Compassion Kindness in Chinese / Japanese...

Besides the title above, 慈悲 can also be defined as clemency or lenience and sometimes the act of giving charity.

In the Buddhist context, it can be defined as “benevolence,” “loving-kindness and compassion,” or “mercy and compassion.”

This Buddhist virtue is perhaps the most important to employ in your life. All sentient beings that you encounter should be given your loving kindness. And trust me, however much you can give, it comes back. Make your life and the world a better place!

This Chinese/Japanese Buddhist term is the equivalent of Metta Karuna from Pali or Maitri Karuna from Sanskrit.

慈 can mean loving-kindness by itself.
悲 adds a component of sorrow, empathy, compassion, and sympathy for others.

See Also:  Benevolence

仁恕 is a word in Chinese and Japanese that means something like benevolence with magnanimity or kindness with a forgiving nature.

If this describes you, then you are the type of person that I would like to call my friend.

This may not be the most common word in daily use, but it's old enough that it transcended cultures from China to Japan in the 5th century when Japan lacked a written language and absorbed Chinese characters and words into their language.
Note: 仁恕 is not commonly used in Korean.

思いやり is compassion, kindness, or sympathy in Japanese.

The first part of this word suggests feelings, emotion, sentiment, love, affection, wish, and hope are connected with this idea of compassion and sympathy.

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

These two characters mean compassion and sympathy in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, which makes this word universal.

Compassion is caring and understanding someone is hurt or troubled (even if you don't know them). It is wanting to help, even if all you can do is listen and say kind words. You forgive mistakes. You are a friend when someone needs a friend.

See Also:  Caring | Kindness

親切 is a Chinese/Japanese/Korean word that can also mean affectionate, cordial, warm, or close (emotionally).

Kindness shows you care and are doing some good to make life better for others. Be thoughtful about people's needs. Show love and compassion to someone who is sad or needs your help. When you are tempted to be cruel, to criticize or tease, decide to be kind instead.

See Also:  Love | Caring | Benevolence

慈 is the simplest way to express the idea of compassion.

This can also mean love for your fellow humans, humanity, or living creatures. Sometimes this is extended to mean charity.

This term is often used in a Buddhist or Christian context. The concept was also spoken of by Laozi (Lao Tzu) in the Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching).

慈 is considered the direct translation of the Sanskrit word मैत्री (maitrī) Pali word मेत्ता (mettā). In this context, it means benevolence, loving kindness, and goodwill.

This Chinese character is understood in Japanese but is usually used in compound words (not seen alone). Also used in old Korean Hanja, so it's very universal.

See Also:  Mercy | Benevolence | Forgiveness | Kindness

愛心 literally means “loving heart.” It can also be translated as “compassion.”

In Chinese, it carries more of a compassionate meaning.

愛心 is rarely used in Japanese anymore, so best if your audience is Chinese.

See Also:  Compassion | Love

觀世音 is the longer and perhaps more formal title for the Buddhist deity known as the Goddess of Mercy or Bodhisattva of Compassion.

The longer title of this bodhisattva is Romanized in the following ways:
Mandarin Chinese: Guanshi Yin, Kuan-shih Yin.
Japanese: Kanzeon.
Sanskrit: Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.
Korean: Gwan-se-eum.
Vietnamese: Quan Thế Âm.
Thai: Prah Mae Kuan Eim.
English: Bodhisattva of Mercy and Salvation, Goddess of Compassion, Buddha of Mercy, et al.

Please view our more common and shorter version, “Guan Yin” before you make a decision. Also, note that the first character has a slight variation in Japanese. If your audience is specifically Japanese, you may want to select that version.

See Also:  Buddhism | Goddess

観音 is the specifically Japanese version of Bodhisattva of Compassion or Guan Yin.

In Japanese, this is pronounced Kannon and occasionally spelled Kwannon. The Chinese version is a bit more commonly seen in Asia. However, in Japanese, there is a slight variation with the first character.

Some time ago, a camera company in Japan named their company after this Buddhist deity. That camera company is still known as Canon (they chose a “C” instead of a “K” when they Romanized this name).

観世音 is the more extended and more formal Japanese version of Bodhisattva of Compassion or Guan Yin.

In Japanese, this is pronounced Kanzeon. The Chinese version is a bit more common in Asia, but in Japanese, they use a slight variation of the first character. Choose this version only if your intended audience is specifically Japanese.

觀音/観音 is the Buddhist deity known as the Goddess of Mercy or Bodhisattva of Compassion.

In Chinese, the proper name of this being is Guan Yin. There is some debate as to whether Guan Yin is female. The argument comes from some scripture that suggests Buddhist deities take on the male form. Others say that Guan Yin has no sex. And still, others are okay with the female representation of Guan Yin.

This bodhisattva is also known or Romanized in the following ways:
Mandarin Chinese: Guan Yin, Kuan Yin, Kwan Yin.
Japanese: Kannon, Kwannon.
Sanskrit: Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.
Korean: Gwan-eum.
Vietnamese: Quan Âm.
Thai: Kuan Eim.
English: Bodhisattva of Mercy and Salvation, Goddess of Compassion, Buddha of Mercy, et al.

Note: The first character has a slight variation in Japanese. If your audience is specifically Japanese, you may want to select that version.

See Also:  Buddhism | Goddess | Namo Amitabha | Bodhisattva

慈悲征服一切 is a way to express the idea that mercy, compassion, and loving-kindness can overcome all things.

This phrase is composed of 3 Chinese words:
慈悲 = loving-kindness; mercy; compassion; benevolence. It's used in Buddhism a lot to express the idea of how one should treat everyone else and all living beings.
征服 = to conquer; to subdue; to vanquish; to overcome.
一切 = all; everything; the whole; lock, stock, and barrel; without exception.

戀心 literally means “loving heart.” It can also be translated as “one's love” or “awakening of love.”

戀心 is used exclusively for love between boyfriends and girlfriends or husband and wife.

Breaking down the meaning of each Kanji, the first means love, affection, or tender passion. The second Kanji means heart, mind, or soul (most will read it as the heart).

See Also:  Compassion | Love

佛心 means the Buddha's mind, Buddha-heart, or the spiritually enlightened heart/mind.

The Buddha Heart is detached from good and evil and other such constructs. The Buddha Heart has mercy, compassion, and loving-kindness for all sentient life, the good, the wicked, and all in between.

The heart and mind (心) are the same concepts in the ancient Orient, so you can use heart and mind interchangeably in this context.

仁神術 is Jin Shin Jyutsu or Jin Shin Jutsu.

This is a practice of calming the mind and clearing the flow of Qi energy in the body. Jin Shin Jyutsu has some commonality with the practice of Reiki.

A good translation of 仁神術 would be “Benevolent Spirit Method.”

We can break that down into all of the possible meanings:

仁 = benevolence (esp. as a virtue of Confucianism), consideration, compassion, humanity, charity, kindness, or virtue.

神 = deity, soul, spirit, mysterious, psyche, god, divinity, spiritual powers, deva, divine, spiritual, or supernatural.

術 = way, method, means, art, trick, or plan. The correct romaji for this 術 Kanji should be “jutsu.” However, in martial arts, this is often written “jitsu” but in this case, “jyutsu” became common.