also: れいけん
noun
miraculous efficacy; miracle; miraculous virtue
Refers to the supernatural power or miraculous effect attributed to deities, Buddhas, or sacred objects. Often used in religious contexts.
このお寺の観音様は霊験あらたかだと評判だ。
The Kannon at this temple is renowned for its miraculous efficacy.
霊験を信じて、毎日
Believing in its miraculous power, I offer prayers every day.
ご利益 refers more broadly to divine favor or blessing, often in a this-worldly sense, while 霊験 emphasizes miraculous, supernatural power.
Compound of 霊 (rei, 'spirit, soul') and 験 (gen/ken, 'effect, test'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word has been used in Buddhist and Shinto contexts to describe miraculous manifestations.