Bhairavar

He is the manifestation of Lord Shiva who oversees the march of time (काळ). He is also the guardian of the temple (Khestrapal क्षेत्रपाल).  In honor of his position, as chief of temple guards, the keys to the temple are ceremonially submitted to him, at the closing time of temple. They are received ceremonially at the time of opening of temple. As he is the person who oversees the march of time, many pray to him for help in effectively using the time in spiritual path. He is also considered as guardian of travelers. The Siddhas (Shaiva munis) advise us to light a lamp in his name before starting a journey especially if it is a night journey. Lord Kalabhairav has the dog as his mount (वाहन), hence feeding of dog is recommended in puranas. In almost all the temples in south india, we come across the idol of kalabhairav. The notable ones are at arunachala temple in Thiruvannamalai and Kalabhairav temple at Kashi.

There are eight manifestations of bhairav. They guard and control eight directions and are known as Ashta-bhairav. These ashtabhairav have eight more sub-bhairavas under them to assist. Following table gives the names of ashtabhairavas.

Sr No	Name of the Bhairav	Name of his consort	Vahan (mount)	Direction	Temple location	Birth star whom they favor	Gems stone
1	Asithaanga-bhairav	Bhrami	Swan	East	Sarkazi, Thirukandiyur	Punarvasu, Vishakha, Purva-bhadrapada	Yellow Sapphire
2	RuRu-bhairav	Maheshwari	Rishabh	South east	Thiru-marugal	Krithika, Uttar-falguni, Uttar-ashadha	Ruby
3	Chand-bhairav	Koumari	Peacock	South	Vaitheeshwaran-koil	Mruga, Chitra, Dhanishtha	Coral
4	Krodhana-bhairav	Vaishnavi	Eagle (garud)	South-west	Thiru-naraiyur	Rohini, Hasta, Sharavan	Pearl
5	Unmatha-bhairav	Varahi	Horse	West	Thiru-veezimizalar	Pushya, Anuradha, Uttar-bhadrapada
6	Kapaal-bhairav	Indrani	Elephant	North-west	Thiru-panthuruthi, Thiruvirkudi	Bharani, Purva falguni, Purva-shadha	Diamond
7	Bheeshana- bhairav	Chamundi	Lion	North	Rameshwar, Piranmalai	Ardra, Swati, Shata-taraka, Ashvini, Magha, Mul
8	Samhar bhairav	Chandi	Dog	North-east		Ashlesha, Jyeshtha, Revati