Kaala Bhairava - The Lord of the March of Time
[In the modern era, it was Sathguru Venkataraman who first revealed Sri Kaala Bhairava's Lordship of time to the world at large through numerous articles in the Ashram monthly magazine. Till then, the word Kaala in Kala Bhairava was taken to mean black and Kala Bhairava was referred to as the Black Bhairava or the Terrible One. But Sathguru Venkataraman pointed out that Kaala Bhairava actually was a shortened form of Kaala Shakti Bhairava - the Lord who controls the Shakti of Kaala - the Power of Time. Thus He is the Lord of the March of Time or Kala Chakra Bhairava, said the Sathguru, since the shakti of Time that is most obvious to us is its inexorable march. The short piece you are reading here was first made available on this website on January 3, 2002 as a brief introduction to Lord Sri Kala Bhairav and effective time management through His divine grace, as communicated to us by Sathguru Venkataraman. For more details, refer to our monthly magazine.]
Lord Kaala Bhairava is that manifestation of Lord Siva who oversees the march of time.
The inexorable march of time is inexorable only because Lord Kala Bhairava makes it so.
As the saying goes, time lost is lost forever. There's nothing more precious
than time.
So intelligent humans should use every moment effectively on the spiritual path.
And those want to do this have the divine help of Lord Kaala Bhairava if they request it with sincerity.
Those who tend to fritter away their time on many a trivial pursuit should pray sincerely to
Lord Kaala Bhairava if they want to improve their time management skills and if they want to
make sure that they use their time intelligently.
Lord Kala Bhairava is also known as Kshetrapalaka, the guardian of the temple.
In honor of this, keys to the temple are ceremonially submitted to Lord Kaala Bhairava at temple closing time
and are received from him at opening time.
Lord Kaala Bhairava is also the guardian of travellers. The Siddhas advise us that
before embarking on a journey, especially
one that involves travel during the night, we should make a garland of cashew nuts
and decorate Lord Kala Bhairava with it. We should light jothi lamps in His honor and
request His protection during our travel.
The vahana (vehicle) of Lord Kaala Bhairava is the dog.
Feeding and taking care of dogs is another way of
showing our devotion to Lord Kaala Bhairava.
Kala Bhairava Ashtami, which occurs in December/January is an
important day for worshipping the Lord.
There's a shrine for Lord Kaala Bhairava in most Siva temples.
The Bhairava shrine in the Arunachala temple is very special.
The Kaala Bhairava temple in Kasi (Benares) is a must see
for Bhairava devotees.
The Kala Bhairava Ashtakam hymn venerates
the Lord and is a staple of Bhairava devotees.
May Lord Kaala Bhairava help us use our time effectively on
the spiritual path.
Kaala Bhairava Gayatri Mantra
Here is a Gaytari mantra of Lord Sri Kaala Bhairava given to us by Sathguru Venkataraman
and published in 2003 in our Ashram magazine
that you can use in your daily worship:
Om Kaalakaalaaya vidhmahey
Kaalaatheethaaya dheemahi
Thanno Kaala Bhairava Prachodhayaath.
- Kala Bhairava Gayatri Mantra
given by Sathguru Venkataraman
Source: Sri Agasthia Vijayam 2003 back issues
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Chant this Gayatri mantra 108 times at sunrise and request Lord Kala Bhairava to help you use your time effectively throughout the day.
Refer to our monthly magazine for more Bhairava mantras.
Ashta (Eight) Bhairavas and more
The Bhairava manifestations are many.
Click here for the eight Bhairava Lords who are avatars of Sri Kala Bhairava and who performed Arunachala Girivalam in 2002:
Many More Bhairavas
There are many more Bhairava revelations of Sathguru Venkataraman that have been feautured in Sri Agasthia Vijayam, the monthly magazine of the Agasthiar Ashram, including:
- Sundara Bhairava
- Karumutthu Bhairava
- Idi Kapaalam Thaangi Saragapaala Maalaa Bhairava
- Vidrumaakarshana Bhairava
- and more.
Bhairava Divine Forms
Here are two of the many Bhairava divine forms featured in Sri Agasthia Vijayam, the Ashram monthly magazine that you can use in your worship.
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