Guardians of the directions

The Guardians of the Directions (दिक्पाल, ) are the deities who rule the specific directions of space according to Hinduism, Jainism and Vajrayana Buddhism—especially Kalachakra. As a group of eight deities, they are called  (अष्ट-दिक्पाल), literally meaning guardians of eight directions. They are often augmented with two extra deities for the ten directions (the two extra directions being zenith and nadir), when they are known as the . In Hinduism it is traditional to represent their images on the walls and ceilings of Hindu temples. They are also often portrayed in Jain temples, with the exception that Nāga usually takes the place of Vishnu in the nadir. Ancient Java and Bali Hinduism recognize , literally meaning guardians of nine directions, that consist of eight directions with one addition in the center. The nine guardian gods of directions is called Dewata Nawa Sanga (Nine guardian devata). The diagram of these guardian gods of directions is featured in Surya Majapahit, the emblem of Majapahit empire.

There are strong similarities between the concept of the guardians of the directions and the lore surrounding the Chinese four symbols, four ancestral spirits who are responsible for four of the cardinal directions (North, South, East, and West).

Directions in Hindu tradition
Directions in Hindu tradition are called as , or Dik. There are four cardinal directions, six orthogonal directions and a total of ten directions, however infinite combinations are possible.

Lokapālas
In Hinduism, the guardians of the cardinal directions are called the Lokapalas (लोकपाल), or Dikpalaka. Three main distinctions of Dikpalaka are recognized, being:

("Guardians of Ten Directions")
Besides the eight guardians, the following are added:
 * Brahma (Zenith, meaning "the farthest up from the gravitational force")
 * Vishnu (Nadir, meaning "the direction in which gravity pulls")

("Guardians of Nine Directions")


(Called Dewata Nawa Sanga in ancient Java and Bali Hinduism)


 * Shiva (Center)
 * Vishnu (North)
 * Brahma (South)
 * Isvara (East)
 * Mahadeva (West)
 * Sambhu (Northeast)
 * Mahesora (Southeast)
 * Sangkara (Northwest)
 * Rudra (Southwest)