Dhṛtarāṣṭra

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The Heavenly King Jikoku.

Dhṛtarāṣṭra (Sanskrit: धृतराष्ट्र, Sinhala දෘතරාෂ්ට, Japanese: 持国天 Jikoku, Vietnamese: 持國天王 Trì Quốc Thiên Vương) refers to an important figure in Buddhist mythology.

In Buddhism, Dhṛtarāṣṭra is one of the Four Heavenly Kings[1] and an important figure in Buddhist mythology. He is part of the Buddhist Pantheon of Esoteric Buddhism.

His name means "He who maintains the state" or “Watcher of the Lands”, and he his the guardian of the east.

References

  1. Michael Ashkenazi (2003). Handbook of Japanese mythology, ABC-CLIO. ISBN 1-57607-467-6 "Dhrtarastra carries a trident and rests his foot on the head of a demon. He is the defender of the East" (p. 53)

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