Nakoda Bhairava. Nakoda is a place in Rajasthan and here you can find a much revered deity – Bhairava. Known always as Nakoda Bhairava. It is a tradition amongst jains to attach regional prefixes before the names of certain deities. For example, Shankheshwara Parshwanath is a form of Parshwanath – the 23rd Jain tirthankar of this age, Parshwanath & Shankheshwara, is the place of a very prominent idol of this deity. So where ever that idol is consecrated then the deity is called Shankheshwara Parshwanath.
Coming back to the topic, Yes, Nakoda Bhairava is a jain deity. The idol is usually of a small, sturdy man with a captivating face and a prominent mustache. Often holding a trident, damru and some other items in his many hands. You must be surprised because an idol of Bhairava with trident and damru – but of course it is of Shiva, isn’t it? Calling it Nakoda Bhairava is why people may think it is a different deity. But Nakoda only signifies the original region of the deity.
Shiva is one of the main deities of Hinduism and Jainism is an outcrop from Hindiusm, yet the trinity – Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma find no place in the Jain tradition as far as I have known. So when I heard my family discussing visiting Nakoda Bhairava – I was struck and starting asking a lot of questions. What is the story behind Nakoda Bhairava? Why is it called Bhairava?
Searching online got me no stories on the same. I asked my old aunty who is steeped in Jainism and knows way too many stories and tales. She said that there was a man called Bhairava. This guy helped Jain religion flourish, built temples blah blah… so the people deified him as a Yaksha. Yakshas are helpers of the main god. So the Jain people see no connection between this Yaksha and Shiva’s form Bhairava.
I have just returned from Kashi – one of the major deities there is Kaal Bhairava. I must admit that I am very intrigued by the fierce forms of Shiva, specifically Kaal Bhairava. So already my head is full of a lot of research on this Hindu god.
Lately I have been noticing Yakshas and Yakshinis in the Jain temples very closely. I have also done some online research, where many reliable sources suggest that many of these Yaksh-as/inis are a part of Hindu history as well. On one of my jain temple visits I actually came across Nakoda Bhairava himself – trident, damru n all. After this I am really convinced that Nakoda Bhairava is Bhairava – a form of Shiva! for whatever reasons Jain people don’t seem to make the connection… it is probably because they have been born and brought up with different stories about this deity….
But my understanding is that there are two lores.
One, is the stories that get passed on from one generation to the next. Sometimes there may be gaps in them. Some stuff may often be made up to explain stuff that has been forgotten. The story of Nakoda Bhairava is not at all common in my family circles. I think it may have been forgotten. Only my aunty knew one story …. what I would like to do is talk to some of the Jain people who strongly follow this deity. Mostly the Kachchi, Marwari Jains. Maybe they have some better stories about this deity which expain the likelihood to Shiva.
Two, the story that is passed on in stone. Via carvings, etchings and so on. The story in stone with trident, damru very clearly suggests Bhairava as a form of Shiva.
The other similarity in Nakoda Bhairava and Kaal Bhairava is that they are both guardian deities. I will be writing another blog about the ‘kotwal’ aspect or guardian role that Kaal Bhairava is said to fulfill in Kashi.
Apart from guardian role, Nakoda Bhairava is said to protect people from ghosts, spirits and such. He is also said to help people with fertility issues. Both these aspects are very much in line with the attributes of Kaal Bhairava.
Finally it should be noted, that at least a lot of the Hindu literature considers Nakoda Bhairava as a form of Bhairava Shiva.
Will try to get in touch with some Marwari jain families who may shed more light on this deity. A trip to Nakoda in Rajasthan if possible, will also be cool.
Apart from this I am planning to do some more research into the overlap of Jainism & Hinduism. I find it fascinating.
Pic Credit: http://www.nakodabhairav.com/p/songs.html#axzz3HGCaaEEZ
[…] in the year I had written about how a Jain Yaksha (not exactly deity), Nakoda Bhairava is a form of Shiva and aspect of the Kaal Bhairava deity. Also, in case you are not well versed with Jainism hitherto, […]
Hinduism came from Jainism not the other way round correct you’re post.
This post is correct, first tirthankara of Jainism Rishabhadeva was avatara of Lord Vishnu. Sanatana Dharma is the eternal religion, every other sect came from Sanatana Dharma only.
The blog is about current facts and some hypothesis. No scriptural “facts”, please.
Firstly, at some point Nako?a Bhairava was a local deity without strong links to Jainism, similar to the many other bhairavas found in
Maybe… it would be interesting to note how he got amalgamated into Jainism. Esp considering he would have much stronger ties with Shaivites then?
