichiryū manbai One Grain, Ten Thousandfold

心機一転 · shinki itten Complete Change of Mind

為せば成る · naseba naru Try and You Will Succeed