Samding Dorje Phagmo A namkha (Tibetan: ནམ་མཁའ་ nam mkha' [1] "sky", "space", "aether"," heaven"), also known as Dö; (Tibetan mdos (མདོས) [2]) is a form of yarn or thread cross composed traditionally of wool or silk and is a form of the endless knot of the Eight Auspicious Symbols (Ashtamangala).
In certain tantric rituals, the namkha becomes a pure land abode of a deity while in other rites it may act as a snare for demons.
Tradition holds that it was for this latter purpose that a namkha was used by Padmasambhava after his Vajrakilaya Dance during the consecration of Samye monastery during the first importation of Buddhism to Tibet.
In the Bön and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions, a namkha is constructed as the temporary dwelling for a deity during ritual practice.
Pearlman describes how Padmasambhava consecrated the land for the building of Samye Monastery by the enactment of the rite of the Vajrakilaya dance, which employed namkha to capture malevolent spirits.