Four-Character Idiom · Conviction & Will · Kyojuro Rengoku

せいしんいっとう Seishin Ittō "Mind Wholly Brought to Bear" JLPT N1 Common knowledge

Meaning

When the whole of the spirit is gathered to one point of focus, no obstacle can resist. The full classical phrase ends 「精神一到何事か成らざらん」.

精神を一つに集中して努力すれば、どんな困難なことでも必ず成し遂げられるという教え。

The Kyojuro Rengoku line

Verbatim from the source article

「心を燃やせ歯を喰いしばって前を向け」

"KEEP YOUR HEART BURNING, GRIT YOUR TEETH AND MOVE FORWARD."

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Why it fits Kyojuro Rengoku

"Keep your heart burning" is seishin-ittō in two words. The classical idiom warns that scattered effort accomplishes nothing; Rengoku's last lesson is that gathered effort — heart concentrated to one flame — accomplishes whatever the work requires.

Cultural note

Origin in classical / Buddhist / Confucian tradition

The full phrase is attributed to Zhu Xi, the Song-dynasty Neo-Confucian — central to Edo-period Japanese moral education.

Sources

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