NobodyYouKnow
Misanthropist
My first venture into this forum...
I was looking for a thread about it and couldn't find one, so if I build it...they will come...:yes:
Anyway, I was raised in Bali, Indonesia (mostly), spending my childhood in constant commute between that island, and Sydney, Australia.
Whilst in Bali, I had the opportunity of studying (and joining) their religion, which is known as Agama Hindu Dharma (in contrast to Sanatana Dharma).
The religion in Bali is very unusual. Balinese are 'Hindu' in name only, as the religion is a very potent and heady blend of Shaivite Hinduism, Shinto Buddhism, Tantra and Tribal Animism. It's like a 'religion unto itself'.
I very quickly adapted to it...and because the Agama tradition has no real deity(ies) and/or statues and pictorial references thereof, I started worshiping the only form of Lord Shiva that was 'available' to me at the time - Kala Bhairava.
The image of Bhairava can be found on or near most Hindu Temples in Bali. This Avatar of Lord Shiva is a 'temple protector' and 'well-wisher', warding off evil and evil influence, just like the Gargoyles do in the Western World. They look really menacing and evil themselves to destroy the 'greater evil' (ignorance and delusion). There were also a lot of stray dogs hanging around Bhairava's statue...
It was around this same time, I started to read the whole 'Evans-Wentz series' - The Tibetan Book Of The Dead, The Tibetan Book Of Living And Dying and the Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation (why this thread appears in the Buddhist Forum and not the Hindu one). It was then, as a young adult, I made a startling discovery....
Bhairava (avatar of Lord Shiva) is known in Buddhism as Mahakala or in combined form as Kala Bhairava.
To take this one step further and accounting for differences in regional dialect (approached this from a linguist point of view), Bhairava/Bhairo = Vairochana/Vairo...yup, some Buddhists worship Lord Shiva!
Here are two pictures from Buddhism and Hinduism. The first is Mahakala, the second is Bhairava:
Mahakala is the 'father of time' and the literal translation is 'the Great Black'. He is the image seen atop Lord Nataraja's dancing statue. He oversees all existence.
Whilst researching this topic, I came across one passage on Wikia, explaining to the letter why it is I worship Lord Shiva in this form:
Here is the full article:
Mah
So, I think I'll end it here now...please comment and give your ideas and I shall add more to this later.
I was looking for a thread about it and couldn't find one, so if I build it...they will come...:yes:
Anyway, I was raised in Bali, Indonesia (mostly), spending my childhood in constant commute between that island, and Sydney, Australia.
Whilst in Bali, I had the opportunity of studying (and joining) their religion, which is known as Agama Hindu Dharma (in contrast to Sanatana Dharma).
The religion in Bali is very unusual. Balinese are 'Hindu' in name only, as the religion is a very potent and heady blend of Shaivite Hinduism, Shinto Buddhism, Tantra and Tribal Animism. It's like a 'religion unto itself'.
I very quickly adapted to it...and because the Agama tradition has no real deity(ies) and/or statues and pictorial references thereof, I started worshiping the only form of Lord Shiva that was 'available' to me at the time - Kala Bhairava.
The image of Bhairava can be found on or near most Hindu Temples in Bali. This Avatar of Lord Shiva is a 'temple protector' and 'well-wisher', warding off evil and evil influence, just like the Gargoyles do in the Western World. They look really menacing and evil themselves to destroy the 'greater evil' (ignorance and delusion). There were also a lot of stray dogs hanging around Bhairava's statue...
It was around this same time, I started to read the whole 'Evans-Wentz series' - The Tibetan Book Of The Dead, The Tibetan Book Of Living And Dying and the Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation (why this thread appears in the Buddhist Forum and not the Hindu one). It was then, as a young adult, I made a startling discovery....
Bhairava (avatar of Lord Shiva) is known in Buddhism as Mahakala or in combined form as Kala Bhairava.
To take this one step further and accounting for differences in regional dialect (approached this from a linguist point of view), Bhairava/Bhairo = Vairochana/Vairo...yup, some Buddhists worship Lord Shiva!
Here are two pictures from Buddhism and Hinduism. The first is Mahakala, the second is Bhairava:
![MahakalaSm.jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.track16.com%2Fexhibitions%2Froberts-hardy%2Fimages%2FMahakalaSm.jpg&hash=c25f5f58d2f39f2cceafac12722c8109)
![KalaBhairavDarbarSquare.jpg](/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.svabhinava.org%2FImagesPeople%2FKalaBhairavDarbarSquare.jpg&hash=a6e566c0ddeb505ec35a0cc4d937c1a6)
Mahakala is the 'father of time' and the literal translation is 'the Great Black'. He is the image seen atop Lord Nataraja's dancing statue. He oversees all existence.
Whilst researching this topic, I came across one passage on Wikia, explaining to the letter why it is I worship Lord Shiva in this form:
Mahākāla is typically black in color. Just as all colors are absorbed and dissolved into black, all names and forms are said to melt into those of Mahakala, symbolizing his all-embracing, comprehensive nature. Black can also represent the total absence of color, and again in this case it signifies the nature of Mahakala as ultimate or absolute reality. This principle is known in Sanskrit as "nirguna", beyond all quality and form, and it is typified by both interpretations.
Here is the full article:
Mah
So, I think I'll end it here now...please comment and give your ideas and I shall add more to this later.