Translation for a tattoo

[eloy960]

Hi.
I would really apreciate it if somebody could translate the phrase "Face your fears" in kanji for a tattoo I want to have done.
Thanks in advance for the translation.

[nice gaijin]

Why not just have it in English? You'd be able to read it, and it would be far more accurate than any translation. If you want a tattoo in Japanese, you might as well just pick some random characters you think look good, and tell everyone it means this or that.

People who will actually be able to read it will all wonder why you wanted a tattoo in Japanese, no matter what it says.

[Elizabeth]

How about 困難に立ち向かう（直面して）。? I can't say exactly without knowing the space you have for it. And this is broader as well, more like "difficulties" or "challenges" than fears....

[nice gaijin]

I kind of like the sound of 恐怖対し, as it sounds kind of like 四字熟語 by removing the other particles, but there really is no conjugated form that matches the tone of the English version. Is it a command, a statement or a resolution? 立ち向かう is probably a closer translation to "face" in this context, but it's beyond me why anyone would want an entire sentence in a foreign language tattooed on their body.

[Elizabeth]

（恐怖）と向き合う also works for face or confront personal fears and mental obstacles.

[yukio_michael]

A few things...

A) You can't take an idiomatic expression--- actually, "face your fears" isn't really idomatic since the meaning can be infered by the words themselves, you can't take a coloquialism in one language and then translate that into another language--- You'd be better off finding Japanese idoms, or sayings and getting that tattooed on you.

B) By getting a Japanese tattoo you'll join the legions of people who though, on the surface, seem (to the ignorant) to be interested at a base level with Japanese culture, are in fact, actually so lazy about the subject, that they would willingly ask advice from random strangers on the internet as to what to permanantly put on their body in a language they can not read.

I don't mind tattoos too much, though everyone and their mother has a tattoo now, and MANY of them... It's probably to the point that NOT having a tattoo is cooler than having one; not having a tattoo is the new black.

You'd also be remiss in knowing that getting a tattoo places you not just outside the boundaries of general Japanese culture, but at the same time brandishes you within that culture as a thug.

Though it's true that many performing artists, Namie Amuro, et al, are wearing tattoos these days, generally speaking the act is still seen in society not just as a yanki or juvenile delinquent low-class thing, but overall as a Yakuza thug practice.

None of these things may deter you from getting a Japanese tattoo, but knowing these things, and still getting such a tattoo makes you complicit in an act of complete irony, rather than anything remotely meaningful.

I don't know you, this isn't a commentary on your character, my words are meant to discourage you from doing this--- I hope you take my advice.

[eloy960]

Thanks everybody for the replies.
My interest in having a tattoo in kanji is just because I think the symbols look cool. I know this isn't a "deep" reason but after all that's what tattooes are all about.
Now, if I'm having foreign simbols I would like them to mean something, that's why I don't just pick whatever simbols I think look good. The phrase "Face your fears" really touched me when I was younger, and I have actually grown a lot by just doing that.
yukio_michael, you are right about the fact that you can't take a coloquialism in one language and then translate it into another language. My original languaje is Spanish and I have already noticed this between English and Spanish. About your other concerns like "branding" myself as a thug, this is not my intention, I appreciate the fact that you told me this but I'm not living in a japanese culture, I'm in America (like you), and it is something pretty common to have tattoes in kanji over here, whether you like it or not. I'm not trying to confront you, just asking you to be a little more open-minded.
So, anyway, is there a japanese expresion that has the same meaning as "Face your fears"? Even if the literal translation has nothing to do with the english phrase.
Thanks again for the replies.

[nice gaijin]

Just because something is common does not make it any less ridiculous. What I meant was that if I were to get a tattoo I would pick something with intense personal meaning, looking cool is just a side-effect. A tattoo in a language I cannot read only has the meaning other people dictate to me. If you want a saying that means a lot to you, why not write it in a language you can read? English lettering can look just as cool as Japanese characters.

And no, I can't think of any specific saying that equates to that meaning. All I can say is after all this you still decide to get a kanji tattoo, go to an artist that actually understands the characters and how they are written, or else you'll end up with some ugly misshapen characters.

[Elizabeth]

Considering there isn't a clear context and after thinking of it a little longer the simplest translation to explain and understand yourself might be the negative command or inperative form "Don't be afraid" （恐れるな）。

Based on a literal dictionary translation "face your fears" is apparently closest to 恐れと向き合え。It's just that I've personally never heard it used in actual conversation.

[Hiroyuki Nagashima]

FACE YOUR FEARS "恐れと向き合え"or "困難に立ち向う"

It is the 4 characters phrase which a meaning is close in
四字熟語データバンク
http://sanabo.com/words/

大死一番 （DAISI ICHIBAN）
意味：一度死んだつもりになってがんばること。

雲外蒼天（UNGAI SOUTEN）
意味：困難を乗り越え、努力して克服すれば快い青空が 望めるという意味。

試行錯誤　（SIKOU SAKUGO)
意味：試みと失敗を繰り返しながら解決策を見いだして いくこと。
困難な課題を成し遂げるためにあれこれと試み、失敗を 繰り返しながら目的に向かっていくこと。

独立不撓 （DOKURITU FUTOU）
意 味：　自分の力だけでやり抜くこと。「不撓」は、困難 に負けないさま。
どのような困難に遭遇しても屈することなく自分の力で 自分の意志によって、
目標を達成するさま。

不撓不屈（FUTOU FUKUTU） :cool:
意 味：　どんな困難に出会ってもけっして心がくじけない こと。

勇往邁進（YUOU MAISIN）
意 味：　困難をものともしないで、ひたすら突き進むこと 。

[yamada]

Hi.
I would really apreciate it if somebody could translate the phrase "Face your fears" in kanji for a tattoo I want to have done.
Thanks in advance for the translation.

more like..
困難に立ち向かえ
恐怖に向き合え
困難に直面しろ（直面せよ）

Any of these includes Hiragana. Make new word.
克困難
断困難
絶困難