Virabhadra
Virabhadra or Veerabhadra ( Kannada : ವೀರಭದ್ರ; Tamil : வீரபத்திரர்; German about "Heldenglanz") is a terrifying form of the Hindu god Shiva that is particularly popular in southern India . He is worshiped by many Indians in the south of the country as an independent deity or as the spiritual son of Shiva.
myth
Shiva created Virabhadra with the energy of his third eye after his first wife Sati burned herself to restore the honor of her husband, who had been excluded from a sacrificial ceremony by her father Daksha . Shiva was so furious about the incident that he created a creature that he directed to destroy Daksha's victim with a bow and arrow and to behead them with the sword.
In another version, the Rishi ask Shiva for forgiveness; then the god is no longer angry, restores the sacrifice and brings his father-in-law back to life.
Virabhadra is considered a powerful warrior because he was able to repel an attack by Vishnu or Garuda ; Brahma acted as the charioteer of Virabhadra during this battle, which was accompanied by terrible roars, earthquakes, floods, storms and landslides. Since the dispute remained undecided for a long time, Vishnu decided to use his most terrible weapon, the throwing disc ( chakra ), which was swallowed by Virabhadra.
presentation
Medieval depictions of Virabhadra are extremely rare. The south Indian Vijayanagar rulers chose him as their patron god in the 14th century; as a result, the representations in this region become more frequent: Virabhadra is usually represented as a larger than life demon ( asura ), gazing at arms , with the attributes of Shiva ( trishula , damaru etc.) and Vishnu ( gada ); he wears a skull garland around his neck. A portrait of Virabhadra can also be seen in many Shiva temples in South India; in the north of India it hardly appears (see also Bhairava ).
literature
- Anneliese and Peter Keilhauer: The Imagery of Hinduism. The Indian world of gods and their symbolism. DuMont, Cologne 1983, ISBN 3-7701-1347-0 , pp. 183ff.
- Veronica Ions: Indian Mythology. Hamlyn, London 1988, ISBN 0-600-34285-9 , p. 45.
