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Custom Courage Chinese & Japanese Calligraphy Wall Scroll

We have many options to create artwork with Courage characters on a wall scroll or portrait.
If you want to create a cool Courage Asian character tattoo, you can purchase that here: Asian / Chinese / Japanese Tattoo Image Service ...and we'll give you many tattoo image templates of the ancient Asian symbols that express the idea of courage.

Quick links to words on this page...

  1. Bravery / Courage
  2. England / Courage / Bravery
  3. Courage to do what is right
  4. Courage / Bravery
  5. Fidelity Honor Courage
  6. No Fear
  7. Preparation Yields No Fear or Worries
  8. Fear No Man / Fear Nothing
  9. Undaunted After Repeated Setbacks
10. One who is drenched in rain does not fear drops of dew
11. Respect out of fear is never genuine Reverence out of respect is never false
12. Brave the Waves
13. Value of Warrior Generals
14. Advance Bravely / Indomitable Spirit
Select

Bravery / Courage

Mandarin yǒng
Japanese isamu / yu-
Korean
勇

This character can be translated as bravery, courage, or fearless in Chinese, Japanese and Korean. This is the simplest form to express courage or bravery, as there is also a two character form which starts with this same character.

This character can also be translated as brave, daring, fearless, plucky or heroic.

This is also a virtue of the Samurai Warrior
See our page with just Code of the Samurai / Bushido here

See Also...  Bravery

Select

Bravery / Courage

Mandarin yǒng gǎn
Japanese yuu kan
Korean 용감
勇
敢

These characters can also be translated as: braveness, valor, heroic, fearless, and/or courage in Japanese, Chinese, and Korean.

See Also...  Warrior

Select

England / Courage / Bravery

(alternate version)

Mandarin yīng
Japanese ei
Korean
英

In Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean, this can often be confused or read as a short name for England (this character is the first syllable of the word for England, the English language, British Pound and other titles from the British Isles).

In some context, this can mean "outstanding" or even "flower". But it will most often read as having something to do with the United Kingdom.

This is not the most common way to say courage or bravery, but you may see it used sometimes.

I strongly recommend that you choose another form of courage/bravery.

Select

Courage to do what is right

Mandarin jiàn yì yǒng wéi
見
義
勇
為

The title says it all.

This could also be translated as:
"Never hesitate to do what is right".

See Also...  Work Unselfishly For The Common Good | Justice | Bravery

Select

Courage / Bravery

Mandarin yǒng qì
Japanese yuuki
Korean 용기
勇
氣

Courage is bravery in the face of fear. You do the right thing even when it is hard or scary. When you are courageous, you don't give up. You try new things. You admit mistakes. Courage is the strength in your heart.

The first character also means bravery or courage when it's seen alone. With the second character added, an element of energy or spirit is added. The second character is the same "chi" or "qi" energy that Kung Fu masters focus when they strike. For this reason, you could say this means "spirit of courage" or "brave spirit".

This is certainly a stronger word than just the first character alone.

Japanese 気While the version shown to the left is commonly used in Chinese and Korean Hanja (and ancient Japanese Kanji), please note that the second character is written with slightly fewer strokes in modern Japanese. If you want the modern Japanese version, please click on the character to the right. Both styles would be understood by native Chinese, Japanese, and many (but not all) Korean people. You should choose character based on the intended audience for your calligraphy artwork. Or pick the single-character form of bravery/courage which is universal.

See Also...  Warrior

Select

Fidelity Honor Courage

Mandarin xìn yì zūn yán yǒng qì
信
義
尊
嚴
勇
氣

This is a word list that was requested by a customer. Word lists are not that common in Chinese, but we've put this one on the best order/context to make it as natural as possible.

We used the "honor" that leans toward the definition of "dignity" since that seemed like the best match for the other two words.

Please note: These are three two-character words. You should choose the single-column format when you get to the options when you order this selection. The two-column option would split one word or it would be arranged with four characters on one side and two on the other.

Select

No Fear

(two characters)

Mandarin wú wèi
Japanese mui
Korean 무외
無
畏

This literally means "No Fear". But perhaps not the most natural Chinese phrase (see our other "No Fear" phrase for a more complete thought). However, this two-character version of "No Fear" seems to be a very popular way to translate this into Chinese, when we checked Chinese Google.

