Katakana translation

Jaco Greyling · 11 Apr 2021

Good day,

Can someone please assist in translating calligraphy the image.

I would like to know if it has any significant meaning in ancient japanese, in a folk tale, japanese religion, is it disrespectful or offensive or is it of a good nature, in the Japanese culture.

Buntaro · 12 Apr 2021

Jaco,

The image seems to be only part of a longer phrase. Can you show us any characters before and/or after the three characters you have already shown us?

Toritoribe · 12 Apr 2021

Jaco Greyling said:
Good day,

Can someone please assist in translating calligraphy the image.

I would like to know if it has any significant meaning in ancient japanese, in a folk tale, japanese religion, is it disrespectful or offensive or is it of a good nature, in the Japanese culture.

すべては単純な行から始まります

What is your request? Do you want to transliterate the sentence into katakana or translate it into English? Also, why are you asking about "meaning in ancient Japanese"? That sentence is written in modern Japanese, so your question doesn't make sense.

Where did you get it from, by the way? A noun 行 can have multiple meanings in that sentence, so it's impossible to understand the correct meaning of it without knowing the context.

mdchachi · 12 Apr 2021

Buntaro said:
The image seems to be only part of a longer phrase. Can you show us any characters before and/or after the three characters you have already shown us?

If you click on the image you should be able to see the whole thing.

Jaco Greyling · 12 Apr 2021

Hi all,

I used an online translator to translate from English to Katana (katakana - Translation into Japanese - examples English | Reverso Context) hence why i want to have it confirmed.
The English sentence is : "It all begins with a simple line", also "success begins with a simple line"

Reason for me asking if it bears any meaning is to ensure it is not disrespectful or is harmful in any way to japanese culture or Japanese people(out of respect).
Should it have any ancient or folk tale significance i would like to read up on it.

It is purely a phrase(my phrase) i like to use and would like it written in japanese calligraphy to make use of to print/copy etc.

Toritoribe · 12 Apr 2021

What do you want to mean by "line"? 行 is indeed a Japanese translation of "line", but it might not be appropriate depending on the meaning you want to say.

Jaco Greyling · 14 Apr 2021

Toritoribe said:
What do you want to mean by "line"? 行 is indeed a Japanese translation of "line", but it might not be appropriate depending on the meaning you want to say.

Hi Toritoribe,

A line as in the first stroke of a painting using a paint brush as in the attached image.

mdchachi · 15 Apr 2021

Maybe this would work better:
すべては単純な画から始まります

Toritoribe · 15 Apr 2021

my attempt

すべては単純な線から始まる。

mdchachi · 15 Apr 2021

Toritoribe said:
my attempt

すべては単純な線から始まる。

I thought about that but I wasn't sure if it brings to mind a brush stroke. Every time I use this in my real life, we are literally talking about lines. Like train lines or paint lines on the road.

Jaco Greyling · 22 Apr 2021

Toritoribe said:
my attempt

すべては単純な線から始まる。

Hi.

I had a look at that translation and it doesn't quite mean the same.

mdchachi you are in the right track... Let me try explaining it better...
1)Successful artist starts his paintings with a stroke from a brush in a line.
2)a Successful businessman signs multiple contracts.(signature starts with a line).
3)a Successful flight from A to B flys in a line.
4) a successful chef cuts his ingredients on a imaginary line.

I hope that will give a better understanding.

nice gaijin · 22 Apr 2021

In that case, 線 has the vagueness and multiple meanings you may be looking for. 行 (as it pertains to "line") refers to a line/row of text, like a line of poetry. I guess 画 is much more specific to kanji "strokes" but I am not familiar with how it's used... as a counter, perhaps?

Toritoribe · 22 Apr 2021

nice gaijin said:
I guess 画 is much more specific to kanji "strokes" but I am not familiar with how it's used... as a counter, perhaps?

That's right. In other words, 一画 can means "a single/one stroke" in an appropriate context, and 画数 means "number of strokes" (e.g. 画数が一画の漢字), but just a single kanji 画 is not used as "stroke".

@ the OP, you need to understand that kanji usually has multiple meanings, as I already pointed out. In the sentence すべては単純な画から始まります, the most possible interpretation of 画 would be え, i.e, "image/picture".

Similarly, 行 can mean "(religious) practice/austerities" in your translation, as I already wrote "A noun 行 can have multiple meanings in that sentence" in my initial reply.

Another choice is not a single kanji but a compound word 一筆ひとふで. However, this word has another reading いっぴつ, meaning "short letter/note".

線 is commonly used to refer to "line" in calligraphy, and it's not misunderstood. That's why I finally chose this translation.

nice gaijin · 23 Apr 2021

Toritoribe said:
Similarly, 行 can mean "(religious) practice/austerities" in your translation, as I already wrote "A noun 行 can have multiple meanings in that sentence" in my initial reply.

I know about 修行 but can 行 by itself refer to a practice/sadhana?

Toritoribe · 23 Apr 2021

ぎょう【行】の解説
ウ《(梵)carita, caryāの訳》僧や修験者の修行。

goo

NTTドコモが運営するポータルサイト「goo」。今話題のニュースやドコモのキャンペーン、サービス紹介などお役立ちコンテンツを展開しています。

dictionary.goo.ne.jp

use examples in a corpus
まるで無言の行をしている尼僧のようだ。
内海隆一郎(著) 懐かしい人びと

ヨーガの行を行っていくうちに、次第に開業したい気持ちが膨らんできた。
髙森道雄(著) ひとを治療するということ

それゆえ釈尊は、他の一切の行を捨てて、念仏一行を讃嘆し、付属されたのであるといわれていた。
梯實圓(著) 教行信証の宗教構造

お念仏以外の行を修めて浄土を求める人は、
藤堂恭俊(著) 選択集講座

佐清は依然として無言の行をつづけている。
横溝正史(著) 犬神家の一族

私たちに代わって往生のための行を修して、これを六字の名号にこめられ、
浄土真宗

そればかりか、学問を自学自習し、断食や無言の行をおこない、
カレル・チャペック(著) 小林恭二，大森望(訳) 山椒魚戦争

五体を地に投じて礼拝の行を重ね、
井上靖(著) 井上靖歴史紀行文集

Actually, "practice" was my initial interpretation of 行 when I saw the OP's post. I thought すべては単純な行から始まります was the original Japanese sentence, and the OP asked to transliterate it into katakana or translate it into English, as in my initial reply. If 行 refers to a line of a literary work like a poem, 単純な is uncommon/odd to describe it, so I interpreted that the sentence could be a part of an explanation regarding religious practices, especially in Buddhism.

Katakana translation

Jaco Greyling

Registered

Attachments

Buntaro

運動不足

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

mdchachi

Moderator

Jaco Greyling

Registered

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

Jaco Greyling

Registered

Attachments

mdchachi

Moderator

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

mdchachi

Moderator

Jaco Greyling

Registered

nice gaijin

Resident Realist

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

nice gaijin

Resident Realist

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

goo

Similar threads