Adbhut

In Adbhut: Marvellous
Creatures of Indian Myth and Folklore, Meena Arora Nayak presents a selection
of fifty-five magical and monstrous creatures from the myths and folklore of
India’s various cultures. Divided into five sections, this book portrays familiar
and unfamiliar beings that fly across stormy skies, swim in deep seas, burrow
through the earth, tread softly on land, and live between these realms,
sometimes even breathing fire.

Adbhut hides within its pages creatures that are mysterious, terrible, and
terrifying, yet fascinating and irresistible. These fantastical beings
include the Manipuri python guardian god, Pakhangpa; Garuda, the king of
birds; the immortal Kurma, the tortoise; Mahisa, the Buffalo King; Leviathan,
the gigantic sea monster; Shamir, the Judaic stone-cutting worm; the
Zoroastrian cosmic dragon, Azhi Dahaka; Nachash, the crafty serpent in the
Garden of Eden; the shining Islamic al-Buraq; and the Harappan chimera whose
origins remain a mystery.