Note: This also means "No Fear" in Japanese and Korean, but this character pair is not often used in Japan or Korea (used somewhat by Korean Buddhists to mean fearlessness).

See Also...  Never Give Up | No Worries | Undaunted | Bravery

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Select

No Fear

(four-character version)

Mandarin yǒng zhě wú wèi
Korean 용자무외
勇
者
無
畏

This is a complete sentence that means literally "Brave People Have No Fear" or "A Brave Person Has No Fear" (plural or singular is not implied). We translated "No Fear" into the two variations that you will find on our website. Then we checked Chinese Google and found that others had translated "No Fear" in the exact same ways. Pick the one you like best. A great gift for your fearless friend.

Select

Preparation Yields No Fear or Worries

Mandarin yǒu bèi wú huàn
Korean 유비무환
有
備
無
患

This really means, "When you are well-prepared, you have nothing to fear". Noting that the third character means "no" or "without" and modifies the last... The last character can mean misfortune, troubles, worries, or fears. It could even be stretched to mean sickness. Therefore you can translate this phrase a few ways. I've also seen it translated as "Preparedness forestalls calamities".

This is comparable to the English phrase, "Better safe than sorry", but does not directly/literally mean this.

Select

Fear No Man / Fear Nothing

Mandarin wú suǒ wèi jù
Korean 무소외구
無
所
畏
懼

This literally means "fear nothing", but it's the closest thing in Chinese to the phrase "fear no man" which many of you have requested. This would also be the way to say "fear nobody".

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Select

Undaunted After Repeated Setbacks

Persistence to overcome all challenges

Mandarin bǎi zhé bù náo
Japanese hyaku setsu su tou
Korean 백절불요
百
折
不
撓

This phrase means "Be undaunted in the face of repeated setbacks".

It comes from a long, and occasionally tragic story of a man that lived sometime around 25-220 AD. His name was Qiao Xuan and he never stooped to flattery, but remained an upright person at all times. He fought to expose corruption of higher-level government officials at great risk to himself.

Then when he was at a higher level in the Imperial Court, bandits were regularly capturing hostages and demanding ransoms. But when his own son was captured, he was so focused on his duty to the Emperor and common good that he sent a platoon of soldiers to raid the bandits' hideout, and stop them once and for all even at the risk of his own son's life. While all of the bandits were arrested in the raid, they killed Qiao Xuan's son at first sight of the raiding soldiers.

Near the end of his career a new Emperor came to power, and Qiao Xuan reported to him that one of his ministers was bullying the people and extorting money from them. The new Emperor refused to listen to Qiao Xuan and even promoted the corrupt Minister. Qiao Xuan was so disgusted that in protest he resigned his post as minister (something almost never done) and left for his home village.

His tombstone reads "Bai Zhe Bu Nao" which is now a phrase used in Chinese culture to describe a person of strong will who puts up stubborn resistance against great odds.

My Chinese-English dictionary defines these 4 characters as, "keep on fighting in spite of all setbacks", "be undaunted by repeated setbacks" and "be indomitable".

Our translator says it can mean, "never give up" in modern Chinese.

Although the first two characters are translated correctly as "repeated setbacks", the literal meaning is "100 setbacks" or "a rope that breaks 100 times". The last two characters can mean "do not yield" or "do not give up".
Most Chinese, Japanese, and Korean people will not take this absolutely literal meaning, but will instead understand it as the title suggests above.

See Also...  Tenacity | Fortitude | Strength | Perseverance

Select

One who is drenched in rain does not fear drops of dew

Mandarin bèi yǔ lín guò de rén bù pà lù shuǐ
人
不
怕
露
水
被
雨
淋
過
的


Characters shown
above are read
vertically, starting
from the right

This literally translates as:
One who has been drenched by the rain is not afraid of dew drops.

Figuratively, this means:
One who has gone through hardships is not afraid of (minor)setbacks.

