Six Classes of Beings; 六道眾生; Tibetan: རིགས་དྲུག (rik druk); Wylie: rigs drug; Sanskrit: Sadgati;
According to Buddhist cosmology, all beings exist in six realms. The Six Classes of Beings (sadgati) are:
- gods (deva) 天道
- demi-gods (asura) 阿修羅道
- human beings (manusya) 人道
- animals (tiryag) 畜生道
- hungry ghosts (preta) 餓鬼道
- hell beings (naraka) 地獄道
The first 3 belong to the upper realms and the bottom 3 belong to lower realms.
Beings in all six realms exist in samsara, cycle continually through birth and death until attain nirvana. The type of rebirth of a being is determined by karma, actions in the current and previous lives.