Bhīmāsura

Bhīmāsura was an asura, the son of Kumbhakarṇa and the rākshasī Karkaṭī. Kumbhakarṇa was the giant rākshasa brother of Rāvaṇa. Bhīmāsura was born after his father was killed by Rāma. He grew up in the forest full of hatred for Bhagavān Vishṇu and Rāma. He did hard tapas (austerity) to Brahmā and received varas (boons) of strength and power. With these he conquered the three worlds. He took prisoner Sudarśana, the king of Kāmarūpa who was devoted to Śiva, and he tried to put an end to the worship of Śiva everywhere. In the end Bhagavān Śiva himself destroyed him. Śiva came out of the pārthiva liṅga (a liṅga made of earth) that Sudarśana had been worshipping in prison. The place where Bhīmāsura was destroyed became the Bhīmeśvara Jyotirliṅga, in the Sahyādri range of Maharashtra.

Birth and childhood

Bhīmāsura was born to Kumbhakarṇa and the rākshasī Karkaṭī. Kumbhakarṇa is the giant rākshasa of the Rāmāyaṇa. He is known for his huge size and strength, and for the śāpa (curse) of long sleep that kept him helpless for most of the year. Rāma killed Kumbhakarṇa in the battle of Laṅkā. Karkaṭī then fled to the forest, carrying his son in her womb.

Bhīmāsura grew up in the forest in the care of his mother. She told him of the power of Kumbhakarṇa and of how he died. This put into the child a burning wish for revenge against Rāma and Bhagavān Vishṇu. That hatred drove his whole life. The Śiva Purāṇa tells this in the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 20.

Tapas and boons

Driven by his wish for revenge, Bhīmāsura did intense tapas to Brahmā for a long time. Brahmā appeared and gave him these varas:

• great strength and size
• near-invincibility against ordinary opposition
• dominion over the three worlds

With these varas Bhīmāsura became a power that the devas and ordinary beings could not face directly. This is from the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 20.

Conquest and terror

Bhīmāsura went on to conquer the three worlds. He drove the devas out of their high places. Wherever he found yajñas (fire rituals) and Vedic practices, he destroyed them. He tried to put worship of himself in the place of worship of Śiva. He aimed especially at kingdoms with strong devotion to Śiva, such as Kāmarūpa.

He took King Sudarśana of Kāmarūpa prisoner, together with his family and his people, and shut them in prison. This is from the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 20.

His destruction

Bhīmāsura came to Sudarśana in the prison, because the king kept on worshipping the pārthiva liṅga. Bhīmāsura raised his weapon to destroy the liṅga and the king. Then Bhagavān Śiva himself came out of the pārthiva liṅga. In the fight that followed, Bhīmāsura was destroyed completely. His conquest of the three worlds was undone, and the devas were put back in their places. This is told in the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 21.

Sources

• Śiva Purāṇa, Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapters 20–21