1.
Buddhist sutra; Buddhist scripture; chanting of sutras
Sacred Buddhist texts that are chanted during religious ceremonies, funerals, and memorial services. The お prefix adds a respectful or familiar tone.
お坊さんがお経を読んでいる。
The monk is chanting a sutra.
法事でお経を上げてもらった。
We had a sutra chanted at the memorial service.
祖母は毎朝仏壇の前でお経を唱えている。
My grandmother chants sutras in front of the Buddhist altar every morning.
USAGE:
The お prefix is standard and almost always used in everyday speech. The plain form 経 alone is more formal or literary. The most common verbs used with お経 are 読む (to read/chant), 上げる (to offer up), and 唱える (to recite).
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- お経を読む (to chant a sutra)
- お経を上げる (to offer sutra chanting)
- お経を唱える (to recite a sutra)
CULTURAL NOTE:
Sutra chanting is central to Japanese Buddhist funerals and memorial services. Even families who are not actively religious typically have sutras chanted by a monk at funerals (葬儀) and annual memorial services (法事).