Japanese meaning of 情けは人の為ならず
English Translation:
What goes around comes around
Meaning & Cultural Context
Meaning:
What you do to others will come back to you.
Cultural Context:
Based on karmic belief. Common in moral teaching and casual talk.
人にした行為は巡り巡って自分に返ってくるという意味。
因果応報の思想に基づく。道徳的な教えや日常会話で使われる。
Grammar & Learning Points
Grammar Point
• 情け (nasake) = “compassion” or “kindness” (noun)
• は (wa) = topic particle, marking “compassion” as the topic
• 人 (hito) = “person/others” (noun)
• の (no) = possessive/attributive particle, linking “person” and “為”
• 為 (tame) = “for the benefit of” (noun)
• ならず (narazu) = classical negative form of なる (naru, “to be”), meaning “is not”
The phrase is a topic–comment structure, ending with a classical negative predicate, giving it a proverbial tone.
Trap for English Speakers
May sound selfish in English (“Kindness is not for others”) without the cultural context of reciprocity.
Example
困っている新人を助けたら、後で自分も救われた。情けは人の為ならず。
I helped the new hire, and later they helped me—What goes around comes around.
Applied Example
クエストで困っていた初心者を手伝ったら、次回レアドロを譲ってくれた。情けは人の為ならず。
We carried a newbie through the quest, and he shared the rare drop—What goes around comes around.