Forty-two peaceful deities

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Peaceful Deities from the Mandala of Hundred Peaceful and Wrathful Deities

The forty-two peaceful deities (Tib. shyiwé lha shyé nyi; Wyl. zhi ba'i lha zhe gnyis) belong to the mandala of the Hundred Peaceful and Wrathful Deities, and feature in several practices and cycles of teachings, most notably the Tibetan Book of the Dead and the Guhyagarbha Tantra. They are:


1) Samantabhadra (Wyl. kun tu bzang po);
2) Samantabhadri (Wyl. kun tu bzang mo);
3-7) five male buddhas of the five families (Wyl. rgyal rigs lnga) and
8-12) five female buddhas (Wyl. yum lnga);
13-20) eight male bodhisattvas (Wyl. byang chub sems dpa’ brgyad) and
21-28) eight female bodhisattvas (Wyl. sems ma brgyad);
29-34) six munis (Wyl. thub pa drug);
35-38) four male gate keepers (Wyl. sgo ba bzhi) and
39-42) four female gate keepers (Wyl. sgo ma bzhi).

These deities are also described as the deities of the three seats.