Kuber God of Wealth

Kuber on Lotus Statue

Kuber is the god of wealth and the gods’ treasurer. His white body is dwarfish. He has three legs and eight teeth. He has two to four hands and may carry in his hands a mace, a purse containing money, a vase, a fruit and a bowl and two hands in the boon giving and protective modes. If shown as having two hands he will carry a bowl and a money-bag.

His body is covered with jewels and other ornaments. For moving about he has a chariot called Pushpak. Kuber is not an important deity and his images are very rarely seen, though he is frequently referred to in the epics. He is also called the god of the Yakshas (savage beings). His brother Ravana, by practicing austerities, obtained from Shiva the boon of invincibility and so was able to defeat Kuber and to seize and retain Lanka and the chariot, Pushpak. As Lanka could not be restored to Kuber, Viswakarma, the architect god, built him a palace on Mount Kailash. He also has a beautiful garden called Chaitrarath on Mount Mandara. Kuber’s domains are all in the high Himalayas, partly because he is the guardian of the North, but also because the mountains are the repository of mineral wealth. Kuber watches over the earth’s storehouse of gold, silver, jewels, pearls and the nine nidhis, special treasures.