Yali (mythology)

Yali (IAST: Yāḷi),[1] (Tamil: யாழி) also called Vyāla (Sanskrit: व्याल),[2] is a Hindu mythological creature, portrayed with the head and the body of a lion, the trunk and the tusks of an elephant, and sometimes bearing equine features.

In its iconography, the yali has a cat-like graceful body, but the head of a lion with the tusks of an elephant (gaja), and the tail of a serpent.

Sometimes, they have been shown standing on the back of a makara, another mythical creature and considered to be the vahana of Budha (Mercury).

[8] Other common examples are: the lion-headed (simha-vyala), horse- (ashva-vyala), human- (nir-vyala) and the dog-headed (shvana-vyala) ones.

[10] Descriptions of the yali are featured in ancient Tamil literature, dating back to the Sangam era.