Four Heavenly Kings

This article is about Buddhist gods. For other uses, see Four Heavenly Kings (disambiguation).

The Four Heavenly Kings are four Buddhist gods or devas, each of whom is believed to watch over one cardinal direction of the world. The Hall of Four Heavenly Kings is a standard component of Chinese Buddhist temples. The Four Heavenly Kings (Sanskrit Caturmahārāja, Pali Catu-Mahārāja, Chinese Sì Dà Tiānwáng 四大天王, Japanese Shitennō 四天王) are celestial deities or guardian gods in Buddhist cosmology who preside over the four cardinal directions and protect the Dharma.

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