Vīrabhadra: Chief of Śiva's Gaṇas

Vīrabhadra is the chief of the gaṇas (the attendants and warriors) of Bhagavān Śiva. The Purāṇas say he came into being from Śiva’s own wrath, at the time of the insult and death of Satī at the yajña (fire ritual) of her father Dakṣa. He led the army of Śiva’s gaṇas to that yajña, destroyed it, and cut off Dakṣa’s head.

The Purāṇas also tell of other deeds of Vīrabhadra. He defended the three worlds, put out a flame that burned the devas to ash, and slew the asura Pañcamedhra. Below, the account of each text is given under that text’s name.

Birth of Vīrabhadra

In the Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa

Nārada came to Kailāsa. He told Bhagavān Śiva of Satī’s death by yoga and of the rout of his gaṇas. Śiva’s grief turned into great fury. He tore a blazing lock of hair (jaṭā) from his head and threw it on the ground.

From that lock arose Vīrabhadra. He was as tall as the sky. He had a thousand arms, three eyes that blazed like suns, fearsome fangs, flaming hair and a garland of skulls. He held many weapons in his many hands. He bowed to Śiva and asked, “What shall I do?” Śiva commanded him, “Kill Dakṣa, destroy his yajña, and become the supreme leader of my gaṇas.” (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapter 5)

In the Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa

Devī Umā told Bhagavān Mahādeva how her father Dakṣa had insulted both Śiva and herself in a former birth. Dakṣa held a grand yajña, kept Śiva out, and let his name be openly abused. The wrath of Parameśvara rose. To honour the request of Devī Umā for the destruction of that yajña, Śiva at once brought a great being into existence from his own divine power.

This being was Vīrabhadra, the fierce chief of Śiva’s gaṇas. He sprang forth with a thousand heads, a thousand eyes and a thousand mighty arms. His form blazed with the fury of the fire of pralaya (the end of the world). None could face him. He carried weapons on every side, and his roar filled the ten directions. As soon as he was born, he went to Parameśvara with folded hands and stood ready.

Śiva commanded him, “Go and destroy the yajña that Dakṣa is performing at Gaṅgādvāra. Auspiciousness be to you, O Gaṇeśvara.” (Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 15)

The Kūrma Purāṇa presents Vīrabhadra as a creation of Parameśvara from Śiva’s own divine power and will, a rudrāṃśa (a portion of Rudra) in the fullest sense. The text calls him “Rudra” as well as “Vīrabhadra”. He is Śiva’s gaṇādhipa, the chief of all Śiva’s gaṇas, and he carries out the will of Parameśvara with full authority. (Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 15)

In the Śiva Purāṇa, Satī Khaṇḍa

Nārada brought Śiva the news that Satī had given up her life at Dakṣa’s yajña. Śiva was struck with deep grief. In his anguish he seized his matted locks and tore them apart with both hands.

From the front half of the torn jaṭā arose Vīrabhadra. He had a thousand arms. His height filled the space from earth to the sky and went ten aṅgulas (finger-breadths) beyond. He shone like the fire of pralaya and roared like a thousand thunders at once. From the second half of the torn jaṭā arose Mahākālī, surrounded by crores of bhūtas (spirits). From Śiva’s sighs were born the jvaras: a hundred kinds of fever and thirteen kinds of sannipāta disease. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Satī Khaṇḍa, Chapter 32)

In the Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa

After Satī gave up her life in the fire of Dakṣa’s yajña at Kanakhala, Śiva’s grief and fury together produced Vīrabhadra from his jaṭā. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Māheśvara Khaṇḍa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa, Chapters 4–5)

In the Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa

Vīrabhadra is born from Śiva’s jaṭā. Śiva tears out the lock in his fury and dashes it to the earth, and Vīrabhadra springs from it fully armed. (Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 3, 4)

In the Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa

Vīrabhadra and Bhadrakālī arise together from Śiva’s wrath. Vīrabhadra arises from Śiva’s blazing jaṭā. Bhadrakālī arises as the fierce Śakti born from Śiva’s fury. Together they lead the army of gaṇas.

