Brahma Raksha is one of the most powerful rakshasas in this universe.Far more powerful than any rakshas that has ever existed. He has as much power as his creator Lord Brahma and is believed to exist until the end of the creation. His origin and annihilation are both dependent upon the life of Lord Brahma.

Iconography

As per “Siddha Dharma”, he is portrayed with three heads and his hair flaunts in the air signifying his impact on the three worlds. The flaunting hair implies the unabridged conduct of his action with no sense of ethics and morality. He is also portrayed with horns which is the hallmark of being rakshas. He is also portrayed with a muscular body which implies brute strength and raw power.

Furthermore, he is also portrayed on top of a he-buffalo which is also a hallmark of every rakshas. He is also portrayed with four hands which hold a trident, sickle sword, fireball, and an axe respectively. He is also portrayed with big ugly nails implying animal instinct and very cruel nature. He is also portrayed with a red and black complexion, signifying tamas. He is the epitome of tamas.

The origin story of Brahma Rakshas

As per “Siddha Dharma”, once when Lord Shiva and Ma Parvati as Swachhanda Bhairava and Aghoreshwari Kurukulla were seated on Mt. Kailash, Aghoreshwari Kurukulla enquired Lord Shiva that although this universe is so beautiful then why is there tamas also. She further questions, if a person could live in this world being the personification of tamas. Her consort Shiva replied that it is possible and it surprises his Shakti. Lord Shiva then reveals to her about “Brahma Rakshas”.

As per “Siddha Dharma”, when Lord Brahma created this universe, he infused three modes of nature into his creation, satwa, raja, and tamas. So, when he infused those modes of nature, he also acted upon those to further his creation. He started with satwa, moved to rajas and then to tamas. After the completion of his creation and because all his manasputra chose not to be part of the household, he decided to infuse an element predominantly in this creation that shall ensure future sustenance and that element was “tamas”. Though Brahma Ji being the epitome of satwa realized that satwa doesn’t ensure the sustenance of the creation so he had to go against his own temperament to infuse tamas into the world and this universe.

But because of the effect of tamas, his mind also got tainted and he also created another manasputra who was the epitome of tamas, a rakshas. Unlike Brahma Ji other manasputra, who was the epitome of satwa, the Brahma Rakshas was a tamasic one and was very powerful. He then introduced himself as “Brahma Rakshas” because he was created by Brahma Ji. He further proclaimed himself to be very powerful as he was the tamasic manifestation of Brahma Ji. He then asked Brahma Ji to make him as powerful as Brahma Ji himself which Brahma Ji obliged but disowned him later.

Brahma Rakshas, his Guru and Tamas

As per “Siddha Dharma”, after Brahma Ji created him through his tamasic mind, he had a dilemma because it was not the result he wanted. He then disowned Brahma Rakshas and left him to wander in different corners of the universe. Devoid of education and spiritual wisdom, he sought many gurus but all of them rejected him so he finally sought the refuge of Lord Shiva and he was accepted. Since, Lord Shiva doesn’t differentiate between devatas and rakshas, he accepted his prayers.

Lord Shiva blessed Brahma Rakshas with boons, due to which he became more and more powerful with each sadhana he performed. Although Brahma Rakshas was born powerful, he became ever more powerful through the blessings and tutelage of Lord Shiva. This way, he multiplied the tamas in his body and he became so powerful that nobody could match him in the three worlds. He is the only character who has no element of satwa in him. He’s got his name as Brahma Rakshas because of Lord Brahma and nothing else.

The relevance of Brahma Rakshas in the Contemporary world (Kali Yuga)

As per “Siddha Dharma”, Kali Rakshas is known to be the reincarnation of Brahma Rakshas himself. The Kali Yuga is the age of tamas and it is the golden age for Kali Rakshas to operate in full purview. Therefore, the yuga is named as Kali Yuga.

