# Dharma name > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Dharma_name > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Dharma_name.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharma_name > Source revision: 1344896613 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) New name acquired during Buddhist initiation and ordination rituals This article should specify the language of its non-English content using {{lang}} or {{langx}}, {{transliteration}} for transliterated languages, and {{IPA}} for phonetic transcriptions, with an appropriate ISO 639 code. Wikipedia's multilingual support templates may also be used. See why. (December 2021) Dharma name Chinese name Traditional Chinese 法名 法號 戒名 法諱 Simplified Chinese 法名 法号 戒名 法讳 Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin fǎmíng fǎhào Yue: Cantonese Jyutping faat3 ming4 faat3 hou6 Burmese name Burmese ဘွဲ့ IPA [bwɛ̰] Vietnamese name Vietnamese alphabet pháp danh Chữ Hán 法名 Thai name Thai ฉายา Korean name Hangul 법명 Hanja 法名 Transcriptions Revised Romanization beommyeong McCune–Reischauer pŏmmyŏng Mongolian name Mongolian Cyrillic номын нэр Japanese name Kanji 戒名 Kana かいみょう Transcriptions Romanization kaimyō A **Dharma name** or **Dhamma name** is a new name acquired during both lay and monastic [Buddhist initiation rituals](/source/Buddhist_initiation_ritual) in [Mahayana Buddhism](/source/Mahayana_Buddhism)[1] and [monastic ordination](/source/Pabbajj%C4%81) in [Theravada Buddhism](/source/Theravada_Buddhism) (where it is more proper to call it the **Sangha name**). The name is traditionally given by a [Buddhist monastic](/source/Buddhist_monasticism), and is given to newly ordained [monks](/source/Bhikkhu), [nuns](/source/Bhikkhun%C4%AB)[2] and [laity](/source/Laity).[3] Dharma names are considered aspirational, not descriptive.[4][*[better source needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Questionable_sources)*] Most of the well-known Buddhist teachers are known to have had many different Dharma names in the course of their careers, and often each name represents a stage of their career. For example, [Prince Shotoku](/source/Prince_Shotoku) was also known as Prince Umayado and Prince Kamitsumiya. [Shinran](/source/Shinran)'s original name was Matsuwakamaru; he was also known as Hanen, Shakku, Zenshin, Gutoku Shinran and Kenshin Daeshi.[5] [Nichiren](/source/Nichiren)'s original name was Zennichi and his Dharma names were Zenshobo Rencho and Rissho Daishi. Similarly, the tradition of various Dharma names was also used by [Zen](/source/Zen) monks, who also used art to promote Buddhism. The famous monk-painter [Hokusai](/source/Hokusai) was also known as Shunro, Kako, Sori, Taito, Iitsu, Gakyojin and Manji.[6] Even the famous samurai [Miyamoto Musashi](/source/Miyamoto_Musashi) had several names, including the Dharma name Niten Doraku and the birthname Miyamoto Masana. The Zen monk [Thích Nhất Hạnh](/source/Th%C3%ADch_Nh%E1%BA%A5t_H%E1%BA%A1nh) also has used various Dharma names in the course of his career.[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] If the student does not have a relationship with the monastic teacher and the ceremony is a public one with a congregation present, their new name will tend to reflect the lineage/tradition rather than the individual person.[1] When it is given by a monastic who knows the disciple, however, the name is often tailor-made.[1] Dharma names are generally given in the language of the particular [sangha](/source/Sangha) where the name is bestowed. ## Naming practices by tradition ### Burma (Myanmar) In Burmese Buddhism, Dhamma names (*bwe*) are in [Pali](/source/Pali) and chosen by the head monk of the monastery in which one is ordained. The traditional [Burmese naming system](/source/Bamar#Naming), in which the monastic's day of birth stipulates the first letter of one's name, is used to select the name. ### Sri Lanka In Theravadan Buddhist tradition as practiced in Sri Lankan lineages the day of the week determines the first letter of the person's Dharma name, when a traditional naming methodology is followed. This is the system used by [Bhante Gunaratana](/source/Bhante_Gunaratana) when giving Dharma names to his students at [Bhavana Society](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhavana_Society&action=edit&redlink=1) of West Virginia. ### China In China, ordained monks and nuns automatically revert to using the surname "Shì" (釋) as in *Shijiamouni* (釋迦牟尼), the Chinese transliteration of [Shakyamuni Buddha](/source/Shakyamuni_Buddha). Vietnam also follows this tradition for its monks and nuns by changing their surname to "Thích" as in *Thích Ca Mâu Ni*, the Sino-Vietnamese name for Shakyamuni. Likewise for the Sino-Mahayana tradition of Buddhism, the dharma name given upon ordination can reflect the lineage passed from the teacher to the student, this can result in being given several dharma names: one for usage publicly, one used especially to reflect the transmitted lineage, and a second dharma name that can also be used. In the [Shaolin Temple](/source/Shaolin_Temple), each subsequent generation takes the first part of their given name from a 70-character poem written by [Xueting Fuyu](/source/Xueting_Fuyu).