訳 The original meaning of this kanji is related to the idea of making sense of things, of interpreting experience and translating it into something understandable to ourselves and to others. To render comprehensible.
The kanji itself is made up of two components, the radical 「言」(“iu” to say) and the grapheme 「尺」(“shaku” a unit of length). However, that element is likely there to indicate pronunciation not meaning.
Interpretation, Translation
YAKU is the on-yomi (Chinese sound reading) of this kanji. Typically compounds which use the Chinese-derived pronunciation are related directly to the concepts of translation and interpretation.
* 「訳す」yakusu: to translate
* 「訳者」yakusha: translator
* 「翻訳」honyaku: translation
Sense, Reason, Rationalization, Excuse
In compounds and expressions using the kun-yomi (Japanese reading) wake the definition of this kanji expands from interpretation to meaning, from meaning to sense, from sense to reason, and from reason to cause.
To follow the connection between those concepts, imagine that I suddenly stand up at my desk and throw my coffee cup at the wall. You are mystified by my actions. They seem incomprehensible. You can’t interpret them. They make no sense. You look for a reason, an underlying cause.
In Japanese, you would think, 「訳も無く」”wake mo naku” ; this behavior is unreasonable, without reason, without cause. You can’t interpret my actions and so they don’t make sense to you. They are irrational.
A sensible man, a reasonable man, the rational man is one who can explain the reasons for his actions.
* 訳の分かった人 wake no wakatta hito
Literally, a man (hito) whose reasons (wake) are understandable (wakatta). In English, we might say that his motivations are transparent to us, rather than opaque.
If I am able to help you make sense of my actions by offering you a reason or a cause, in Japanese this is seen as a form of apology.
To understand all is to forgive all.
Evelyn Waugh: Brideshead Revisitied
* 「言い訳」iiwake: apology, excuse, explanation
Literally “to say the reason”. I try to translate for you what my actions signify, what they mean.
“To understand all is to forgive all.” Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited…possibly from the French proverb, “Comprendre, c’est pardoner.”
In English, we might call this reason a rationalization, with all its negative connotations of making excuses, of being an apologist. My father, a military man, raised us with the idea that if we messed up our only response to his questions was “No excuse, Sir.”
The Japanese have a similar, very common, set phrase used as an apology.
* 申し訳ありません moshiwake arimasen
Literally the opposite of iiwake (「もうし」moshi being the humble form of 「言う」iu, to say) moshiwake arimasen means that there is no reason I can tell you, there is no rational explanation I can offer as an excuse for what has happened. What can I say? There’s no reason. I can’t explain myself.
All in all, some of us prefer explanations to apologies and understanding to forgiveness.
GPlus Discussion
Jan 1, 2015
Jonas Neergaard-Nielsen
+1
Great post! Interesting to think about the connections between the different concepts covered by one kanji. When I started out learning Japanese, I was also deeply fascinated with this additional layer of meaning to the language that we in the West mostly lack.
What’s the photo, by the way? Reflection from some weirdly shaped object?
Jan 1, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+1
+Jonas Neergaard-Nielsen The aspect of studying kanji that I most enjoy are these little meditations on words and language that result. For example, in this case, initially it didn’t seem like “translation” and “excuse” had a lot in common but as soon as I started thinking about similar English expressions it became clearer to me.
Even if I never learn to speak Japanese, I find this practice to be a good prompt for writing my little essays.
The photo is of my reflection in the Cloud Gate sculpture (commonly known as “The Bean”) in Chicago’s Millennium Park.
Jan 1, 2015
Rob Ferguson
+1
Thanks +M Sinclair Stevens, I have very much enjoyed this post. I guess with any language it must be interesting to learn the meanings and subtexts implied by its idioms. But with Japanese there is the added layer given by the writing system, and you’ve illustrated it beautifully.
I hope this post becomes a series!
Jan 1, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+1
+Rob Ferguson Thanks for your encouragement. I have toyed with the idea of making a series; thus, today’s post is testing the waters before committing to a New Year’s resolution.
I did another post a couple of months ago: https://plus.google.com/+MSinclairStevens/posts/BdMSPn9gqhb
Let’s see if I can stick with it rather than becoming a 三日坊主 (mikka bouzu: a three-day monk) that is, someone who begins with great enthusiasm and a profession of dedication and then quickly loses interest.
Jan 1, 2015
Jonas Neergaard-Nielsen
+2
Ha! 三日坊主 sounds like the story of my life…
A vague new year resolution I have is to be more persistent in the things I engage in, both short term (keeping concentration on the task at hand) and longer.
That sculpture is pretty impressive. I’d seen it before, but never the kind of multiple reflections shot life this. Must be fun to walk around!
Jan 1, 2015
9 Tundra 9
Is that the bean?
Jan 1, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+Jonas Neergaard-Nielsen Most photos of Cloud Gate are from outside and show convex reflection of the city skyline. I walked underneath it for this shot of a concave reflection.
Jan 1, 2015
Peter Strempel
+3
This post made me think of the quirky literalism of standing under, or the less easily decomposed German ‘verstehen’, which still includes standing, but also the less determinate ‘ver’.
In German ‘ver’ is an insperable prefix that indicates the transformation into the verb form of the word stem. So, verstehen is literally ‘to do standing’, but more meaningfully something about standing under, standing with, being among. This almost suggests comprehension as being conceived of as an elite action that puts the undersdtanding person in a specific group or community of people.
understand (v.)
