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聖戦 (せいせん, seisen) Japanese meaning: holy war | Kotomora
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In medieval Europe, holy wars were fought many times.
He speaks of environmental protection as if it were a crusade.
Usage patterns 聖せい 戦せん を 戦たたか う to fight a holy war
They fought a holy war for their faith.
聖せい 戦せん を 起お こす to start/wage a holy war
The leader started a holy war against the infidels.
聖せい 戦せん に 身み を 投とう じる to devote oneself to a holy war/cause
He devoted himself to the holy war at a young age.
Related words 宗教戦争 is the neutral, factual term for a war fought between religions, while 聖戦 carries a more rhetorical or ideological tone of righteous, divinely-sanctioned struggle.
十字軍 specifically refers to the historical medieval Crusades, while 聖戦 is the broader term for any holy war or crusade-like cause, historical or metaphorical.
聖戦 is the general Japanese term for a religiously sanctioned 'holy war', while ジハード specifically refers to the Islamic concept of jihad, which can also mean an inner spiritual struggle.
Etymology Compound of 聖 (holy, sacred) and 戦 (war, battle). The term is a Sino-Japanese word (kango) that entered Japanese from Chinese, where it was used with similar meaning.
