Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v2.c38.376

v2.c38.376

8. Nāgā.—A class of beings classed with Garuḷas and Supaṇṇas and playing a prominent part in Buddhist folk-lore. They are gifted with miraculous powers and great strength. Generally speaking, they are confused with snakes, chiefly the hooded Cobra, and their bodies are described as being those of snakes, though they can assume human form at will. They are broadly divided into two classes: those that live on land (thalaja) and those that live on water (jalaja). The Jalaja-nāgā live in rivers as well as in the sea, while the Thalaja-nāgā are regarded as living beneath the surface of the earth. Several Nāga dwellings are mentioned in the books: e.g., Mañjerika-bhavana under Sineru, Daddara-bhavana at the foot of Mount Daddara in the Himālaya, the Dhataraṭṭha-nāgā under the river Yamunā, the Nābhāsā Nāgā in Lake Nabhasa, and also the Nāgas of Vesāli, Tacchaka, and Payāga (D. ii. 258). The Vinaya (ii. 109) contains a list of four royal families of Nāgas (Ahirājakulāni): Virūpakkhā, Erāpathā, Chabyāputtā and Kaṇhagotamakā. Two other Nāga tribes are generally mentioned together: the Kambalas and the Assataras. It is said (SA. iii. 120) that all Nāgas have their young in the Himālaya.