Oracles and Demons of Tibet: The Cult and Iconography of the Tibetan Protective Deities

by René de Nebesky-Wojkowitz

This book is a study of the Tibetan protective deities, those gods worshipped by the Tibetans as protectors and guardians of Buddhism.

Genres: Buddhism, Religion

666 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

René Mario de Nebesky-Wojkowitz was an ethnologist and Tibetologist.

Reviews

[Marsha Altman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a rich ethnographic study of Tibetan Buddhism. It's not for beginners. The author did most of their studies prior to the Chinese invasion, so that gives it a historical authenticity. The transliteration system is a mess, but every attempt to transliterate Tibetan is a mess. I really wish I had time to read all of it - I'll probably return to it in the future.

[flying · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The fire of the lamp made of human fat and having a wick made of human hair. The strongly smelling liquid consisting of brain, blood, and bile, the heap of food composed of the organs of the five senses, hearts, meat, and bone;"

I really wonder where the "human fat" comes from. If you tried to search "human", most of the text are highly connected to "human skins", "human skull", "human bones" and so on. However, I would like to say this book matches what I observed during my trip in Tibet: I can see human bones and human teeth in varies of temples and ceremonial spaces. I am very glad that I can obtain a book which can reflect the religious ceremonies in Tibet.

[Rigzin Angmo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was so excited to open this book, as I have always been interested in oracles and deites. Coming from a HImalayan region, I have been in close association with such supernatural things. However I exprected this book to explain what each deity helps us with. But this turned out to be more complex and only gives details about each deity as in what they are carrying and what does it signify.

[Azella P · Rating 5 out of 5]

classic and hard to find book that defies wisdom -- a must read.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Indeed, this is a dense, academic treatise. Not one to read cover-to-cover, but as thorough a source one might find on early (perhaps pre-Buddhist) Tibetan deities.

I found it indispensable in my project of researching early Tibetan place-based mountain deities, some of which became the "ogres" later subdued by Padmasambhava when he brought Indian Vajrayana Buddhism to Tibet.

I'd stumbled across a Chinese reference to "Nine Mountains Which Make the World," and didn't find a satisfactory description until I found Nebesky-Wojkowitz's 1956 book. I was motived in part by a sentence in Bruan Cuevas' book "The Hidden History of the Tibetan Book of the Dead":

"The mythology surrounding the Tibetan protective divinities is extremely complex, and a thorough study of their role in Tibetan religion is much needed."

I focused on Ch. 14, Mountain-Deities, but also found helpful the Kagyu and Nyingma lists of the 12 Tenma Sisters on p. 186.

[Keith]

Not terribly engaging; it reads rather like a reference work.

I am, however, gratified to note that, while Amazon lists it starting at around $140 used, I managed to find it in an off-beat second-hand shop for about $6. Score!

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense and a bit academic, but it's THE book on Tibetan dieties and the pre-Buddhist roots of Vajrayana.

[Hayden Chance · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's no other book I know of that treats this subject so thoroughly. Really a fantastic resource.