God and Demon: Antagonist to the Buddha

Religious systems and their accompanying social imaginaries can be approached from a variety of analytical vantage points, each offering distinct insights into their development within specific socio-temporal contexts. Among these, the category of ‘evil’—often sounds peripheral yet fundamental to the internal logic of many religious traditions—serves as a particularly productive lens. When examined across an extended historical arc, such a concept can illuminate both the continuities and transformations within a tradition’s conceptual and doctrinal framework. It has the power to tell a different story of the tradition’s journey.