butsudan
noun plural butsudan or -dans
(in Buddhism) a small household altar
(in Nichiren Buddhism) an ornate cabinet which holds the Gohonzon
Word Origin for butsudan
from Japanese butsu Buddha (from Chinese fu) + dan shelf
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Examples from the Web for butsudan
Historical Examples of butsudan
Finding that he had, she bade him open the butsudan and light a lamp.
Myths & Legends of JapanF. Hadland (Frederick Hadland) Davis
Going to the Butsudan, or house altar, at once he lit the lamps.
The Yotsuya Kwaidan or O'Iwa InariJames S. De Benneville
The farmer expressed his fear of spirits, whereupon the woman inquired if her host had a butsudan (a family altar).
Myths & Legends of JapanF. Hadland (Frederick Hadland) Davis
At home, the ancestral tablets in the Butsudan form the centre of the ceremonies.
Japanese Girls and WomenAlice Mabel Bacon
Deign to refrain from taking life in the house; nay, before the very ihai in the Butsudan.
The Yotsuya Kwaidan or O'Iwa InariJames S. De Benneville