佛学 (fó xué) — Buddhist studies; Buddhist doctrine | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

佛学 is the academic study of Buddhist teachings — the discipline or field of scholarship, distinct from the religion itself (佛教) or its practice.

noun

Buddhist studiesBuddhist doctrine

Examples

佛学。
Tā duì fó xué hěn yǒu yán jiū.
He has done a lot of research on Buddhist studies.
佛学。
Zhè běn shū jiè shào le fó xué de jī běn sī xiǎng.
This book introduces the basic ideas of Buddhist doctrine.
佛学。
Hěn duō dà xué dōu kāi shè le fó xué kè chéng.
Many universities offer courses in Buddhist studies.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

佛fóBuddha

佛 (Buddha) specifies the kind of 学 (study), giving Buddhist studies.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

亻弗佛

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

弗

弗fú佛Fó

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

佛 is made from 亻, a person, and 弗, which gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 學; 学 is its simplified writing.

爻爻yáo
六六liù

The traditional form 學 may have used 爻 and 六 for sound, with hands and a child added later; the simplified 学 is a shorthand.

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