Gandharva
A gandharva (
It is also a term for skilled singers in Indian classical music. In Buddhism, this term also refers to a being in the intermediate state (between death and rebirth).
In Hinduism
In
The term gandharva is present in Vedic sources (including in the Rigveda) as a singular deity. According to Oberlies, "In mandala I, IX and X the gandharva is presented as a celestial being (dwelling near the Sun / in the heavenly waters) which watches over the Soma (apparently) for the benefit of the gods and the sacrificers." The gandharva also "receives the Soma from the ‘Daughter of the Sun' to put it into the Soma plant (RV 9.113.3), i.e., to bring it to this world."[4] The gandharva also brings other things from the beyond, including humans (RV 10.10.4) and the horse (RV 1.163.2).[4] As such, the function of the gandharva is "to escort things from ‘outside' into this world thereby divesting them of their (potential) dangerous nature."[4] Later, the figure also came to be associated with fertility and virility.[4]
The
In Hindu law, a gandharva marriage is one contracted by mutual consent and without formal rituals.
Gandharvas are mentioned extensively in the epic
Parentage
Various parentage is given for the gandharvas. They are called the creatures of Prajapati, of Brahma, of Kashyapa and Pradha, of the Munis, of Arishta, or of Vāc.[8]
The Bhagavata Purana mentions that when Brahma, during creation, saw the activities of some sexually active asuras, he laughed. From his laughter were produced the gandharvas.
In Buddhism
A gandharva is one of the lowest-ranking
The terms gandharva and yakṣa sometimes refer to the same entity. Yakṣa in these cases is the more general term, including a variety of lower deities.
Intermediate Rebirth
In the Mahātaṇhāsankhaya Sutta of the
Notable gandharvas
Among the notable gandharvas mentioned (in DN.20 and DN.32) are Panāda, Opamañña, Nala, Cittasena, Mātali, and Janesabha. The last in this list is thought to be synonymous with Janavasabha, a rebirth of King Bimbisāra of Magadha. Mātali is the charioteer of Śakra.
Timbarū is a chieftain of the gandharvas. There is a romantic story told about the love between his daughter Bhaddā Suriyavacchasā (Sanskrit: Bhadrā Sūryavarcasā) and another gandharva, Pañcasikha (Sanskrit: Pañcaśikha). Pañcasikha fell in love with Suriyavacchasā when he saw her dancing before Śakra, but she was then in love with Mātali's son Sikhandī (or Sikhaddi). Pañcasikha went to Timbarū's home and played a melody on his flute of beluva-wood, with which he had great skill, and sang a love song in which he interwove themes about the Buddha and the Arhats.
Śakra petitioned Pañcasikha to intercede with the Buddha so that he might have an audience with him. As a reward for Pañcasikha's services, Śakra was able to get Suriyavacchasā, already pleased with Pañcasikha's display of skill and devotion, to agree to marry Pañcasikha.
Pañcasikha also acts as a messenger for the