also: てんがい
the heavens; the skies; celestial sphere
Only with reading てんかい
Refers to the sky, the heavens, or the celestial realm in a general, often poetic or astronomical sense. Reading is てんかい.
I looked up at the stars shining in the heavens.
heavenly realm; deva realm
Buddhist term for the realm of heavenly beings (devas). Both てんかい and てんがい readings are used, with てんがい being more traditional in Buddhist contexts.
See also: 天道 (あまじ)
In Buddhism, the heavenly realm is considered one of the six realms of existence.
Standard kanji spelling; reading てんかい is more common for the general sense, while てんがい is also used in Buddhist contexts.
Alternate reading used especially in Buddhist contexts; less common in everyday usage.
From 天 (heaven, sky) + 界 (realm, world). The word is used in both general and Buddhist contexts, with the reading variation reflecting historical Buddhist usage.