菩薩

See also: 菩萨

Chinese

		phonetic
trad. (菩薩)		菩	薩
simp. (菩萨)		菩	萨

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): púsà

  (Zhuyin): ㄆㄨˊ ㄙㄚˋ

  (Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): pu² sa¹

• Cantonese (Jyutping): pou⁴ saat³
• Gan (Wiktionary): pu² sat
• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): phù-sat

  (Meixian, Guangdong): pu² sad⁵

• Eastern Min (BUC): bù-sák
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): phô͘-sat

  (Teochew, Peng'im): pu⁵ sag⁴

• Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): pu² sa⁶

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: púsà → púsa (toneless final syllable variant)
    • Zhuyin: ㄆㄨˊ ㄙㄚˋ → ㄆㄨˊ ˙ㄙㄚ (toneless final syllable variant)
    • Tongyong Pinyin: púså
    • Wade–Giles: pʻu²-sa⁵
    • Yale: pú-sa
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: pwu.sah
    • Palladius: пуса (pusa)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰu³⁵ sä⁵¹/ → /pʰu³⁵ sä³/
  • (Chengdu)
    • Sichuanese Pinyin: pu² sa¹
    • Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: pusa
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰu²¹ sa⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: pou⁴ saat³
    • Yale: pòuh saat
    • Cantonese Pinyin: pou⁴ saat⁸
    • Guangdong Romanization: pou⁴ sad³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰou̯²¹ saːt̚³/
• Gan
  • (Nanchang)
    • Wiktionary: pu² sat
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰu²⁴ sat̚²/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: phù-sat
    • Hakka Romanization System: pu^ˇ sad^ˋ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: pu² sad⁵
    • Sinological IPA: /pʰu¹¹ sat̚²/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: pu² sad⁵
    • Sinological IPA: /pʰu¹¹ sat̚¹/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: bù-sák
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pu⁵³⁻²¹ ^(s-)lɑʔ²⁴/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: phô͘-sat
    • Tâi-lô: phôo-sat
    • Phofsit Daibuun: phosad
    • IPA (Xiamen): /pʰɔ²⁴⁻²² sat̚³²/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /pʰɔ²⁴⁻²² sat̚⁵/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /pʰɔ¹³⁻²² sat̚³²/
    • IPA (Taipei): /pʰɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ sat̚³²/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /pʰɔ²³⁻³³ sat̚³²/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: pu⁵ sag⁴
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: phû sak
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰu⁵⁵⁻¹¹ sak̚²/
• Xiang
  • (Changsha)
    • Wiktionary: pu² sa⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰu¹³ sa̠²⁴/

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• Middle Chinese: bu sat

Rime
Character	菩	薩
Reading #	1/4	1/1
Initial (聲)	並 (3)	心 (16)
Final (韻)	模 (23)	曷 (63)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	I	I
Fanqie	薄胡切	桑割切
Baxter	bu	sat
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/buo/	/sɑt̚/
Pan Wuyun	/buo/	/sɑt̚/
Shao Rongfen	/bo/	/sɑt̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/bɔ/	/sat̚/
Li Rong	/bo/	/sɑt̚/
Wang Li	/bu/	/sɑt̚/
Bernard Karlgren	/bʱuo/	/sɑt̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	pú	sa
Expected Cantonese Reflex	pou4	saat3

Etymology 1

Short for 菩提薩埵／菩提萨埵 (pútísàduǒ), itself from Sanskrit बोधिसत्त्व (bodhi-sattva, “enlightened existence”) or Pali bodhisatta.

Noun

(deprecated template usage) 菩薩

1. (Buddhism) bodhisattva
2. (figurative, sometimes ironic) kind-hearted person; kind and charitable person

(deprecated template usage)

Synonyms

• (bodhisattva): 摩訶薩埵／摩诃萨埵 (móhēsàduǒ), 菩提薩埵／菩提萨埵 (pútísàduǒ)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (菩薩):

• → Japanese: 菩(ぼ)薩(さつ) (bosatsu)
• → Korean: 보살(菩薩) (bosal)
• → Vietnamese: bồ tát (菩薩)

Etymology 2

Phono-semantic matching of Khmer ពោធិ៍សាត់ (Pothi៍sat).

Proper noun

(deprecated template usage) 菩薩

1. (～省) Pursat (a province of Cambodia)
2. (～市) Pursat (a city in Pursat, Cambodia)

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
菩	薩
ぼ Jinmeiyō	さつ Jinmeiyō
goon	kan'on

/bosatɨ/ → /bosatʉ/ → /bosat͡sʉ/ → /bosat͡su/

Shift from bosachi below, adopting the kan'on reading for the second character, possibly indicating a later borrowing or other influence from Middle Chinese. Ultimately from Sanskrit बोधिसत्त्व (bodhi-sattva, literally “enlightened existence”) or Pali bodhisatta.

Compare modern Cantonese 菩薩／菩萨 (pou⁴ saat³).

