We have many options to create artwork with humanity characters on a wall scroll or portrait.
If you want to create a cool humanity 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 humanity.
1. Benevolence
3. Triple Truth of Japanese Buddhism
5. Confucius: Golden Rule / Ethic of Reciprocity
7. Human Race / Humanity / Mankind
8. Human Nature
9. Love for Humanity / Brotherly Love
10. Jin Shin Jyutsu
11. Kindheartedness / Benevolence / Humanity
12. Love and Honor
13. Oneness of Heaven and Humanity
Beyond benevolence, 仁 can also be defined as “charity” or “mercy” depending on context.
The deeper meaning suggests that one should pay alms to the poor, care for those in trouble, and take care of his fellow man (or woman).
仁 is one of the five tenets of Confucius. In fact, it is a subject that Confucius spent a great deal of time explaining to his disciples.
I have also seen this benevolent-related word translated as perfect virtue, selflessness, love for humanity, humaneness, goodness, goodwill, or simply “love” in the non-romantic form.
This is also a virtue of the Samurai Warrior
See our page with just Code of the Samurai / Bushido here
仁慈 word is used in Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Asian Buddhism to relay the important idea of loving kindness.
仁慈 can also be defined as: benevolent; charitable; kind; merciful; kind-hearted; benevolence; kindness; humanity; mercy.
In Japanese, this can also be the given name Hitoji. This would also be a good Mandarin Chinese given name romanized as Jentzu (in Taiwan) or Renci (which sounds like ren-tsuh).
人間性を再生するのは寛容な心親切な言葉奉仕と思いやりの精神 is known as the Triple Truth of Buddhism in Japanese.
The Buddha ordered that all should know this triple truth...
A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things that renew humanity.
That is the English translation most commonly used for this Japanese Buddhist phrase. You might have seen this on a coffee cup or tee shirt.
Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.
慈 is the simplest way to express the idea of compassion.
This can also mean love for your fellow humans, humanity, or living creatures. Sometimes this is extended to mean charity.
This term is often used in a Buddhist or Christian context. The concept was also spoken of by Laozi (Lao Tzu) in the Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching).
慈 is considered the direct translation of the Sanskrit word मैत्री (maitrī) Pali word मेत्ता (mettā). In this context, it means benevolence, loving kindness, and goodwill.
This Chinese character is understood in Japanese but is usually used in compound words (not seen alone). Also used in old Korean Hanja, so it's very universal.
See Also: Mercy | Benevolence | Forgiveness | Kindness
Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself
Some may think of this as a “Christian trait,” but actually, it transcends many religions.
This Chinese teaching dates back to about 2,500 years ago in China. Confucius had always taught the belief in being benevolent (ren), but this idea was hard to grasp for some of his students, as benevolence could be kind-heartedness or an essence of humanity itself.
When answering Zhong Gong's question as to what "ren" actually meant, Confucius said:
己所不欲勿施于人 or "When you go out, you should behave as if you were in the presence of a distinguished guest; when people do favors for you, act as if a great sacrifice was made for you. Whatever you wouldn't like done to you, do not do that thing to others. Don't complain at work or home.”
Hearing this, Zhong Gong said humbly, “Although I am not clever, I will do what you say.”
From this encounter, the Chinese version of the “Golden Rule” or “Ethic of Reciprocity” came to be.
The characters you see above express, “Do not do to others whatever you do not want to be done to yourself.”
See Also: Confucius Teachings | Benevolence
人情 is a title that can apply to a lot of meanings, including humanity, empathy, kindness, sympathy, human nature, human emotions, or human interaction.
人類 is the way to say mankind or humankind in Chinese.
It's kind of the “animal title” for humans. 人類 is the word you would use if you said this phrase in Chinese, “Mammals include dolphins, monkeys, dogs, and humans among others.”
人類 is a weird selection for a calligraphy wall scroll. But a customer begged me to add this word.
人性 is a title that is the essence of what it means to act and be human.
