Gāndharva

Introduction

The word Gandharva has been derived from the Sanskrit root gandh, meaning smell or fragrance [1]. Gandharvas are low-ranking male natural deities, appeared in Jain, Hindu, and Buddhist myths. Characteristically, the Gandharvas find their symbolic association with fine and creative arts, specifically music. Socially, Gandharvas find their denotative connection with sexuality and procreation so much so that a marriage consummated without Vedic rituals or a consensual union between two lovers is known as “Gandharva marriage.” [6] In Hinduism, the lexicon “gandharva” has been used in both plural and singular number while semantically they are associated with demigods or types of divine beings [2]. In Vedic literature, these celestial creatures work as a mediator and messenger between the human world and divine source, particularly first keeping the secrets of the divine entities and then revealing them to selected human beings. During Vedic sacrifices in the holy fire, some...