如来 (rú lái) — Tathagata, a title of the Buddha in Buddhism | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

如来 (rúlái) is the Chinese translation of the Sanskrit Tathagata — one of the Buddha's most revered titles, literally 'thus come / thus gone', used in formal Buddhist texts and contexts.

noun

Tathagata, a title of the Buddha in Buddhism

Examples

如来。
Tā zài sì miào lǐ kàn dào le yì zūn rú lái fó xiàng.
He saw a statue of the Tathagata Buddha in the temple.
如来。
rú lái Shì fó jiào zhōng zuì zhòng yào de chēng hào zhī yī.
Tathagata is one of the most important titles in Buddhism.
如来。
Zhè bù jīng shū jì zǎi le rú lái de jiào huì.
This sutra records the teachings of the Tathagata.

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.

如 means thus and 来 means come, together naming the Buddha as one who has come thus.

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.

女口如

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

女

女nǚ如rú

Same sound today

如 is built from 口 (mouth) for its meaning and 女 (woman) for its sound.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 來; 来 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 來 shows a wheat plant: a central ear, upward leaves, and downward stem and roots. The simplified 来 is a later shorthand.

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