Nià  (in Japanese contexts) or Inwang (in Korean contexts) or Renwang (in Chinese contexts) or Nhân vðáng (in Vietnamese contexts), also known as the Deva or Benevolent Kings, are two wrathful and muscular guardians of the Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in East Asian Buddhism in the form of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bodhisattva VajrapÃÂá¹Âi, the oldest and most powerful of the Mahayana Buddhist pantheon. According to scriptures like the PÃÂli Canon as well as the Ambaá¹Âá¹Âha Sutta, they travelled with Gautama Buddha to protect him. Within the generally pacifist tradition of Buddhism, stories of dharmapalas justified the use of physical force to protect cherished values and beliefs against evil. They are also seen as a manifestation of Mahasthamaprapta, the bodhisattva of power that flanks AmitÃÂbha in Pure Land Buddhism and as Vajrasattva in Tibetan Buddhism.
They are usually portrayed as a pair of figures that stand guarding the main temple entrance gates, usually called shanmen () in China, in Japan, and () in Korea. In Sanskrit, the right statue is known as GuhyapÃÂda. He traditionally has his mouth open, representing the vocalization of the first grapheme of Sanskrit DevanÃÂgarë (, "a"). The left statue is NÃÂrÃÂyaá¹Âa. He traditionally has his mouth closed, representing the vocalization of the last grapheme of DevanÃÂgarë (, ""), read "" (). These two characters together (a-hà «á¹Â/a-un) symbolize the birth and death of all things. (Men are supposedly born speaking the "a" sound with mouths open and die speaking an "" and mouths closed.) Similar to Jaya-Vijaya, they signify "everything" or "all creation". The contraction of both is the mantra om ().
GuhyapÃÂda (Traditional Chinese: å¯Â迹éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ; simplified Chinese: å¯Â迹éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ; pinyin: Mìjë jëngÃÂng; Japanese: Misshaku Kongà Â; Korean: Miljeok geumgang; Vietnamese: MáºÂt tÃÂch kim cðáng ) is a symbol of overt violence: he wields a vajra mallet "" (a diamond club, thunderbolt stick, or sun symbol) and bares his teeth. His mouth is depicted as being in the shape necessary to form the "ha" or "ah" sound. In China, he is also known as General Ha (Ã¥ÂÂå° HàJiÃÂng) in reference to this iconographic detail. Similarly, he is also known as Agyà  (é¿形, "a"-form, general term open-mouthed statues in aum pair) in Japan due to this detail as well. In Chinese Buddhism, GuhyapÃÂda is regarded as one of the Twenty-Four Protective Deities, who are a grouping of dharmapalas often enshrined in the Daxiong of temples and monasteries. In addition, GuhyapÃÂda is also sometimes paired or identified with the Wisdom King Ucchuá¹£ma, who is commonly known in Chinese as Huiji Jingang (穢跡éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ).
NÃÂrÃÂyaá¹Âa (Traditional Chinese: é£羠延éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ; simplified Chinese: é£ç½Â延éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ; pinyin: Nàluà Âyán JëngÃÂng; Japanese: Naraen Kongà Â; Korean: Narayeon geumgang; Vietnamese: Na la diên kim cðáng) is depicted either bare-handed or wielding a sword. He symbolizes latent strength, holding his mouth tightly shut. His mouth is rendered to form the sound "", or "heng" or "un". In China, he is also known as General Heng (å¼尠HÃÂng JiÃÂng) in reference to this iconographic detail. Similarly, he is also known as Ungyà  (å½形, "um"-form, general term closed-mouthed statues in aum pair) in Japan due to this detail as well.
Both GuhyapÃÂda and NÃÂrÃÂyaá¹Âa are seen as manifestations of VajrapÃÂni (Traditional Chinese: å·éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂç¥Â; simplified Chinese: æ§éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂç¥Â; pinyin: ZhÃÂjëngÃÂng shén; Japanese: Shà «kongà Âshin; Korean: Jip geumgang sin; Vietnamese: Chấp kim cang thần), with the name literally meaning "vajra-wielding god".
Nio Zen Buddhism was a practice advocated by the Zen monk Suzuki Shà Âsan (1579âÂÂ1655), who advocated Nio Zen Buddhism over Nyorai Zen Buddhism. He recommended that practitioners should meditate on Nio and even adopt their fierce expressions and martial stances in order to cultivate power, strength and courage when dealing with adversity. Suzuki described Nio as follows: "The Nià  (Vajrapani) is a menacing God. He wields the kongà Âsho (vajra) and he can crush your enemies. Depend on him, pray to him that he will protect you as he protects the Buddha. He vibrates with energy and spiritual power which you can absorb from him in times of need."
In Chinese folk religion and Taoism, they are known as the two generals Heng and Ha (, ). In the Taoist novel , Zheng Lun and Chen Qi were finally appointed as the two deities.