The OTHER Four Elemental Kings….
Lets talk about the four elemental kings: ” You mean G0hob, Paralda, Niksa, and Djin?” No not them. The other ones.
“Oh, you mean Oriens, Amaymon, Paymon, and Egim?” Nope. The other, other ones.
“Satan, leviathan, Lucifer, Belial?” Nope. The Other Ones
“Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel?” Nope the OTHER ONES
“Kubera, Yama, Indra, Varuna? Closer….
Do you know about the four great kings of Heaven? There are lots of stories about them and how they arose but the one I was told goes like this:
In the time of Kashyapa the 3rd Buddha (The one that came before the one that the religion is about), there were two Nagas (serpent spirits) who were in hiding deep in the ocean because Garudas (Eagle spirirts) were always hunting them. The two Nagas heard Kashyapa preaching and asked him for refuge – which he granted. With this protection the two Nagas hung out on the surface of the waters – catching sun, drinking mai tai and having a good time. When two Garudas finally saw them and swept in to eat them they found that they could not harm the Nagas. The nagas told the Garudas about Kashyapa and so they went to hear him speak and also took refuge. The Nagas and Garudas knew that Kashyapa would die soon so they prayed to be reborn in the time of the next Buddha (the one we all know) so they could protect him and his disciples. They were reborn as Kings of the four directions.
The Nagas became Dhritarashtra and Virudhaka, the kings of the East of the South. The two Garudas became Virupaksha and Vaishravana the kings of the West and the North. Together they have some really awesome powers – so awesome that they have to keep them in check.
Whatever Dhritarashta hears gets turned back upon whatever produced the sound as a powerful weapon, so he covers his ears with a helmet and plays his fender stratocaster constantly so he doesn’t kill everyone who speaks. He is followed by legions of Gandarvas, heavenly beinggs who play music and make art and generally inspire all those around them.
Virudhaka’s touch is poisonous so he carries a sword at all times to keep people from touching him. I don’t know exactly what happens to those he touches, but whatever it is, its worse than getting whacked with a sword so I don’t want to find out. He is followed by Kunbhandas, horse headed spirits with gourd sized nads.
Virupaksha’s gaze kills anyone he looks at, so he carries a stupa. I guess he is either meditating on the stupa or maybe there is a 4k screen inside that he can binge watch Netflix on, because he is always looking at it. He is followed by hoards of Nagas.
Finally there is Vaishravana who has halitosis that can kill, so he never opens his mouth and is often shown holding his breath. He is the chief of the four kings and bestows wealth upon those who ask. He is followed by Yakshas, which are kind of like earth elementals.
Together these four kings can seal and protect anyone or anything, as well as open the directions when needed.