Deva or Yaksha? — Untangling a Common Confusion

Look at an image of Tao Wessuwan for a moment, and you may feel a certain contradiction stir within you.

His face is fierce, his fangs sharp, his body powerful, his hand gripping a mace — everything marks him, beyond doubt, as a "yaksha." Yet at the same time we call him "Tao" (Lord), enshrine him high upon an altar, light incense and candles in homage, and speak his name with reverence as a "god."

So which is he, after all — a deva or a yaksha?

The answer many do not expect is that he is both — and understanding precisely this point is the key that unlocks every secret of his nature.

The "Yaksha" of Mistaken Understanding

The trouble begins with the word "yaksha" itself.

In the common understanding — especially from folktales and cartoons — the word "yaksha" usually means a great cruel-hearted beast that devours people, a savage villain the hero must defeat. Such an impression makes it feel strange to venerate a "yaksha" as something sacred.

But in Buddhist thought, the word yaksha (Pali: yakkha) carries a far broader and deeper meaning.

A yaksha in this sense therefore comes in many ranks, from low and coarse yakshas to exalted ones of great virtue and merit who have faith in the Dhamma. Some yakshas are stream-enterers; some have attained the Dhamma as noble ones.

And among all these yakshas, there is one of supreme power — none other than the king of all yakshas.

That one is Tao Wessuwan.

King of Yakshas, Dweller in Heaven

Here is where the contradiction dissolves.

Tao Wessuwan is the lord of the host of yakshas, ruling over the yakshas, gandhabbas, kumbhaṇḍas, and all the non-human beings within his domain. In this sense he is bound closely to the race of yakshas, and he often appears in a yaksha-like form, to show his sovereignty over those attendants.

But at the same time, Tao Wessuwan himself dwells in the Cāturmahārājika heaven, the first heaven of the sensual realm. He holds the standing of a great deity — one of the Four Heavenly Kings, the guardians of the four directions of the world.

To picture it simply: it is like a great king who is sovereign of a realm. He is a monarch by his royal rank, and yet also "lord of the land" in the sense that he rules over its people. These two roles dwell harmoniously in one person.

Then Why So Fierce?

If he is a great and virtuous deity, why does he appear in so fierce and fearsome a form, rather than beautiful and gentle like other devas?

The answer lies in his duty.

Tao Wessuwan is a "guardian." His mission is to protect Buddhism, to protect those who keep the precepts, and to suppress the evil that would come to do harm. His fierce, powerful form is therefore not cruelty, but the fearsomeness of a protector that keeps spirits, demons, and inauspicious things from daring to approach.

His fierceness is thus turned outward — protecting those behind him, not threatening those who come to take refuge in him. He is like a strong sentry standing guard before a house: his stern face is meant to frighten thieves, not the owner.

Two Standings, One Being

Once we understand this, all the confusion dissolves.

Tao Wessuwan is neither "a yaksha we mistook for a deva" nor "a deva who happens to look like a yaksha." He is truly a great deity who is king over the host of yakshas — these two standings fused into one within him, completely and without contradiction.

This is the very charm and depth of him, what sets Tao Wessuwan apart from other deities: he holds within one being both the grace of a deva and the fearsome power of a king of yakshas.

Before We Go On

But his story can go deeper still.

For before Tao Wessuwan became the guardian deity of Buddhist thought as we know him, he had roots and a legend reaching far further back — far back into pre-Buddhist times, in an ancient belief where he was known by another name.

That name is Kubera, the god of wealth.

And the story of his journey from ancient deity to guardian of Buddhism will begin in the next chapter.