Dundubhinirhāda
Dundubhinirhāda was a powerful asura. He was a relative of Hiraṇyāksha and an uncle of Prahlāda. He appears in Chapter 58 of the Yuddha Khaṇḍa of the Śiva Purāṇa.
He saw that the devas draw their strength from yajñas (fire rituals) and that brāhmaṇas perform the yajñas. So he decided to kill all the brāhmaṇas and weaken the devas in this way. Bhagavān Śiva killed him in Kāśī, and the place where it happened became the Vyāghreśvara liṅga.
His plan
Dundubhinirhāda did not fight the devas directly. He chose to attack the brāhmaṇas, from whom the devas get their strength through yajña.
He came to Kāśī in the disguise of a muni. At night he took the form of a tiger and ate brāhmaṇas.
His death on Śivarātri
On Śivarātri, Dundubhinirhāda could not get near a devotee who was protected by a mantra. Bhagavān Śiva then came out of the liṅga and killed him with a blow of his fist.
That liṅga became the Vyāghreśvara liṅga of Kāśī. Bhagavān Śiva declared that anyone who remembers this account will be protected in battle.
Sources
- Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Yuddha Khaṇḍa, Chapter 58