Dhritarashtra- Buddhist GodDeity"Guardian of the East"
Also known as: Dhrtarastra, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, धृतराष्ट्र, Jikokuten, Chiguo Tian, and 持国天
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Description
Where the other Heavenly Kings wield swords and serpents, Dhritarashtra guards the east with a lute — its music transforms discord into harmony. As lord of the gandharvas, he watches from the slopes of Mount Meru, reporting human virtue and vice to the gods above.
Mythology & Lore
The Guardian's Watch
Dhritarashtra guards the eastern face of Mount Meru, halfway between the human world and the heaven of the Thirty-Three Gods. His name means "He Who Upholds the Realm." Where the other Heavenly Kings carry swords or wrap serpents around their arms, Dhritarashtra holds a pipa lute. When he plays, discord turns to harmony.
He commands the gandharvas, the celestial musicians. During the first quarter of each lunar month, he descends to observe human conduct and reports back to Sakka: whether virtue or vice has the upper hand.
Jikokuten
In Japan, Dhritarashtra is Jikokuten, "the one who protects the nation." At Horyu-ji and Todai-ji, statues carved in the seventh and eighth centuries show him in warrior's armor, a demon crushed beneath his feet, the lute still in his hands. The Shitenno-ji temple in Osaka, one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Japan, takes its name from the Four Heavenly Kings he serves among.
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