At ancient times in Tamil are major followers of Jain and Buddhism, in Tamil it’s called “Samanam or Samana Samayam”
there are family God for a particular family which they worship together in Tamil nadu; in tamil “Kuladeivam”
Why I am saying is because My family god is Kaal Bhairav, and we don’t eat non-veg foods and some cultures are similar to Jain cultures and contrasts Hindu cultures
So, I recognized that there must be Jains in my ancestry and then they were later converted to Hindu
Hi Akshay! Wow, thanks for sharing this… That is very interesting. Can you share some details about how your culture is similar to Jain culture than Hindu? I think it is quite possible that many Hindus in the south have Jain ancestry because earlier that area was largely Jain. And then became hindu. Though does this imply that Kaal Bhairava is / was a Jain deity which then got amalgamated into Hinduism? That’s a bit odd.. no? Because currently it’s a primarily Hindu deity with few Jain connections. So if it was a Hindu deity and then some Jain’s converted to Hinduism and adopted this Hindu deity.. it still doesn’t explain why the exisiting Jain’s would accept it as their deity too.
You may be interested in my post here on Parsvanatha, Nakoda Bhairava and their link to Lord Shiva.
https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/q/14540/3872
Hi,
I have not read any big big books in details but can you tell one thing.
History is always modified by powerful peoples so at this point it is much difficult to say who come first.
In jainism if you go in some detail you can find they described God in much details. Type of gods and their strength and weakness
God word in Hindu and jainnis quite different .
Ideal Jain believes only in God or person who are Vitragi means who liberated from all karma good and bad
In jain, believe in any person from anywhere if they are Vitragi.only.
They are called Siddha and when they are in human Avatar they told them Arihant.
Arihant goees to only in moksha and they are now siddha and never reborn and never influence any one.
Now all others Gods are divided in
Vyantar dev
Bhavanpati dev
Jyotish dev
Vaimanik dev
All these have to reborn again and all of them have karma pending.
In vyantar and bhavanpati some have Right conduct and good god called Samikiti – who can help individuals who follow some religion.
Others are not good God and they can interfere as they have more power than normal human.
Some human with great spiritual power can control this type of god and they can force them ( god with good intentions) to protect particular religion or family
Same way some hindu rishi and some jain monk force particular deity to work for their respective religion.
Bhairav is also one community of god either they come under vyantar or bhavanpati
It is like in human there are many different race and cast.
It is like biological classification of all living animal
All these things are explained in details in jainism
I think dont go in physical things of any religion just understand basic of it and follow what you feel right.
All other things are propoganda
Wow Abhijeet, I never knew all this stuff quite so..I understand that Jain’s consider mainly the humans that get enlightened – tirthankara as the greatest. Hence, it is considered an agnostic religion by some Hindus. I wasn’t aware of these other God types they have defined… But I am aware of the difference.
I think Hindus kind of take this same path when they clearly designate the guru as greater than even the god. This way they are saying that the enlightened human is greater than any non-human force. And that is kind of commonsense because we being humans, we can emulate, find inspiration in other humans who went beyond life’s limitations. And they are invaluable for us.
How these God beings, who are non-human, how they impact us and such is another matter to understand. I think for devotion they are a great help…
🙂 thanks for stopping by.
Also, I do agree that we don’t know the origin of Hinduism nor Jainism. I have been thinking that at one point both would have been extremely amalgamated possibly as a different unity altogether. And from that came out different shoots – Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and such. I personally, don’t consider Hinduism as the originating religion… And then the Q is , what is Hinduism really? It’s a complex soup.
Hi,
Dont go in debate who is first?
In our short life span we cant go in details.
Just follow only those things that you can justify by your own knowledge and during this journey step by step widen your knowledge and wisdom.
This like that puzzle , but you have to start from one point and go deep by deep with flexible mentality to change way as demand arise from you within.
Follow only inner voice but at same time self guard your inner voice also
I like any particular religion only when it provide logical answer and help me to make fearless.
When you closely observed world here everything follow some rules and everymoment has its after and before effect.
In such logical world how any one can follow illogical religion.
Religion must be inner thing and not for display, rather i believe to be more spiritual then to religious.
Our religious is mixture of psychology and material physics it is upon us how we take this.
One example,
When we are child , how any one can explain from where rain come
Or from where any new born come but it is upon us when we grow we catch real science not old childhood story.
Some time we grow physically only not mentally.
Shankara is often described to take the form of a Yaksha. The test of Trimurti etc. State this fact. His Panchakshari strotram reads Yakshaswarupaya Jatadharaya…..
Thanks for that piece of info 🙂 with your comment it gets added to the discussion.
jainism and Buddhism is came from Hindu religion
The tridev Bhrama Vishnu Mahesh (shiva) are 3 main deity lords of Hinduism
because the first jain thirantnkar rishabhdev is avtar of lord vishnu and lord buddh is also avtar of lord vishnu.
Only Hindus keep saying this.