A sky god, king of the gods in Vedic times who was later "demoted" to a dikpala as guardian of the eastern direction His primary attribute is the vajra (thunderbolt) He rides an elephant, symbolic of thunderclouds and royal power Indra is often paired with Brahma in Buddhist iconography Parshvanatha T (Khajuraho), Sanchi, Keshava T , Somnathpur
The common name for the God in Buddhist scriptures called 'Sakradevanam' In ancient Indian mythology, he is roughly equivalent in Zeus of Greek lore, being the God of the Sky who battles the demons with bolts of lightning (Vajra) He is inferior to the three great Hindu Gods (Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva) He was adopted by the Buddhists as their protector among the Gods, and often appears as the leader of Godly congregations in the scriptures See the entry on Gods for a more general discussion of the role of Gods in Buddhist scripture