As per “Siddha Dharma”, the alternative story also mentions that Kali Rakshas wanted to do something unprecedented in the history of the Rakshas world. Since the Rakshas were always defeated in a physical battle, he asked his Guru Mahasiddha Sukracharya for a way to be physically undefeated. Daitya Guru suggested to him that he who has a body and fights physically either wins the battle or gets killed. So, he suggested that if Kali Rakshas could transcend his physical body and achieve an ethereal body like Brahma Rakshas, he would be undefeatable because he couldn’t be killed nor could anybody slay him.

As per “Siddha Dharma”, Kali Rakshas then performed the sadhana of Brahma Rakshas to free himself from Prithvi and Jal tatwa to achieve an ethereal body. So, the main importance of Brahma Rakshas sadhana is not being Rakshas but to free oneself from Prithvi and Jal tatwa to achieve the ethereal body. Even devta possesses an ethereal body. Brahma Rakshas’ path is the path of tamas to achieve the ethereal body and the path that is most suited for Kali Yuga.

Brahma Rakshas as the Sobriquet

As per “Siddha Dharma”, Brahma Rakshas is also a sobriquet to suggest the achievement of any sadhaka. When a person achieves the level of Devata but through pure tamas path, the person becomes Brahma Rakshas. The Brahma Rakshas possesses everything the Devata has but is tamas personified. This is the vital difference between Devata and Brahma Rakshas.

Furthermore, Devata is preferred compared to Brahma Rakshas because Devata is society friendly and their path never leads to self-annihilation. Tamas is the path of the two-way sword, there is always some degree of self-annihilation therefore the tamas path should only be sought with the guidance of the right guru.

As per “Siddha Dharma”, a person who is exalted in spiritual sadhanas when is taken over by their ego, they also become Brahma Rakshas. When a person with high sadhana status doesn’t move up the satwik ladder but descends to tamas and maintains his power with tamas element, the person becomes “Brahma Rakshas” too.

Why is Brahma Rakshas Worshipped?

As per “Siddha Dharma”, Brahma Rakshas though being the epitome of tamas yet the worship of Brahma Rakshas is also allowed in Kaula Siddha Dharma. The primary reason for the worship and sadhana of Brahma Rakshas as mentioned earlier is to achieve the ‘sookshtar’ body and this is the best method in Kali Yuga because Kali Yuga is the aeon of tamas. This is the aeon where Devata’s power falls short against the tamasic shakti. To embrace tamas and to use tamas to one’s own benefit is what Siddhas recommend.

The Siddhas recommend Brahma Rakshas sadhana up to the point where the person can achieve the sookshmtar body only. Neither the Siddha Dharma nor the Siddha lineage advocates a person to become Brahma Rakshas. The Siddhas recommend using the Brahma Rakshas sadhana like using a knife. The knife would serve as the best utility but the knife should not be used to take away another’s life nor one’s own life.

Guru/Disciple Tradition

As per the “Siddha Dharma”, the Guru Disciple tradition of Brahma Rakshas originated from Lord Shiva himself as He was the guru of Brahma Rakshas. He taught him all tamasic vidhyas which are very secretive and because of Brahma Rakshas that sadhana still exists because of Guru-Disciple tradition.

The prominent scholar and Mahasiddha of Brahma Rakshas can be attributed to Mahasiddha Sukracharya. He learned this wisdom from Lord Shiva directly and initiated Kali Rakshas into this wisdom.

Furthermore, the wisdom of Brahma Rakshas was infused into Kaulantak Peeth tradition through Mahaguru Sukracharya himself too. Since Kaulantak Peeth also doesn’t discriminate between Devata and Daitya, this wisdom is still secure with Himalayan Siddhas.

As per “Siddha Dharma”, the wisdom of Brahma Rakshas had gone into hibernation and it was reintroduced into the mainstream Kaulantak Peeth tradition by the greatest Mahasiddha ever lived, Mahasiddha Matsyendra Nath Ji. He heard the wisdom of Brahma Rakshas directly from Shiva and then infused it into Kaulantak Peeth’s tradition.

Literature

The literature related to Brahma Rakshas is “Brahma Rakshas Kalpa” authored by the original Brahma Rakshas himself. Not everything in the literature is Asuri. It has very useful insights as to how tamas can be used for one’s benefit and is the antidote of tamas too.