Or more formally Medicine Master and King of Lapis Lazuli Light. OK, so I decided to post a more uplifting picture!
Take care, guys. Let´s be careful out there...
Monday, June 1, 2026
And Uranus came to Earth...
A *very* narrow discussion I had with our favorite LLM companion...
Could Bhairava be reinterpreted as Uranian?
Yes, it is possible to reinterpret Bhairava through a Uranian lens, but it would be a modern comparative or symbolic interpretation, not a traditional Hindu one.
Historically, Bhairava and Uranus come from entirely different symbolic systems:
- Bhairava belongs to Śaiva Tantra and Hindu theology.
- Uranus only became important in astrology after its discovery in 1781 and has no role in classical Jyotiṣa.
So any connection is necessarily interpretive rather than traditional.
Why the comparison is tempting
Modern astrology often associates Uranus with:
- radical freedom
- disruption
- breaking conventions
- sudden awakening
- unpredictability
- liberation from structures
- shocks that force change
Many of these themes overlap surprisingly well with certain forms of Bhairava.
For example:
Uranus
Breaks social conditioning.
Bhairava
Breaks attachment to limited identity.
Uranus
Disrupts established systems.
Bhairava
Destroys false certainties and ego structures.
Uranus
Associated with unconventionality.
Bhairava
Dwells outside ordinary social norms—in cremation grounds, wilderness, liminal spaces.
Unmatta Bhairava is the strongest fit
Of the Aṣṭa Bhairavas, Unmatta Bhairava is probably the easiest to compare with Uranus.
Why?
Unmatta means:
- ecstatic
- beyond convention
- "divinely mad"
That resonates strongly with modern Uranian themes:
- anti-conformity
- liberation from collective expectations
- breakthrough consciousness
If a modern symbolic astrologer wanted a Bhairava-Uranus correspondence, Unmatta Bhairava would likely be the first candidate.
Where the comparison breaks down
There are also important differences.
Uranus is often future-oriented
Modern astrology associates Uranus with:
- innovation
- technology
- revolution
- progress
Bhairava is not really about progress.
He is about:
- direct awareness
- transcendence
- confronting reality
- liberation
He can appear revolutionary, but not because he wants a better future.
He is interested in awakening now.
Uranus is often intellectual
Many astrologers connect Uranus with:
- flashes of insight
- genius
- conceptual breakthroughs
Bhairava is much more embodied and existential.
He appears in:
- cremation grounds
- death symbolism
- fierce ritual
- direct confrontation with impermanence
His transformation is often visceral rather than cerebral.
Bhairava includes terror
A great deal of Bhairava symbolism revolves around:
- mortality
- dissolution
- confronting fear
Modern Uranus symbolism tends to emphasize:
- liberation
- individuality
- innovation
The existential depth of Bhairava is closer to a fusion of Uranus with themes often assigned to Pluto or Saturn in modern astrology.
A deeper comparison
If you abstract away from astrology and theology and look at archetypes:
Bhairava says:
"Everything you cling to will be stripped away. What remains?"
Uranus says:
"Everything fixed must change. What new freedom emerges?"
These are related questions, but not identical.
Bhairava's concern is awakening.
Uranus' concern is liberation from stagnation.
A tantric reinterpretation
A modern tantric philosopher might say:
- Saturn corresponds to structure and limitation.
- Uranus corresponds to rupture and freedom.
- Bhairava is the consciousness that appears when those structures collapse.
In that sense:
Uranian disruption could be viewed as one expression of Bhairava's activity.
But Bhairava himself would still be larger than Uranus.
If we compare Bhairava to modern outer planets
Very roughly:
- Saturn → discipline, limits, karma
- Uranus → liberation, shock, anti-convention
- Neptune → dissolution, mysticism, transcendence of boundaries
- Pluto → death, transformation, underworld
Bhairava actually overlaps with all three outer planets:
- Uranus: freedom from convention
- Neptune: transcendence and non-duality
- Pluto: death, destruction, transformation
This is one reason no single planetary correspondence feels completely adequate.
For your particular line of inquiry
Given your recent interest in:
- the West,
- Unmatta Bhairava,
- smoke,
- endings,
- radical transitions,
I would say that a modern symbolic reading could plausibly see Unmatta Bhairava as one of the most Uranian figures in the Hindu pantheon:
- unconventional
- liberating
- boundary-breaking
- shocking to ordinary consciousness
- associated with a transition beyond familiar structures
But that would be a contemporary archetypal interpretation, not something you would find stated in traditional tantric texts. Traditional texts would describe him as a form of Bhairava, not as the equivalent of Uranus.
The ecstatic liberator
OK, here is another strange discussion I had with ChatGPT...
Is there a Bhairava who is the Guardian of the West, and what is his function?
