Buy a Custom Fate Chinese or Japanese Calligraphy Wall Scroll

We have many options to create artwork with the Chinese characters / Asian symbols / Japanese Kanji for Fate on a wall scroll or portrait.
If you want to create a cool Fate wall scroll, this is the place. Below you will find a few Asian symbols that express the idea of Fate.


  1. Destiny / Fate

  2. Optimism / Happy With Your Fate

  3. Fate / Chance Meeting

  4. Predestined Love / Love by Fate

  5. Fate / Opportunity / Chance

  6. The Karma/Fate/Destiny that Brings Lovers Together

  7. The Red Thread of Fate

  8. Tea Fate

  9. Brought Together from 1000 Miles Away by Fate

10. Foresight

11. Destiny

12. Everything Happens for a Reason

13. The Mysterious Bond Between People

14. Destiny Determined by Heaven

15. Free Will

16. Karma

17. Karma - Cause and Effect

18. The Red String

19. Such is Life / Such is Destiny

20. I Control My Own Destiny

21. Choose Your Own Destiny

22. I am the Master of My Destiny


Destiny / Fate

 mìng
 inochi / mei
 
Destiny / Fate Scroll

命 is often translated as “destiny.”

Sometimes this character is simply translated as “life” but more in terms of one's lot in life. In a certain context, this can mean command or decree (generally from a king or emperor). Of course, such a decree is part of fate and leads you to fulfill your destiny.

In Chinese, this word leans toward the fate or destiny definition.
In Korean, it is usually read simply as “life.”
In Japanese, it can mean all definitions shown above, depending on context.


See Also:  Good Fortune

Destiny / Fate

 mìng yùn
Destiny / Fate Scroll

These two characters contain the ideas of fate, destiny, fortune, and luck.

You can also say that it means “what life throws at you” or “your lot in life” because the first character contains the idea of life or living.

This version is really only used in Chinese. There's another version with just the characters reversed that is more universal. In fact, skip this one. The opposite character order is better.

Destiny / Fate

 yùn mìng
 un mei
Destiny / Fate Scroll

These two characters contain the ideas of fate, destiny, fortune, and luck in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

運命 is often defined as “a person's fate” or “personal fate” in various dictionaries.

These two characters can be reversed (written in either order) and yield roughly the same meaning.

This particular character order is more common in old Korean and less common in modern Chinese.


See Also:  Good Fortune | Good Luck

Optimism / Happy With Your Fate

 lè tiān
 raku ten
Optimism / Happy With Your Fate Scroll

樂天 is about being optimistic and also making the best of whatever life throws at you.

This is hard to define. One dictionary defines this as “acceptance of fate and happy about it.” There is one English word equivalent, which is sanguinity or sanguinary.

You can also say that this means “Be happy with whatever Heaven provides,” or “Find happiness in whatever fate Heaven bestows upon you.” 樂天 suggests being an optimist in life.

Note: This is sometimes a given name in China.


楽 Please note that Japanese tend to write the first character in a slightly-different form (as seen to the right). Let us know if you have a preference when you place your order.

Fate / Chance Meeting

 yuán fèn
Fate / Chance Meeting Scroll

緣份 specifically represents the fate or destiny that brings two people together.

This is like the chance meeting of two people that leads sometime later to marriage.

This could also be the chance meeting of two business people who become partners and build a huge and successful company.

This idea is often associated with a fateful meeting leading to good fortune.

Some will define this word as “Destiny brings you two together” or “Meant to be.”


分 Note: The second character can also be written without the left radical, as shown to the right. If you have a preference, please let use know in the special instructions for your project. There is no difference in meaning or pronunciation, just two (alternate) ways to write the same character.


See Also:  Soulmates | Good Fortune

Predestined Love / Love by Fate

 qíng yuán
Predestined Love / Love by Fate Scroll

This Chinese word means predestined love or love affinity.

This can be fate, karma, or the bond that brings two lovers together.

Fate / Opportunity / Chance

The Buddhist idea of Fate

 yīn yuán
 in nen
Fate / Opportunity / Chance Scroll

因緣 is the Buddhist concept of a chance meeting or an opportunity that presents itself by fate.

Sometimes this is used to describe a cosmic chain of events or cause and effect.

It also is used to describe predestined relationships between people - and sometimes married couples (although if you want one about marriage, try this: Fate / Destiny of Lovers.

