Let’s get familiar with “Kotowaza”

Hi. I’m Yukako who lives in the northern part of Europe, and teaches and tells people about Japanese traditional culture such as tea ceremony, kimono, etc. offline and online.

By the way, do you know a word of Kotowaza? Do you know what it means? It means a proverb in Japanese, so it tells you a good lesson through short phrases. Also, they are often used in daily conversation too.

Today, I will tell you some famous kotowaza! Please remember and use them in your daily life too!

When time passed so quickly…

When we describe how fast time has passed, we use one proverb saying “Kouin ya no gotoshi” (光陰矢のごとし). Kouin means time, and “ya no gotoshi” means it is like an arrow, so this phrase means “time has passed like an arrow.”

When regretting something…

You had better forget it and move forward because “Koukai saki ni tatazu” (後悔先に立たず). “Koukai” means regret, and it means it is too late to regret something which already happened. So, it tells you to keep moving instead of crying over that.

When you want to find fortunes…

This proverb might bring you a luck, which is “Warau kado niwa fuku kitaru” (笑う門には福来たる). “Warau” means smile or laugh, and “fuku” means fortunes. So, it tells you not to forget smiling whenever and however you are, then it will bring you fortunes sooner or later.