Japanese culture has lots of traditional charms and symbols of good fortune. One of these is the Daruma doll. They can be seen in shop windows and homes, as well as in movies and animatedprograms. People use them for encouragementand to help themselves reach their goals. The typical Daruma doll is just a round ball made of paper mache, usually painted red, with part of the face left blank, symbolizing the fact that one’s future is not yet determined. The dolls have no arms or legs, and when they are sold at temples, they don’t have any eyes. In fact, it’s up tothe person who buys one to give them their eyes.
The dolls are modeled after a legendaryBuddhistmonk named Bodhidharma, who lived during the 5th and 6th century. He is famous for bringing Zen Buddhism to China and Japan, where he is known as Daruma. According to one legend, Bodhidharma meditated for nine years in a cave facing a wall with his eyes open. He accidentally fell asleep just once and wasso furious withhimself that he cut off his own eyelids so that he would never close his eyes again. Besides losing his eyelids, Bodhidharma’s arms and legs also atrophiedand fell off as a consequence ofhis immobility for nine years, leaving him with just a head and a torso.
Despite the strange story to explain their appearance, the dolls represent Daruma’s perseverance and commitment to reaching his goals. In Japanese culture, people buy the dolls with a particular goal in mind. Then, they display the dolls where they will see them regularly. This remindsthem to work toward the thing they hope to achieve. People may also hold the doll with their eyes closed and say a prayer formotivationor courage in reaching their goals.
單字片語整理
Words in Use
●
encouragement
[ɪnˋkɝɪdʒmənt]
n. 鼓勵；助長，促進
I owe my success to your encouragement.
我的成功要歸因於你的鼓勵。
The target of this plan is the encouragement of economic growth.
該計畫的目標是促進經濟成長。
高中 Level 2
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blank
[blæŋk]
adj. 空白的
n. 空白處，空格；（頭腦）一片空白
Please write here and leave the bottom of the page blank.
請你寫在這裡，這一頁底部留白。
Fill in the blanks first, please.
請先把這些空格填好。
My mind was a blank when the teacher asked me the question.
老師問我問題時，我的腦中一片空白。
My mind went blank when the teacher asked me the question.
老師問我問題時，我的腦中一片空白。
The TV screen went blank again.
電視螢幕又壞了。
多益綠色
英檢初級
高中 Level 2
●
symbolize
[ˋsɪmb!͵aɪz]
vt. . 象徵，代表
=
represent
In the Bible, lambs symbolize people, and a
shepherd symbolizes Jesus.
在《聖經》裡，小羊代表人民，牧羊人則代表耶穌。
英檢中級
高中 Level 6
●
legendary
[ˋlɛdʒənd͵ɛrɪ]
adj. 傳說的，傳奇的
A fairy tale is a legendary story involving some imaginative characters and is often passed down from one generation to the next.
童話故事是包含一些虛幻角色的傳奇故事，通常會代代相傳。
高中 Level 5
●
meditate
[ˋmɛdə͵tet]
vi. . 深思熟慮；冥想，打坐
Donald meditated on which college to apply to on
his teacher’s advice.
唐納德按照老師的建議仔細考慮要申請哪些大學。
The monk meditates under that tree every morning.
每天早上這和尚都會在那棵樹下打坐。
高中 Level 6
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accidentally
[͵æksəˋdɛnt!ɪ]
adv. 偶然地，意外地
Rick accidentally dropped the picture frame and shattered the glass.
瑞克不小心把相框摔在地上，打碎了玻璃。
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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immobility
[͵ɪmoˋbɪlətɪ]
n. 不動，靜止；無法移動
The patient’s leg injury from the car accident caused temporary immobility.
該病患因車禍而腿部受傷，導致他暫時無法移動。
●
perseverance
[͵pɝsəˋvɪrəns]
n. . 毅力
Ned always shows great perseverance in the face
of difficulty.
奈德面對困難時總是展現出堅強的毅力。
多益金色
英檢中高
高中 Level 6
●
commitment
[kəˋmɪtmənt]
n. 承諾；奉獻（不可數）
The company makes a commitment to provide quality products to its customers.
該公司承諾提供給客戶高品質的產品。
Peter’s commitmentto work has won the respect of his colleagues.
彼得對工作的奉獻贏得了同事的尊敬。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 5
●
motivation
[͵motəˋveʃən]
n. 動機；幹勁
=
drive
=
incentive
You should make sure that your motivation for losing weight is healthy.
你應確保自己想減肥的動機是健康的。
I have no motivation toward the project. I’m not interested in it.
我對這項企畫沒有動力。我對它不感興趣。
高中 Level 4
●
remind
[rɪˋmaɪnd]
vt. 提醒；使想起
The lullaby reminds me of my childhood.
這首搖籃曲使我想起我的童年。
Please remind me to call Jason at seven.
請提醒我 7 點時打電話給傑森。
多益綠色
英檢初級
高中 Level 3
●
animated
[ˋænə͵metɪd]
a. 生動的；動畫的
The animated movie was so true to life that I thought it was real.
那部動畫片栩栩如生，讓我信以為真。
●
Buddhist
[ˋbʊdɪst]
a. 佛教的
●
Buddhism
[ˋbʊdɪzəm]
n. 佛教
●
eyelid
[ˋaɪ͵lɪd]
n. . 眼皮，眼瞼
Cathy was in the habit of closing her eyelids when
making important decisions.
凱西做重大決定時習慣闔上眼皮。
高中 Level 6
●
atrophy
[ˋætrəfɪ]
vi. （身體部位）萎縮
●
torso
[ˋtɔrso]
n. （人體的）軀幹
Practical Phrases
●
be up to
由某人決定
It's up to Kent to make the final decision.
最後決定要取決於肯特。
●
A be modeled after B
A 仿照 B
This TV show is modeled after one from South Korea.
此電視節目是仿照韓國一個電視節目。
●
be furious with sb
生某人的氣
Tina's teacher was furious with her because she kept interrupting him.
蒂娜的老師對她很火大，因為她不斷地打斷他。
●
as a consequence of...
因為……
= in consequence of...
As a consequence of your continual tardiness,
I will dock your pay. 因為你常遲到，所以我要扣你薪水。
●
remind sb to V
提醒某人（做）⋯⋯
Please remind me to call Sarah back this afternoon.
請提醒我下午回電給莎拉。
