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गन्धर्व m. m. a गन्धर्व [though in later times the गन्धर्वs are regarded as a class, yet in [RV.] rarely more than one is mentioned; he is designated as the heavenly गन्धर्व (
दिव्य॑ ग्°, [RV. ix, 86, 36 and x, 139, 5] ), and is also called विश्वा-वसु ([RV. x, 85, 21 and 22; 139, 4 and 5] ) and वायु-केश (in pl. [RV. iii, 38, 6] ); his habitation is the sky, or the region of the air and the heavenly waters ([RV. i, 22, 14; viii, 77, 5; ix, 85, 12; 86, 36; x, 10, 4] ; [AV. ii, 2, 3] ); his especial duty is to guard the heavenly सोम ([RV. ix, 83, 4 and 85, 12] ), which the gods obtain through his intervention ([RV.] ; [AV. vii, 73, 3] ; cf. [RV. i, 22, 14] ); it is obtained for the human race by इन्द्र, who conquers the गन्धर्व and takes it by force ([RV. viii, 1, 11 and 77, 5] ); the heavenly गन्धर्व is supposed to be a good physician, because the सोम is considered as the best medicine; possibly, however, the word सोम originally denoted not the beverage so called, but the moon, and the heavenly गन्धर्व may have been the genius or tutelary deity of the moon; in one passage ([RV. ix, 86, 36] ) the heavenly गन्धर्व and the सोम are identified; he is also regarded as one of the genii who regulate the course of the Sun's horses (i, 163, 2; x, 177, 2; cf. 135, 5); he knows and makes known the secrets of heaven and divine truths generally (x, 139, 5 and 6; [AV. ii, 1, 2; xx, 128, 3] ; [VS. xi, 1; xxxii, 9] ); he is the parent of the first pair of human beings, यम and यमी ([RV. x, 10, 4] ), and has a peculiar mystical power over women and a right to possess them ([RV. x, 85, 21 and 22; 40 and 41] ); for this reason he is invoked in marriage ceremonies ([AV. xiv, 2, 35 and 36] ); ecstatic states of mind and possession by evil spirits are supposed to be derived from the heavenly गन्धर्व (cf. -गृहीत, -ग्रह); the गन्धर्वs as a class have the same characteristic features as the one गन्धर्व; they live in the sky ([RV.] ; [AV.] ; [ŚBr. xiv] ), guard the सोम ([RV. ix, 113, 3] ; [ŚBr. iii] ; [AitBr. i, 27] ), are governed by वरुण (just as the अप्सरसs are governed by सोम), [ŚBr. xiii] ; [ĀśvŚr. x, 7, 3] , know the best medicines ([AV. viii, 7, 23] ; [VS. xii, 98] ), regulate the course of the asterisms ([AV. xiii, 1, 23] ; [BhP. iv, 29, 21] ; hence twenty-seven are mentioned, [VS. ix, 7] ), follow after women and are desirous of intercourse with them ([AV.] ; [ŚBr. iii] ); as soon as a girl becomes marriageable, she belongs to सोम, the गन्धर्वs, and अग्नि ([Gṛhyās. ii, 19 f.] ; [Pañcat.] ; [Suśr.] ); the wives of the गन्धर्वs are the अप्सरसs (cf. गन्धर्वा-प्सर॑स्), and like them the गन्धर्वs are invoked in gambling with dice ([AV. vii, 109, 5] ); they are also feared as evil beings together with the राक्षसs, किमीदिन्s, पिशाचs, &c., amulets being worn as a protection against them ([AV.] ; [Suśr.] ); they are said to have revealed the वेदs to वाच् ([ŚBr. iii] ; cf. [PārGṛ. ii, 12, 2] ), and are called the preceptors of the ऋषिs ([ŚBr. xi] ); पुरूरवस् is called among them (ib.); in epic poetry the गन्धर्वs are the celestial musicians or heavenly singers (cf. [RV. x, 177, 2] ) who form the orchestra at the banquets of the gods, and they belong together with the अप्सरसs to इन्द्र's heaven, sharing also in his battles ([Yājñ. i, 71] ; [MBh.] ; [Hariv.] &c.; cf. [RTL. p.238] ); in the more systematic mythology the गन्धर्वs constitute one of the classes into which the higher creation is divided (i.e. gods, manes, गन्धर्वs, [AV. xi, 5, 2] ; or gods, असुरs, गन्धर्वs, men, [TS. vii, 8, 25, 2] ; cf. [ŚBr. x] ; or gods, men, गन्धर्वs, अप्सरसs, सर्पs, and manes, [AitBr. iii, 31, 5] ; for other enumerations cf. [Nir. iii, 8] ; [Mn. i, 37] [[RTL. p.237] ] &iii, 196; vii, 23; xii, 47; [Nal.] &c.); divine and human गन्धर्वs are distinguished ([TUp. ii, 8] ; the divine or देव-गन्धर्वs are enumerated, [MBh. i, 2550 ff. and 4810 ff.] ); another passage names 11 classes of गन्धर्वs ([TĀr. i, 9, 3] ); the chief or leader of the गन्धर्वs is named चित्र-रथ ([Bhag. x, 26] ); they are called the creatures of प्रजापति ([Mn. i, 37] ) or of ब्रह्मा ([Hariv. 11793] ) or of कश्यप (11850) or of the मुनिs ([MBh. i, 2550] ; [Hariv. 11553] ) or of प्राधा ([MBh. i, 2556] ) or of अरिष्टा ([Hariv. 234] ; [VP. i, 21] ) or of वाच् ([PadmaP.] ); with जैनs the गन्धर्वs constitute one of the eight classes of the व्यन्तरs]
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GANDHARVA I Gandharvas are sons born to the famous Kaśyapaprajāpati of his wife, Ariṣṭhā (Agni Puraṇa, Chapter 19). Both belonged to the race of the Devas.
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N. of the attendant of the 17th अर्हत् of the present अवसर्पिणी, [L.]
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a singer, [VarBṛS. lxxxvii, 33] ; [BhP. i, 11, 21]
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