Ghosts and spirits in

Buddhism, Nepalese context

Rajan Bajracharya
03 Oct 2021 (Sunday)
 Disclaimer
● I am not an expert on either Buddhism or on the topic of spirits/ghosts

● Contents are sourced from the internet, folklores and things I learnt from my elders
when I was growing up

● I hope you will correct me if some ideas presented here or my understanding on specific
topics are wrong

● Please feel free to disagree with the one or more contents/ concepts or thoughts
presented here
 Ghosts and spirits in Buddhist context
● According to Buddhists texts, the process of birth and death is endless, unless one
brings it to the end
● Until then, each being is born in lifetime after lifetime (samsara) into one of six
realms: Rebirth in one or another of these states depends on the kamma (karma) one
has generated by one's intentional thoughts, speech and actions

God: devas (A rebirth in this heavenly realm is believed to be from very good karma
accumulation)

Human: manusya
Ghosts and spirits in Buddhist context
Demigod (Asura): Asura are notable for their anger and some
supernatural powers. They fight with the Devas (gods), or trouble the
Manusya (humans) through illnesses and natural disasters. Sometimes rakshasas,
mara, yachya, gandharva are also grouped in this realm.

Animal: janawar, this realm is traditionally thought to be similar to a

hellish realm, because animals are believed in Buddhist texts to be driven by
impulse and instinct, they prey on each other and suffer. Some Buddhist texts
assert that plants belong to this realm