Yes. In the common Aṣṭa Bhairava (Eight Bhairavas) system, the guardian of the West is usually Unmatta Bhairava. He is paired with Varahi and corresponds to the western direction, which is also traditionally associated with Varuṇa.
The directional assignments are generally:
| Direction | Bhairava |
|---|---|
| East | Asitanga |
| Southeast | Ruru |
| South | Chanda |
| Southwest | Krodha |
| West | Unmatta |
| Northwest | Kapala |
| North | Bhishana |
| Northeast | Samhara |
What does "Unmatta" mean?
Unmatta literally means:
mad, intoxicated, ecstatic, beyond conventional reason.
This does not necessarily mean insanity in the ordinary sense.
In tantric symbolism it often points to:
- divine ecstasy
- transcendence of social conditioning
- freedom from rigid conceptual structures
- the state of consciousness that appears "mad" to ordinary perception
What is his function?
There are two levels of answer.
1. Outer function: guardian of the West
Like the other Aṣṭa Bhairavas, Unmatta Bhairava functions as a kṣetrapāla (guardian of sacred space). He protects practitioners and sacred territory from obstructive influences.
In this sense he is:
- a protector
- a boundary guardian
- a keeper of liminal thresholds
2. Inner function: liberation from limiting identity
Esoterically, Unmatta Bhairava is often interpreted as the power that breaks attachment to ordinary identity and social conditioning.
Because he rules the West—the direction of sunset—some tantric commentators associate him with:
- endings
- dissolution of fixed self-images
- entry into mystery
- immersion into the unknown beyond the ego
A number of modern Shaiva interpreters describe the West as the movement from the visible daylight world into the hidden depth of consciousness, and Unmatta Bhairava as the ecstatic freedom discovered there.
Is he a destructive Bhairava?
Not primarily.
If you are looking for the Bhairava most explicitly associated with destruction, the name itself points more toward Samhara Bhairava ("Dissolution Bhairava"), who is associated with the northeast in the common Aṣṭa Bhairava scheme.
Unmatta Bhairava's energy is usually more:
- ecstatic
- liberating
- boundary-breaking
than annihilating.
Given your earlier questions about the West, fire, smoke, and Dhumavati...
An interesting symbolic comparison would be:
- Amitābha → West as infinite light and transformed desire.
- Unmatta Bhairava → West as ecstatic transcendence beyond ordinary identity.
- Dhumavati → aftermath, smoke, endings, and the wisdom of loss.
- Varuṇa → West as depth, cosmic law, and the great waters.
These are different symbolic maps layered onto the same direction. Traditional practitioners would not automatically combine them into a single interpretation of a real-world event, but contemplatively they all touch on themes of completion, transition, and what lies beyond ordinary certainty.
For someone interested in Bhairava and the West specifically, Unmatta Bhairava is probably the form most worth studying. His symbolism is much less about destruction than about a kind of fierce freedom that emerges when conventional identities and expectations have lost their hold.
Can you tell me more about Unmatta Bhairava?
Unmatta Bhairava is one of the more intriguing and less commonly discussed forms of Bhairava because his defining quality is not primarily wrath, destruction, protection, or death—it is divine madness, ecstatic freedom, and transcendence of ordinary mental structures.
However, it's important to note that there is much less surviving textual material devoted specifically to Unmatta Bhairava than there is for Bhairava in general, so many modern descriptions combine traditional iconography with tantric interpretation.
What does "Unmatta" really mean?
The Sanskrit word unmatta literally means:
- mad
- intoxicated
- deranged
- beside oneself
But in a spiritual context it often means:
one who has gone beyond the ordinary mind.
The key distinction is:
- ordinary madness = confusion
- divine madness = freedom from limiting concepts
Many mystical traditions have analogous figures:
- the "holy fool" in Eastern Christianity
- certain Sufi ecstatic saints
- Zen masters who behave unpredictably
- avadhūtas in Hinduism
Unmatta Bhairava belongs closer to this second category.
Why would a deity appear mad?
Tantric traditions often argue that ultimate reality cannot be fully captured by:
- social conventions
- intellectual categories
- ordinary ideas of purity and impurity
From the perspective of conventional society, someone who is completely free of these limitations may appear irrational.
Thus:
Bhairava appears "mad" because awakened freedom does not conform to ordinary expectations.
The West and Unmatta Bhairava
In the Aṣṭa Bhairava system, Unmatta Bhairava is associated with the West.
The West carries symbolic associations such as:
- sunset
- completion
- transition
- descent into mystery
- the end of a cycle
Because of this, some tantric commentators understand Unmatta Bhairava as the force that helps one pass beyond the familiar world of fixed identities.
Symbolically:
- daylight certainty is ending
- darkness is approaching
- old reference points disappear
The ordinary ego experiences this as frightening.
Unmatta Bhairava experiences it as liberation.
