表現 Break: 能ある鷹は爪を隠す

I like the animalistic nature of today's 諺, and the advice it offers appeals highly to me, kind of like 不言実行. I've always thought that strengths are strongest when they're kept hidden (and I think that my powerful desire to learn languages is motivated way too much by my dreams of surprising people who think that I don't understand them, like a linguistic-rope-a-dope).

能ある鷹は爪を隠す
のう　ある　たか　は　つめ　を　かくす
nou aru taka wa tsume wo kakusu

Definition:
実力のある者は、それを見せびらかすようなことはしない。
Translations:
Literal - The talented hawk hides his talons.
1. The wise man does not make all of his abilities known.
2. It is better to play some of your cards close to your chest.
3. He/She who knows most, often says least.

Note that the Japanese definition here adds a nuance that my personal inclinations leave out: modesty. You don't just hide your talents because, as Paul Newman says, being the "unknown" gives you strength and makes you cool, but because showing-off is to be frowned upon. Modesty is a highly prized virtue, especially to the Japanese way of thinking.

There are some really cool expressions that encapsulate the same meaning, in an antonymous way:

• 空樽は音が高い
  から　だる　は　おと　が　たかい
  kara daru ha oto ga takai
  
  A loud sound indicates an empty barrel.
  
  
• 能無し犬の高吠え
  のうなし　いぬ　の　たかぼえ
  nounashi inu no takaboe
  
  A barking dog seldom bites (loudness masks weakness).
  
  
• 口達者の仕事下手
  くちだっしゃ　の　しごと　へた
  kuchidassha no shigoto heta
  
  The glib are poor workers.
  
  
• 能無しの口叩き
  のうなし　の　くちたたき
  nounashi no kuchitataki
  
  The incompetence of braggarts.
  
  
• 鳴く猫鼠捕らず
  なく　ねこ　ねずみ　とらず
  naku neko nezumi torazu
  
  The cat that meows doesn't catch the mouse.
  

Wow... there were a lot of those.

例文：
A-san: あの子とファーストデートはどうだった？
How'd your first date with that girl go.
B-san: よかったよ。夕食は俺の手作り料理で、その後ギターで俺のオリジナル曲を彼女に弾いたり、俺が書いたポエムを読んだり、マッサージしたりしてやった。
Sweet. I cooked her dinner, then played her some of my original songs on guitar, read her my poems, and gave her a massage.
A-san: ファーストデートで？お前はバカじゃないの？2番目のデートはどうする予定？
On the first date? Isn't that overkill? What do you have planned for the second date?
B-san: ええと。。。
Uh...
A-san: わからないでしょう！「能ある鷹は爪を隠す」という諺は意味あるよ。
You don't know, do you? There's a reason they say to keep some of your strengths in reserve.

Also, does this proverb make anyone else think of the character Zatoichi? Follow-up question: Anyone see the latest Zatoichi incarnation? The female one?

表現 Break: 取らぬ狸の皮算用

Do you guys know the Tanuki?

The Tanuki, or Racoon Dog as he gets called in English, is a mischievous prankster animal, who shows up all the time in Japanese folklore and mythology. He can range from mildly annoying sake thief, to romancer of farmer's daughters, to a ravenous bean eater who murders an elderly woman, makes soup out of her, and feeds said soup to her husband as is the case in this CHILDREN'S STORY (Wait until you see what the rabbit does to get revenge)!

He's also famous for having the power to change his appearance, and for having testicles large enough to play the drums on. Or use as a futon.

Today's 諺 is largely tanuki based, but I got too excited when I first heard it, expecting that there would be a bizarre fairy-tale or legend to go along with it. While it does reference skin removal, it doesn't go into the entertaining detail that かちかちやま does. This saying is much more straightforward.

取らぬ狸の皮算用
とらぬ　たぬき　の　かわざんよう
toranu tanuki no kawazanyou

Definition:
不確実な事柄に期待を掛けて、まだ実現していないのに、それを元にあれこれ計画を立てること。
Translation:
1. Don't count your tanuki-skins before you've skinned them.
2. Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

The reason that this saying uses tanukis specifically is because of their rascally wiles and their magical abilities to escape or to talk their way out of trouble before trappers can get their skins off. There are some web definitions that define the saying as covering all range of preparations: estimating hide yield, making profit estimates, borrowing/buying based on those profits, etc, before one even catches the tanuki in question. But the idea is basically the same at heart.

Interesting notes about this saying:

• Like so many others, it preserves the archaic ～ぬ　(=　～ない) form of conjugation.
• It is often used in shortened form; Just saying 「皮算用」 suffices, which explains why kanji characters that literally mean "skin computation" get Rikai-channed as "an overoptimistic calculation; unreliable account."
• There are some cool equivalent expressions, like 「先ずウサギを捕まえる: First, CATCH the rabbit」 and 「穴の狢を値段する: Pricing the badger when it's still in the hole.」
  

例文：入学試験の結果はまだ分からないのに、もうクラス登録を計画しているの？取らぬ狸を皮算用」っていうことを聞いたことないの？
You're planning out your course registration, even though you don't even know your entrance exam results? Didn't anyone ever tell you not to count your chickens before they hatch?