経(きょう)

きょう
noun
sutra; Buddhist scripture
1. sutra; Buddhist scripture; sacred text
A Buddhist sacred text, originally referring to the recorded teachings of the Buddha. One of the three divisions of the Buddhist canon (三蔵(さんぞう)). Also used more broadly for the chanting of such texts.
僧侶(そうりょ)が経(きょう)を唱(とな)えた。
The monk chanted a sutra.
般若心経(はんにゃしんぎょう)は日本(にほん)で最(もっと)も親(した)しまれている経(きょう)の一(ひと)つだ。
The Heart Sutra is one of the most familiar sutras in Japan.
祖母(そぼ)は毎朝(まいあさ)仏壇(ぶつだん)の前(まえ)で経(きょう)を読(よ)むのを日課(にっか)にしている。
My grandmother makes it a daily habit to read sutras in front of the Buddhist altar every morning.

The standalone reading 経(きょう) refers specifically to Buddhist scriptures. The same kanji has many other readings and meanings (経(けい) as in 経済(けいざい) 'economy,' 経験(けいけん) 'experience').

Common collocations

Important sutras

  • 般若心経(はんにゃしんぎょう): Heart Sutra — the most commonly chanted
  • 法華経(ほけきょう): Lotus Sutra — central to Nichiren Buddhism
  • 阿弥陀経(あみだきょう): Amitabha Sutra — central to Pure Land Buddhism

Similar words

  • お経(きょう): sutra (polite) — the most common everyday form; used in speech about funerals and daily devotion
  • 経典(きょうてん): scripture; canonical text — the formal/academic term for sacred texts
  • 仏典(ぶってん): Buddhist texts — broader category including commentaries and treatises
general
Added 2026.4.21 19:32 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
24500/24866_kyou