EssayEtymologyHistoryUncorrected

Okkū(億劫 – Bothersome)

  • Okkū

    億劫


    If you want to describe a feeling that you are not willing to do something because of bothersome, you can use the Japanese term ‘okkū‘ (億劫).
    何かをするのが面倒で気が進まないことを、日本語で「億劫」と言うことがあります。

    Originally, ‘okkū’ was a Buddhist term, which represented a length of time that was too long to measure.
    「億劫」はもともと仏教用語で、計算できないほどの大変な長さの時間を表すものでした。

    Oku‘ (億) means “a hundred million,” and ‘kū/kou‘ (劫) means a time taken to completely disperse a rocky mountain with a side length of about 2000 kilometers by stroking it with a cloth once in 100 years.
    「億」は一億 (“a hundred million”)、「劫」は1辺約2000kmの岩山を100年に一度布で撫で、岩山が擦り減って無くなるのにかかる程の時間を意味します。

    Since such an act to take a lot of time is troublesome and bothersome, ‘okkū’ has come to have the meaning of “bothersome.”
    このようにとてつもなく時間のかかるものは面倒であることから、「億劫」は「面倒」の意味を持つようになったというわけです。

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