beings of the two worlds and the eight groups [二界八番] ( nikai-hachiban): The beings that assembled to listen to the preaching of the Lotus Sutra. They are listed in the “Introduction” (first) chapter of the sutra. They are beings that reside in the two worlds—the world of desire and the world of form. The eight groups are a further division of the beings of the two worlds. They are (1) the gods of the world of desire, (2) the gods of the world of form, (3) dragon kings and their followers, (4) kimnara kings and their followers, (5) gandharva kings and their followers, (6) asura kings and their followers, (7) garuda kings and their followers, and (8) the king of the human world (i.e., Ajātashatru) and his followers.