Home › Glossary › Letter S

Stupa

World Religion
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A dome-shaped Buddhist monument housing relics of the Buddha or enlightened beings, serving as a focus for devotion and meditation.

Detailed Definition
Stupas symbolize the Buddha’s enlightened mind and the cosmic order. In poetry, they appear as sacred geometry made manifest—silent, enduring, and radiating peace. Poets use the stupa as a metaphor for the heart of awakening, a still point in a turning world, or a vessel containing the essence of the Dharma, often linking its form to mountains, moons, or lotuses.
Example
Example in poetry:
A pilgrimage poem: “The stūpa is not tomb—it’s the Buddha’s mind made mountain”; In a modern verse, “Circling the stūpa, I walk the path without moving feet”; A minimalist lyric: “Stūpa: architecture of awakening”; A diasporic reflection: “In California, the stūpa stands—not as relic, but as reminder.”
Additional Notes
A Stupa is a hemispherical or mound-like structure containing relics of the Buddha or other saints. It is a primary architectural symbol of Buddhism, representing the enlightened mind of the Buddha (the dome symbolizes the world egg, the harmika atop it represents the world axis, and the spire represents the ascending path to enlightenment). Circumambulating (walking around) a stupa is a key devotional practice. For poets, it is a powerful image of containment, sacred geography, and a silent teacher of the Dharma.
Also Known As
Dagoba Ceti Chorten Pagoda
Skip to main content