A (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

) or (

Pāli Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a classical Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Therav� ...

) is one of a group of dwarfish, misshapen spirits among the lesser deities of

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

mythology. was a dialectal form for "gourd", so they may get their name from being thought to resemble gourds in some way, e.g. in having big stomachs. But can also be interpreted as "pot-egg"; since "egg" () was a common euphemism for "testicle", the were imagined having testicles "as big as pots". The terms and are sometimes used for the same person; in these cases is the more general term, including a variety of lower deities. The are classed among the Cāturmahārājika deities, and are subject to the Great King Virūḍhaka, Guardian of the South. One of their chiefs is called Kumbhīra. According to the '' Dà zhìdù lùn'', greedy officers are reborn as kumbhāṇḍhas.

References

Buddhist deities Buddhist legendary creatures Legendary creatures in Hindu mythology {{Japan-reli-stub