Yakshas

is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It was serialized in Shogakukan's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Sunday from November 1996 to June 2008, with its chapters collected in 56 volumes. The series follows Kagome Higurashi, a fifteen-year-old middle school girl from modern-day Tokyo who is transported to the Sengoku period after falling into a well in her family shrine, where she meets the half-dog demon, half-human Inuyasha. After the sacred Shikon Jewel re-emerges from deep inside Kagome's body, she inadvertently shatters it into dozens of fragments that scatte

Kubera (, ) also known as Kuvera, Kuber and Kuberan, is the god of wealth, and the god-king of the semi-divine yakshas in Hinduism. He is regarded as the regent of the north (Dikpala), and a protector of the world (Lokapala). His many epithets extol him as the overlord of numerous semi-divine species, and the owner of the treasures of the world. Kubera is often depicted with a plump body, adorned with jewels, and carrying a money-pot and a club.

The Yakshas (, , ) are a broad class of nature spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Buddhist texts, as well as ancient and medieval era temples of South Asia and Southeast Asia as guardian deities. The feminine form of the word is or Yakshini (, ; ).

' (Sanskrit; Pali: Vajirapāṇi,' 'holder of the thunderbolt', lit. meaning, "Vajra in [his] hand") is one of the earliest-appearing bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the protector and guide of Gautama Buddha and rose to symbolize the Buddha's power.

' (Sanskrit: वैश्रवण) or ' (Pali; , , ) is one of the Four Heavenly Kings, and is considered an important figure in Buddhism. He is the god of warfare and usually portrayed as a warrior-king. Vaiśravana is based on Kubera, the Hindu deity of wealth.

thumb|The Bhutesvara Yakshis, [[Mathura, 2nd century CE.]]

In the Hindu epic Ramayana, Maricha, or Mareecha (Sanskrit: मारीच, IAST: ), is a rakshasha, who was killed by Rama, the hero of the epic and an avatar of Vishnu. He is mentioned as an ally of Ravana, the antagonist of the epic. His most notable exploit is his role in the kidnapping of Sita, Rama's wife.

Hārītī (Sanskrit), also known as , , is a female rākṣasī or yakṣinī (nature spirit) in Buddhism. She appears as a character in all Buddhist traditions and she is revered as a fierce Dharma Protector and a fertility goddess in Mahayana Buddhism. Hārītī appears in various Mahayana sutras, including in the Lotus Sutra, where she vows to protect those who uphold the sutra. She is also mentioned as a protector in the Candragarbhasūtra.

Ivory statuette from Pompeii resembling an Indian fertility goddess

Tāṭakā is a minor yakṣī antagonist in the Rāmāyaṇa. Along with her son, Mārīca, Tāṭakā would harass and attack sages performing yajñas in the forest. They were ultimately slain by Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa on behest of their teacher, Viśvāmitra.

fictional character from Inuyasha

very early Indian stone statue

Nalakuvara, also known as Nalakubara (), appears in Hindu and Buddhist mythology as the brother of Manigriva (also known as Manibhadra), the son of the yaksha king Kubera (also known as Vaishravana), and husband of Rambha and Ratnamala. Nalakuvara often appears as a sexual trickster figure in Hindu and Buddhist literature.

Maṇibhadra (Sanskrit: ) is one of the major yakshas. He was a popular deity in ancient India.

thumb|right|200px|Pañcika and Hariti

archaeological artefact in Indian museum

yaksha of Bhaisajyaguru

thumb|Goddess Isakki as portrayed on the gate of a small shrine near Shenkottai, Tamil Nadu Isakki (Tamil: இசக்கி), also called Isakki Amman, Esakki, Esakki Amman is a folk Hindu goddess. The term Isakki derived from the Sanskrit yakshi, through the Prakrit yakki. Her veneration remains popular among certain Hindu communities in the southern Indian districts of Tamil Nadu, specifically the Arulmigu Isakki Amman Temple in Kulasekaranputhoor Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli, and Salem districts. She is generally considered to be one of the 'village deities' (kaval deivam). Village deities like her are b