These two characters refer to the way we are as people.
人性 is also sometimes translated as human personality, human instinct, humanity, or humanism.
The first character literally means human or people.
The second character means nature. It can also mean property, quality, attribute, or essence. It can even be a modifier like “-ity” or “-ness,” which is why this word is also translated as “humanity.”
benevolence, love
In Chinese and Korean, 博愛 means a universal fraternity, brotherhood, or universal love.
In Japanese, this means charity, benevolence, philanthropy, or love for humanity.
Please note these subtle differences and take that into account depending on your intended audience (Chinese, Korean or Japanese).
See Also: Benevolence | Altruism
仁神術 is Jin Shin Jyutsu or Jin Shin Jutsu.
This is a practice of calming the mind and clearing the flow of Qi energy in the body. Jin Shin Jyutsu has some commonality with the practice of Reiki.
A good translation of 仁神術 would be “Benevolent Spirit Method.”
We can break that down into all of the possible meanings:
仁 = benevolence (esp. as a virtue of Confucianism), consideration, compassion, humanity, charity, kindness, or virtue.
神 = deity, soul, spirit, mysterious, psyche, god, divinity, spiritual powers, deva, divine, spiritual, or supernatural.
術 = way, method, means, art, trick, or plan. The correct romaji for this 術 Kanji should be “jutsu.” However, in martial arts, this is often written “jitsu” but in this case, “jyutsu” became common.
仁德 is a word that can be translated as love, kindheartedness, benevolence, and humanity.
The first character means benevolence by itself.
The second character means virtue or morality.
Japanese note: The second Kanji of this word has been slightly simplified (one tiny horizontal stroke removed). It is still readable for Japanese but if you select our Japanese calligrapher, expect that stroke to be missing on your wall scroll.
情義 means to love and honor in Chinese. 情義 is more or less the kind of thing you'd find in marriage vows.
The first character suggests emotions, passion, heart, humanity, sympathy, and feelings.
In this context, the second character means to honor your lover's wishes and treat them justly and righteously (fairly). That second character can also be translated as “obligation,” as in the obligation a husband and wife have to love each other even through difficult times.
In the context outside of a couple's relationship, this word can mean “comradeship.”
Japanese may see this more as “humanity and justice” than “love and honor.” It's probably best if your target is Chinese.
This is the short and sweet form, there is also a longer poetic form (you can find it here: Love and Honor if it’s not on the page you are currently viewing).
See Also: Love and Honor
天人合一 is a title that represents the oneness of heaven and humanity. It conveys the idea that man is an integral part of nature.
You can also read this as “heaven and man in unity,” or “nature and man in unity.” The “man” is really “people” or “humans” and is not gender-specific in Chinese.
A Japanese martial arts title/concept
The first Kanji alone means to wash, bathe, primness, cleanse or purify.
The second Kanji means heart, mind, soul, or essence.
Together, these two Kanji create a word defined as “purified spirit” or “enlightened attitude” within Japanese martial arts.
洗心 is one of the five spirits of the warrior (budo) and is often used as a Japanese martial arts tenet. Under that context, it's often defined as a spirit that protects and harmonizes the universe. Senshin is a spirit of compassion that embraces and serves all humanity and whose function is to reconcile discord in the world. It holds all life to be sacred. It is the Buddha mind.
This title will only be familiar to Japanese who practice certain martial arts. Others may not recognize this word at all.
洗心 does not show up as a word in too many Chinese dictionaries, but it can be read and has the same meaning in Chinese.
There is an issue with the first character. The original, and probably most correct version is shown above. However, many dojo documents and other sources have used a more simple first character. Arguments ensue about which version is correct. If you want to be correct in the Japanese language, use the "Select and Customize" button above. If you want to match the Kanji used by your dojo, click the Kanji shown to the right. There is a slightly different meaning with this first character which means before, ahead, previous, future, precedence.
人道 is literally the “The Way of Being Human,” or “The Human Way.” It can also be translated as “humanity.”
