天邪鬼

Chinese

		day; sky; heaven	daemonical; iniquitous; nefarious	ghost; sly; crafty
trad. (天邪鬼)		天	邪	鬼
simp. #(天邪鬼)		天	邪	鬼

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): tiānxiéguǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄊㄧㄢ ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄍㄨㄟˇ

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: tiānxiéguǐ
    • Zhuyin: ㄊㄧㄢ ㄒㄧㄝˊ ㄍㄨㄟˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: tiansiéguěi
    • Wade–Giles: tʻien¹-hsieh²-kuei³
    • Yale: tyān-syé-gwěi
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tianshyegoei
    • Palladius: тяньсегуй (tjanʹseguj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵ ɕi̯ɛ³⁵ ku̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

Noun

(deprecated template usage) 天邪鬼

1. amanojaku

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Japanese

天邪鬼 (amanojaku): an Edo period image of an amanojaku demon.

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
天	邪	鬼
あま(の) Grade: 1	じゃ Grade: S	く Grade: S
irregular

Compound of .

The jaku reading for the 邪鬼 term is unusual, and the reason for this deviation from the expected jaki reading is unclear. One theory holds that the reading is a shift from 天探女 (ama no sagume), the name of a yōkai that appears in ancient Japanese tales and that seems to have been conflated with the Buddhist jaki, a malevolent demon that leads people astray from the path to enlightenment:

• /ama no saɡume/ → /amanozaku/ → /amanod͡ʑaku/

There is a cluster of phonologically similar forms listed in some sources, referring either to the Buddhist entity or the yōkai, consistent with the conflation theory:

• /amanod͡ʑaku/, /amanod͡ʑako/, /amanozaku/, /amanozako/, /amanɕaɡume/

The amanojaku reading appears to be the most common reading for the 天邪鬼 spelling.

Alternative forms

• 天の邪鬼

Noun

天(あまの)邪(じゃ)鬼(く) • (amanojaku) 

1. a kind of oni that appears in various folktales as the bad guy, who deliberately goes against what people say
2. someone with a personality or behavior reminiscent of the folktale character: a crank, a perverse person

   Synonyms: 捻くれ者 (hinekure-mono), 旋毛曲り (tsumuji-magari)

3. (Buddhism) in Buddhist statuary, the small devil or demon being trampled under the feet of a 仁王 (Niō, “Deva king”) or one of the 四天王 (Shitennō, “four Deva warriors”)
4. (Buddhism) in Buddhist statuary, the devil or demon face on the breastplate of 毘沙門天 (Bishamonten, “Vaiśravaṇa”)
5. a grub (insect larva)

   Synonym: 地虫 (jimushi)

Related terms

Related terms

• 天(あまの)探(さぐ)女(め) (amanosagume, “malevolent Shintō entity”)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
天	邪	鬼
あま(ん) Grade: 1	じゃ Grade: S	く Grade: S
irregular

Sound shift from amanojaku above, contracting the の (no) to just ん (n).

Alternative forms

• 天ん邪鬼

Noun

天(あまん)邪(じゃ)鬼(く) • (amanjaku) 

1. see amanojaku above

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
天	邪	鬼
あま(の) Grade: 1	じゃ Grade: S	こ Grade: S
irregular

Appears to be a sound shift from amanojaku above.

Alternative forms

• 天の邪鬼

Noun

天(あまの)邪(じゃ)鬼(こ) • (amanojako) 

1. see amanojaku above

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
天	邪	鬼
あま(ん) Grade: 1	じゃ Grade: S	こ Grade: S
irregular

Sound shift from amanojako above, contracting the の (no) to just ん (n).

Alternative forms

• 天ん邪鬼

Noun

天(あまん)邪(じゃ)鬼(こ) • (amanjako) 

1. see amanojaku above

Etymology 5

Kanji in this term
天	邪	鬼
あま(の) Grade: 1	ざ Grade: S	こ Grade: S
irregular

Appears to be a sound shift from amanojako above. Alternatively, may be a separate shift from amanosagume:

• /ama no saɡume/ → /amanozaku/ → /amanozako/

Listed with this reading as Amanozaco in the 1603 edition of the Nippo Jisho.

Alternative forms

• 天邪古

Noun

天(あまの)邪(ざ)鬼(こ) • (amanozako) 

1. see amanojaku above