Bhairava Jayanti

Annual festival on the eighth day of
the dark, or waning, half of the
lunar month of Margashirsha
(November–December), which is celebrated as the birthday of Bhairava.
Bhairava is a wrathful and powerful form
of the god Shiva and is actually the god’s
anger personified. He emerges from
Shiva’s forehead after Shiva has been
insulted by the god Brahma, and
Bhairava’s first act is to cut off the head of
Brahma that has uttered the insult, leaving the god with four heads. Bhairava’s
wrath gives him an aura of danger but
also the power to help his devotees
(bhakta), who worship him to attain
success, remove obstacles, and recover
from disease. On this festival people
worship Bhairava, Shiva, and Shiva’s
wife, Parvati, as well as Bhairava’s animal vehicle, the dog. People are encouraged to worship through the night and to
pass this time by telling mythic stories of
Bhairava, Shiva, and Parvati.