Dharmapala in the context of "Yama (Buddhism)"

The Gelug (/ɡəˈluːɡ/, also Geluk; lit. 'virtuous') is the youngest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It was founded by Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), a Tibetan philosopher, tantric yogi and lama and further expanded and developed by his disciples (such as Khedrup Je, Gyaltsap Je, Dulzin Drakpa Gyaltsen, and Gendün Drubpa).

The Gelug school is alternatively known as Kadam (bKa’-gdams gsar-pa), since it sees itself as a continuation of the Kadam tradition of Atisha (c. 11th century). The school of New Kadam, or New Kadampa is an offshoot of the Gelug-tradition. Furthermore, it is also called the Ganden school, after the first monastery established by Tsongkhapa. The Ganden Tripa ("Ganden Throne Holder") is the official head of the school, though its most influential political figure is the Dalai Lama ("Ocean Teacher"). Allying themselves with the Mongol Khans, the Gelug school emerged as the dominant Buddhist school in Tibet and Mongolia since the end of the 16th century (religiously and politically). Another alternative name for this tradition is the Yellow Hat school or sect.

Benzaiten (弁才天／弁財天; Japanese pronunciation: [ben.dzaꜜi.teɴ]) is an East Asian Buddhist goddess who originated from the Hindu Saraswati, the patroness of speech, the arts, and learning.

Worship of Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the sixth through eighth centuries, mainly via Classical Chinese translations of the Golden Light Sutra (Sanskrit: Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra), which has a section devoted to her. Benzaiten was also syncretized with Japanese kami, and adopted into the Shinto religion, and there are several Shinto shrines dedicated to her. As such, Benzaiten is now also associated with dragons, snakes, local Japanese deities, wealth, fortune, protection from disease and danger, and the protection of the state.

Mahākāla (Sanskrit: महाकाल, pronounced [mɐɦaːˈkaːlɐ]) is a deity common to Hinduism and Buddhism.

In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as a Dharmapāla ("Protector of the Dharma") and a wrathful manifestation of a Buddha, while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and the consort of the goddess Mahākālī; he most prominently appears in the Kalikula sect of Shaktism.

The Shangpa Kagyu (Tibetan: ཤངས་པ་བཀའ་བརྒྱུད, Wylie: shangs pa bka' brgyud, "Oral Tradition of the man from Shang") is known as the "secret lineage" of the Kagyu school of Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism and differs in origin from the better known Dagpo Kagyu schools. The Dagpo Kagyu are the lineage of Tilopa through his student Naropa, often traced through Naropa's famous student Marpa Lotsawa and thus called "Marpa Kagyu", while the Shangpa lineage descends from Tilopa's student Niguma, who was Naropa's sister, as well as from the teachings of Sukhasiddhi. Its founder was Khyungpo Naljor, the student of both women, whose monastery in the Shang Valley gave its name to the tradition.

The principal Shangpa dharmapala is the six-armed Mahākāla.