Ghost: preta or hungry ghosts

Hell: naraka
 Ghosts or pretas
● In Pali, peta means “departed one”
● In Buddhism, ghosts and other restless spirits (preta)
are rebirths caused by karma of excessive craving and
attachments
● they do not have a body, are invisible and constitute
only "subtle matter" of a being.
● Buddhist texts describe them as beings who are
extremely thirsty and hungry, very small
mouth/narrow neck but huge distended bellies and
emaciated limbs
● their desires torment them, but they are completely
unable to satisfy themselves.
 Ghosts: a global phenomenon
● It probably existed before the religions were established, when humans used to
worship their ancestor’s spirit; humans are hardwired to “see” them
● Knox College psychology professor Frank T. McAndrew: whatever god you worship
influences the type of ghost you see; prior belief influences what your eyes behold.
● In pali Buddhists text, Petavatthu is part of the Khuddaka Nikaya: consisting of
fifteen books (Stories of the Hungry Ghosts)
● In Hindu concept, ‘preta’ are the spirits of the dead who have not received the proper
ritual offerings from their families
● In popular Western thinking ghosts are believed to be the souls of people who have
died and then appear to the living to haunt them, similar to Hindu concept of preta-
aatma
 Mara (The Devil/ Lord of Death)
● Buddha was approached on several occasions by
Màra who tried to stop him from continuing his
struggles for enlightenment, to tempt him and to
encourage him to pass away
● 3 three daughters are identified as Tanhā (Thirst),
Arati (Aversion, Discontentment), and Rāga
(Attachment, Desire, Greed, Passion)
● Mara's three daughters were stripping in front of
Buddha; but failed to entice the Buddha
● a personification of negative states of mind
● Buddhism sees evil as thoughts, speech and action
motivated by ignorance rather than the forces
external to the human mind.
 Newar concept of ghosts/spirits
● It probably existed before the religions were established, when humans used to
worship their ancestor’s spirit.
● In Nepal as well, even before Hinduism and Buddhism came to the valley, the belief in
ghosts, spirits and demigods was widespread and they managed to continue that
tradition and incorporate in a subtle manner with whatever the religion they came to
be associated with later on.
● It became more pronounced with the arrival of Hinduism and Vajrayana, esoteric form
of Buddhism, from Northern India.
● Nepal valley was fairly isolated from the outside world, population was limited and
lifespan was not long, majority were uneducated, superstition was rife, electricity was
not available
● Stories were passed on from generation to generation
 Newar concept of ghosts/spirits
● The ghosts and spirits cluster at crossroads, inhabit the woods and fields outside of the
city, lurk in the dark, and are driven away by bright lights. Sometimes they may
invade a home but usually lurk in outside shadowy areas. An encounter with them is
usually a matter of some accident or inadvertent mistake.
● An individual can be possessed by the evil spirit (puna hagu), which can cause illness.
Such evil spirits can be ward off by specific tantric puja (jhar phuki yaygu or taaran
taygu) or sometimes wearing amulets (jantar) or making animal/bird sacrifice.
● Shamanism is very common in Nepal, dhami/ jhakri/ bijuwa etc and in Kathmandu
valley, tantric Vajracharya priests or dya woimha/ mata (usually female) still practice
some form of shamanism (jhar-phuki yayegu)
Types of ghosts and spirits in newar society
● Bhut/pret: Spirit is the continuation of a person after death, and that undergoes various
transformations during which various mishaps that can prevent the proper passage
through and beyond the preta stage, and the preta then will become a troublesome
earth-bound ghost. A person who was not "ready" to die or did not want to may
become a permanent preta . Someone who dies in such a way that the proper rituals
cannot be done—such as in an accident away from home or whose death is considered
"unnatural"—can also become such a preta
● Kichkannya: spectres, who takes a form of beautiful woman who tries to seduce men,
their feet are turned backwards
● Kawancha: a dangerous spirit, which looks like a skeleton and makes a rattling sound
when it moves. If you run into one, it will harm/ kill you.
Types of ghosts and spirits in newar society
● Khyaa: mythical humanoid creature in Newari folklore,
often depicted as a fat, hairy and short ape-like creature;
exists in two forms, white and black.
● The white is benign and guards the house from other
spirits, household Khyaa usually dwell in the attic and
dark storerooms . It sometimes may snuggle up to a
person, and produces a tickling feeling.
● Black ones may produce frightening nightmares. They
may press on people's chests during sleep, making it
difficult to breath or to move (khyaa na tya wogu i.e.
sleep apnoea). Encountering a black khyaa can make one
ill.
Types of ghosts and spirits in newar society
● Rakshyas: often depicted as fierce-looking, enormous
monstrous-looking creatures, with two fangs protruding
from the top of the mouth and having sharp, claw-like
fingernails. In Ramayana, Ravan and Kumbhamarna
were famous rakshyas.
● They were powerful warriors, expert magicians and
illusionists. As shape-changers, they could assume
different physical forms. As illusionists, they were
capable of creating appearances which seem real. Some
of the rakshasas were said to be man-eaters (cannibalistic
beings)
● Simhasarthbahu folklore (garuda aju of thambahi):
merchants were enticed by rakshyasni of Lanka
Types of ghosts and spirits in newar society
● Pisacha (Vampires): supernatural beings who subsists by feeding on blood of the
living (either humans or animals), more popular in western/east European culture/
folklore
● Dankini: denotes a race of demonesses who ate the flesh and/or vital essence of
humans. In Hindu tantric rites, they are yogini goddesses . Similary, in Vajrayana
Buddhism they are depicted as very powerful goddesses: vajrayogini (sankhu/
pharping/ vijyaswori), khadgayogini (pulchok) or vajrabarahi.
● Boksi: people who perform black magic or witchcraft, mhyepi ajima is their tutelary
deity. They are able to call any of the goddess or witches and ask them to do a job for
her. Sometimes people (particularly females) can be possessed by boksi (boksi wogu),
now identified as dissociative disorder (hysteria). On gathamuga night, boksis go to
mhyepi to worship the goddess.
Types of ghosts and spirits in newar society
● Lakhe: actualy a flesh-eating demon, but has become
benevolent in nature, worshipped as demi-god and
thought to protect the children of Nepal valley (Majipa
lakhe).
● The general belief is that the spirit of the Lakhe resides
in the demonic mask, or khwapaa. As the dancer puts
the khwapaa on, the spirit takes over the dancer’s body
and dictates the movements.
● Live duck is offered to them, lakhe has to kill the duck
with his bare hands and drink the fresh blood.
● Folklore: demons invited in the valley to work in the
fields
 Festivals and death rituals
● Death rituals: different pujas and procedures are followed so that the spirit can
pass with ease, during some rituals people believe that the spirit of dead person
comes back (nhyanma tayegu/ manda choyegu)
● ‘Durgati parisodhan dharani’ recital during funeral procession (to avoid the
deceased passing through the hell)
 Festivals and death rituals
● Making ‘Preta murti’ with the ashes of the deceased,
which is then collected and the ash is then flushed
down the river (so that the deceased do not have to
suffer the state of agati)
● Preta murti represents the deceased person in
agati state
● Shradha: annual ritual for the dead parents/ ancestors
 Festivals and death rituals
● Gathamuga: effigy of gathamuga khyaa is
erected at road intersections, the effigies are
dragged down to the nearby river and later
cremated.
● Kids are taken near the fire (mi panegu) to
protect them any evil.
 Festivals and death rituals
● Gurumaapa: according to folklore, gurumapa
was a man-eating giant/ rakshays, living in attic
of a house belonged to Keshchandra in Itum
baha.
● He used to come out in dark and steal children
and eat them.
● He was banished to Tinkhyaa (tundikhel).
● On the night of holi, people of the locality
prepare a feast for Gurumapa and leave it on
the field
 Conclusion
● Ghosts are universal, but what you see is influenced by what you already believe. The
human brain is capable of creating things that do not exist and actually seeing them in
front of their own eyes
● Many supernatural or strange phenomena have been explained by modern medicine:
dissociative disorder (boksi wogu), epilepsy (dyo wogu),sleep apnoea (khyaa na tya
wogu), hallucination (simha wogu or khyaa wogu) or have scientific explanation (e.g.
michyaa khyaa)
● Phenomena of bhut or kichkanya have become rare after electricity reached
households in the valley, before that many stories related to ghost/ kichkanya/ khyaa
were source of entertainment for people
● Some section of the society still believe in these supernatural things and shaman
healers are still revered in the society
● It is a form of superstition, which has no basis; still valued by the society
Thank
you