Nalakuvara, also known as Nalakubara (), appears in
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
mythology as the brother of Manigriva (also known as
Manibhadra
Manibhadra is one of the major yakshas. He was a popular deity in ancient India.
Iconography
Several well known images of yaksha Manibhadra have been found. The two oldest known image are:
Yaksha Manibhadra from Parkham
Yaksha Manibhadra comi ...
), the son of the
yaksha
The yakshas ( sa, यक्ष ; pi, yakkha, i=yes) are a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in ...
king
Kubera
Kubera ( sa, कुबेर, translit=Kuberā) also known as Kuvera, Kuber and Kuberan, is the god of wealth, and the god-king of the semi-divine yakshas in Hinduism. He is regarded as Guardians of the directions, the regent of the north (' ...
(also known as
Vaishravana), and husband of
Rambha and Ratnamala. Nalakuvara often appears as a sexual
trickster
In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story (god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwi ...
figure in Hindu and Buddhist literature.
Names
Various
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
and
Prakrit
The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...
texts offer the name "Nalakuvara", "Nalakūvala", "Mayuraja", "Narakuvera", and "Naṭakuvera" to describe the son of Kubera. The god also appears in Chinese texts as "Nazha", and later "
Nezha
Nezha ( 哪吒) is a protection deity in Chinese folk religion. His official Taoist name is "Marshal of the Central Altar" (). He was then given the title "Third Lotus Prince" () after he became a deity.
Origins
According to Meir Shahar, Nezh ...
", a shortened transliteration of the word "Nalakuvara".
Legend
Hinduism
Ramayana
In the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
, Nalakuvara's, first wife,
Rambha, was sexually assaulted by his uncle,
Ravaṇa. In the Valmiki Ramayana, Nalakuvara curses Ravana that he would never be able to approach another youthful woman unless she shares her love; if, carried away by lust, he does violence to any woman who does not love him, his head would split into seven pieces.’. This curse protected the chastity of
Sita
Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She ...
, the wife of
Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...
, after she was kidnapped by Ravana.
Bhagavata Purana
In the
Bhagavata Purana
The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sa ...
, Nalakuvara, and his brother
Manigriva
Manibhadra is one of the major yakshas. He was a popular deity in ancient India.
Iconography
Several well known images of yaksha Manibhadra have been found. The two oldest known image are:
Yaksha Manibhadra from Parkham
Yaksha Manibhadra comi ...
, are cursed by the sage
Narada
Narada ( sa, नारद, ), or Narada Muni, is a sage divinity, famous in Hindu traditions as a travelling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He is one of mind-created children of Brahma, the creator god. He ...
into becoming trees. They are later liberated by the child-god
Krishna
Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
.
Nalakuvera and Manigriva were playing, in the nude, in the
Ganges
The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
, with
apsaras
An apsaras or apsara ( sa, अप्सरा ' lso ' pi, अक्चरा, translit=accharā) is a type of female spirit of the clouds and waters in Hinduism and Buddhist culture. They figure prominently in the sculpture, dance, litera ...
, when Narada walked by after a visit with Vishnu. Upon seeing Narada, the maidens covered themselves, while Nalakuvara and Manigriva were too intoxicated to notice Narada, and remained unclothed. According to some accounts, Narada pitied the brothers for wasting away their lives through their excessive indulgence in women and wine. In order to help the brothers realise their mistake, Narada cursed them into two Marutu trees. Narada wished for the brothers to meet Krishna after many years, who would be able to liberate them from the curse. In other accounts, it is said that Narada is so offended by the brothers’ lack of dignity and respect, that he cursed them into trees. After the two brothers pleaded with Narada, he consented that they could be liberated if Krishna touched them.
