Kubera, a Yaksha (a category of demigods) is very popular in India and other Asian countries.
- He is the guardian of one of the eight cardinal directions - North. He is invoked for protection in the north before all rituals.
- He is associated with Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth, and is said to be one of her attendants, who holds the power to bring wealth and fortune.
- His forte is “unexplained, sudden” wealth and luck - like lotteries, inheritance, finding treasure, etc. In fact, he is specifically invoked for the purpose of finding hidden treasures.
- He is also a confidant and devotee of Shiva and is said to bless devotees of Shiva with wealth.
- The myths talk of Kubera possessing Pushpaka Vimana, a flying vehicle that expands and contracts to fit as many people as need be, and also, when in this vehicle, there is no death or decay (hmmmm!)
- In the school of Goddess-centric Tantra, Kubera is one of the 12 main teachers and taught his own school of Goddess-centric Tantra, which is lost today (though the mantra as revealed by the Goddess to Kubera is preserved, the lineage is lost).
Kubera was certainly a Vedic deity, who was also adopted by the Buddhists as Jambhala, a Bodhisattva who grants wealth and prosperity.
