# Manimekhala

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Manimekhala
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Manimekhala.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manimekhala
> Source revision: 1355004313
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

"Mekhala" redirects here. For Buddhist *mahasiddha*, see [Mekhala and Kanakhala](/source/Mekhala_and_Kanakhala).

For other uses, see [Manimekalai (disambiguation)](/source/Manimekalai_(disambiguation)).

**Manimekhala** (Pali: *Maṇīmekhalā*) is a goddess in Buddhist mythology. She is regarded as a guardian of the seas, namely the [Indian Ocean](/source/Indian_Ocean) and the [South China Sea](/source/South_China_Sea) as part of the mythology of [Southeast Asia](/source/Southeast_Asia). She was placed by Cātummahārājika to protect virtuous beings from shipwreck.[1] She appears in several Buddhist stories including the [Mahanipata Jataka](/source/Mahanipata_Jataka) (Mahajanaka [Jataka](/source/Jataka)), in which she rescues Prince Mahajanaka from a shipwreck.[2]

## Etymology

In [Pali](/source/Pali), **maṇīmekhalā** refers to a girdle or belt of jewels. In Southeast Asia, she is known by various indigenized appellations, including as **Mani Maykhala** (*မဏိမေခလာ*) in [Burmese](/source/Burmese_language), as **Moni Mekhala** (*មណីមេខលា*) or **Neang Mekhala** (*នាងមេខលា*) in [Khmer](/source/Khmer_language); as **Mani Mekkhala** (มณีเมขลา) in [Thai](/source/Thai_language).

## In Mainland Southeast Asia

Archaeological evidence of Manimekhala in the form of reliefs has been found in Zothoke, [Myanmar](/source/Myanmar) (near [Bilin](/source/Bilin,_Mon_State)), dating to the first millennium AD.[3]

Manimekhala is seen in [wat](/source/Wat) paintings across [Mainland Southeast Asia](/source/Mainland_Southeast_Asia) depicting scenes from the [Mahajanaka](/source/Mahajanaka).[2] In Thailand and Cambodia, she is considered a goddess of lightning and the seas.

### Manimekhala and Ramasura

The story of Manimekhala and Ramasura is mentioned many times in the classical literature of Cambodia and Thailand. It depicts Manimekhala along with Ramasura (usually considered a depiction of [Parashurama](/source/Parashurama)) and [Arjuna](/source/Arjuna). According to legend, the phenomena of [lightning](/source/Lightning) and [thunder](/source/Thunder) is produced from the flashing of Manimekhala's crystal ball and the sound of Ramasura's axe as he pursues her through the skies.[4][5]

## In Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka, she is considered to be the sea goddess. In the [Buddhist](/source/Buddhists) [Tamil](/source/Tamil_language) epic poem, the [Manimekalai](/source/Manimekalai), she puts the eponymous heroine to sleep and takes her to the island Maṇipallavam ([Nainatheevu](/source/Nainatheevu)). In the mythic cycle of the god Devol, when he approaches Sri Lanka and his ship founders, it is Manimekhalai, on the instructions of the god [Śakra](/source/%C5%9Aakra_(Buddhism)), who conjures up a stone boat to save him.

## Dance

In the classical dance traditions of Thailand and Cambodia, sacred dramatic dances depict the story of Manimekhala and Ramasura.

### Cambodia

*[Robam Moni Mekhala](/source/Robam_Moni_Mekhala)* (Khmer: *របាំមណីមេខលា*, also known as *Robam Mekhala-Reamesor*) is a [Khmer classical dance](/source/Khmer_classical_dance) that portrays the story of Moni Mekhala and Reamso. It is part of the *buong suong* dance suite that is among the most sacred of Khmer classical dances, serving a ceremonial purpose to invoke rain upon the land.[6]

### Thailand

In Thailand, the Mekkhala–Ramasun dance was performed as a *boek rong* ('prelude dance') introduction before main performances of *[lakhon nai](/source/Lakhon_nai)* or *[khon](/source/Khon)* dances.[7][8]

## In modern usage

- The popular Burmese pop singer [Maykhala](/source/Maykhala) derives her [stage name](/source/Stage_name) from Manimekhala.
- Her name was contributed by Thailand for tropical cyclone names occurring as [Tropical Storm Mekkhala](/source/Tropical_Storm_Mekkhala_(disambiguation)) in 2002, 2008, 2015, and 2020. Also, one award given to the [television industry in Thailand](/source/Television_in_Thailand) since 1980 is called the Mekkhala Award.

## See also

- *[Manimekalai](/source/Manimekalai)*, a Tamil epic from India, about the titular character who becomes a Buddhist nun
- *[Jataka tales](/source/Jataka_tales)*, from *[Khuddaka Nikāya](/source/Khuddaka_Nik%C4%81ya)*
- *[Mahanipata Jataka](/source/Mahanipata_Jataka)*
- *[Robam Moni Mekhala](/source/Robam_Moni_Mekhala)*
- [Mazu](/source/Mazu), Chinese Goddess of Sea
- [Nyai Roro Kidul](/source/Nyai_Roro_Kidul), Queen of Southern Sea worshipped by Javanese and Sundanese in Indonesia

## References

1. G.P. Malalasekera. Dictionary of Pali Proper Names: Pali-English. Asian Educational Services, 2003

1. [Anne Elizabeth Monius](/source/Anne_E._Monius). Imagining a place for Buddhism: literary culture and religious community in Tamil-speaking South India. Oxford University Press US, 2001, pages 111-112

1. MOORE, ELIZABETH & WIN, SAN (2007). "The Gold Coast: Suvannabhumi? Lower Myanmar Walled Sites of the First Millennium A.D.". *Asian Perspectives*. **46** (1): 202–232. [ISSN 0066-8435](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0066-8435). [JSTOR 42928710](https://www.jstor.org/stable/42928710)

1. Candelario, Rosemary (2014-04-14). ["Moni Mekhala and Ream Eyso Edited by Prumsodun Ok (review)"](https://muse.jhu.edu/article/542390). *Asian Theatre Journal*. **31** (1): 324–326. [doi:10.1353/atj.2014.0027](https://doi.org/10.1353/atj.2014.0027). [ISSN 1527-2109](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1527-2109). [S2CID 160156947](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:160156947)

1. ["Cambodian Folktales | Southeast Asia Program"](https://seap.einaudi.cornell.edu/cambodian-folktales). *seap.einaudi.cornell.edu*. Retrieved 2019-11-22.

1. Cravath, Paul. Asian Theatre Journal, Vol. 3, No. 2 (Autumn, 1986), pp. 179-203 (The Ritual Origins of the Classical Dance Drama of Cambodia) University of Hawai'i Press

1. ["เรียนรู้เรื่องรำไทย ระบำชุด เมขลารามสูร"](http://www.natasinsamphan.com/%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%82%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B9%E0%B8%A3.html) (in Thai). *natasinsamphan.com*. Retrieved 15 March 2020.

1. Prasert Sontipong (2002). *กระบวนท่ารำของรามสูรในการแสดงเบิกโรงละครใน* [Ramasura dance patterns in lakon nai dance prelude] (master's thesis). Chulalongkorn University. ISBN 974-17-2465-9.

## External links

- [The Goddess and the Ogre - A Cambodian Legend](http://www.weingartdesign.com/TMaS/Stories/tmas3-ogreandgoddess.html)

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Manimekhala](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manimekhala) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manimekhala?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.