Dorje Shugden

Dorje Shugden (Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེ་ཤུགས་ལྡན, Wylie: rdo-rje shugs-ldan), "Vajra Possessing Strength", or Dolgyal Shugden (Tibetan: དོལ་རྒྱལ་ཤུགས་ལྡན, Wylie: dol rgyal shugs ldan), "Shugden, King of Dhol" is a deity (Tib. lha) in Tibetan Buddhism, especially its Gelug school, who is regarded as a Dharma Protector or "guardian angel." The practice of Dharma Protectors is central to most religious Tibetans and practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism.

Dorje Shugden is regarded as the incarnation of Gelugpa Lama Dragpa Gyaltsen of Drepung Monastery, a contemporary of the Fifth Dalai Lama. Yet, Dorje Shugden's enlightened nature has been debated since his appearance in the 17th century. With the current Dalai Lama's growing public opposition and subsequent "explicit ban" of the practice, this debate has escalated into what is known as the Dorje Shugden controversy.