pre-noun adjectival
Pre-noun adjectival used to describe something as holy or sacred, often in religious or solemn contexts.
聖なる場所で祈りを捧げた。
I offered a prayer at a holy place.
That mountain has long been regarded as a sacred place.
聖なる夜に家族と過ごす。
I spend the holy night with my family.
神殿では聖なる儀式が執り行われた。
A sacred ritual was performed at the temple.
Tonight is a holy night; let's offer a quiet prayer.
神々しい describes an awe-inspiring, divine-looking quality, while 聖なる is a more direct label of religious holiness.
俗 refers to the secular or worldly, standing in contrast to 聖なる, which marks something as sacred or holy.
聖 (sei, 'holy') + なる (naru, classical attributive form of なり, equivalent to modern である). The form 聖なる is a fixed pre-noun expression.