因緣 can also be translated as origin, karma, destiny, affinity, connection, and relation. This all depends on context - seen alone on a wall scroll, this will be read with a “fate/chance” meaning by a Chinese person or a Korean person who can read Hanja.

The more complex definition of this word would be, “Direct causes and indirect conditions, which underlie the actions of all things.”

This concept is known as nidana in the original Sanskrit. Also sometimes presented as hetupratyaya (or “hetu and prataya”), which I believe is Pali.


Note: Japanese will tend to use this version of the second Kanji: 縁
If you order this from the Japanese master calligrapher, expect that you’ll get this version. However, this word often carries a negative connotation in Japanese (bad things happen), as it is used that way in a certain Japanese idiom. Therefore, this may not be the best choice if Japanese is your target language.


See Also:  Buddhism | Opportunity

The Karma/Fate/Destiny that Brings Lovers Together

 yīn yuán
The Karma/Fate/Destiny that Brings Lovers Together Scroll

姻緣 means “Destiny that brings lovers together.” It can also be translated technically as “Predestined matrimonial affinity” (wow, talk about taking the romance out of this word - that was from the Oxford C-E dictionary).

This speaks to the fate (or karma) that brings a husband and wife together. I would translate this as “Together by fate” or “Joined by destiny” but in the context of marriage. You could use this for non-married lovers, but the first character has a suggestion that this refers to those that are married.

The Red Thread of Fate

 yīn yuán hóng xiàn
The Red Thread of Fate Scroll

姻緣紅線 is the legendary red string of destiny that binds all soul mates or lovers together.

In ancient Chinese culture, a mythological matchmaker named 月老 (Yuè Lǎo) was the controller of the fate that led lovers to meet. He did this by tying a celestial red string to the ankle of each person. Sometime during their life, they will meet and marry as fate dictates.

While the origin of the red string comes from China, it has spread to other parts of Asia (such as Japan, where it's known as 赤い糸).

 chá yuán
Tea Fate Scroll

茶緣 is a special title for the tea lover. This kind of means “tea fate,” but it's more spiritual and hard to define. Perhaps the tea brought you in to drink it. Perhaps the tea will bring you and another tea-lover together. Perhaps you were already there, and the tea came to you. Perhaps it's the ah-ha moment you will have when drinking the tea.

I've been told not to explain this further, as it will either dilute or confuse the purposefully-ambiguous idea embedded in this enigma.

I happen to be the owner of a piece of calligraphy written by either the son or nephew of the last emperor of China, which is the title he wrote. It was given to me at a Beijing tea house in 2001. 茶緣 is where I learned to love tea after literally spending weeks tasting and studying everything I could about Chinese tea. I did not understand the significance of the authorship or the meaning of the title at all. Some 10 years later, I realized the gift was so profound and had such providence. Only now do I realize the value of a gift that it is too late to give proper thanks for. It was also years later that I ended up in this business and could have the artwork properly mounted as a wall scroll. It has been borrowed for many exhibitions and shows and always amazes native Chinese and Taiwanese who read the signature. This piece of calligraphy I once thought was just a bit of ink on a thin and wrinkled piece of paper, is now one of my most valued possessions. And fate has taught me to be more thankful for seemingly simple gifts.

Brought Together from 1000 Miles Away by Fate

 yǒu yuán qiān lǐ lái xiāng huì
Brought Together from 1000 Miles Away by Fate Scroll

有緣千里來相會 means that fate or destiny has caused us to meet from a thousand miles away.

The 有緣 part suggests something that is connected as if by a thread due to fate, destiny, or karma.

This romantic phrase is seen in Chinese greeting cards. It relays the idea that your love was meant to be and that you were destined to meet (regardless of what distance or obstacles might have made such a meeting unlikely).


See Also:  Red Thread

 xiān jiàn
 senken
Foresight Scroll

先見 is about seeing the potential benefits or troubles that may lie ahead in the future.

先見 can also be defined as “presupposition” or “forethought.”

 dài sī dì nī
Destiny Scroll

黛絲蒂妮 is the transliteration to Mandarin Chinese for the name Destiny.

This is meant to sound like the English word destiny using Chinese sounds. It does not mean destiny. If your name is Destiny, I suggest finding a word that means destiny.

Everything Happens for a Reason

 wàn shì jiē yīn guǒ
Everything Happens for a Reason Scroll

萬事皆因果 means “Everything happens for a reason” in Chinese.

