Kalabhairava Ashtakam

Kalabhairava Ashtakam is Adi Shankaracharya's hymn of eight verses to Kalabhairava, the fierce form of Shiva who guards the city of Kashi. Every verse ends on the same line, Kashikapuradhinatha Kalabhairavam bhaje, I worship Kalabhairava, lord of the city of Kashi. The first verse sets the scene: his lotus feet are served by Indra, a serpent is his sacred thread, the moon sits on his head, Narada and the yogis bow to him, and he is digambara, clothed only by the directions. Later verses fill in the frightening detail. He holds the trident, axe, noose and staff, his body is dark, his waist rings with little golden bells, his fangs are terrible, he wears a garland of skulls, and his laughter is said to crack open the cosmic egg of Brahma.

Significance

Kala means both time and death, and Kalabhairava is the master of both. The ashtakam calls him the one who breaks the pride of death (Mrityudarpanashana), who frees beings from the noose of karma, and who protects the bridge of dharma while closing the road of adharma. In Kashi he is the kotwal, the city's magistrate, who weighs the merit and sin of everyone who lives there, and pilgrims visit his temple to ask leave before and after their stay. The closing verse states the hymn's own promise: those who read it gain knowledge and liberation, see their merit grow, are freed of grief, delusion, greed, want and anger, and reach the feet of Kalabhairava. In Karnataka he is widely worshipped as Kalabhairaveshwara, the guardian deity of Adichunchanagiri.

How and when to chant

The great day is Kalabhairava Ashtami, the dark-half eighth of Kartika or Margashira depending on the calendar followed, but every Krishna paksha ashtami is sacred to him, as are Sundays and Tuesdays. Recite the eight verses and the closing verse after lighting a lamp of sesame oil or mustard oil, with a naivedya of jaggery, curd rice or vadas. Because the dog is his vehicle, many devotees feed a stray dog afterwards. People reciting it for courage, for protection while travelling, or for release from a long run of bad luck often keep it up every evening for a set number of days.