Sushmajee
Dictionary Of Hindu Religion | Dictionary
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| Gandharv |
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P-Q R S T-U V-W-X Y-Z The "Heavenly Gandharv" of the Ved was a deity who knew and revealed the secrets of Heaven and Divine truths in general. He is thought by Goldstucker to have been a personification of the fire of the Sun. The Gandharv usually dwelt in the sky, and one of their jobs was to prepare the heavenly Som juice for gods. They had a great partiality for women, and had a mystic power over them. The Atharv Ved speaks of "the 6,333 Gandharv". The Gandharv
of later times are similar in character; they have charge of the Som
juice, are skilled in medicine, regulate the asterisms, and are fond of
women. Those who live in Indra’s Heaven are generally m
--The Puraan give contradictory accounts of the origin of the Gandharv. They
were born from the drinking of the goddess of speech (gam dhaayantah), and thence
their appellation.” Later on it says that they were the offspring of Kashyap
and his wife Arishtaa. The cities of the Gandharv are often referred to as being very splendid. The Vishnu Puraan has a legend of the Gandharv fighting with the Naag in the infernal regions, whose dominions they seized and whose treasures they plundered. The Naag chiefs appealed to Vishnu for relief, and He promised to appear in the person of Purukuts to help them. Thereupon the Naag sent their sister Narmadaa (the Nerbudda river) to this Purukuts, and she broght him to her own region, where he killed many Gandharv. They are sometimes called Gatus and Pulakas. In the Mahaabhaarat, Gandharv is a race of people dwelling in the hills and wilds.
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Created by Sushma Gupta on 3/15/06
Contact: sushmajee@yahoo.com
Updated on
06/09/11