Tormented Spirit

Tormented Spirit (yi dvags)

• Tormented spirits (Skt preta) are regarded as one of the three lower existences among the six classes of living beings. Born under the sway of miserliness, the tormented spirits include those terrestrial beingss who endure the sufferings of unsatiable hunger and thirst, as well as the ghostly spirits of the air, including martial haunting spirits (btsan), king spirits (rgyal po), elemental spirits ('byung po), and female imprecatory spirits (ma mo). For a description of the sufferings endured by tormented spirits, see dPal-sprul Rin-po-che, The Words of My Perfect Teacher, pp. 72-76. GD (from the Glossary to Tibetan Elemental Divination Paintings)