also: げんしん · うつせみ · うつそみ
noun
living person; mortal; flesh and blood
Refers to a person in their physical, living form, often contrasted with spirits, gods, or the dead. Can also mean one's own body or current physical existence.
彼はまるで神様のような存在だが、現身の人間だ。
He seems almost divine, but he is a living, flesh-and-blood person.
現身のままではあの世に行けない。
In this physical body, one cannot go to the other world.
noun
incarnation; earthly manifestation
Only with reading げんしん
Buddhist term for the physical form a Buddha or bodhisattva takes in this world. Restricted to the reading げんしん.
観音菩薩は現身としてこの世に現れた。
Kannon Bodhisattva appeared in this world as an earthly manifestation.
noun
this world; this life; the present world
Only with reading うつせみ / うつそみ
Archaic term for the current world or lifetime, often used in classical literature. Restricted to the readings うつせみ and うつそみ.
うつせみの世ははかないものだ。
This world is fleeting.
Kana spelling for the Buddhist sense; the kanji 現身 is also used but may be read differently.
Archaic reading for the 'this world' sense; rarely used in modern Japanese.
Archaic reading for the 'this world' sense; even rarer than うつせみ.
The kanji 現 (present, appear) and 身 (body) combine to mean 'manifest body'. The reading うつしみ is native Japanese, while げんしん is Sino-Japanese. The archaic readings うつせみ/うつそみ are older forms; the exact derivation is uncertain.