This Purāṇa says that Satī gave up her life through yogāgni, the inner fire of yoga, and not through an outer flame. (Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 30, Dakṣa Śāpa Varṇana)

In the Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā

Śiva heard from Nārada that his beloved Satī had burned herself in Dakṣa’s sacrificial fire, because she could not bear Dakṣa’s public abuse of Śiva. Śiva’s grief turned into great fury. He tore out a lock of his own matted hair and dashed it against the ground. From this mass of Śiva’s own tejas (divine energy) arose Vīrabhadra, huge, blazing, terrible and fully armed.

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā describes his form at birth:

He is dark as the storm cloud at pralaya.
He has three eyes like three suns.
He has a thousand arms, each with a different weapon.
He wears Śiva’s own garland of serpents and garland of skulls.
His roar shakes the foundations of all fourteen worlds.
At the sight of him the devas flee in every direction.

Together with Vīrabhadra, the text also mentions the creation of Kālikā, a fierce form of Śakti, from Śiva’s grief. Both together go to destroy the yajña. (Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā)

The destruction of Dakṣa’s yajña

In the Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa

Vīrabhadra led the whole army of Śiva’s gaṇas southward to Dakṣa’s yajña. Some gaṇas were monstrous or dwarfish, some yellow or green, some had bellies like crocodiles. Their march shook the earth, and Vīrabhadra’s lion-roar filled the sky. The people at the yajña saw a great cloud of dust rising from the north. The women among them wept, saying this was the fruit of Dakṣa’s offence against Śiva.

The gaṇas broke everything: the sacrificial shed, the hall of the wife, the cook room, the maṇḍapa, the vessels and the fire pits. The ṛṣis (seers) and their wives were terrified. Individual gaṇas seized the chief offenders. Maṇimanta seized Bhṛgu. Caṇḍīśa seized Pūṣan. Nandiśvara seized Bhagadeva. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapter 5)

The three punishments

In the Bhāgavata account, each punishment matched the way that person had shown approval of Dakṣa’s offence.

Bhṛgu Maharṣi had smirked when Dakṣa cursed Śiva. His beard and moustache were torn off.
Bhaga had winked in approval of Dakṣa’s insults. His eyes were gouged out.
Pūṣan had grinned with satisfaction. His teeth were knocked out.

(Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapter 5)

The beheading of Dakṣa

Vīrabhadra tried to cut off Dakṣa’s head with his sword, but the blade would not go in. He understood that in a yajña the yajamāna (the one who performs it) is formally the paśu (the animal offered). So he used the way of killing the paśu and cut off Dakṣa’s head. He threw the head into the dakṣiṇāgni fire and returned to Kailāsa. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapter 5)

In the Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa

Vīrabhadra led Śiva’s vast army of gaṇas. All were mounted on bulls (vṛṣabhas) and armed with śūlas (spears), śaktis, gadās (maces) and huge boulders. With them went Bhadrakālī, who had been created at the same time by the fury of Devī Umā, and thousands of other Rudras called Romajās. They marched to the yajña site at Gaṅgādvāra.

The site was splendid. It was full of thousands of wives of the devas. It rang with songs of the apsarās, the sound of the flute and the vīṇā, and the chanting of Vedic mantras. Vīrabhadra saw Dakṣa seated among the ṛṣis and devas. He laughed and said that they had come as Śiva’s representatives to claim Śiva’s rightful share of the yajña. The devas, whose minds were clouded by tamas, answered that they knew of no duty to give such a share. Then the mantras themselves spoke and said that Maheśvara, as the master of all yajñas, should be worshipped. But they fell silent through the māyā of Maheśvara.

Vīrabhadra set fire to the yajñaśālā. The other chiefs of the gaṇas pulled up the yūpa posts and threw them into the river. They seized the sacrificial horse and threw it into the Gaṅgā. Then the great gaṇādhipa turned on the assembled devas.

