noun
all worldly matters; everything in this world
A literary, somewhat archaic expression referring to the totality of mundane affairs or all things in the world. Not used in casual conversation; appears in classical or formal writing.
世上万般のことはすべて空しいと、昔の人は言った。
People of old said that all worldly matters are vanity.
A Sino-Japanese compound of 世上 (world, society) and 万般 (all kinds, everything). The exact historical derivation is uncertain; it is a literary coinage not commonly used in modern speech.