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Kala Bhairava nama-mantra
ॐ कालभैरवाय नमः
Simple reading
Om kaa-la-bhai-ra-vaa-ya na-mah
Oṁ Kālabhairavāya Namaḥ
About this mantra
Salutation to Kala Bhairava: Shiva as the guardian of time and of the city of Kashi, remover of fear, keeper of discipline.
Meaning
Om, salutations to Kala Bhairava, Shiva as the awe of time, keeper of Kashi's gates. Bhairava is fearsomeness pointed at fear itself: he bears the danda because he is discipline, and time obeys him because he is what time answers to. The reciter asks the lord of thresholds and deadlines for his two gifts: that wasted time be forgiven, and remaining time not be wasted.
Learn it by heart
Say the first line until it comes without reading, then add the next line and say both, until the whole mantra comes on its own.
Whole mantra
This mantra is a single line. Learn it whole, then add it to your review deck so it comes back for a check.
ॐ कालभैरवाय नमः
Oṁ Kālabhairavāya Namaḥ
0not said yet
Aim for eleven. Stop reading as soon as the whole mantra comes on its own.
Progress stays on this device.
When to recite it
Kaal Bhairav Ashtami; Sundays and Tuesdays, the days his Kashi temple keeps, and Saturdays in some regions; late-night practice; recited before deadlines, at threshold times such as moving, ending and beginning, and by night workers under his watch.
Word by word
- ॐoṁ
- the primordial sound
- कालभैरवायkālabhairavāya
- to Kala Bhairava, guardian of time
- नमःnamaḥ
- I bow, salutations
Source: Traditional nāma-mantra (Kāśī tradition)
Note: Given here in its commonly used form; wording can vary slightly between family and regional traditions.