He caught Indra’s raised arm and froze the limbs of the other devas who raised weapons against him.
He tore out the eyes of Bhaga with his hand.
He knocked out the teeth of Pūṣan with his fist.
He struck the deva Candra (the Moon) with the tip of his great toe.
He cut off the two arms of Agnihotra and tore out his tongue.
He kicked the assembled munis on their heads.
He turned aside Viṣṇu’s Sudarśana Cakra with great power, and wounded Viṣṇu with sharp arrows.
He made thousands of Garuḍas from himself, mightier than Garuṭman, and they drove away Viṣṇu’s carrier.

At last Brahmā, whom Vīrabhadra revered, came and made Vīrabhadra and Viṣṇu stop fighting. Bhagavān Śambhu then appeared himself and showed his grace to the humbled devas and to Dakṣa. (Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 15)

In the Śiva Purāṇa, Satī Khaṇḍa

Śiva sent crores of gaṇas under the command of Vīrabhadra. They were led by named gaṇādhyakṣas: Śaṅkukarṇa (10 crore), Kekara (10 crore), Vikṛta (8 crore), Viśākha (64 crore), and many more. Mahākālī led the nine Durgās: Kālī, Kātyāyanī, Īśānī, Cāmuṇḍā, Muṇḍamardinī, Bhadrakālī, Bhadrā and Vaiṣṇavī. With her came Ḍākinīs, Śākinīs, Bhairavas, Kṣetrapālakas, Yakṣas and Yoginī-gaṇas. Vīrabhadra rode a chariot drawn by ten thousand lions. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Satī Khaṇḍa, Chapter 33)

When Bhagavān Viṣṇu came forward to fight, Vīrabhadra spoke with him. He said that the whole conflict was a parīkṣā (test) to show the greatness of Śiva’s bhaktas (devotees), and he affirmed that Śiva and Viṣṇu are not different. Both then agreed to fight as ordained. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Satī Khaṇḍa, Chapter 36)

In the battle Vīrabhadra stabbed Viṣṇu with his triśūla (trident) and Viṣṇu fell unconscious. Vīrabhadra then used stambhana (divine paralysis) to freeze Viṣṇu in place. He seized Viṣṇu’s Śārṅga bow and broke it into three pieces. Brahmā and Viṣṇu both withdrew. The destruction then went on to the end.

The yajña-puruṣa fled in the form of a deer. Vīrabhadra caught it and cut off its head.
The tip of Sarasvatī’s nose was cut.
Bhaga’s eyes were gouged out.
Pūṣan’s teeth were knocked out.
Bhṛgu’s beard was torn out.
The yajña fire was defiled.
Dakṣa was found hiding in a hole of the vedi (altar) and his head was cut off.

Vīrabhadra went back to Kailāsa. Śiva was pleased and made him gaṇādhyakṣa, the supreme chief of all gaṇas. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Satī Khaṇḍa, Chapter 37)

In the Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa

Vīrabhadra came down on Kanakhala at the head of Śiva’s armies, razed the yajña and cut off Dakṣa’s head. After the plea of Brahmā, Dakṣa was brought back to life with a goat’s head. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Māheśvara Khaṇḍa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa, Chapters 4–5)

In the Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa

Vīrabhadra leads Śiva’s army of gaṇas to Dakṣa’s yajña, destroys the yajña and cuts off Dakṣa’s head. This Purāṇa links the event to Śiva’s brahmahatyā (the guilt of killing a brāhmaṇa), which came from cutting off Brahmā’s fifth head in a nearby confrontation. It tells of Śiva wandering as Kapālī carrying Brahmā’s skull, and of his final purification at Vārāṇasī. (Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 3, 4)

In the Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā

Śiva commanded Vīrabhadra, “Go to Dakṣa’s yajña at Kanakhala. Take my gaṇas. Destroy the yajña completely. Avenge Satī.”

Vīrabhadra led the army of Śiva’s gaṇas to Kanakhala. Dakṣa’s great yajña was in progress there, and all the devas, ṛṣis and Prajāpatis were present. The destruction was total.

