also: ぼうほう
slandering Buddhism; denigrating the Dharma
Buddhist term for speaking ill of the Buddha's teachings or the Dharma. Used in doctrinal contexts.
Slandering the Dharma is considered a grave sin in Buddhism.
unreasonable demand; impossible thing
Figurative extension from the Buddhist sense; used for an outrageous or impossible request, often in the phrase 謗法を言う.
Asking for something like that is practically an impossible demand.
Standard kanji spelling for both senses. The reading ほうぼう is more common than ぼうほう.
Alternate reading; less common than ほうぼう.
From Buddhist terminology, literally 'slandering the Dharma'. The figurative sense developed from the idea of something as outrageous as denigrating the Buddha's teachings.