Select

Respect out of fear is never genuine
Reverence out of respect is never false

Mandarin dǎ pà de rén shì jiǎ de jìng pà de rén shì zhēn de
人
是
真
的
假
的
敬
怕
的
打
怕
的
人
是


Characters shown
above are read
vertically, starting
from the right

This is a proverb that seems to be aimed at world leaders or others in power. Perhaps a suggestion to avoid the practice of "fear mongering" opting instead for a policy of benevolence and justice.

An example: When the Bush administration told Pakistan they could either join America in the "war on terror", or expect some bombs to be coming their way, Bush gained this kind of "less-than-genuine respect" from Pakistanis.
Leaders in places like North Korea and even Saudi Arabia reap the same bogus respect from their own citizens.

Note that calligraphers do not like to repeat the same characters in exactly the same way in the same piece of artwork. So expect the characters that are repeated to be written in different forms in the real artwork (unlike the way they are displayed to the left).

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Select

Brave the Waves

Mandarin pò làng
破
浪

This can be translated as "braving the waves" or "bravely setting sail". It literally means: "break/cleave/cut [the] waves".

This is a great title to encourage yourself or someone else not to be afraid of problems or troubles.

Because of the context, this is especially good for sailors or yachtsmen and surfers too.

Select

Value of Warrior Generals

Mandarin bīng zài jīng ér bù zài duō jiàng zài móu ér bù zài yǒng
而
不
在
勇
在
多
將
在
謀
兵
在
精
而
不


Characters shown
above are read
vertically, starting
from the right

This literally means: [Just as] soldiers/warriors [are valued for their] quality and not [just] for quantity, [so] generals [are valued] for their tactics, not [just] for [their] bravery.

This is a phrase that follows one about how it is better to have warriors of quality, rather than just a large quantity of warriors in your army/force.

See Also...  兵在精而不在多

Select

Advance Bravely / Indomitable Spirit

Mandarin yǒng wàng zhí qián
勇
往
直
前

This phrase creates an image of a warrior bravely advancing against an enemy regardless of the odds.

This phrase can also be translated as "indomitable spirit" or "march fearlessly onward".

See Also...  Indomitable | Fortitude

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Small-sized standard calligraphy wall scrolls on this page start at the following prices:

1 character $26.88

2 characters $33.88

4 characters $43.88

6 characters $49.88

4 characters $55.88

11 or more characters $56.88

We dispatch any size order to any country worldwide for a flat rate US$9.80 P&P


After you select your calligraphy, our website will take you through the process of customizing your artwork.

Options for other mounting such as portraits are available for $13 less.

We also offer the services of Chinese and Japanese master calligraphers for an additional fee if you are looking for investment-quality calligraphy.

If you chose a master-calligrapher, you also get more choices for silk and paper colors and the option for larger artwork.




A nice Chinese calligraphy wall scroll

The scroll that I am holding in this picture is a "regular size"
4-character wall scroll.
As you can see, it is a great size to hang on your wall.
(We also offer custom wall scrolls in larger sizes)

A professional Chinese Calligrapher

Professional calligraphers are getting to be hard to find these days.
Instead of drawing characters by hand, the new generation in China merely type roman letters into their computer keyboards and pick the character that they want from a list that pops up.

There is some fear that true Chinese calligraphy may become a lost art in the coming years. Many art institutes in China are now promoting calligraphy programs in hopes of keeping this unique form of art alive.

Trying to learn Chinese calligrapher - a futile effort

Even with the teachings of a top-ranked calligrapher in China, my calligraphy will never be good enough to sell. I will leave that to the experts.


A high-ranked Chinese master calligrapher that I met in Zhongwei

The same calligrapher who gave me those lessons also attracted a crowd of thousands and a TV crew as he created characters over 6-feet high. He happens to be ranked as one of the top 100 calligraphers in all of China. He is also one of very few that would actually attempt such a feat.



See: Our list of specifically Japanese Kanji Calligraphy Wall Scrolls. And, check out Our list of specifically old Korean Hanja Calligraphy Wall Scrolls.



