弁才天
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | ||
|---|---|---|
| 弁 | 才 | 天 |
| べん Grade: 5 |
ざい Grade: 2 |
てん Grade: 1 |
| goon | on’yomi | |
| Alternative spellings |
|---|
| 辯才天 (kyūjitai) 弁財天 |
Etymology
From Middle Chinese 辯才天 (MC bjenX dzoj then, literally “Eloquent Deva”). First referenced in Japanese in the 700s in the 最勝王経 (Saishōō-kyō, “Golden Light of the Most Victorious Kings Sutra”).[1]
The Hindu goddess Sarasvati entered Japanese Buddhism during the late Heian period (794–1185).[2] She came to be regarded in Japan as a goddess of wealth, and her name written as 弁財天 (Benzaiten) with the character 財 (zai, “treasure”).[3] The name is attested with 才 (sai, “genius”) as 辯才天 from the thirteenth century,[2] with the initial character simplified to 弁 in modern Japanese.
Proper noun
弁才天 • (Benzaiten)
Related terms
- 七福神 (Shichi Fukujin, “Seven Gods of Good Fortune”)
- 吉祥天 (Kitsushōten), Kisshōten: the goddess of happiness, charm and beauty, of fertility, nature, and of human creativity, and the patronesses of joy, amusement and festivities.
- 福禄寿, Fukurokuju: the god of happiness, wealth and longevity.
- 毘沙門 (Bishamon) / 毘沙門天, Bishamonten: the god of warriors.
- 大黒 (Daikoku) / 大黒天, Daikokuten: the god of wealth, commerce and trade. Ebisu and Daikoku are often paired and represented as carvings or masks on the walls of small retail shops.
- 寿老人, Jurōjin: the god of longevity.
- 恵比須 / 恵比寿 / 夷 / 戎, Ebisu: the god of fishers or merchants, often depicted carrying a sea bream.
- 布袋, Hotei: the fat and happy god of abundance and good health.
References
- “弁才天・辯才天・弁財天・辨財天”, in 日本国語大辞典 (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, “Nihon Kokugo Daijiten”) (in Japanese), concise edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 2000
- “弁才天”, in 日本国語大辞典 (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, “Nihon Kokugo Daijiten”) (in Japanese), concise edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 2000
- “弁才天”, in 日本大百科全書：ニッポニカ (Nippon Dai Hyakka Zensho: Nipponica, “Encyclopedia Nipponica”) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 1984
- NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN
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