The first two characters mean “all things” or “everything.”

The middle character kind of means “in all cases.”

The last two characters create a complex word that can be defined in many ways, such as “karma,” “cause and effect,” “fate,” and “every cause has its effect, as every effect arises from a cause.”

Keep in mind that Chinese grammar is a bit different than English, so trust me that this makes a natural-sounding proverb in Chinese.

Everything Happens for a Reason

 monogoto ha subete riyuu ga at te okiru
Everything Happens for a Reason Scroll

物事は全て理由があって起きる means everything happens for a reason.

However, this is a work in progress. We're still trying to decide the best way to express this in Japanese. If you order this, we might have a discussion about the best version that fits you. Here's how the characters break down by meaning (keep in mind, Japanese grammar and sentence construction is very different from English, so it doesn't make complete sense in English)...

物事 = things, everything
は particle
全て all, the whole, entirely
理由 reason
が particle
あっ be, exist, have, take place, happens
て particle
起きる to occur, to happen; to take place (usually unfavorable incidents)


Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Hiragana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

The Mysterious Bond Between People

The invisible force that brings people together forever

 yuán
 en
 
The Mysterious Bond Between People Scroll

緣 represents the fate that brings and bonds people together.

緣 is a complicated single character. It can mean a lot of different things depending on how you read it.

In Japanese, it can mean fate, destiny, a mysterious force that binds two people together, a relationship between two people, bond, link, connection, family ties, affinity, opportunity, or chance (to meet someone and start a relationship). It can also mean “someone to rely on,” relative, reminder, memento, or the female given name, Yori.

It's the same in Chinese, where it's defined as cause, reason, karma, fate, or predestined affinity.

In the Buddhist context, it's Pratyaya. This is the concept of indirect conditions, as opposed to direct causes. It's when something happens (meeting someone) by circumstance or a contributing environment. Instead of a direct cause or act, it is a conditioning cause without direct input or action by the involved people.

Occasionally, this character is used in a facetious way to say hem, seam, or edge of clothing. In this case, it's the seam that brings or holds the clothing together.


縁Note: Japanese will tend to use the variant of this Kanji shown to the right. If you want this version (and are ordering this from the Japanese master calligrapher), click on the Kanji at the right instead of the button above.

Destiny Determined by Heaven

 tiān yì
 teni
Destiny Determined by Heaven Scroll

天意 is a way to express destiny in a slightly religious way.

天意 means “Heaven's Wish” or “Heaven's Desire,” with the idea of fate and destiny being derived as well. It suggests that your destiny comes from God / Heaven and that your path has already been chosen by a higher power.

My Japanese dictionary defines this word as “divine will” or “providence,” but it also holds the meaning of “the will of the emperor.” Therefore, I don't suggest this phrase if your audience is Japanese - it feels strange in Japanese anyway.

 zì yóu yì zhì
 jiyuu ishi
Free Will Scroll

自由意志 is a concept that has existed for thousands of years that humans can understand right and wrong, then make a decision one way or the other (thus affecting their fate).

Sources such as Confucius, Buddhist scriptures, the Qur'an, and the Bible all address this idea.

As for the characters shown here, the first two mean free, freedom, or liberty. The last two mean “will.”

Can be romanized from Japanese as jiyū-ishi, jiyuu-ishi, and sometimes jiyuu-ishii.
It's 자유의지 or jayuu-yiji in Korean and zìyóu yìzhì in Chinese.


See Also:  Freedom | Strong Willed

Karma

Transliterated personal name

 kǎ mǎ
Karma Scroll

卡瑪 is the most common transliteration to Mandarin Chinese for the name Karma.

Note: This sounds like Karma but does not have the meaning of Karma in Chinese. See our other entry if you are looking for the Buddhist idea of Karma.

In fact, if your name is Karma, I strongly suggest that you use a word that means Karma, rather than this one that sounds like Karma (meaning is more important and universal in Chinese/Japanese/Korean).

Karma (of your past lives)

 sù yè
 shukugou
Karma (of your past lives) Scroll

宿業 is the Buddhist concept of Past Karma. Simply put, it's the sum of all the good and bad from all previous lives (perhaps earlier in your current life). This term is not commonly used outside of the Buddhist faith (you'll have a tough time finding a non-Buddhist Asian person that knows this word).

Other ways to translate this are “The karma of previous existence,” “The karma remaining from prior existences,” or simply “Former karma.”


