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一寸先は闇 (issunsakihayami) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

一いっ寸すん先さきは闇やみ

い

っ

す

ん

さ

き

は

や

み

Meanings

1

no one knows what the future holds; the future is a closed book

Proverb emphasizing the unpredictability of the future; literally 'one sun ahead is darkness'.

一いっ寸すん先さきは闇やみだから、明日あしたのことを

心しん

配ぱい

し

て

も

仕し

方かた

が

ない

。

Since no one knows what the future holds, there's no point worrying about tomorrow.

Kanji

一one, one radical (no.1)
寸measurement, tenth of a shaku, a little
先before, ahead, previous
闇get dark, gloom, disorder

Built from

一いっ寸すん先さき+闇やみ

Etymology

A traditional Japanese proverb. The literal meaning is 'one sun ahead is darkness', where 一寸 (いっすん) is an old unit of length (about 3 cm), implying that even a tiny step into the future is completely unknown.