The following table is only helpful for those studying Chinese (or Japanese), and perhaps helps search engines to find this page when someone enters Romanized Chinese or Japanese

Title
 
Characters
Simplified
Traditional
Japanese Romaji
(Romanized Japanese)
Various forms of Hanyu-Pinyin
(Romanized Chinese)
Bravery / Courage
isamu / yu-
isamu/yu-
yǒng
yong
yong3
yong
Bravery / Courage勇敢
勇敢
yuu kan
yuukan
yu kan
yǒng gǎn
yong gan
yong3 gan3
yonggan
England / Courage / Bravery
eiyīng
ying
ying1
ying
Courage to do what is right见义勇为
見義勇為
n/ajiàn yì yǒng wéi
jian yi yong wei
jian4 yi4 yong3 wei2
jianyiyongwei
Courage / Bravery勇气 / 勇気
勇氣
yuuki
yuki
yǒng qì
yong qi
yong3 qi4
yongqi
Fidelity Honor Courage信义尊严勇气
信義尊嚴勇氣
n/axìn yì zūn yán yǒng qì
xin yi zun yan yong qi
xin4 yi4 zun1 yan2 yong3 qi4
xinyizunyanyongqi
No Fear无畏
無畏
muiwú wèi
wu wei
wu2 wei4
wuwei
No Fear勇者无畏
勇者無畏
n/ayǒng zhě wú wèi
yong zhe wu wei
yong3 zhe3 wu2 wei4
yongzhewuwei
Preparation Yields No Fear or Worries有备无患
有備無患
n/ayǒu bèi wú huàn
you bei wu huan
you3 bei4 wu2 huan4
youbeiwuhuan
Fear No Man / Fear Nothing无所畏惧
無所畏懼
n/awú suǒ wèi jù
wu suo wei ju
wu2 suo3 wei4 ju4
wusuoweiju
Undaunted After Repeated Setbacks百折不挠
百折不撓
hyaku setsu su tou
hyakusetsusutou
hyaku setsu su to
bǎi zhé bù náo
bai zhe bu nao
bai3 zhe2 bu4 nao2
baizhebunao
One who is drenched in rain does not fear drops of dew被雨淋过的人不怕露水
被雨淋過的人不怕露水
n/abèi yǔ lín guò de rén bù pà lù shuǐ
bei yu lin guo de ren bu pa lu shui
bei4 yu3 lin2 guo4 de ren2 bu4 pa4 lu4 shui3
Respect out of fear is never genuine
Reverence out of respect is never false
打怕的人是假的敬怕的人是真的
打怕的人是假的敬怕的人是真的
n/adǎ pà de rén shì jiǎ de jìng pà de rén shì zhēn de
da pa de ren shi jia de jing pa de ren shi zhen de
da3 pa4 de ren2 shi4 jia3 de jing4 pa4 de ren2 shi4 zhen1 de
Brave the Waves破浪
破浪
n/apò làng
po lang
po4 lang4
polang
Value of Warrior Generals兵在精而不在多将在谋而不在勇
兵在精而不在多將在謀而不在勇
n/abīng zài jīng ér bù zài duō jiàng zài móu ér bù zài yǒng
bing zai jing er bu zai duo jiang zai mou er bu zai yong
bing1 zai4 jing1 er2 bu4 zai4 duo1 jiang4 zai4 mou2 er2 bu4 zai4 yong3
Advance Bravely / Indomitable Spirit勇往直前
勇往直前
n/ayǒng wàng zhí qián
yong wang zhi qian
yong3 wang4 zhi2 qian2
yongwangzhiqian
If you have not set up your computer to display Chinese, the characters in this table probably look like empty boxes or random text garbage.
This is why we spent hundreds of hours making images so that you could view the characters in the "Courage" listings above.
If you want your Windows computer to be able to display Chinese characters you can either head to your Regional and Language options in your Win XP control panel, select the [Languages] tab and click on [Install files for East Asian Languages]. This task will ask for your Win XP CD to complete in most cases. If you don't have your Windows XP CD, or are running Windows 98, you can also download/run the simplified Chinese font package installer from Microsoft which works independently with Win 98, ME, 2000, and XP. It's a 2.5MB download, so if you are on dial up, start the download and go make a sandwich.


All custom calligraphy items are made-to-order in our little Beijing artwork-mounting workshop.
Please note: Rush service can be as fast as two weeks, but regular service is over a month for delivery.


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Last modified: Feb 27 2009 12:39