Details
Stroke Order
Cultural Context
Etymology
Composed of not and heart. Heart of not.
Symbolism
Sad, tragedy, grief. Represents sadness.
Spiritual Meaning
In Buddhist compassion, "sorrow" means empathetically feeling others' suffering as one's own. The root of Mahayana Buddhism's altruistic spirit.
Related Culture & Scenes
- — Drowning in sadness
Component Breakdown
非 + heart
Words & Expressions
Four-Character Compounds
悲歌慷慨
ひかこうがい
indignant lamentation over the evils of the times
悲喜交交
ひきこもごも
bittersweet; having mingled feelings of joy and sorrow; joy and sorrow alternating in one's heart
悲憤慷慨
ひふんこうがい
indignant lamentation over the evils of the times
大慈大悲
だいじだいひ
great compassion and mercy
Proverbs & Idioms
悲しみは分かち合えば半分になる
かなしみはわかちあえばはんぶんになる
Shared grief is half the sorrow
Sharing sadness makes it easier to bear
Poetry
奥山に もみぢ踏み分け 鳴く鹿の 声聞く時ぞ 秋は悲しき
Deep in the hills a stag treads through fallen maple leaves and cries. Hearing it, autumn is saddest of all.
月みれば 千々に物こそ 悲しけれ 我が身ひとつの 秋にはあらねど
Looking at the moon, a thousand sorrows crowd in, though the autumn is not mine alone.
Anime & Manga
ヴァイオレット・エヴァーガーデン
Violet Evergarden
Story of a girl overcoming the 'sadness' of war.
悲劇の元凶となる最強外道ラスボス女王は民の為に尽くします。
The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior
A well-known work with 悲 in its Japanese title.
Games
クライシス
Crisis Core(2007)
Developer: Square Enix
FF7 prequel with a 'tragic' ending.
View on Amazon →Other kanji with the same meaning
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 悲 mean in Japanese?
悲 means grieve, sad, deplore, regret.
How do you read 悲?
On'yomi: ヒ (HI). Kun'yomi: かな.しい、かな.しむ (kanashii, kanashimu).
How many strokes does 悲 have?
悲 has 12 strokes. Its radical is 心 (heart).
Is 悲 a good kanji for a tattoo?
悲 is one of the kanji most often chosen for tattoos. It means grieve, sad, deplore, regret. Read the full meaning and cultural background on this page first — some popular choices are deliberately dark.