ukebana 受花

Also written 請花, 受華, 請華; sometimes pronounced ukehana. Flower-shaped support. A support in the shape of an open, upturned lotus flower, usually with 8 petals. Found under the rings *kurin 九輪 of a pagoda spire *sōrin 相輪, under the sacred gem *hōju 宝珠 at the top of a stone lantern ishitōrō 石灯籠 (see *tōrō 灯籠), or on the pedestal *daiza 台座 of a Buddhist statue. Likewise, the ukebana is used under the sacred gem on top of the hexagonal or octagonal two-storied pagoda *tahōtō 多宝塔.

On pagodas, the ukebana consists of a single row of upturned petals, or a double row of petals with the upper row turned upward and the lower row facing down. On the Buddhist pedestal, the ukebana takes the form of a round and relatively flat open lotus flower with six or eight upturned petals. The term is used in contrast with *kaeribana 反花, a similar form with petals turned downward.