Proverb / Kotowaza
地獄で仏に会う
Receiving unexpected help and feeling great joy when in a desperate situation.
To meet a Buddha in hell.
Quick Answer
Receiving unexpected help and feeling great joy when in a desperate situation.
- Literal Image
- To meet a Buddha in hell.
- How to Use It
- Used to express deep gratitude and relief when someone unexpectedly helps you out of a dire or hopeless situation.
Meaning
This proverb describes the profound relief and gratitude one feels when unexpected salvation arrives during a time of extreme distress. Just as encountering a compassionate Buddha in the tortures of hell would be a miraculous relief, finding help when all seems lost brings immense joy and comfort.
Literal Image
To meet a Buddha in hell.
How to Use It
Used to express deep gratitude and relief when someone unexpectedly helps you out of a dire or hopeless situation.
Tone
Reassuring, expressing profound gratitude and relief.
Examples
旅先で財布を落として困っていた時、親切な人に助けられたのはまさに地獄で仏に会う思いだった。
When I was in trouble after losing my wallet on a trip, being helped by a kind person truly felt like meeting a Buddha in hell.
トラブル続きのプロジェクトに救世主が現れ、地獄で仏に会うような気分だ。
A savior appeared for our project plagued by continuous trouble, making me feel as if I had met a Buddha in hell.
地獄で仏に会うとはこのことで、誰にも相談できず悩んでいた時に声をかけてもらった。
This is exactly what it means to meet a Buddha in hell; someone reached out to me when I was agonizing and couldn't consult anyone.
Learning Notes
Key Vocabulary
The vocabulary consists of words (jigoku, hotoke, au), and the grammatical structure is straightforward.
地獄
じごく / jigoku
hell
仏
ほとけ / hotoke
Buddha; merciful person
会う
あう / au
to meet; to encounter
Usage Profile
Misread Risk
Do not interpret this literally as a religious event; it is used as a secular metaphor for receiving desperately needed assistance.
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Related Proverbs
Origin
This is a Buddhist expression that compares being in the most painful place, hell, and encountering a compassionate Buddha, to being in a state of extreme distress and receiving unexpected salvation.
Index
Topics, Situations, and Tags
Topics
Situations
Tags
Source Note
Where did this entry get its data from? The reference links are listed below. To understand how to read this section, see Data Sources.