Dakṣa’s head was cut off by Vīrabhadra.
Bhaga, the deva of the sun, had his eyes torn out because he had watched the humiliation of Satī without protest.
Pūṣan had his teeth knocked out.
Bhṛgu had his beard torn away.
Indra and the other devas were beaten and routed.
The yajñaśāla (sacrificial hall) was broken down.
The yajña fire was put out.
The ritual vessels and tools were scattered.

The devas and ṛṣis fled in all directions, and the cosmic order itself shook. (Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā)

In the Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa

After the yajña was destroyed, a jvara (fever) was born from Śiva’s wrath. It could not be destroyed. Śiva divided it among all the creatures of the world, and it became the origin of illness. (Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 30)

Restoration after the destruction

In the Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa

Brahmā led the devas to Kailāsa and won over Bhagavān Śiva. Śiva then kindly ordered the restorations.

Dakṣa would receive a goat’s head.
Bhaga would see through the eyes of Mitra.
Pūṣan would eat only ground food.
Bhṛgu would have a goat’s beard.
Pūṣan would receive the arms of the Aśvinī devatas for his work.

All the broken limbs of the devas were healed. The yajña was then begun again and finished in the presence of Bhagavān Viṣṇu. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapter 7)

In the Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā

Brahmā came before Śiva and pleaded for the destroyed and humbled people. Śiva’s anger was now spent. He was moved by compassion and agreed to restore them.

Dakṣa was restored, but his own head was destroyed beyond recovery (or it had been thrown into the yajña fire). So Śiva set a goat’s head (aja-masta) on Dakṣa’s body. Dakṣa came back to life with this lasting reminder of his offence and of Śiva’s power. After this he became one of Śiva’s devotees.

Bhaga received sunlight in place of sight (or, in another telling, the eyes of Mitra). Pūṣan received grain as food, since his teeth were gone. The other devas were healed. (Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā)

In the Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa

Dakṣa was restored to life by Brahmā but kept a goat’s head. He offered Śiva a hymn (stuti) of 1008 names, listing all his divine names and cosmic forms. Śiva granted him forgiveness. (Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 30)

Heroic deeds in the three worlds

Putting out the cosmic flame

Kaśyapa and other great devas once met an endless, strange flame on the mountain Śokara. It was so fierce that it burned the devas to ash, and they could not stand against it. Vīrabhadra, his body smeared with bhasma (sacred ash), went up to the flame and swallowed it entirely by his own power. He then brought all the devas back to life by using the Mṛtyuñjaya hymn together with sacred ash. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 107)

The serpent and Pañcamedhra

After the devas were restored, a great serpent swallowed the whole assembly. Vīrabhadra tore the serpent open by sheer power and freed everyone inside.

Then the terrible asura Pañcamedhra appeared. He had ten arms, five feet and eight heads. He swallowed Vālin, Sugrīva and the whole assembly of devas in one act. Vīrabhadra fought him and killed him in battle, and freed all who had been swallowed from the belly of the asura. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 107)

The asura with a vara from Śiva

Another asura had received a vara (a boon) from Śiva. By it he could be killed only by one who would pull Śiva’s jaṭā. Śiva would never allow such an act, so the asura thought himself almost deathless. When this asura caused great harm, Bharatī (Sarasvatī) told Vīrabhadra how the asura could be killed. Vīrabhadra pulled Śiva’s jaṭā, the same act from which he himself had been born, and killed the asura by that power. Sacred ash was then applied, and all those the asura had harmed came back to life. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 107)

Restoring Gautama’s assembly

Gautama was a great devotee of Śiva. His āśrama was on Mount Śrīśaila. His unusual disciple Śaṅkarātman was killed by Vṛṣaparvā, the deva-king, who did not know who he was. Gautama and all his divine guests died of grief at the loss. They included Bāṇa, Śukra, Prahlāda and Vṛṣaparvā himself. Vīrabhadra appeared and brought all of them back to life. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 114)

Guarding the seat of Śiva’s liṅga

Bhagavān Śiva and Bhagavān Viṣṇu were playing in the water on the banks of the Gaṅgā. During this time the seat of Śiva’s liṅga was lost for a while. In his fierce devotion, Vīrabhadra burned twelve worlds because of this wrong. He stopped only when Śiva himself restored the seat. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 114)

