Sakti Pitha's Bhairav Who is he? - Page 2

Bhirava is praised as full form of Shiva by Lord Vishnu. Shiv Puran  says Bhairava has amsa of Shiva and also says Bhairava has full form like Shiva

Bhairava is born from amsa of Mahadeva and also has full form like Shiva.

When Bhairava goes to Narayana for begging alms due to Brahmahatya sin (as part of Shiva's leela), Narayana praises Bhairava as follows:

 
  He is the creator the preserver, besides being the lord of the world. He is the primordial being, the lord and the refuge of all. He is calm and greater than the twenty six principles.

 
  He is the omniscient, lord of the yogis, the sole leader of all the beings, the internal soul of all the living beings and he always bestows everything to everyone. 

 
!  O Laksmi, look, he is the lord whom the conscious people, are engaged in yogic practices, visualise in their hearts, discarding their sleep, stopping their breathing, concentrating their minds. He happens to be the same. You better visualise him with the vision of your knowledge, in your own heart. 

 
  He is the one who is known to the yogis who are well-versed in the Vedic tattvas. He is the one, who being formless, is at times visible in some definite form. The one who is all pervading is arriving here. 

 
  At the mere sight of the lord, the people are never reborn on earth. Such a type of lord Tryambaka who has the crescent as an ornament, is arriving here. 

 
   !  O Laksmi, my eyes resembling a lotus leaf, have become graceful today because I would have an opportunity to have a look with these eyes, Mahesvara, (Maheshwara) the great lord.

  Disgrace to the position of the gods, who have not seen lord Shankara (Siva) so far, who bestows salvation, and who is the remover of all the miseries.

  What is use of becoming a god in the heaven, in case, we people are unable to achieve salvation by looking at Mahadeva.

We  can see Lord Shiva's epithets are used for Bhairava. So, Lord Bhairava is verily Lord Shiva Himself. We can read complete chapter to know about Vishnu's obeisances to Bhairava.

Even Adi Shankara's Kalabhirava ashtakam describes Bhairava as complete Shiva.

As a side note, Tantras like Vijnana Bhirava Tantra  descibe Bhairava as Supreme Lord (with profound philosophy).

Edited by ltelidevara - 6 years ago

Batuk Bhairav. The image of the god lay in the form of Shiva Linga which is situated under a Pipal tree. This temple of the Batuk Bhairav is famous for removing the evil effects of Rahuand Saturn (most harmful grahas on a birth chart).

It is said that performing a puja here removes the evil effects, the Rahu Maha Dasa and Sani Maha Dasa, in your birth charts. Bad position of Rahu and Sani on a birth chart means a lot of pain, trouble, health problems, job problems and other disasters, etc., hence, conducting a puja here is believed to save you from all these problems.
Edited by ltelidevara - 6 years ago

Very Nice and Interesting Informative Thread.
:-)

MARTANDA BHAIRAVA is another manifestation of Lord Siva. He takes various names such as Khandoba, Khandero, Khanderaya, Malhari Maratand or Mailara Linga. Malari Mahatmya, narrated as folk songs, has its origin in these names. Usually the regional deity is worshipped as Martanda Bhairava as Siva form. This worship is said to be popular in Maharshtra and Karnataka but His story provokes pan-Indian interest. Martanda is the patron deity of warriors and farmers. The Khandoba cult, while basically Shaivite, is also linked to Vaishnavite and Jain traditions. Khandoba is also identified with Mallana of Andhra Pradesh and Mailara of Karnataka. Khandoba is a full avatar of Shiva connected with Brahmanicide murder of Brahmins.

As an avatar of Shiva, his weapon is the Trishula. His consorts are Mahalsa, Bhani or Banai or Martanda Bhairavi. Usually his first wife is stated to be Mhalsa and the second to be Banai. His mount is the horse. As a folk-deity, He is the composite of Bhairava, Surya and Kartikeya. He is also depicted as a form of Linga. In murtis, Martanda Bhairava or Khandoba is depicted as having four arms, carrying a Damaru, Trishula, a bowl of turmeric powder and Khadga sword. He is shown seated with one or both his wives and accompanied by dogs.

Bhairava is the fierce form of Siva. Martanda is a name of the Surya, the sun god. So Martanda Bhairava is considered as a combination of Shiva and Surya. Bhairava's earings sparkle like the burning sun suggestive of Martanda and Bhairva combination.

Temples of Surya and Aditya were frequent during the days of Yadavas of Devagiri as suggested by Lilacarita'. They may have been supersedes or absorbed by folk cults. For example in Nandur, Ahmednagar district, where the Aditya temple mentioned in the Lilacarita degenerated into worship of Nimbadaitya, a bhakta of Lord Rama.

A Martandesvara temple dedicated to Siva is known from Kanigiri Taluk in the Nellore district. In the Khandoba cult the worship of Siva and Surya finds various forms of expression. Sunday and Monday, especially Somvati Amavasya, the conjunction of the sun and the moon on a Monday, are important days. It is said that Martanda Bhairava manifested himself on a Sunday. There is a decorative depiction of this manifestation on the doors of Khandoba temple at Jejuri.

Martanda Bhairava was listed as one of the 64 Bhairavas. It may be far-fetched to explain Martanda Bhairava's name solely on the basis of Sanskrit sources. It has been proposed that Martanda consists of a bilingual word derived from K. Mari and Ma.tond both meaning head and face. It is said that Maritona' was later sanskritised as Martanda. 



Edited by ltelidevara - 6 years ago

Very many sculpted representations of Bhairava can be found in South India. They are mainly found in temples dedicated to iva but they also occur in the temples of Subrahmaya and of the Goddess, and of Viu as well. These are cult-images, made of stone or bronze, sculptures decorating the faades of temples or relief work adorning the pillars. Bhairava is generally represented as standing (some rare images show him sitting;  naked, very often accompanied by a dog, his vehicle (vhana). Most of the images depict him with four arms but he can also have six, eight or even ten arms, though rarely. In each of the three states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, a special iconographic type prevailed.

In Tamil Nadu, the images of Bhairava are legion and, for the most part, quite stereotypical. The most common type is a four-armed Bhairava, holding amaru and trident in his right hands, and nga and kapla in his left hands. He stands in a strictly frontal posture, alone or with the dog behind him. He is naked, bare footed, generally adorned with a garland of bells, a belt made of snake(s), with his hair standing up like flames.

In Andhra Pradesh, the most commonly encountered Bhairava has four arms; he holds amaru and sword in the right hands and trident and kapla in the left. He is generally standing, with his weight on one hip, and naked. He is represented as bare footed most of the time. Very rarely is he shown alone; he is accompanied by his dog (who jumps to his left when the god carries the severed head in addition to the kapla in his lower left hand), by ngas or by attendants. A garland of skulls, bells and snakes often adorns him. 

In Karnataka, Bhairava more often than not has four arms, with the trident and sword in the right hands, and amaru and kaplaplus a severed head in his left hands. He is standing with his weight on one hip, often on a beheaded corpse , but can also be represented as dancing  He is generally naked, bare footed or with sandals. Rarely is he shown alone; he is escorted by his dog that licks the blood falling from the severed head his master holds by the hair, and by the emaciated procession of bhtas, pretas and other sinister creatures that make up his followers. He is adorned with bells and snakes; he wears a garland made of skulls or with ornamental pattern; a nga is generally coiled around his thighs.