Popular by the names of “Kashi ke Kotwal/ Dandaadhikari”, the temple of Kaal Bhairav is situated 2 km north of Kashi Vishwanath temple in the Vishveshwarganj area.
Mythologically, it is believed that once there was a fight of supremacy between Brahma and Vishnu (2 supreme gods of Hinduism). The fight got so intense that Lord Shiva had to intervene and to sort a way out; he came up with an idea. He turned himself into an infinite beam of light and said, the one who will find the end of this beam of light will be the supreme god. Both Brahma and Vishnu agreed. Brahma turned into a swan and ascended towards heaven while Vishnu turned into a wild boar and descended underneath the earth. Many years passed, but neither of them could find the ends. The exhausted Vishnu returned, accepting his defeat he surrendering himself to Lord Shiva’s infinite supremacy. But, Brahma returned and lied to Shiva that he found the end. Lord Shiva couldn’t tolerate this lie and arrogance of Lord Brahma and got tremendously angry. This anger activated the third eye of Shiva from which a ferocious looking manifestation was formed called “Kaal Bhairav”. Brahma stood dumbstruck seeing the horrendous form of Shiva and in a blink of an eye, Kaal Bhairav chopped the fifth head of Brahma using the nails of his left hand’s thumb. (Even gods aren’t excused for their lies and arrogance!). But, this led to Kaal Bhairav committing murder and consequently, Kaal Bhairav got caught with the sin of ‘Brahmahatya’ (Killing of a man). He was cursed to wander around endlessly with the fifth head of Brahma stuck to his hand. He turned ugly, his body turned all black and he kept on wandering the 3 worlds for many coming years to find a cure. Ultimately, Lord Shiva advised Kaal Bhairav to go to Kashi, where he can get liberated off this curse. As Kaal Bhairav entered Kashi and took a dip in Ganga, he got rid of the skull he was carrying for so many years and the curse was nullified. Thus, this place is named as ‘Kapal Mochan'(where one got rid of the skull!) and is very sacred among the Hindu pilgrims.
Then Kaal Bhairav worshipped Lord Shiva and an impressed Shiva appointed him as the ‘Inspector of the city’ (Kashi ke Kotwal). He instructed Bhairav to check the eligibility criteria for Salvation and grant them with a certificate! Thus he was stationed here and the temple came into being.
It is believed, Kaal Bhairav appeared in Varanasi on Eighth (Ashtami Tithi) day of Margh Shirsh month on Krishna Paksha (new moon fortnight). So this day every year is celebrated as the birthday of Kaal Bhairav (Bhairavasthami). Else, every week Sunday and Tuesday are considered to be the most auspicious days to visit the temple when devotees from all across India throng in huge numbers. Reaching Kaal Bhairav temple is very easy, the nearest landmark is the GPO building, Vishveshwarganj. The alleyway which leads to the temple is mesmerizingly colored on both sides by flower shops and souvenirs shops.
The devotees offer Black sesame, mustard oil, Aparajita flowers, coconuts and Liquors to Kaal Bhairava. His vehicle or vahana is a Black dog so you will find many dogs in and around the temple. There is no record of the actual age of this temple but it is said that the present structure was built in the 17th century by the king of Gwalior estate after multiple rounds of invasions. The inner sanctum of the temple houses a silver faced idol of Kaal Bhairava donning a big moustache and rest of the body is covered with a red cloth and garlands. Kaal Bhairava is one of the most revered deity for the tantriks/Black magicians, hence this place is also a center for tantrik/occult practices. Often you will see, devotees are getting beaten with a bunch of Peacock feathers to remove the effects of the evil eye. Death in Varanasi is a very revered thing and it is believed only the luckiest of all get a chance to die in Varanasi.
DirectionKaal Bhairav being ‘Inspector of Varanasi’ ensures that only the most eligible ones are allowed to stay and die. If you thought dying in Varanasi is easy, come and check if you meet all the eligibility criteria!
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