Indian legendary creatures

Pishachas (, '''', ) are flesh-eating demons in Indian religions, appearing in Hindu and Buddhist religion. A pishacha is a malevolent being that has often been referred to as the very manifestation of evil.

thumb|Pillar with Naga Mucalinda protecting the throne of the Buddha. Railing pillar from Jagannath Tekri, [[Pauni (Bhandara District). 2nd-1st century BCE. National Museum of India.]] alt=|thumb|12th century Khmer bronze Naga-enthroned Buddha from Banteay Chhmar, Cambodia. [[Cleveland Museum of Art.]] Mucilinda (; Pali: Mucalinda) is a nāga who protected Śākyamuni Buddha from the elements after his enlightenment.

alt=|thumb|King Vikramaditya and a vetala in the Vetala Panchavimshati. A vetala () is a class of beings in Hindu mythology. They are usually defined as a knowledgeable (fortune telling) paranormal entity said to be dwelling at charnel grounds. Reanimated corpses are used as vehicles by these spirits for movement. A vetala may possess and leave a dead body at will.

The Karkadann (Arabic كركدن karkadann or karkaddan from Kargadan, Persian: كرگدن) is a mythical creature said to have lived on the grassy plains of India and Iran.

Indian urban legend

mythical beings

thumb|Within Hindu belief, churels may become dakinis and serve the goddess [[Kali.]] The Churel,, alternatively spelled Chudail, Churail, Chudel, Churreyl, or Churrail, also known as Petni and Shakchunni, is a mythical or legendary creature resembling a woman, which may be a demonical revenant said to occur in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Caribbean, particularly popular in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Suriname. The churel is typically described as "the ghost of an unpurified living thing", but because she is often said to latch on to trees, she i

Gandabherunda () is a form of Vishnu in Hindu mythology. According to legend, Narasimha, an avatar of Vishnu, assumes this form of a double-headed eagle to subdue Sharabha, a form of Shiva. Gandabherunda is worshipped along with his consort Narasimhi, a fierce form of Lakshmi, also revered as Simhamukhi Lakshmi.

thumb|Manohara as depicted in Phap Nang Ngam Nai Wannakhadi ("Illustrations of Ladies in Literature"), an illustrated book by Thai people|Thai artist [[Hem Vejakorn.]] Manohara is the kinnari (half-woman, half-bird) heroine of one of the Jataka tales. Typically referred to as Manohara and Prince Sudhana, the legend appears in the Divyavadana and is documented by stone reliefs at Borobodur. Versions of the story are reported in the literature of Southeast Asian countries, and similar stories about a bird maiden and a mortal man can be found in East Asia.

popular topic for ghost stories in Central and South Asia

the influence of the supernatural in culture

folk legend from Karnataka, India

In Hindu and Jain traditions, the muṇḍana ceremony marks a boy's entry into formal education, involving the tying of a sacred thread around the torso and a girdle made of munja grass around the waist, typically at the age of seven. He is known as Munjya when he puts on the munja grass girdle.

character on Indian mythology