I have this wooden board, with Japanese text.
From what I managed to learn, it means something like “know where your feet are”, but it doesn’t make sense to me.
Can you help with the literal and/or broader meaning?
I read Japanese and it’s not. However my Taiwanese wife says it’s Chinese.
The first two characters mean to “take care” or “mind” and the last two mean “feet.”
Signs in native English tend to say “Mind your step.”
Thanks!
Can you please tell me which side is up…? <hides in shame>
No problem!
Needs to be rotated 90 deg clockwise with the simplest character on the bottom.
Many thanks!
Apparently it’s a Zen buddhist phrase. The sign may actually be from Japan because it’s also used in religious context in Japan, and those characters (照顧脚下) are standard Japanese kanji, though they may be identical in Chinese. I’ve looked at a few Japanese-language Google hits like this - apparently it is a sign commonly seen at the entrance of Zen buddhist temples. The literal meaning is “watch your step” as TokyoBayer explained, but most references say it carries a deeper meaning about self-reflection and organizing your thoughts through organizing your shoes.
scr4 - thank you so much for the effort and the elaborated answer!