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| In Hinduism and Buddhism, a '''bhuta''' is a type of evil spirit (pl: bhutas). It is especially the evil ghost of a man who has died due to execution, accident, or suicide. People protect themselves by lying on the ground, because the bhutas never rest on earth. In the Bhagvad Gita, '''Krishna the Avatar''' declares that the humans who worship bhutas become bhutas themselves; this is part of a larger discourse wherein the Avatar tells Prince Arjuna that the worshipper and the worshipped ultimately become one.
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| ==Main Belief==
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| In Indian lore bhutas are evil, flesh-eating '''spirits''' or '''demons''' or '''spirits of the dead'''.
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| If the word refers to the latter, they are restless souls of people died untimely deaths as through suicide or through violence.
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| The word '''Bhut''' is still used in Hindi to categorize a [[ghost]].
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| ===Appearance===
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| They are flickering lights or misty apparitions that cast no shadows and linger above the ground.
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| ==Behaviour==
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| They mostly plague those who do not performer the proper funerary rites for the dead.
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| Bhutas are considered responsible for:
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| *accidents
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| *bad crops
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| *calamities, both natural and domestic
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| *diseased livestock
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| *illness
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| *insanity
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| *plagues
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| They are also said to enter a human body and make sicken it until death.
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| ===Habitat===
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| Bhutas haunt forests and empty dwellings by day and night.
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| As Bhutas never rest on earth, they may be avoided by lying on the ground.
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| ===How to recognize a Bhuta===
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| Bhutas can be detected by nasal twangs, fear of burning turmeric and lack of shadow.
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| ==See Also==
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| *[[Ghost]]
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| *[[Ghoul]]
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| *[[Vampire]]
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| ==Sources==
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| *[http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0816046859/qid=1152701396/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-9667874-2159829?s=books&v=glance&n=283155 Guiley, Rosemary ''The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters'']
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| *[http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0500510881/ref=sr_11_1/103-9667874-2159829?ie=UTF8 Dhallapiccola, Anna ''Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend'']
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| [[Category:Hindu mythology]]
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| [[Category:Angels and demons]]
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| [[Category:Ghosts]]
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| {{wikipedia}}
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