📖 Meaning
A Buddhist term describing the pain and suffering that comes from being separated from those one loves and holds dear. It is one of the traditional forms of suffering (苦) recognized in Buddhist teaching. The phrase emphasizes the emotional agony caused by parting with cherished people or things.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase originates from Buddhist scriptures, notably the Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra (《瑜伽师地论》), a foundational Yogācāra text compiled in India and translated into Chinese during the Tang dynasty, where volume 61 discusses the five aspects of this suffering. It was later cited by the Song dynasty monk Shi Daoyuan in the Jingde Chuandeng Lu (《景德传灯录》, 1004 CE), a key Chan (Zen) Buddhist text recording the transmission of the dharma. In one dialogue, a monk asks about 'the most ultimate teaching,' and the master replies simply with 'the suffering of separation from loved ones.'
💡 Example Usage
游子远行他乡,母亲饱尝爱别离苦之痛。
As her son traveled far from home, the mother endured the bitter pain of separation from her beloved child.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 爱别离苦
- Pinyin: ài bié lí kǔ
- Literal Translation: love, part, separate, suffering
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4