Pehar

by

Christopher Bell

• LAST MODIFIED: 20 March 2025
• DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195393521-0288

Introduction

Pehar (Tib. Pe har) is one of the most historically significant and popular protector deities in Tibetan Buddhism. This “Dharma protector” (chos skyong) is found in the mythic and ritual corpora of all major Tibetan sectarian traditions, such as the Nyingma (Rnying ma), Kagyü (Bka’ brgyud), Sakya (Sa skya), and Geluk (Dge lugs). Pehar’s ritual pedigree can be traced back to at least the twelfth century, and his mythic origins are tied to the establishment of Buddhist monasticism in Tibet, since he is considered one of the original protectors of Samyé (Bsam yas), Tibet’s first Buddhist monastery founded in the eighth century. The deity is considered a “king spirit” (rgyal po) within Tibet’s expansive and complex demonological typology, though other types have been attributed to him. Pehar has numerous epithets, but his most common is Dorjé Drakden (Rdo rje grags ldan), which is by turns synonymous with the deity and considered one of his many emanations, depending on the source. Another important epithet is Nechung (Gnas chung), a toponym based on Nechung Monastery, located on the outskirts of Lhasa. This monastery became Pehar’s main abode in the sixteenth century, and it was greatly expanded under the auspices of the Fifth Dalai Lama (b. 1617–d. 1682) in the seventeenth century. From this time onward, while the deity continued to be present in the textual collections of other traditions, his importance to the Geluk school grew rapidly and he became intimately linked to the lineage of the Dalai Lamas. Moreover, from at least the sixteenth century—and standardized in the seventeenth century—a Nechung monk would become possessed by the spirit of Pehar, or one of his emanations, and offer prophetic counsel to the Dalai Lama and members of his cabinet. This Nechung Oracle became the head of the Tibetan state oracles in the seventeenth century and continues to act as such to the present day; the Fourteenth Dalai Lama regularly consults the current medium of Nechung for clairvoyant advice on matters of state within his government-in-exile in India. Pehar’s presence permeates mythic accounts and ritual activities across the Tibetan Buddhist milieu, and he is deeply associated with Tibet’s imperial past and institutional present, especially in relation to the Dalai Lama.

Major Works

While Pehar is mentioned in numerous primary and secondary sources within Tibetan studies, only a few works focus predominantly on the deity. Bell 2021 is the only monograph to give sustained attention to Pehar; however, it is primarily rooted in the seventeenth century and the efforts of the Fifth Dalai Lama to enhance the deity’s cult at Nechung Monastery. Lin 2010 (a translation of Lin Shen-Yu 2009) is akin to an advanced annotated bibliography on Pehar’s textual growth from his hazy origins to the sixteenth century. Beyond these works, detailed textual summaries of Pehar’s traits and mythic origins are mainly found in the chapters of books more broadly focused on Tibetan protector deities, such as the important 18th-century Tibetan collection Ocean of Oath-Bound Guardians of the Teachings (Sle lung rje drung Bzhad pa’i rdo rje 1976), as well as Nebesky-Wojkowitz 1998 and Ladrang 1996 (a translation of Bla brang skal bzang 1996a).

• Bell, Christopher. The Dalai Lama and the Nechung Oracle. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.

  DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780197533352.001.0001

  This monograph is the most comprehensive discussion of Pehar’s complex mythos, ritual evolution, and institutional significance to date. The book emphasizes Pehar’s identity in connection with Nechung Monastery, the Nechung Oracle, and his relationship with the incarnation lineage of the Dalai Lamas. Most of the work is rooted in the seventeenth century, a watershed moment for the rise of Pehar’s cult especially within the Geluk school and through the intentional efforts of the Fifth Dalai Lama’s administration.

• Bla brang skal bzang. Bod skyong srung ma khag gi lo rgyud: Detialed [sic] History of the Wrathful Miracles of Vajra Dharma Protectors. Dharamsala, India: Konchog Tashi, 1996a.

