Japanese Proverbs to Give Life Advice

Think calmly and wait until tomorrow before speaking while emotional, to avoid regret.

Control your anger because acting on it can lead to your own ruin.

To lose heart and become extremely dejected.

Gaining a massive profit all at once with very little initial investment or effort.

A short period of time is extremely precious and valuable.

The psychological feeling that even a brief moment lasts for an eternity when waiting for something.

Achieving two benefits with a single action.

Showing kindness now can result in harm later by hindering a person's independence or growth.

Patiently enduring suffering or difficulty while refraining from acting rashly or impulsively.

Being in a center of culture and knowledge provides more growth than isolated study.

Good deeds bring good results, and bad deeds bring bad results.

Examples of failure that serve as warnings are not found only in ancient history but are close at hand.

Human life and longevity are determined by fate or a higher power beyond human control.

Everything is possible only as long as you are alive, so life must be protected above all else.

Living a long life increases the opportunities for experiencing shame and disgrace.

Doing good deeds in secret will inevitably lead to a visible reward.

Even a brief act of kindness is remembered for a very long time.

Stating a fact that is so obvious it does not need to be mentioned.

While the first drink is controlled by the person, subsequent drinks lead to a loss of self-control until the alcohol eventually dominates the drinker.

Just as some ships enter a port while others leave, every parting is balanced by a new meeting.

Refers to an impossible event occurring or to someone past their prime achieving success again.

Live within your means by calculating your income before deciding on your expenses.

You cannot care for those who have already passed away, so you should show filial piety to your parents while they are still alive.

Perseverance prevails; even a cold stone will eventually become warm if you sit on it long enough.

To be extremely cautious even when something appears safe.

People can only afford to care about manners and social decorum once their basic material needs are met.

Taking a safe, indirect route is ultimately faster than a risky shortcut.

Someone who is dependent on the hospitality of others must be reserved and careful not to overstep their bounds.

Those who are supported by others should maintain a humble attitude and show restraint in their requests.

A once-in-a-lifetime major event or the most important moment of one's life.

Gaining two or more benefits from a single action or effort.

To draw a clear boundary between things to distinguish them or to stand apart as being superior.

If you ridicule or waste even a tiny amount of money, you will eventually suffer for the lack of it.

Two or more people acting in perfect harmony as if they were a single person.

No one can predict what will happen in the immediate future.

To wander aimlessly or lose one's direction in life.

Parents will not live forever, and money will not last indefinitely.

Ideal, comfortable conditions will not continue forever.

It is easy to talk about doing something, but carrying it out in practice is difficult.

Faith has the power to make even the most trivial or worthless things seem precious and valuable.

It can be more advantageous to be a minor member of a prestigious group than the leader of an insignificant one.

Those destined for greatness show signs of their extraordinary potential from early childhood.

To stomp one's feet in extreme frustration or anger.

To reap the consequences of one's own actions.

Whether one experiences suffering (hell) or joy (paradise) is determined entirely by one's own mindset.

To produce everything one needs by oneself without relying on others.

Human life is short.

Life consists of both good times and bad times.