Noun

菩(ぼ)薩(さつ) • (bosatsu) 

1. (Buddhism) Short for 菩提薩埵 (bodai-satta): a bodhisattva

   Synonyms: 開士 (kaishi, kaiji), 大士 (daishi)

2. (obsolete) a title granted by the imperial court to notably virtuous high-ranking monks
3. (archaic) a title applied to native Shinto deities after the spread of 本地垂迹 (honji suijaku, theological position prevalent until the Meiji period, explaining that Buddhist deities from India choose to appear in Japan as native kami)
4. in gagaku circles, a dancer dressed up as a bodhisattva
5. (colloquial) Synonym of 米 (kome): rice grains
6. (by extension) a maidservant who cooks rice

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 菩薩(ぼさつ)戒(かい) (bosatsu-kai)
• 菩薩(ぼさつ)行(ぎょう) (bosatsu-gyō), 菩薩(ぼさつ)道(どう) (bosatsu-dō)
• 菩薩(ぼさつ)乗(じょう) (bosatsu-jō)
• 生(い)き菩薩(ぼさつ) (iki bosatsu)
• 延命(えんめい)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Enmei Bosatsu)
• 月光(がっこう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Gakkō Bosatsu)
• 歌舞(かぶ)の菩薩(ぼさつ) (kabu no bosatsu)
• 外面(げめん)似(じ)菩薩(ぼさつ)内心(ないしん)如(にょ)夜叉(やしゃ) (gemen ji-bosatsu naishin nyo-yasha)
• 観自(かんじ)在(ざい)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kanjizai Bosatsu)
• 観世(かんぜ)音(おん)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kanzeon Bosatsu), 観音(かんのん)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kannon Bosatsu)
• 脇士(きょうじ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (kyōji-bosatsu)
• 旧住(くじゅう)の菩薩(ぼさつ) (kujū no bosatsu)
• 救世(くせ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kuse Bosatsu)
• 救脱(くだつ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kudatsu Bosatsu)
• 化(け)菩薩(ぼさつ) (kebosatsu)
• 虚空(こくう)蔵(ぞう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kokūzō Bosatsu)
• 興正(こうしょう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kōshō Bosatsu)
• 五大(ごだい)力(りき)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Godairiki Bosatsu)
• 金剛(こんごう)蔵王(ぞうおう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Kongō-zōō Bosatsu)
• 𦬇(ささ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (sasa bosatsu)
• 慈氏(じし)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Jishi Bosatsu)
• 持地(じじ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Jiji Bosatsu)
• 地蔵(じぞう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Jizō Bosatsu)
• 四(し)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Shi-bosatsu)
• 地涌(じゆ)の菩薩(ぼさつ) (jiyu no bosatsu)
• 上行(じょうぎょう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Jōgyō Bosatsu)
• 常啼(じょうたい)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Jōtai Bosatsu)
• 勢至菩薩(せいしぼさつ) (Seishi Bosatsu)
• 大悲(だいひ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Daihi Bosatsu)
• 大(だい)菩薩(ぼさつ) (dai-bosatsu)
• 多羅(たら)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Tara Bosatsu)
• 二(に)菩薩(ぼさつ) (ni-bosatsu)
• 二十(にじゅう)五(ご)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Nijūgo-bosatsu)
• 女(にょ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (nyobosatsu)
• 如(にょ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (nyobosatsu)
• 不軽(ふきょう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Fukyō Bosatsu)
• 普賢(ふげん)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Fugen Bosatsu)
• 仏(ぶつ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (butsu-bosatsu)
• 妙音(みょうおん)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Myōon Bosatsu)
• 妙見菩薩(みょうけんぼさつ) (Myōken Bosatsu)
• 弥勒(みろく)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Miroku Bosatsu)
• 文殊(もんじゅ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Monju Bosatsu)
• 薬王(やくおう)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Yakuō Bosatsu)
• 勇施(ゆせ)菩薩(ぼさつ) (Yuse Bosatsu)

Proper noun

菩(ぼ)薩(さつ) • (Bosatsu) 

1. title of a piece of gagaku, categorized in the 唐楽 (tōgaku, literally “Tang music”) style

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
菩	薩
ぼ Jinmeiyō	さち Jinmeiyō
goon

/bosatɨ/ → /bosat͡ɕi/

From Middle Chinese 菩薩 (MC bu sat), an abbreviation of 菩提薩埵 (MC bu dej sat twaX), itself a transliteration of Sanskrit बोधिसत्त्व (bodhi-sattva, literally “enlightened existence”) or Pali bodhisatta. Uses the goon for both characters, indicating an earlier borrowing from Middle Chinese than the bosatsu reading above.

Noun

菩(ぼ)薩(さち) • (bosachi) 

1. (Buddhism, obsolete) Short for 菩提薩埵 (bodai-satta): a bodhisattva
   • c. 1001–1014, Murasaki Shikibu, Genji Monogatari (Suzumushi)

     阿彌陀(あみだ)仏(ぶつ)けうしのほさちおのおの白(びゃく)たんしてつくり奉(たてまつ)りたる...

     Amida-butsu kyōshi no bosachi onoono byakutan shite tsukuri tatematsuritaru...

     (please add an English translation of this example)

See also

• 菩提(ぼだい) (bodai, “bodhi”)
• 薩埵(さった) (satta, “sattva”)
• 如来(にょらい) (nyorai, “tathāgata”)

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Korean

Hanja in this term
菩	薩

Noun

菩薩 • (bosal) (hangeul 보살)

1. hanja form^? of 보살 (“bodhisattva”)

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Okinawan

Etymology

Cognate with Japanese 菩薩 (bosatsu).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [buːsaː]

Noun

菩薩(ぶーさー) (būsā) 

1. (Buddhism) bodhisattva

Derived terms

• 菩薩加那志 (būsā-ganashī)

References

• “ブーサー” in Okinawa Center of Language Study, Shuri-Naha Dialect Dictionary (archived; reopens 2024).

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Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
菩	薩

Noun

菩薩

1. chữ Hán form of bồ tát (“bodhisattva”).