Who are the twenty-eight guardian deities of Buddhism?

The Twenty-Eight Heavens of Buddhist Dharma Protectors

The full name is "Twenty Heavens". They are the famous Dharma Protector Gods in Buddhism. They were originally the twenty gods in ancient Indian mythology. His duty was to punish evil and protect good. Later, he was incorporated into the Buddhist deity system and became a god who protects Buddhism.

"Zhutian" means "many days" and "many days". "Tian" is the free translation of the Sanskrit Deva, and its transliteration is "Deva". It is one of the five realms of Buddhism (hell, hungry ghosts, animals, humans, and heaven); one of the six realms (hell, hungry ghosts, animals, asuras, humans, and heaven); the ten realms (also known as the "Six Mortals and Four Saints"). That is, one of the hells, hungry ghosts, animals, asuras, humans, gods, shravakas, pratyekabuddhas, bodhisattvas, and buddhas). "Zhutian" is the abbreviation of the heavens, and is also a synonym for God. The "Golden Guangming Sutra" collected in the Tang Dynasty says: "Foreign countries call gods by the name of heaven."

The origins and functions of the twenty heavens are as follows:

The first one: King Brahma ( Maha-brahma) is the god of creation in Brahmanism and Hinduism. Legend has it that he originally had five heads, but one was destroyed by Shiva. The remaining four heads each face one side. His four hands hold scriptures, lotus flowers, spoons, rosary beads or alms bowls respectively. He usually sits on a lotus seat, and his mount is a A cart drawn by a swan or seven geese. In Buddhism, Brahma serves as the protector of Sakyamuni and is located at the head of the "heavens". The image of Brahma in Chinese Buddhism is usually that of a middle-aged Chinese emperor, standing beside the Buddha, often holding a white whisk or a lotus.

The second place: Emperor Shakya (1ndra), transliterated as "Sakyamuni reminds Indra", which means "Emperor of Heaven". He lives in the city of Shanjian in the center of Mount Sumeru, the second level of the Six Desire Heaven - the center of the Emperor Shakti Heaven. In Chinese temples, the image of Emperor Shakti is often portrayed as a young emperor in male and female form.

Third place: Vaisramana is one of the four heavenly kings. King Tota Li in the Chinese gods and demons novels evolved from him.

Fourth place: Dhrtar6stra, transliterated as: "Tito Laizha", one of the four heavenly kings.

Fifth place: Growth King (Viru?/FONT >dhaka), transliterated as "Piliu Li", one of the four heavenly kings.

Sixth: Guangmu Tianwang (Vir6p6ksa), transliterated as "Piliu Bosha", also one of the four heavenly kings. < /p>

Seventh place: King Yaksha, who evolved into the two generals

Eighth place: Mahesvara, transliterated as "Moxi". "Sura", that is, Shiva, is one of the three main gods of Brahmanism and Hinduism, the other two are Brahma and Vishnu. He is the god of destruction, the god of walking and the god of dance. In Buddhism, he He became the protector of the law and lived at the top of the seventeen heavens in the form world. He was the Lord of the Three Thousand Lei Thousand Worlds. In Chinese Buddhism, his image is often represented by five heads, three eyes, and four hands, holding three forks and gods in his hands. Some are holding whisks, bells, pestles, and square rulers. They are wearing Bodhisattva costumes, and some are sitting on white bulls. There is also a rare three-sided image, the front is in the shape of a king, the left is a goddess, and the right is a Yaksha.

Ninth place: Pancika, also translated as "Pancika". It means "Secret God", also known as "Yaksha General" and "Yaksha General". He is one of the eight generals of King Bishamonten in the north. He leads twenty-eight tribes and patrols the world, rewarding good and punishing evil. Most of the statues look like Vajra warriors. Some temples sculpt him with the Mystic Vajra, who has a white face and a good appearance, and a golden face with loose fat and an angry look. Therefore, people often regard their pairing as the two generals of Hengha.

The tenth place: Sarasti, transliterated as "Sarasavadi", also known as Sarasti, the god of eloquence and virtue, the god of wisdom and merit. He was named because of his good eloquence, and because he could pronounce beautiful sounds and sing well, so he was called the Heaven of Wonderful Sound or the Heaven of Beautiful Sounds. The Tianri Sutra says he is a male; the Supreme King Sutra and the Buddha Sutra say he is a female. Statues in Buddhist temples often show the image of a female Bodhisattva. The Bodhisattva is dressed in clothing and has eight arms. The six arms on the side hold fire wheels, swords, bows, arrows, axes, ropes, etc. Put your arms together. There are lions, tigers, foxes, leopards and other wild animals underfoot.

The eleventh place: Laksmi, transliterated as "Mahasemi". Also known as the Goddess of Merit and Fortune. She is the wife of Lord Vishnu and the mother of the God of Love. The typical statue is holding up the left hand to twist the wishful beads, and the right hand to apply the fearless seal. There is Qibao Mountain behind, and five-colored clouds appear on the top. On the cloud is a six-tusked white elephant. The trunk of the elephant twists a horse and dances into a vase, and treasures are poured out of the vase. There is always an old man dressed as a barbarian who is always following closely, holding a long-handled incense stick and chanting incantations for him to make the vase produce treasure.

Twelfth place: Skanda, some people think it is a corruption of Skanda. Daoxuan, an eminent monk in the Tang Dynasty, once dreamed of a god, and the god came to him. He said: "My disciple is General Wei, the son of the heavens, the master of ghosts and gods. The Tathagata wants to enter Nirvana, and he orders his disciples to protect the Dharma left by the Ministry of Support." Since then, there has been the Dharma Protector Wei Tuo. Wei Tuo is one of the eight generals under King Nantian, ranking first among the thirty-two generals. He is entrusted by the Buddha to protect monks and uphold the Buddha's teachings. Wei Tuo is a figure created by Chinese Buddhism, so his statue also has typical Chinese characteristics. He is wearing golden armor, a golden helmet on his head, and holding a vajra in his hand, looking like a young Chinese military general.

Thirteenth: "Prthivi" (Prthivi), the Sanskrit transliteration of "Pili Divi".