人道 has a secondary meaning of “sidewalk” as in “the way for people to walk” (in Japanese and Korean only). But as calligraphy artwork, nobody will read it with that translation.
Please note that there are two ways to Romanize Dao or Tao (Daoism = Taoism). It's the same word in Chinese.
This in-stock artwork might be what you are looking for, and ships right away...
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
Benevolence | 仁 | jin | rén / ren2 / ren | jen |
Kindness Benevolence | 仁慈 | jin ji / jinji | rén cí / ren2 ci2 / ren ci / renci | jen tz`u / jentzu / jen tzu |
Triple Truth of Japanese Buddhism | 人間性を再生するのは寛容な心親切な言葉奉仕と思いやりの精神 | ningensei o saisei suruno wa kanyou na kokoro shinsetsu na kotoba houshi to omoi yari no seishin ningensei o saisei suruno wa kanyo na kokoro shinsetsu na kotoba hoshi to omoi yari no seishin | ||
Mercy Compassion Love | 慈 | ji | cí / ci2 / ci | tz`u / tzu |
Confucius: Golden Rule Ethic of Reciprocity | 己所不欲勿施於人 己所不欲勿施于人 | jǐ suǒ bú yù wù shī yú rén ji3 suo3 bu2 yu4, wu4 shi1 yu2 ren2 ji suo bu yu, wu shi yu ren jisuobuyu,wushiyuren | chi so pu yü, wu shih yü jen chisopuyü,wushihyüjen |
|
Empathy Humanity | 人情 | ninjou / ninjo | rén qíng / ren2 qing2 / ren qing / renqing | jen ch`ing / jenching / jen ching |
Human Race Humanity Mankind | 人類 人类 | jinrui | rén lèi / ren2 lei4 / ren lei / renlei | jen lei / jenlei |
Human Nature | 人性 | rén xìng / ren2 xing4 / ren xing / renxing | jen hsing / jenhsing | |
Love for Humanity Brotherly Love | 博愛 博爱 | hakuai | bó ài / bo2 ai4 / bo ai / boai | po ai / poai |
Jin Shin Jyutsu | 仁神術 | jin shin jutsu jinshinjutsu | rén shén shù ren2 shen2 shu4 ren shen shu renshenshu | jen shen shu jenshenshu |
Kindheartedness Benevolence Humanity | 仁德 | jintoku | rén dé / ren2 de2 / ren de / rende | jen te / jente |
Love and Honor | 情義 情义 | qíng yì / qing2 yi4 / qing yi / qingyi | ch`ing i / chingi / ching i | |
Oneness of Heaven and Humanity | 天人合一 | tiān rén hé yī tian1 ren2 he2 yi1 tian ren he yi tianrenheyi | t`ien jen ho i tienjenhoi tien jen ho i |
|
Purified Spirit Enlightened Attitude | 洗心 先心 | sen shin / senshin | xǐ xīn / xi3 xin1 / xi xin / xixin | hsi hsin / hsihsin |
The Tao or Dao of Being Human Humanity | 人道 | jindou / jindo | rén dào / ren2 dao4 / ren dao / rendao | jen tao / jentao |
In some entries above you will see that characters have different versions above and below a line. In these cases, the characters above the line are Traditional Chinese, while the ones below are Simplified Chinese. |
All of our calligraphy wall scrolls are handmade.
When the calligrapher finishes creating your artwork, it is taken to my art mounting workshop in Beijing where a wall scroll is made by hand from a combination of silk, rice paper, and wood.
After we create your wall scroll, it takes at least two weeks for air mail delivery from Beijing to you.
Allow a few weeks for delivery. Rush service speeds it up by a week or two for $10!
When you select your calligraphy, you'll be taken to another page where you can choose various custom options.
The wall scroll that Sandy is holding in this picture is a "large size"
single-character wall scroll.
We also offer custom wall scrolls in small, medium, and an even-larger jumbo size.
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.
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.
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.