See Also:  Buddhism

Karma

Single character for Buddhist Karma

 yè
 gou
 
Karma Scroll

This is the simplest way to express the idea of Karma. This is the Buddhist concept of actions committed in a former life affecting the present and future.

Out of the context of Buddhism, this Karma character means one's profession in life, trade, occupation, business, study, or career.

The Karma definition applies to both Chinese and Japanese for this character. This also works as Korean Hanja as Karma; although the meaning can vary depending on context (my Korean dictionary gives the definition of profession/occupation).


See Also:  Buddhism

Karma - Cause and Effect

 yīn guǒ
 inga
Karma - Cause and Effect Scroll

因果 is a label that is used inside and outside of the Buddhist faith to speak of Karma.

Along with the meaning of Karma, this word can be translated as “retribution” or “chain of cause and effect.”


See Also:  Buddhism

The Red String

Thread of Lover's Destiny / Fate

 akai ito
The Red String Scroll

This literally translates as “the red string” or “the red thread” in Japanese, but the real meaning is much deeper...

In Japanese culture, it's believed that fate, destiny, or karma joins lovers by an unseen string, tied around one little finger of each. 赤い糸 is how soul mates find and are drawn to each other.

The Japanese concept of the red thread of fate, by most estimations, comes from Chinese folklore, where it's known as 姻緣紅線. The only difference is that in China, the celestial red thread is tied around the ankles of the lovers (versus what is usually represented as the pinky finger in Japan).

Such is Life / Such is Destiny

 zhè jiù shì mìng
Such is Life / Such is Destiny Scroll

這就是命 means “Such is life,” or “Such is destiny.”

This can also be translated as “This is life,” “This is [our] lot in life,” or “This is [our] destiny.” It is perhaps a fatalistic phrase. It can be compared with the French, “Ceci est la vie” or “C'est la vie.”

I Control My Own Destiny

 wǒ de mìng yùn wǒ zhǎng wò
I Control My Own Destiny Scroll

我的命運我掌握 is a way to write “I control my own destiny” in Chinese.

The direct translation is more like, “My destiny, I'm in control.” The meaning is the same, but Chinese grammar and word order vary a bit from English.


There's a few other variations, and if you want any of these, just email me:
我的命运我做主 (wo3 de ming4 yun4 wo3 zuo4 zhu3) "my destiny, I'm in charge"
我的未来我掌握 (wo3 de wei4 lai2 wo3 zhang3 wo4) "my future, I'm in control"
我的未来我做主 (wo3 de wei4 lai2 wo3 zuo4 zhu3) "My future, I'm in charge"

Choose Your Own Destiny

 xuǎn zé zì jǐ de mìng yùn
Choose Your Own Destiny Scroll

選擇自己的命運 means “Choose your destiny” or “pick your own fate” in Chinese.

Let's break down the words in this phrase here...
選擇 means to choose, pick, or select.
自己 means oneself or one's own.
的 is a possessive modifier.
命運 means fate or destiny.

I am the Master of My Destiny

 wǒ mìng yóu wǒ bù yóu tiān
I am the Master of My Destiny Scroll

我命由我不由天 is often translated as “The one that shapes my destiny will always be myself rather than the God” or “Rather than Heaven, I am the master of my fate.”

Breaking down the words directly:
我命 = My fate/destiny
由我 = depends (on) me
不 = not
由天 dependant (on) Heaven.


See Also:  Choose Your Own Destiny


The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...

