Dharaṇendra


Dharaṇendra is the Yaksha or śāsana devatā of Parshvanatha, the twenty-third Tirthankara in Jainism. He enjoys an independent religious life and is very popular amongst Jains. According to the Digambara Jain tradition, when Pārśvanātha was a prince, he saved two snakes that had been trapped in a log in the ritual fire of a sorcerer named Kamaṭha. Later, these snakes were reborn as Dharaṇendra, the lord of the underworld Nāgaloka, and Padmavati. They then sheltered ascetic Pārśvanātha when he was harassed by Meghalin.
Whereas, the Śvetāmbara tradition does not list Padmāvatī among the queens of Dharaṇendra.
Western Ganga literature states that Nāga-rāja Dharaṇendra was worshipped for acquiring sons.