Old English understandan “comprehend, grasp the idea of,” probably literally “stand in the midst of,” from under + standan “to stand” (see stand (v.)). If this is the meaning, the under is not the usual word meaning “beneath,” but from Old English under, from PIE *nter- “between, among” (cognates: Sanskrit antar “among, between,” Latin inter “between, among,” Greek entera “intestines;” see inter-). Related: Understood; understanding.
That is the suggestion in Barnhart, but other sources regard the “among, between, before, in the presence of” sense of Old English prefix and preposition under as other meanings of the same word. “Among” seems to be the sense in many Old English compounds that resemble understand, such as underniman “to receive,” undersecan “examine, investigate, scrutinize” (literally “underseek”), underðencan “consider, change one’s mind,” underginnan “to begin.” It also seems to be the sense still in expressions such as under such circumstances.
Perhaps the ultimate sense is “be close to;” compare Greek epistamai “I know how, I know,” literally “I stand upon.” Similar formations are found in Old Frisian (understonda), Middle Danish (understande), while other Germanic languages use compounds meaning “stand before” (German verstehen, represented in Old English by forstanden“understand,” also “oppose, withstand”). For this concept, most Indo-European languages use figurative extensions of compounds that literally mean “put together,” or “separate,” or “take, grasp” (see comprehend). Old English oferstandan, Middle English overstonden, literally “over-stand” seem to have been used only in literal senses. For “to stand under” in a physical sense, Old English had undergestandan.
Maybe this all relates to standing under what is above, meaning the head, or even the heavens. Knowing the mind, or knowing the minds of the gods?
I suppose this is less related to the Japanese you are talking about than words like explain, justify, rationalise, insight, or even reasoning.
Nevertheless, the exercise of looking into it says to me that etymology and morphology alone can never explain meaning quite the way that being immersed in a language as spoken by the natives can. In other words, nuance and range of applicability are socially transmitted norms, and change over time.
Thanks for hurting my head on this second day of the year.
Jan 1, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+1
+Peter Strempel Oh this is wonderful! Thank you so much for playing word games with me. I never had any clue to what we were meant to be standing under when we comprehended a concept. I could see how comprehend meant to have a grasp…have it in hand.
I’m so glad you shared the German side. I know a bit of Spanish and Latin, so I get some of those Romance language influences on English. But I don’t know anything about its Germanic roots.
Jan 4, 2015
Edward Morbius
+1
More on guilt, forgiveness, and understanding.
The German words for “guilt” and “debt” are the same: “Schuldung”.
Which I should have glommed onto faster from the word for “excuse me”: “entschuldigung”.
There’s a comparable similarity between versions of the Lord’s Prayer: “Forgive us our debts” in Matthew, but “Forgive us our sins” in Luke, and “Forgive us our trespasses” in many Protestant English versions.
In English, one common response to an accusation is “I can explain”. Again, the idea that if my actions are understandable — rational — to you, you’ll excuse me. That’s not far from the Japanese +M Sinclair Stevens discusses above.
Irrational actions — those that we cannot understand — are described as “inexcusable”.
From +Peter Strempel’s comment, to “justify” is not only to explain, but to, literally, “make just”.
And from English common law comes the concept of the insanity defense. If the accused isn’t capable of reason then they cannot be guilty of a crime. The Wikipedia article on the topic claims the defense in some form dates to the Code of Hammurabi.
This similarity across cultures and times suggests to me a very deep-seated root in human consciousness of the concepts of guilt, innocence, and rationality.
Jan 4, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+1
+Edward Morbius Thanks for adding the expression, “Wait! I can explain.” and the idea of irrational actions as “inexcusable”. Astonishment and disbelief are hallmarks of misunderstanding. “Who in their right mind would do that!?!” “Inconceivable!”
Furthermore, how damning it is when someone replies dismissively. “Don’t bother to explain. Oh, I understand you completely.” In fact, they don’t. Because they aren’t standing on common ground yet. They are still judging the other person using themselves as a measure effectively blinding themselves to the context in which the other person is operating.
As for guilt and debt….gracious! That’s a rich vein to mine in Japanese. Maybe that will be my next kanji post.
Jan 4, 2015
Edward Morbius
+M Sinclair Stevens Also “this isn’t what it looks like”. Though that’s a bit of a stretch from your original concept.
Jan 4, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+1
+Edward Morbius I don’t know. Maybe we’ve come full circle to the original concept. The initial meaning of the kanji is “translation” or “interpretation”. I did choose this photo purposefully to illustrate how each person’s perspective (viewpoint) affects that interpretation, the sense we each make of an experience.
Jan 4, 2015
Edward Morbius
+M Sinclair Stevens Oh, wait. Is that the Millennium Park Egg?
Jan 5, 2015
M Sinclair Stevens
+Edward Morbius Yes. See above. And wasn’t I clever to use a shot of people on common ground “standing under” the Cloud Gate for this post on perception and understanding? I can never resist a pun.
Jan 4, 2015
Edward Morbius
+1
+M Sinclair Stevens Ah right. “The Bean”, not “The Egg”. Missed that. And yes, clever pun.
/me pats +M Sinclair Stevens on the head.