Interesting homage in this episode that many people probably missed. More info than you can throw a knife at regarding rakshasa at the links listed, plus some thoughts on upcoming episodes.
Homage
Well, I might be stretching it to call it homage. A 1974 episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker also dealt with a rakshasa, though the similarities are few. I remember this episode a little (on reruns! Honestly, I'm not quite that old!), and remember it being one of the better episodes in the series. One of the best parts was the rakshasa in "The Night Stalker" appears as the person you most trust. Kolchak must decide if the person talking to him is the rakshasa, or his friend.
The elements of good writing don't change. Even back then the hero is forced to make a decision with a high personal cost. If he's wrong, he kills a friend, or dies himself. Nice.
Rakshasa
There is a lot of info on Rakshasa on the net. Here are some of the better links:
Wikipedia: Apparently, there are good rakshasa also. Who knew?
From MythFolklore.net: Apparently some rakshasa can animate dead bodies, sort of like a zombie.
The Encyclopedia Britannica says rakshasa dissipate with the rising sun. That would have made things easier.
Upcoming episodes:
Tonight we have vampires again. This might be a double duty episode. It will advance the longterm plot, but will also remind us about vampires, and their mythology within the series. Why would the writers want to remind us of this? Because I think we may soon see the return of Kate, from the "Dead Man's Blood" episode in Season 1.