Bhairavnath Temple

Bhairav or Bhairavnath is a famous tantrik of Hindu mythology. Bhairavnath was a disciple of Gorakhnath, whose guru was the Matsyendranath. He was considered to have control over all tantrik siddhis and had grown arrogant of his power. He went after Vaishno Devi, considering her to be a little girl. It was only when mata Vaishno Devi took the form of Kali to behead him he realized her true form and asked for forgiveness. In his dying moments, Bhairav pleaded for forgiveness. The Goddess knew that Bhairav's main intention in attacking her was to achieve his salvation. She not only granted Bhairav liberation from the cycle of reincarnation, but also granted him a boon, whereby every devotee, in order to ensure completion of the pilgrimage of Vaishno Devi, shall also have to visit Bhairav Nath's temple near the Holy cave after having the darshan of the Goddess.

The Bhairon Mandir / Bhairav Mandir is located in Jammu and Kashmir, very close to the Vaishno Devi Temple. People believe that the trip to Vaishno Devi only is considered complete once you visit the Bhairavnath Temple. This is also a cave temple, which was originally dedicated to a saint by the name of Bhairavnath. There is a legend behind this temple. People especially come to this temple to take the blessing of the saint Bhairavnath.

Both the Vaishno devi temple and the Bhairavnath Temple are considered to be of great importance for the Hindus. Every year lakhs of people visit these two cave shrine temples and take the blessings of god for a happy and a fulfilling life. Bhairav was all taken away by the aura of little Mata Vaishno and even demanded alcohol and nonveg in the feast. Despite Mata telling him a big no, he didn't stop and rather started following Mata Vaishno and disturbed her meditation.

History
Bhairon Temple is located at a distance of 1.42 km from the Bhawan. The temple is situated at the highest point of the adjacent hill at an altitude of 6,619 ft. This temple also involves a steep climb which can be undertaken by foot, ponies or palanquins. It is believed that the journey to Mata Vaishno Devi is not complete without the darshan in Bhairon Temple. According to the legends, Bhairon Nath was killed by Vaishno Devi and while seeking an apology, was given a boon of being the last link of the pilgrimage. Darshan inside Bhairon Temple is also in the rock form. It is believed that when Mata killed Bhairon Nath, his head fell at this place while his body remained at the entrance of the holy cave. There is also a Havan Kund at the temple, whose ashes are considered to be sacred.