31st July 2021
Kalashtami is a Hindu festival dedicated to Lord Bhairav and is observed on the ‘Krishna Paksha Ashtami Tithi’ (8th day during the waning phase of the moon).
The ‘Ashtami Tithi’ (8th day) after ‘Purnima’ (full moon) is considered to be most suitable day to propitiate Lord Kaal Bhairav. There are a total of 12 Kalashtami observances in a year.
Tantrics have long known that working with our shadow is a powerful doorway into the spiritual realm requiring us to deal with much of what we set aside or postpone for another day.
As a teacher, our Shadow compels us to deal with our own inner demons in a structed way which is heightened on the auspucious night of Kalaashtami Bhairav. With the help of our ‘physical,’ shadows, we thread upon healing of our ancestral lineage inside the portal of Bharani Nakshatra, the lunar house that deals with the mysteries of life and death.The symbol of this Nakshatra is a Yoni, or the female vagina and the ruling planet is Venus. The god of Bharani Nakshatra is the lord of death and justice, known as Yamaraj who transcends our karmic deliverance lifetime after lifetime.
The Shadow is a doorway to healing the conditionings of the rational mind, softening the hard edges of our souls while bringing awareness to the balance between the forces of the night and day.
Giving attention to this forgotten friend of ours, whose ardent companionship is eternal, we come to the gateway of what is truly holding us back from achieving our dreams and goals.
Those who manage to open the portals to the magical dimensions within themselves can readily perform the rituals of the Crow and the Shadow. The Crow, the guardian of the thresholds, is a sacred magical creature who reveals to us what eludes us.
He is the master of the masters, giving us glimpses of the known and the unknown – playing with our perception of our fears and our darkness. Hence, we approach the Crow when we are fully ready to embrace the darkness within, only when we are equally ready to embrace the light. The unknowable is the bedrock of magic, the heartbeat of the left-hand path of Tantra. Shunni Kah, as He is known to the Tantrics, brings us the gift of Magic.
Shunni Kah is the Crow man – tall with a humanoid body and the head of a crow, who visits us in our dreams and comes only as a good omen, terrifying but nonetheless, a friend.
The Crow is a creature with very special vision and sees people in the light of their own, shunning those who condemn the feminine underworld and favours only the solar plane (the masculine energies).
What is refused must be met courageously – the shadow it may be called, is the dooorway to wholeness.
To cut the light from the dark is something that Lord Shunni forbids. Many of the remedies and rituals in appeasing Shuni in all paths of Tantra is all about getting us in touch with our repressed feelings – the Tantric axiom of, ‘’what we fear has power over us,’ would be worth pondering…
Bhairav, the emissary of Saturn (Shunni), helps to eradicate our fears over ourselves while we allow our harsh past to fester within us. Kala Bhairav assists us to toughen our hearts to overcome what serves us no more.
A ghee lamp made from flour mixed with a sprinkle of black sesame seed will be required for this ritual.
KALAASHTAMI BHAIRAVA TITHI BASED ON MALAYSIAN TIMING:
Saturday, July 31, 2021
Ashtami date starts : 31st July 2021 07:40 AM
Ashtami date ends : 01 August 2021 at 09:56 AM
WHAT TO OFFER
- 3 Ghee lamps made from flour and black sesame seeds for Lord Shunni.
- Dark Blue flowers for Lord Shunni.
- Yellow flowers for Lord Bhairava.
- 3 ghee lamps for Lord Bhairava.
- Offer prasad or food/fruits in odd numbers.
- Offer water
Chant Kala Bhairava mantra.
KALA BHAIRAVA BEEJ MANTRA
Om aim hraam kleem shri batukbhairavaya|| (3×)
(The four syllables following Om are called Beejas or seeds). These beejas correspond to the sound form of Lord Kaal Bhairav.
“Om Hreem Bum Batukaya Apadudharanaya Kuru Kuru Batukaya Hreem Om Namaha Shiyaye “
“Om Hraam Hreem Hroom Hrime Hroum Ksham Kshetrapaalaaya Kaala Bhairavaaya Namaha|| (3×)
KALA BHAIRAVA GAYATRI MANTRA
Om Kaalakaalaaya Vidhmahey Kaalaatheethaaya dheemahi Thanno Kaala Bhairava Prachodhayaath || (3×)
As we make way for the Lion’s Gateway Portal on the 8th August 2021 as well as Aadi Ammavasya, make this Kalaashtakam the gateway of healing and repairing so that you live life on your terms – no longer based on previous karma that binds you without your will.
Let go your darkness, no matter how small, so that you shine so bright that your light illuminates the entire planet, one person at a time.
May you become the beacon of truth!
SUJATA NANDY WORLD GURUKUL
Image credit: Quora.com
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