Willow

by Nao

yanagi, ryū

A tree called yanagi is a willow. A pussy willow is nekoyanagi. Neko means a cat. The buds of nekoyanagi are furry like a cat.

Some names include this character. Yanagase in Gifu and Yanagawa in Fukuoka are examples. The former is a shopping district; the latter is famous for a boating trip down the river. This character is used for surnames, too.

Draw the left-hand side of the character first.

1. Draw the horizontal stroke from the left.
2. Draw the vertical line from the top to the bottom.
3. Draw the sweeping stroke from the previous strokes intersect.
4. Draw the dot where the previous stroke begins.
5. Begin to draw the right-hand side of the character. Draw the sweeping stroke from the top.
6. From where you end the previous stroke, draw the vertical stroke.
7. Draw the stroke sweeping up.
8. Draw the sweeping stroke from below the fifth stroke.
9. Draw the hook on the right. Don’t forget the upward turn.
10. Draw the vertical line.

The sixth and the seventh strokes are supposed to joint together when you draw it with a pen.

Edge

by Nao

ha, ba, jin

A knife’s edge, a razor’s edge, and a sword’s blade are ha. They are “naifu no ha,” “kamisori no ha,” “katana no ha,” respectively. On Monday, we mentioned that Seki city in Gifu is famous for knives and swords, or hamono with today’s character. As the characters show, hamono is something that has an edge or a blade.

A knife or a razor might have nicks and become dull. Such nicks on an edge are called hakobore. In other words, a knife or a razor could bear hakobore, so we describe such a phenomenon as “hakobore wo okosu.” Okosu means “to cause.”

First, draw the hook, the sweeping stroke, and the dot.

The only difference between this character and katana (sword) is the final dot.

Sword

by Nao

katana, tō

Hearing the word katana, we think about a Japanese sword, nihontō. A Japanese sword has only one edge. A double-edged sword is ken with another character. Yesterday’s newspaper has a picture of tempering a sword in Seki city, Gifu. It is a New Year’s event. The name of the event is so long that it’s hard to remember. You can see a picture of it here. Since it is a news article, the link might be broken soon. The title of the article begins with three characters, nihontō.  The third one is today’s character, tō. Seki city is famous for knives and swords. One of my friends has a cousin whose husband is a Canadian artist who makes sword guards or some sword accessories. He stayed in Seki-city for a while to learn how to make them.

This character looks like chikara (power), but the second stroke does not stick out.

Nourishment

by Nao

yashina-u, yō

Nourishment is the meaning of this character. The verb yashina-u means to bring up, take care, or to nurture. The suffix u is okurigana.

Bringing up children is yōiku. Iku is to bring up or to raise.

Taking care of the elderly is yōrō. Rō means old age.

Someday, I would like to visit Yōrō tenmei hanten chi (The Site of Reversible Destiny – Yoro Park, Gifu). It would be a dizzying experience but looks like lots of fun.

This park is in Yōrō Town. The name of the town dates back to the eighth century, when an empress visited the place and heard that the spring water had the power to rejuvenate.

Yojō is something you had better do for good health. Although it sounds classical, the greeting “yōjō shite(ne)” or “yōjō senaakanyo” means “take good care of yourself”.

The upper part represents a sheep. The lower part is a dish.

1. Draw the dot top left.
2. Draw the sweeping dot top right.
3. Draw the horizontal stroke touching the first two dots.
4. Draw the vertical stroke.
5. Draw the horizontal stroke crossing the vertical stroke.
6. Draw the longest horizontal stroke.
7. Draw the sweeping stroke to the lower left. Make it narrower at the end.
8. Draw the sweeping stroke to the lower right. Make the hem-like ending by spreading the brush.
9. Draw the small dot between the previous strokes.
10. Draw the right-angled hook.
11. Draw the horizontal stroke inside the rectangle.
12. Draw the horizontal stroke at the bottom of the rectangle.
13. Draw the vertical line from where you start the tenth right-angled hook.
14. Draw the stroke heading toward the dot below the rectangle. Make it narrower gradually.
15. Draw the dot sweeping toward the previous stroke.
16. Draw the sweeping stroke that goes between the last two strokes. This stroke looks similar to the eighth stroke.

In the dictionary, this is categorized as a 15-stroke character. The thirteenth and fourteenth strokes are supposed to be one.