Bhairaba, the Roaring Guardian: Folk Belief and Tribal Worship in Bengal
God Bhairaba Author - Biswarup Chatterjee. The sculpture represented by the above mentioned plate is known as God Bhairaba. He is also worshipped as a protector of villages in few parts of Bengal. The appearance of this God is very much fearful and always surrounded by his associates and some sculpture of elephants and horses. Actually, this deity is known as an unscriptural and aboriginal deity. The sculpture is quite similar with some folk deity of Buedwan and Howra district in West Bengal along with the southern part of the country, such as, Babathakur or Pancananda, Tirubayaba etc. the God is probably worshipped by the tribes, mainly santal and also have a similarity with ‘Bābā deo’, the deities of the Vhil tribe. Though he ...