結 (musubi) “relationships”

Literally meaning "tying together", this word can be used to refer to the relationships that tie humans together, in particular romantic relationships. In Japan (as well as China and Korea) lovers who are destined to be together are thought to be joined by the "red thread of fate". Romantic partners are often depicted with aContinue reading "結 (musubi) “relationships”"

結 (musubi) “relationships”

Literally meaning "tying together", this word can be used to refer to the relationships that tie humans together, in particular romantic relationships. In Japan (as well as China and Korea) lovers who are destined to be together are thought to be joined by the "red thread of fate". Romantic partners are often depicted with aContinue reading "結 (musubi) “relationships”"

龍 (ryū) “dragon”

If you visit a shrine or temple in Japan, look up at the ceiling of the main room. Often there will be a painting of a dragon. One reason is that dragons represent the virtue of courage. Another, more superstitious, reason is that dragons are associated with the element of water, and so are aContinue reading "龍 (ryū) “dragon”"

龍 (ryū) “dragon”

If you visit a shrine or temple in Japan, look up at the ceiling of the main room. Often there will be a painting of a dragon. One reason is that dragons represent the virtue of courage. Another, more superstitious, reason is that dragons are associated with the element of water, and so are aContinue reading "龍 (ryū) “dragon”"

How to *REALLY* make friends in Japan

Breaking out of the “gaijin bubble” TL;DR: I’m an introvert and I don’t speak Japanese well, but I made some good friendships via language exchanges. The long version: The “gaijin bubble” If you’ve lived in Japan you’ve probably heard of the “gaijin bubble”. “Gaijin” (外人) is short for “gaikokujin” (外国人), the Japanese word for “foreigner”.Continue reading "How to *REALLY* make friends in Japan"

恵 (megumi) “blessed”

"Megumi" is often used to describe a situation that is full of something positive. For example, "a field full of flowers" could be said like this: 「花に恵まれたこの野」 (literally, "a field blessed with flowers"). It's also a fairly common girls' name. The above artwork is available on my Etsy shop here. WordPress users get 15% offContinue reading "恵 (megumi) “blessed”"

恵 (megumi) “blessed”

"Megumi" is often used to describe a situation that is full of something positive. For example, "a field full of flowers" could be said like this: 「花に恵まれたこの野」 (literally, "a field blessed with flowers"). It's also a fairly common girls' name.

ウサギちゃん bunny (actually “bnuy”…. or maybe “bnuny”…???)

A friend commissioned me to create a Japanese calligraphy piece as a gift for someone who likes the word "bunny", but always intentionally misspells it "bnuy" or "bnuny". The question is, how to interpret an English misspelling in Japanese? My solution is as follows: "rabbit" = 「ウサギ」 ("usagi") 2. Putting 「ちゃん」 ("chan") after it makesContinue reading "ウサギちゃん bunny (actually “bnuy”…. or maybe “bnuny”…???)"

忠義 (chūgi) “responsibility” – the seventh virtue of 武士道 (bushidō)

The seventh virtue is “The Duty of Loyalty”, which I have translated as "responsibility". In its simplest form, “the Duty of Loyalty” refers to the fierce loyalty that samurai had to their lords and their clan.  I have translated this as “responsibility” because this implies far more than just standing by one’s superiors and coworkers.  We are all part of something bigger than ourselves, be it a family group, a company, or wider society. We all have responsibilities to others. “Responsibility” also means being responsible to oneself and any projects or undertakings that one has agreed to.