Elements of Hindu Iconography v4.c31.11

v4.c31.11

Aghōraśivāchārya in his *Vighnēśvara-pratishṭhavidhi*, gives a *dhyāna-ślōka* in which the dog is said to be the vehicle of Kshētrapāla.¹ The Tamil *Nighaṇṭus* agree with this authority in this respect; the *Piṅgala-nighaṇṭu* distinctly mentions that Kañchuka, Kāri, Mukta, Nirvāṇi, Siddha, Kapāli, Vaṭuka and Bhairava are the other names of Kshētrapāla. From this it will be evident that the so-called Kshētrapāla is no other than Bhairava described elsewhere and therefore need not have been treated here in a separate chapter; but since the *āgamas* deal with this aspect of Śiva, which is said