Manibhadra

Manibhadra
Yaksha Manibhadra, from Parkham, c. 3rd-2nd century BCE, Government Museum, Mathura

Manibhadra is one of the major yakshas. He was a popular deity in ancient India.

Several well known images of yaksha Manibhadra have been found. The two oldest known image are:

Both of them are monumental larger than life sculptures, often dated to Maurya or Shunga period. The Parkham Yaksha was used an inspiration by Ram Kinker Baij to carve the Yaksha image that now stands in front of the Reserve Bank of India in Delhi.

Manibhadra was often shown with a bag of money in his hand.

Manibhadra is an avatar of Shiva which he called when he was angry and summoned for warfare. Manibhadra decimated the army of Jalandhara along with Virabhadra, another avatar of Shiva. In the Mahabharata Manibhadra is mentioned along with Kubera as a chief of the yakshas. Arjuna had worshipped him. In the Ramayana, Manibhadra is mentioned as fighting Ravana when he had attacked the domain of Vaishravana at Mount Kailash. It is possible that the avatar of Shiva and the chief of the yakshas may be the same Manibhadra but there is no confirmation.

In Samyukta Nikaya, Manibhadra is said to reside in the Manimala chaitya in Magadha. Yaksha Manibhadra is invoked in The Exalted Manibhadra’s Dhārani.

In Sūryaprajñapti, a Manibhadra chairya in Mithila is mentioned. Yakshas are referred to in the Harivamsa Purana (783 A.D.) of Jinasena made the beginning of this concept. Among them, Manibhadra and Purnabadra yakshas and Bahuputrika yakshini have been the most popular. Manibhadra and Purnabadra yakshas are mentioned a chief of yakshas, Manibhadra of Northern ones and Purnabadra of Southern ones.