Japanese symbol for “sila”
戒
かい
Romaji: kai
admonition; commandment
In Japanese, sila is 戒, read かい (kai).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- n admonition; commandment (Buddh)
- n sila (precept)
Written forms: 戒. Readings: かい、いんごと.
Kanji and stroke order
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 警戒 | けいかい keikai | vigilance; caution; alertness |
| 懲戒 | ちょうかい choukai | discipline; punishment; reprimand |
| 戒め | いましめ imashime | caution; admonition; warning |
| 戒律 | かいりつ kairitsu | (religious) precept; discipline; commandment |
| 厳戒 | げんかい genkai | strict guard |
| 哨戒 | しょうかい shoukai | patrol (with ships or aircraft); patrolling |
See also: Chinese symbol for “sila”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.