[7] For example, the 32nd character in the poem is "xíng" (行), and all Shaolin Temple monks and disciples of that generation take a name starting with Shi Xing.[8] In some Chinese [Pureland](/source/Pure_Land_Buddhism) sects such as that of Master Renshan and Master [Chin Kung](/source/Chin_Kung) it is traditional for persons who do not have the ability to acquire a Dharma name from a teacher to use the Dharma name "Miao-Yin", until a teacher can give them a personally chosen name. It is common among Pureland sects for all lay members to have either the same last name, such as 'Jia'[9] in the case of Master Renshan's disciples, or the same first name, such as 'Jing'[10] in the case of [Shandao](/source/Shandao) lineage practitioners. ### Japan In Japan, other than the standard usage of dharma names for monastics and laity, it is also tradition for the deceased to receive a dharma name (戒名, kaimyō; lit. 'precept name') written in kanji from the priest. This name supposedly prevents the return of the deceased if his name is called. The length of the name depends also on either the virtue of the person's lifespan, or more commonly, the size of the donation of the relatives to the temple, which may range from a generally common name to the most elaborate names for 1 million yen or more. The high prices charged by the temples are a controversial issue in Japan, especially since some temples put pressure on families to buy a more expensive name. Some [Jōdo Shinshū](/source/J%C5%8Ddo_Shinsh%C5%AB) sources draw a distinction between 戒名 (kaimyō, precept name) and 法名 (hōmyō, dharma name), preferring the latter for theological reasons.[11] Other sources consider these terms to be interchangeable. Jodo Shinshu homyō consist of three or four Kanji, prefixed by Shaku for men and Shaku-ni for women and followed by two ideographs, one selected by the student and one by the teacher.[12] The composition of the dharma name varies, although generally it must be composed of characters found in the Buddhist sutras.[13] Specific schools and temples will sometimes have additional conventions: for example, names from [Ji-Shu](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ji-Shu&action=edit&redlink=1) temples in [Ippen](/source/Ippen) are typically a single syllable suffixed with 阿 (short for 阿弥陀仏, [Amitābha Buddha](/source/Amit%C4%81bha_Buddha)), and names from the Bright Dawn Center of Oneness Buddhism can be one or two ideographs suffixed with 陽 (Yō which means sun and relates to [Rev.Koyō Kubose](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rev.Koy%C5%8D_Kubose&action=edit&redlink=1)). In the [Sanbo Kyodan](/source/Sanbo_Kyodan) tradition, the names usually consist of three ideographs : a unique Kanji, followed by the 'Un(cloud 雲) symbol and ending with either the suffix -an 庵 for women or -ken 軒 for men. ### Tibet In Tibetan [Vajrayana](/source/Vajrayana) Buddhist tradition one is first given a Refuge name at the Triple Refuge ceremony, then a [Bodhisattva](/source/Bodhisattva) name upon taking the vows of a Bodhisattva, then a secret Samaya name upon receiving certain Tantric rites.[14] People in the [Karma Kagyu](/source/Karma_Kagyu) tradition of Tibetan Buddhism are often given the first name Karma, followed by a second name.[15] Those in the [Drikung Kagyu](/source/Drikung_Kagyu) sect often receive the first name Konchog, and then an additional name. This makes it easy to identify the person's Dharma lineage. [Khentrul Jamphel Lodrö Rinpoche](/source/Khentrul_Jamphel_Lodr%C3%B6_Rinpoche) generally uses the initial letter of a person's birth name in selecting a Shambala lineage name for the practitioner.[16] ## See also - [Ajahn](/source/Ajahn) - [Awgatha](/source/Awgatha) - [Ayya (Pali word)](/source/Ayya_(Pali_word)) - [Bhante](/source/Bhante) - [Five precepts](/source/Five_precepts) - [Religious name](/source/Religious_name) - [Sayadaw](/source/Sayadaw) - [Tisarana](/source/Tisarana) ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-khandro_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-khandro_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-khandro_1-2) ["Dharma Names"](http://www.khandro.net/buddhist_names.htm). *www.khandro.net*. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Becoming a Buddhist Nun, by Ani Rinchen"](http://www.buddhanet.net/ordination03.htm). *www.buddhanet.net*. Retrieved 28 December 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Receiving the Dharma Name"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120210004357/http://www.wonbuddhist.org/community/dharma-circle/85-receving-the-dharma-name). Archived from [the original](http://www.wonbuddhist.org/community/dharma-circle/85-receving-the-dharma-name) on 10 February 2012. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Diaz, Natalie (2019). [*Bodies Built for Game: The Prairie Schooner Anthology of Contemporary Sports Writing*](https://books.google.com/books?id=ggiqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT271). U of Nebraska Press. p. 271. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781496219107](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781496219107). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Shinran | Japanese Buddhist philosopher"](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shinran-Japanese-Buddhist-philosopher). 8 April 2024. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Hokusai | Japanese artist"](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hokusai). 31 October 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** USA Shaolin Temple. ["Shaolin Lineage"](https://usashaolintemple.com/chanbuddhism-lineagepoem/). Retrieved 15 September 2010. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["少林寺史会 Shaolin Monastery Historical Society: Shaolin Generational Dharma Names"](http://shaolin-monastery.blogspot.com/2017/11/shaolin-generational-dharma-names.html). 12 November 2017. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Pure Land Buddhism"](https://www.pure-land-buddhism.com/). *Pure Land Buddhism*. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["Pure Land Buddhism"](https://www.purelandbuddhism.org/plb/17). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** [Dharma Name Homyo](http://www.sfvhbt.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Homyo.pdf) sfvhbt.org March 2017 1. **[^](#cite_ref-static1.squarespace.com_12-0)** [Primer for Selecting Dharma Names](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5cad04a670468021b884ede4/t/5d72d4d7dfb60c5a4d8b1854/1567806687151/Primer_for_Selecting_Dharma_NamesCS.pdf) squarespace.com 1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** ["What is the meaning of the Makura-gyo?"](https://mbtchicago.org/meaning-makura-gyo/). 26 November 2016. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** ["Dharma Names"](http://www.khandro.net/buddhist_names.htm). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** ["Lama Kathy's Dharma Blog: Refuge Names"](https://www.columbusktc.org/lama-kathys-dharma-blog-refuge-names/). 30 September 2017. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** ["Dharma Names given by H.H. Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje"](https://web.archive.org/web/20101027164410/http://diamondway-buddhism.org/default.asp?col=01&t=dharmanames.htm). Archived from [the original](http://www.diamondway-buddhism.org/default.asp?col=01&t=dharmanames.htm) on 27 October 2010. Retrieved 17 October 2010. v t e Personal names and anthroponymy Personal name Birth name Given name Surname patrilineal matrilineal affixes nobiliary particle By sequence Given name list Middle name Surname list By trait Diminutive Double-barrelled Epithet animal common plant Eponymic Matronymic Metonymic Mononymic Occupational Patronymic surname Sobriquet Teknonymic Toponymic surname Patrial Unisex Virtue By life situation Aptronym Bardic name Birth name Code name Maiden and married names Necronym Posthumous name Temple name Placeholder name Notname Regnal name Slave name Pseudonyms (list) Art name bugō Nicknames list hypocorism list of monarchs nom de guerre Pen name heteronym Ring name shikona Stage name list list of mononyms Username By culture (surnames) East Asia (Sinosphere) Chinese art courtesy generation titles Hong Kong Formosan Japanese Amami Okinawan Korean Vietnamese Northern Asia and Central Asia Kalmyk Manchu Mongolian Sakha Tibetan West Asia / Middle East and North Africa Afghan Arabic Azerbaijani Berber Coptic Hebrew Mandaean Pashtun Persian Somali Tatar Turkish Oceania Australian Aboriginal Fijian Hawaiian Māori Vanuatuan Sub-Saharan Africa Ashanti Congolese Eritrean and Ethiopian Ewe Ghanaian Igbo Rwandan Yoruba Zimbabwean Europe, Americas and Australasia (Western world) Baltic Latvian Lithuanian Celtic Cornish Irish Manx Scottish Welsh Germanic Dutch English American African-American Canadian German Gothic Icelandic Scandinavian Swedish Romance French Italian Occitan Portuguese Roman praenomen nomen cognomen agnomen Romanian Spanish Hispanic America Catalan Slavic Bulgarian Croatian Czech East Slavic Belarusian Russian Ukrainian Kashubian Macedonian Polish Serbian Slovak Suffixes Uralic Estonian Finnish Hungarian Other Albanian Armenian Basque Georgian Greek ancient Cypriot South Asia and Southeast Asia (Indosphere) Balinese Bengali Bhutanese Burmese Filipino Indonesian Chinese Javanese Cambodian Malaysian Mizo (Lushai) Indian Lao Pakistani Sindhi Sinhalese Tamilian Thai By religion Christian biblical papal russian orthodox clergy saint Buddhist surname Dharma Jewish Hebrew surname Mandaean Theophoric Manners of address (list) Of authority and of honour Styles Honorific diplomatic imperial, royal, and noble judiciary religious ecclesiastical Pre-nominal letters Suffix emeritus Post-nominal letters academic orders, decorations, and medals Titles Academic Imperial, royal and noble chivalric courtesy false hereditary subsidiary substantive Military professional Academic educational honorary Corporate Diplomatic Judicial Religious ecclesiastical papal Related traditions Baptism Name day Calendar of saints Related Acronym Anonymity Anthropomorphism personification national Call sign Deadnaming Endonym and exonym Family Galton–Watson process Legal name name change Namesake Naming taboo Nomenclature nomen nescio Misnomer Onomastics -onym Personal identity identifier Proper noun Signature monogram royal cypher khelrtva signum manus tughra Surnames by country --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Dharma name](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharma_name) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharma_name?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.