馬 is the character for a horse in Chinese, old Korean, and Japanese.

If you were born in the year of the horse, you . . .


Are outgoing and active.
Don't give up easily.
Are known to have a bad temper.

See also our Chinese Zodiac page.

鍛煉/鍛鍊 means to exercise in much the same way we use the word exercise in English.

This can be exercising your body at the gym or exercising your mind in studies. Most of the time, this refers to physical exercise.

This can also be translated as to temper, to toughen, to train, to drill, to forge, or simply discipline.

根性論 is a Japanese title that refers to the belief that where there's a will, there's a way.

Another way to translate this is “The Guts Theory” or “The Doctrine of Will-Power.” Maybe breaking down the meaning of the characters will help clarify this:
根性 = will-power; guts; temper; nature; spirit; nature and character; the nature of the powers of any sense.
論 = theory; doctrine; treatises on dogma, philosophy, discipline, etc.

調和 is one of the several ways to express harmony in Chinese and Japanese.

Note: The first character means harmony but also suggests a musical meaning. It can also describe warriors marching in perfect cadence (in step) or to regulate something.
The second character carries the meaning of harmony and peace by itself.

Together, these characters create a word that can be defined as harmonious, to mediate, to reconcile, to compromise; mediation, temper, to mix, blend, blended, season, seasoning (getting the flavors of the food in balance), to placate, or be in harmonious proportion.

The meaning varies depending on the context. However, when hanging as a wall scroll, this will refer to the person (you) being balanced and in harmony while rational and under control simultaneously.

See Also:  Musician | Dance