Bồ Tát
Vietnamese
Etymology
Sino-Vietnamese word from 菩薩, from Chinese 菩薩 (“bodhisattva”), popularized by the Chinese TV series Journey to the West. Among the featured bodhisattvas (most notably Samantabhadra/Puxian (普賢菩薩 (Phổ Hiền Bồ Tát))), Avalokiteśvara/Guanyin (觀音菩薩 (Quan Âm Bồ Tát)) was the most well-known thanks to her recurrence and important role as the messenger of Lord Tathāgata/Rulai (如来佛祖 (Như Lai Phật Tổ)) and the source of counsel for the main characters on the show, as well as her mercy in real-life Chinese-derived Buddhism.
Pronunciation
- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [ʔɓo˨˩ taːt̚˧˦]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [ʔɓow˦˩ taːk̚˦˧˥]
- (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [ʔɓow˨˩ taːk̚˦˥]
- Homophone: bồ tát
Proper noun
Bồ Tát
- (Chinese mythology or fiction) Synonym of Quan Âm (“Guanyin”)
- hiền như Bồ Tát
- as merciful as (Guanyin) the Bodhisattva