His iconography
Descriptions vary by lineage, but Unmatta Bhairava is often depicted with:
- fierce features
- wild hair
- ornaments of a tantric deity
- weapons and symbolic implements
- an ecstatic or intoxicated appearance
The goal is not horror.
The goal is to depict consciousness that is no longer constrained by ordinary conditioning.
Connection with avadhūtas
One of the closest Hindu analogues is the Avadhuta ideal.
The avadhūta:
- transcends social roles
- transcends prestige
- transcends fear of public opinion
Stories about figures such as Dattatreya often contain this theme.
Unmatta Bhairava embodies a fierce tantric version of that freedom.
Psychological interpretation
Many modern practitioners interpret Unmatta Bhairava as the power that destroys:
- excessive self-monitoring
- fear of judgment
- rigid self-concepts
- compulsive need for control
Notice that this is different from destroying the world.
He destroys:
the prison of conceptual identity.
Relation to other Bhairavas
Each Bhairava emphasizes a different aspect of the transformative power of Shiva.
Compared to:
- Krodha Bhairava → fierce wrath
- Samhara Bhairava → dissolution and destruction
- Bhishana Bhairava → terrifying protection
Unmatta Bhairava emphasizes:
- ecstatic freedom
- transcendence of convention
- divine intoxication
Is he connected to smoke, fire, or endings?
Not directly in the way Dhumavati is connected to smoke.
However, there is a symbolic resonance.
If we use imagery rather than doctrine:
- Dhumavati = smoke after the fire
- Kali = consuming fire
- Samhara Bhairava = dissolution
- Unmatta Bhairava = the liberated awareness that remains after conventional structures have burned away
This is not a classical textual equation, but it reflects how many tantric practitioners experience these symbols.
In Kashmir Shaivism
If viewed through the lens of Kashmir Shaivism, Unmatta Bhairava can be understood as expressing a core insight:
Reality is vastly freer than the ego imagines.
The ego seeks:
- control
- certainty
- stability
Bhairava reveals:
- spontaneity
- immediacy
- boundless awareness
The "madness" is the shock of encountering reality beyond conceptual limits.
Why some practitioners are drawn to him
People often become interested in Unmatta Bhairava during periods when:
- old identities are collapsing
- certainty has broken down
- conventional success no longer satisfies
- spiritual life feels less orderly and more mysterious
His symbolism says:
Freedom may look like madness from the standpoint of the structures that are being left behind.
A concise summary
Among the Aṣṭa Bhairavas, Unmatta Bhairava is less the destroyer and more the ecstatic liberator.
He represents:
- freedom from social conditioning
- transcendence of rigid identity
- divine intoxication
- fearless entry into the unknown
- the liberating side of endings and transitions
As the Bhairava of the West, he is not primarily the lord of catastrophe or destruction. He is the lord of what becomes possible when the sun of ordinary certainty has set and consciousness is no longer confined by its usual boundaries.
Current mood-breaker
Batuka, the child-form of the fierce Bhairava. Here, in a rather nice version...
Sunday, May 31, 2026
Female deities that are green
The super-niche YouTube channel HAR (Himalayan Art Resources) strikes again. Very strange stuff in these videos, including a green version of Lakshmi riding on a lion, a twelve-armed red version of Ganapati, various real people turned into "protector-spirits" after their deaths (in one case, seemingly by the guy´s enemies?!) and even "Amitayus with consort". Good luck with this material, guys!
Art nerds with wings
"Himalayan Art Resources, Inc." must be the ultimate nerd channel on YouTube. Or maybe not, since Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism is presumably still popular among Western spiritual seekers. The short clip above deals with deities depicted with wings and mentions examples from both Vajrayana and Bön (Bon). Note the Garuda bird! Apparently a loan from Hinduism.
In case you´re interested.
Demons in the sky
A Christian YouTube channel tries to play the role of "voice of reason" vis-à-vis the ongoing UFO hysteria in the United States. But note the Biblicist dogmatism! Still, an interesting contribution.
It´s over
 |
| The last laugh? Credit: Laurie Noble |
Why did Nigel Farage accuse the Russians of having hacked his mail? My guess is that he wants to signal that he isn´t pro-Russian. Meanwhile, a number of newly elected Reform Party councillors have been expelled due to...you know...racism. In other words: Reform is just a new version of the Tories. Which we knew already.
So presumably a future Reform government will continue importing guest workers to the UK (including from the EU!), while stripping both native-born and foreign workers of their rights. Like the Tories.
But sure, maybe Nigel can at least convince Woke quangos to stop being Woke. But since the UK was just as Woke under Boris Johnson as under Labour, I wouldn´t count on that either.
Well, at least he won´t conspire with Trump and Vance to sell out Ukraine. I hope.
Jan Guillou har alltid rätt
Nja, det har han förstås inte, men han slår huvudet på spiken i den här krönikan om Lundsberg. Kanske inte helt oväntat...
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