活佛 (huó fó) — reincarnated Buddhist lama (tulku) in Tibetan Buddhism; Living Buddha

Definition

A "Living Buddha" — a reincarnated senior lama in Tibetan Buddhism, identified through the tulku system and believed to be the returned spirit of a deceased master.

noun
reincarnated Buddhist lama (tulku) in Tibetan BuddhismLiving Buddha
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 活佛。
    Zhè wèi huó fó cóng xiǎo jiù biǎo xiàn chū fēi fán de zhì huì.
    This Living Buddha showed extraordinary wisdom from a young age.
  • 活佛。
    Hěn duō huó fó lái zì xī zàng zhù míng de sì miào.
    Many Living Buddhas come from famous Tibetan temples.
  • 活佛。
    huó fó Zhuǎn shì zhì dù shì zàng chuán fó jiào de zhòng yào tè zhēng.
    The reincarnation system of Living Buddhas is an important feature of Tibetan Buddhism.

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.

活huóliving
佛fóBuddha

“活” means living and “佛” means Buddha, naming a living Buddha.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠯑
𠯑𠯑活huó
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

活 is built from 氵 (water) and 𠯑, which shows the sound; 𠯑 later changed into 舌.

Open 活 →

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

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.

Open 佛 →

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