Public domain

Japanese: 公界 - くがい

〘noun〙① The common world as opposed to the private world. A place of living where people coexist. A common world that is fair and open. Society. Public. A public place. A place of honor. Among people. ※Shobogenzo (1231-53) Kankyo: "The hearth is in the public domain of the Inmon gate." ※Taiheiki (late 14th century) ch. 19: "Recollections are a private matter, the way of the bow and arrow is the duty of the public domain ." ② Something that is generally done in society. Common practice. [Zenpo Densho - Ketan Shichinsho (early 16th century)] ※Sannai Koketsu (around 1579) "A single skin matter, <omitted> while the servants who _leave the house wear them at their leisure, it is a matter of _public _affairs ." ③ To interact with people. Interacting. Associating. By extension, serving as a guest for a prostitute. Later, the word "Kukai" was created, referring to the "difficult circumstances of a prostitute." →Kugai (the world of suffering)②. ※Haiku, Dokugin Ichinichi Senku (1675), 4th verse: “When I live in Kukai, the moon is special, the flowers are in full bloom, and today the nobleman buys them.” ※Hyōbanki, Shikido Daikyō (1678), 9th verse: “When Kotoko had some trouble, he returned to the fortress and performed Kugai twice.” [Essay] (1) In medieval Zen texts such as “Shobogenzō Gyōji Ge” and “Shuryo Jinki,” it was used to mean a public place where monks who practice Buddhism gathered, and it seems that this word spread to the general public and came to have various meanings. From the meaning of the above public place or public thing, the meaning of a special place or public business arises, but in medieval words such as “Kōkaisha” and “Kōkaijin,” the meaning of public can also be seen to mean an independent person who is not subordinate to a specific individual or authority.
(2) On the other hand, the meaning of “public” gave rise to the meanings of “public,” “world,” and “among people,” and also came to indicate association with people such as those mentioned in ③.
(3) As human interaction is accompanied by suffering, the form "Kukai" ( painful world) , which is easier to understand than "Ku" (public) , which is less commonly used, came to be widely used. This is thought to be related to the existence of the Buddhist term "Kukai" (painful world), which means a world of endless suffering, the boundary between the six realms of life and death.

Source: The Selected Edition of the Japanese Language Dictionary About the Selected Edition of the Japanese Language Dictionary Information

Japanese:

〘名〙① 私(わたくし)の世界に対する、共同の世界。人々が共存する生活の場。共同の場として公平・公明性をもつ世界。世間。公衆。表向きの場。晴れの場。人なか。※正法眼蔵（1231‐53）看経「手炉は院門の公界にあり」※太平記（１４Ｃ後）一九「述懐は私事、弓矢の道は公界(クガイ)の義」② 世間一般で行なわれていること。通法。〔禅鳳伝書‐毛端私珍抄（１６Ｃ前）〕※三内口決（1579頃）「単皮事、〈略〉乍_レ去家僕等随意着用之段者、任_二公界之儀_一事候」③ 人と交わること。交際。つきあい。転じて遊女の客勤め。後に、「遊女のつらい境遇」の意にかけて、「苦界」の語も生じた。→苦界(くがい)②。※俳諧・独吟一日千句（1675）第四「くかいにすめば月も格別花は盛けふも買るる大夫様」※評判記・色道大鏡（1678）九「小藤子細ありて郭中へ還り、二たび公界(クガイ)を勤めけるが」[語誌](1)中世の禅宗関係の書「正法眼蔵‐行持下」「衆寮箴規」などでは、仏道を修行する僧たちが集まる公の場という意味で用いられており、これが一般にも広まっていろいろな意味を表わすようになったと思われる。右の公の場、または公のこと、という意味から、晴れの場、または公的な用事という意味が生じるが、中世の「公界者」「公界人」などのことばには、公という意味から、特定の個人・権力に隷属しない自立した人間といった意味合いも認められる。
(2)一方、公の意味から公衆、世間、人なか、の意味が生じ、③の人との交際などの意味をも示すようになる。
(3)人との交際は苦しみをともなうものであり、ここから、一般的には使用度の少ない「公(く)」よりも、意味も理解しやすい「苦(く)」と結びつけた「苦界」の形が広く用いられるようになる。このことには、仏教語としての「苦界」（苦悩の絶えない世界の意、六道生死の境界）の存在も関係していると思われる。

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