Title CharactersRomaji (Romanized Japanese)Various forms of Romanized Chinese
Destiny
Fate
inochi / meimìng / ming4 / ming
Destiny
Fate
命運
命运
mìng yùn / ming4 yun4 / ming yun / mingyunming yün / mingyün
Destiny
Fate
運命
运命
un mei / unmeiyùn mìng / yun4 ming4 / yun ming / yunmingyün ming / yünming
Optimism
Happy With Your Fate
樂天 / 楽天
乐天
raku ten / rakutenlè tiān / le4 tian1 / le tian / letianle t`ien / letien / le tien
Fate
Chance Meeting
緣份 / 緣分
缘份 / 缘分
yuán fèn / yuan2 fen4 / yuan fen / yuanfenyüan fen / yüanfen
Predestined Love
Love by Fate
情緣
情缘
qíng yuán
qing2 yuan2
qing yuan
qingyuan
ch`ing yüan
chingyüan
ching yüan
Fate
Opportunity
Chance
因緣
因缘 / 因縁
in nen / innenyīn yuán / yin1 yuan2 / yin yuan / yinyuanyin yüan / yinyüan
The Karma/Fate/Destiny that Brings Lovers Together姻緣
姻缘
yīn yuán / yin1 yuan2 / yin yuan / yinyuanyin yüan / yinyüan
The Red Thread of Fate姻緣紅線
姻缘红线
yīn yuán hóng xiàn
yin1 yuan2 hong2 xian4
yin yuan hong xian
yinyuanhongxian
yin yüan hung hsien
yinyüanhunghsien
Tea Fate茶緣
茶缘
chá yuán / cha2 yuan2 / cha yuan / chayuanch`a yüan / chayüan / cha yüan
Brought Together from 1000 Miles Away by Fate有緣千里來相會
有缘千里来相会
yǒu yuán qiān lǐ lái xiāng huì
you3 yuan2 qian1 li3 lai2 xiang1 hui4
you yuan qian li lai xiang hui
youyuanqianlilaixianghui
yu yüan ch`ien li lai hsiang hui
yu yüan chien li lai hsiang hui
Foresight先見
先见
senkenxiān jiàn
xian1 jian4
xian jian
xianjian
hsien chien
hsienchien
Destiny黛絲蒂妮
黛丝蒂妮
dài sī dì nī
dai4 si1 di4 ni1
dai si di ni
daisidini
tai ssu ti ni
taissutini
Everything Happens for a Reason萬事皆因果
万事皆因果
wàn shì jiē yīn guǒ
wan4 shi4 jie1 yin1 guo3
wan shi jie yin guo
wanshijieyinguo
wan shih chieh yin kuo
wanshihchiehyinkuo
Everything Happens for a Reason物事は全て理由があって起きるmonogoto ha subete riyuu ga at te okiru
monogoto ha subete riyu ga at te okiru
The Mysterious Bond Between People緣 / 縁
enyuán / yuan2 / yuanyüan
Destiny Determined by Heaven天意tenitiān yì / tian1 yi4 / tian yi / tianyit`ien i / tieni / tien i
Free Will自由意志jiyuu ishi / jiyuuishi / jiyu ishizì yóu yì zhì
zi4 you2 yi4 zhi4
zi you yi zhi
ziyouyizhi
tzu yu i chih
tzuyuichih
Karma卡瑪
卡玛
kǎ mǎ / ka3 ma3 / ka ma / kamak`a ma / kama / ka ma
Karma (of your past lives)宿業
宿业
shukugou / shukugosù yè / su4 ye4 / su ye / suyesu yeh / suyeh
Karma
gou / goyè / ye4 / yeyeh
Karma - Cause and Effect因果ingayīn guǒ / yin1 guo3 / yin guo / yinguoyin kuo / yinkuo
The Red String赤い糸akai ito / akaiito
Such is Life
Such is Destiny
這就是命
这就是命
zhè jiù shì mìng
zhe4 jiu4 shi4 ming4
zhe jiu shi ming
zhejiushiming
che chiu shih ming
chechiushihming
I Control My Own Destiny我的命運我掌握
我的命运我掌握
wǒ de mìng yùn wǒ zhǎng wò
wo3 de ming4 yun4 wo3 zhang3 wo4
wo de ming yun wo zhang wo
wodemingyunwozhangwo
wo te ming yün wo chang wo
wotemingyünwochangwo
Choose Your Own Destiny選擇自己的命運
选择自己的命运
xuǎn zé zì jǐ de mìng yùn
xuan3 ze2 zi4 ji3 de ming4 yun4
xuan ze zi ji de ming yun
xuanzezijidemingyun
hsüan tse tzu chi te ming yün
I am the Master of My Destiny我命由我不由天wǒ mìng yóu wǒ bù yóu tiān
wo3 ming4 you2 wo3 bu4 you2 tian1
wo ming you wo bu you tian
womingyouwobuyoutian
wo ming yu wo pu yu t`ien
womingyuwopuyutien
wo ming yu wo pu yu tien
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.


A nice Chinese calligraphy wall scroll

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.

A professional Chinese Calligrapher

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.

Trying to learn Chinese calligrapher - a futile effort

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.

A high-ranked Chinese master calligrapher that I met in Zhongwei

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.