  See pp. 74–87. This Tibetan-language book concerns the major Tibetan Buddhist protector deities, particularly those propitiated by the Dalai Lama’s government, including Pehar. As a whole, it is a much simpler version of Lelung Jedrung Zhepé Dorjé’s 18th-century Ocean of Oath-Bound Guardians of the Teachings (see Sle lung rje drung Bzhad pa’i rdo rje 1976 below). The chapter on Pehar summarizes content from the Fifth Dalai Lama’s writings as well as Lelung Jedrung Zhepé Dorjé’s text.

• Ladrang, Kalsang. The Guardian Deities of Tibet. Translated by Pema Thinley. Dharamsala, India: Little Lhasa Publications, 1996b.

  See pp. 76–84. This is the English translation of Bla brang skal bzang 1996a, making it one of the few works on Pehar in English. Like the original Tibetan version, this book’s chapter on Pehar is valuable for its introductory material. Notably, the Tibetan edition of the book cites its sources while this English edition does not. The Tibetan edition also labels its chapter “King Pehar” (Pe har rgyal po), while the English edition labels it “Nechung Dorje Dregden (gnas chung rdo rje dregs [sic] ldan).”

• Lin Shen-Yu [林純瑜]. “貝哈護法神與西藏政治.” 臺灣宗教研究 [Taiwan Journal of Religious Studies] 8.1 (2009): 83–101.

  Translated as “Guardian Deity Pehar and Tibetan politics.” As a Chinese-language article published in a Taiwanese journal, Lin’s essay focuses specifically on the development of Pehar’s characterization, from his nebulous beginnings to the sixteenth century. Lin also offers a brief examination of the Fifth Dalai Lama’s depiction of the deity as well as that of scholars in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. This is a fairly comprehensive collection of important sources on Pehar and a great reference overall.

• Lin Shen-Yu. “Pehar: A Historical Survey.” Revue d’Études Tibétaines 19 (2010): 5–26.

  This is an English translation of Lin Shen-Yu 2009 and, as such, provides accessible information on Pehar’s historical sources. This essay’s main limitation is that it looks exclusively at representations of the deity in historical works and does not include ritual texts. Regardless, Lin’s article is a very useful summary of Pehar’s changing identities through the centuries.

• Nebesky-Wojkowitz, René de. Oracles and Demons of Tibet: The Cult and Iconography of the Tibetan Protective Deities. New Delhi: Paljor, 1998.

  Originally published in 1956, this book continues to be the most comprehensive treatment of Tibetan gods, spirits, and oracles in western scholarship. This is the first work to provide consistent details on Pehar as well, with one chapter dedicated to the deity (pp. 94–133) and another to the Nechung Oracle (pp. 444–454). The chapter on Pehar provides the deity’s basic mythology, drawing such accounts from diverse sources. The chapter on the Nechung Oracle discusses the general attributes of Nechung and the monastery’s oracle, and it offers some contemporary historical information.

• Sle lung rje drung Bzhad pa’i rdo rje (1697–1740). Dam can bstan srung rgya mtsho’i rnam par thar pa cha shas tsam brjod pa sngon med legs bshad. Thimphu, Bhutan: Kunzang Topgey, 1976.

  See pp. 369–388. One of the most important collections of deity hagiographies in Tibetan is the Ocean of Oath-Bound Guardians of the Teachings, composed in 1734 by Lelung Jedrung Zhepé Dorjé (Sle lung rje drung bzhad pa’i rdo rje, 1697–1740). A chapter in this text specifically concerns Pehar and his origins and Lelung is particularly good at citing his sources. There are three other editions of this work available, printed in Paro (Ngodrup and Sherab Drimay, 1978, Vol. 2, pp. 2–40), Leh (T. S. Tashigang, 1979, Vol. 2, pp. 36–53), and Beijing (Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2003, pp. 302–317).