Vīrabhadra and Tāraka

The Kedāra Khaṇḍa places Vīrabhadra among the great warriors in the army of the devas in the war against Tāraka. He fought Tāraka with great force. Then Nārada Mahāṛṣi came and warned the warriors that Tāraka could be killed only by Śiva’s son, and that the birth and arrival of Kārttikeya were near. Vīrabhadra drew back from the fight. When Kārttikeya came and hurled his Śakti weapon, Tāraka fell. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Māheśvara Khaṇḍa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa, Chapters 26–29)

The Kumāra Khaṇḍa of the Śiva Purāṇa adds that, as the war grew fiercer, Tārakāsura himself struck Vīrabhadra down on the battlefield. At that moment Kārttikeya stepped forward, stopped Vīrabhadra from going on, and took up the last fight himself. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Kumāra Khaṇḍa, Chapter 9)

Liberator of the virtuous

Vīrabhadra is Śiva’s messenger and the keeper of dharma. He seizes those who have taken Śiva’s name, even by accident, and guards them from the rule of Yama.

In the account of the pāpa-laden (sinful) king Vidhruta, the great Jvālāvaktra, a flame-faced form of Vīrabhadra or his attendant, seized Vidhruta after his death. Yama’s bonds could not hold the soul. The deva of Death himself came to claim it. Jvālāvaktra fought and defeated Death and set him on a spike. This shows that those who have said “Hara”, even by accident, fall under the protection of Śiva and not of Yama. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 111)

Form for meditation

The dhyāna (meditation) form of Vīrabhadra is this. His body is dark. His lips are tawny. He has fangs like the crescent of the young moon. He wears three horizontal lines of sacred ash on his forehead. He is crowned with a garland of matted locks. He is armed and fierce, the tapas-power of Śiva made visible. (Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 107)

Vīrabhadra and Bhagavān Śiva

The Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa ends the episode with a saying of Brahmā: “Whoever Viṣṇu is, he is himself Rudra. Whoever Śiva is, he is Janārdana Viṣṇu.” The text says this shows that Śiva and Nārāyaṇa are not different, and that together they fill and hold up all creation. In this Purāṇa, the creation of Vīrabhadra and his destruction of Dakṣa’s yajña show that worship of Śiva cannot be left out of any yajña. (Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 15)

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā says Vīrabhadra is not a separate deva opposed to Śiva but a form of Śiva himself.

He is an emanation (vibhūti) or aspect of Śiva’s own being.
He is Śiva’s just anger (krodha) taking form for the protection of dharma.
He acts out of cosmic justice, not out of personal hatred. Satī was Śiva’s own śakti, and the insult to her was an insult to the cosmic order.

After his work was done, he merged back into Śiva. (Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā)

Images and pūjā

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā gives these marks of images of Vīrabhadra.

Dark colour.
Many arms, usually ten and sometimes a thousand.
Three eyes.
Śiva’s weapons: triśūla (trident), khaḍga (sword), cāpa (bow), pāśa (noose) and others.
A garland of skulls.
Often a warrior stance (vīra-sthāna).

He is also known as Vīreśvara, Śivaduṭa (messenger of Śiva) and Rudravīra.

He is worshipped as a guardian (kṣetrapāla) in many Śaiva temples, especially in South India. People pray to him for protection from enemies, removal of obstacles and courage in hard times. His main form is that of a fierce standing warrior, often forming the dvārapāla (door-guardian) pair with Nandīśvara in Śaiva temples. (Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā)

Sources

Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 4th Skanda, Chapters 5, 7
Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapters 107, 110, 111, 114
Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 30 (Dakṣa Śāpa Varṇana)
Kūrma Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 15
Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 3, 4
Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Māheśvara Khaṇḍa, Kedāra Khaṇḍa, Chapters 4–5, 26–29
Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Satī Khaṇḍa, Chapters 32–37
Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Kumāra Khaṇḍa, Chapter 9
Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā (part 7; chapter not given)