a mixed plate of Japanese American news and culture
永 (ei or nagai) means “eternal or long.” This character consists of two parts. The top forms a single drop of rain; the bottom represents water in a river. A single drop of rain flows into the waters of a river and continues on its path forever. 遠 (en or tooii) means “far.” This character [...]
親 (oya) means “parent.” This character consists of three parts. The top of the left side is 立 (tatsu), which means “stand.” Below that is 木 (ki), which means “a tree.” The right side is 見 (miru), which means “to see or look.” So parents are standing in a tree and looking upon their children [...]
ji ko yoku 自(ji) means “own.” This character comes from the shape of a person’s nose. 己 (ko or onore) means “self.” This character represents a person who is bending down. 欲 (yoku) means “desire” and consists of two parts; the left side is the shape of a valley and the right side is a [...]
心の出資 (Kokoro no Shushi) means “spiritual investment.” Kokoro (心) means “heart,” and its character is in the shape of a human heart. Shu or deru (出) means “go out or come out,” and its character is in the shape of a human foot. Shi (資) means “funds,” and its character consists of two parts; the [...]
富 (Fu or Tomi) means “richnes.” This character comes from a shape of a warehouse which is full of crops or treasures inside. 士 (Ji or Shi) means “samurai” who guards the King or lord. This character comes from a shape of a weapon which can protect the king or lord. 山 (San or Yama) [...]
四 (yon or shi) means the number four in English, which comes from the shape of four fingers. 心 (Kokoro) means heart, which comes from the shape of a human heart. 虫 (Mushi) means worm, which comes from the shape of a worm. A few years ago, my family went to pick fruits in Brentwood, Calif. We picked [...]
The kanji character 用 (yo) means “to be able, useful” and consists of two parts. A vertical center line represents a nail. All other lines represent pieces of wood. The pieces of wood were put together by the nail. 意(i) means “thinking in your heart,” which consists of two parts. Above is a person’s voice and below [...]
The kanji character 忍 (nin or shinobu) means “patience.” This character is made of two parts. The top is 刃 (yaiba), which means “sword or knife.” The bottom is 心 (kokoro), which means “spiritual or physical heart.” Nin is when someone attacks you with a sword and almost kills you by missing your heart, but you remain patient [...]
先 (Saki) means “front” or “future,” and consists of two parts. The upper section represents the sole of someone’s foot. The character below represents a pair of legs walking. Thus, together they represent “front” or “future.” 楽 (Tanoshime, Raku) which means “enjoy” or “look forward to,” is made up of two parts, as well. The upper character [...]
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