The eight classes of gods and demons (Tibetan: ལྷ་སྲིན་སྡེ་བརྒྱད་, ''lha srin sde brgyad'') are a traditional classification of supernatural beings in

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism is a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet, Bhutan and Mongolia. It also has a sizable number of adherents in the areas surrounding the Himalayas, including the Indian regions of Ladakh, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, D ...

and

Bön Bon or Bön (), also known as Yungdrung Bon (, ), is the indigenous Tibetan religion which shares many similarities and influences with Tibetan Buddhism.Samuel 2012, pp. 220–221. It initially developed in the tenth and eleventh centuries but ...

. These entities—sometimes gods, sometimes demons—are believed to inhabit the natural and spiritual world and can have both benevolent and malevolent influence over human life.

Overview

The term "eight classes of gods and demons" refers to a fluid category of worldly spirits in Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, whose precise composition can vary depending on lineage, ritual purpose, or textual source. Originally grounded in indigenous Tibetan cosmology, the list of eight was later overlaid with Indian Buddhist terminology, resulting in partial overlaps with Sanskrit spirit-classes such as yakṣa, nāga, and rākṣasa.See, for example, . In some ritual contexts, this merger has led to expanded enumerations of ten, eleven, or even sixteen classes, as additional spirit types were integrated to preserve both systems. Despite these variations, the core eight are widely recognized in Tibetan ritual literature and continue to play a central role in offerings, exorcisms, and protector practices. These beings are invoked or warded against in a wide variety of Tibetan ritual contexts, including spirit offerings, exorcisms, protective rites, and

tantric practices Tantric may refer to: Religion Religious practices *Tantra massage, a form of erotic massage *Tantric sex, Hindu and Buddhist tantric practices that utilize sexual activity in a ritual or yogic context *Tantric yoga, a form of yoga * Tibetan tantr ...

. Though the list varies somewhat, the eight classes commonly include: * ''Lha'' – Gods or celestial deities * ''Srin po'' – Demons or

rakshasa Rākshasa (, , ; ; "preservers") are a race of usually malevolent beings prominently featured in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Folk Islam. They reside on Earth but possess supernatural powers, which they usually use for evil acts such as ...

s * ''Klu'' –

Nāga In various Asian religious traditions, the Nāgas () are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...

s or serpent-spirits * ''Tsen'' – Wrathful warrior spirits * ''Gnod sbyin'' –

Yaksha The Yakshas (, , ) in Mythology are a broad class of nature spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Bud ...

s or harm-giving nature spirits * ''Mamo'' – Wrathful female spirits or goddesses * ''’Dre'' – Ghosts or wandering spirits * ''Btsan'' – Mountain or storm spirits, often associated with warlike energy In tantric Buddhism, some of these beings are seen as worldly protectors ('' dharmapālas'') after being ritually subdued or converted to the Dharma. In other cases, they are treated as obstacles to be pacified or expelled.

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* * * * * * {{refend Bon deities Tibetan Buddhist deities Tibetan words and phrases

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