📖 Meaning
A Buddhist metaphor comparing the Dharma (Buddhist teachings) to the vast, boundless sea. It describes the infinite depth, breadth, and wisdom of Buddhist truth. It also conveys that the path of spiritual cultivation is endless and inexhaustible.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from Buddhist scriptural imagery, where the sea serves as a metaphor for the boundlessness of the Dharma. In Chinese Buddhist texts, the ocean symbolizes limitless wisdom, infinite truth, and the inexhaustible nature of Buddhist teachings. It emphasizes that spiritual practice has no finite endpoint and that the depths of enlightenment can never be fully exhausted. No single dynasty or historical figure is credited with coining it; it evolved organically within Chinese Buddhist discourse.
💡 Example Usage
佛门弟子深信法海无边，修行之路永无止境。
Buddhist disciples firmly believe that the sea of Dharma is boundless, and the path of cultivation never ends.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 法海无边
- Pinyin: fǎ hǎi wú biān
- Literal Translation: dharma, sea, no, boundary
- Category: Philosophy
- Characters: 4