Many years later, when Krishna was in his infancy, his foster-mother
Yashoda
Yashoda ( sa, यशोदा, translit=Yaśodā) is the foster-mother of Krishna and the wife of Nanda Baba, Nanda. She is described in the Puranic texts of Hinduism as the wife of Nanda Baba, Nanda, the chieftain of Gokul, Gokulam, and the siste ...
had tied him to a mortar in order to prevent him from eating dirt. Krishna dragged the mortar along the ground until it became wedged between two trees. These trees happened to be Nalakuvara and Manigriva, and upon contact, they returned to their original forms. The brothers then paid homage to Krishna, apologised for their previous mistakes, and departed.
Buddhism
In the
Kākāti Jātaka story, Nalakuvara (here Naṭakuvera), appears as the court musician of the king of
Benares
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic tr ...
. After the King's wife, Queen Kākātī, is kidnapped by the
Garuḍa
Garuda (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garuda is ...
King, the King of Benares sends Naṭakuvera to look for her. Naṭakuvera hides within the plumage of the Garuḍa King, who carries Naṭakuvera to his nest. Once he has arrived, Naṭakuvera has sex with Queen Kākātī. Afterwards Naṭakuvera returned to Benares in the Garuḍa's wing, and composed a song telling of his experiences with Kākātī. When the Garuḍa hears the song, he realises that he has been tricked, he brings Kākātī back home to her husband.
Tantric masters invoked Nalakuvara as the commander of Kubera's army of yakṣas. He appears in the tantric text "Great Peacock-Queen Spell," which portrays him as a heroic yakṣa general and invokes Nalakūvara's name as a way to cure snakebites. Some versions of the "Great Peacock-Queen Spell" (Mahāmāyūrīvidyārājñī and the "Amogha-pāśa" give Nalakuvara the title "Great Yakṣa General." Nalakuvara appears in two other tantric texts: "The Yakṣa Nartakapara’s Tantra," and "The Great Yakṣa General Natakapara’s Tantric Rituals."
Worship in East Asia
![Ping Sien Si - 008 Nezha (deity) (15513109434)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Ping_Sien_Si_-_008_Nezha_%28deity%29_%2815513109434%29.jpg)
Nalakuvara was transmitted through Buddhist texts into China, where he became known as
Nezha
Nezha ( 哪吒) is a protection deity in Chinese folk religion. His official Taoist name is "Marshal of the Central Altar" (). He was then given the title "Third Lotus Prince" () after he became a deity.
Origins
According to Meir Shahar, Nezh ...
(known earlier as Nazha). In Chinese mythology, Nezha is the third son of the Tower King, so many people also called Nezha as the third prince. Nezha is also called "Marshal of the Central Altar".
According to
Meir Shahar
Meir Shahar ( he, מאיר שחר, born in 1959 in Jerusalem) is the Shaul Eisenberg Chair for East Asian Affairs at Tel Aviv University. Academic career
Meir Shahar attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and then studied Chinese in Taipei ...
, the etymology of the word “Nezha” showed that the name is a shortened (and slightly corrupted) transcription of the Sanskrit name "Nalakūbara."
It has been suggested by Shahar that the legends surrounding Nezha are a combination of the mythology of Nalakuvara and the child-god Krishna (Bala Krishna).
Nezha is a well-known Doaoist deity in Japan. The Japanese refer to Nezha as Nataku or Nata, which came from the readings of ''
Journey to the West
''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the greatest Classic Chinese Novels, and has been described as arguably the most popu ...
''.
See also
*
Kubera
Kubera ( sa, कुबेर, translit=Kuberā) also known as Kuvera, Kuber and Kuberan, is the god of wealth, and the god-king of the semi-divine yakshas in Hinduism. He is regarded as Guardians of the directions, the regent of the north (' ...
*
Ravana
Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations.
In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. He a ...
*
Manibhadra
Manibhadra is one of the major yakshas. He was a popular deity in ancient India.
Iconography
Several well known images of yaksha Manibhadra have been found. The two oldest known image are:
Yaksha Manibhadra from Parkham
Yaksha Manibhadra comi ...
References
{{Reflist
Yakshas
Hindu gods
Buddhist gods