Life 生命
seimei2 characters13 strokes
生命 (seimei) means life: the life that is in every living thing, from people and animals to trees and flowers.
Free practice sheet
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Meaning 意味
What 生命 means
The Japanese word for life, written with 2 kanji and read seimei.
Seimei is the life of living things. It is a slightly formal word for life itself, the state of being alive. The everyday word for the same idea is inochi, which is also how 命 alone is read.
When people write it in Japan. In Japan, seimei is often chosen as a theme for calligraphy exhibitions. It is also a good word for regular seasonal practice.
Japanese children know every kanji here by 3rd grade.
How to write it 書き方
Brush tips for 生命
Three things to watch
- 生 has three horizontal strokes. Make the bottom one the longest.
- The roof at the top of 命 (hitoyane) is a sweep down to the left and a sweep down to the right. Spread them wide so they wrap over the part below.
- Bring the last vertical stroke of 命 straight down, long and steady.
Stroke order
Follow the vermilion stroke, frame by frame.
Stroke order data: KanjiVG by Ulrich Apel, CC BY-SA 3.0.
How to practice 練習
Trace first, then copy
- PrintPrint both pages at actual size, on US Letter or A4. Page 1 is the model. Page 2 is the tracing sheet.
- TraceTrace the outlines with a brush pen. Or lay thin hanshi paper over the page and trace with brush and ink.
- CopySet the model beside your paper and copy it stroke by stroke. Look at the model more than at your own paper.
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While the sets are on their way
The book is out now.
Japanese Calligraphy for Beginners takes you from holding the brush to writing whole words, step by step, in English. Every model inside was brushed by our teachers.
Starter Set, $72.99 with the book, brush, ink and paper: coming soon.