Deities
Kinnara
किन्नर
kinnara
Definition
Celestial musician with horse-head and human body (or vice versa); attendant of Kubera. Often paired as kinnara/kinnari.
हिन्दी अर्थ
किन्नर; पुरुष-अश्व मुख वाले देव।
Sources Cited
- · Mahabharata
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किन्नर
kinnara
Celestial musician with horse-head and human body (or vice versa); attendant of Kubera. Often paired as kinnara/kinnari.
किन्नर; पुरुष-अश्व मुख वाले देव।
Hindu thought is built from a vocabulary of carefully-distinguished terms. Words like kinnara are not loose translations — each has a precise scriptural genealogy, a specific role in ritual or philosophy, and often a counterpart that completes its meaning. Many of the major Hindu darśanas (Sāṅkhya, Yoga, Vedānta, Mīmāṃsā, Nyāya, Vaiśeṣika) refined their vocabulary over centuries; the same Sanskrit term can carry different shades in different schools.
Kinnara sits within a cluster of related concepts — gandharva, kubera, yaksha. Reading these together gives you the actual texture of the idea, rather than treating it as an isolated definition. Each Sanskrit term in this glossary is cross-linked to the others it presupposes.
Where useful we cite the primary scriptural source — the Upaniṣad, sūtra, or smṛti passage where the term is given its classical sense — alongside trusted modern dictionaries (Monier-Williams, V.S. Apte, Sanskrit Heritage). For practical questions about usage in pūjā or daily life, ask a paṇḍita in your tradition.
Celestial musician of Indra's court; partner to apsaras. Also: a form of marriage by mutual consent (gandharva-vivaha).
Lord of wealth, ruler of yakshas, dikpala of north. Lives in Alaka. Worshipped during Diwali alongside Lakshmi. Brother of Ravana.
Nature-spirit; treasurer-attendant of Kubera. Generally benevolent, dwelling in forests and around water-bodies. Yakshas and Yakshis are familiar in early Indian sculpture.
Twelve sons of Aditi — solar deities, one per month. Vivaswan, Aryaman, Pusha, Tvashta, Savita, Bhaga, Dhata, Vidhata, Varuna, Mitra, Indra, Vishnu (in some lists). Surya is the chief Aditya.
Fire god; second-most invoked in Rig Veda. Mediator between gods and humans (carries oblations). Dikpala of southeast. Trayi-vidya (three forms): Garhapatya, Ahavaniya, Dakshinagni.
'Filled with food'; form of Parvati/Devi as the giver of food and nourishment. Worshipped at Kashi (Annapurna temple). Annapurna Stotra by Adi Shankara.
Grace; the fifth of Shiva's five acts. The act by which the Lord reveals truth and bestows liberation.
Celestial nymph; Indra's court dancer. Famous: Urvashi, Menaka, Rambha, Tilottama. Often sent to disturb sages' tapasya.
'Half-female-Lord'; the composite form of Shiva-Parvati, half male half female. Symbolizes the inseparability of Purusha and Prakriti, Shiva and Shakti.
Eight forms of Bhairava (fierce Shiva): Asitanga, Ruru, Chanda, Krodha, Unmatta, Kapali, Bhishana, Samhara. Each preside over the eight directions.
Eight forms of Lakshmi: Adi (primordial), Dhana (wealth), Dhanya (grain/food), Gaja (royalty), Santana (offspring), Veera/Dhairya (courage), Vijaya (victory), Aishvarya/Vidya (knowledge).
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