Bijnor: Bhairav the dog has returned to Nandpur in Bijnor, and the village has once again come to a standstill. The scrawny, tawny-furred dog, revered as a manifestation of Lord Shiva, completed the 180-km journey back from a Noida animal shelter on Wednesday. His arrival was kept secret to avoid a mob, but word travelled fast. Soon, people from all corners of the village were streaming to the temple to catch a glimpse of their prodigal god.
“Humare Bhairav aa gaye, ab hoga jashn” (Our Bhairav has come, now we will celebrate), said Munni, one of the women who had gathered to see him at the Uttar Pradesh village. Many were dressed in colourful sarees and other finery because they were attending a dawat when they heard of Bhairav’s arrival.
Grand plans are already being made: a bhandara to serve thousands, a yatra, and the completion of a samadhi for a pigeon that once sat on Bhairav’s head. Some have even spoken of constructing a samadhi for Bhairav himself, should he leave his earthly form.
On Wednesday, Bhairav, subdued and wrapped in a fluffy off-white blanket, arrived with an informal security detail. Activists guarded him closely, keeping laddoos away and telling the crush of devotees to keep a distance as he might bite if stressed. He has only just recovered after weeks of treatment for a tick-borne infection that vets said may have caused his hours-long circling of a Hanuman idol—which led to villagers worshipping him—along with intestinal swelling worsened by excessive feeding.
Villagers’ love and devotion contributed to his precarious health. On 11 January, the eight-month-old stray was seen walking repeatedly around a Hanuman idol at the temple, and later around statues of Shiva and Durga. Some said the ritual went on for 36 hours, others for 72. The dog was called divine and renamed Bhairav, after Lord Shiva’s canine form. News channels looped clips of his so-called parikrama. Devotees fed him batasha, ladoo, puri, gajar ka halwa, sooji ka halwa. A dog that had not eaten properly for days was suddenly overwhelmed with food.
As his condition worsened, a Bijnor-based animal welfare group, Prem Path, intervened and took him to Delhi, much to the chagrin of villagers. Blood tests there showed that Bhairav had a tick-borne bacterial infection, anaplasma, that can also cause neurological symptoms.
“The bacteria can affect the brain, and it is very common in dogs,” veterinarian Shubham Katiyar, who treated Bhairav, told ThePrint earlier. “The devotees were feeding him wrong, he is a dog for god’s sake! His doctor has advised medicines for 15 days. And he cannot be fed fried and sweet dishes.”
The vets in Delhi have done what they could. The question now is whether Bhairav can survive a new round of devotion in Bijnor.
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Rescue in the dark
The first stop for Bhairav in Nandpur was at the premises of Prem Path, where paperwork was finalised for his adoption by resident Ashwini Saini, a first-year college student who lives in a kachcha house about 100 metres from the temple.
“I wanted him to be in the village. The temple was not a feasible option. At my home, even if it is small, he will be protected,” said Saini, who was among the first to alert animal activists to Bhairav’s deteriorating health.
When the dog’s rounds of the idol began last month, the village erupted in shouts of “Bhairav ji aaye hai”. Until then, the Nandpur temple had seen few visitors beyond local residents but now it was flooded with devotees from nearby villages and districts. A priest was appointed. The crowds came for Bhairav, not for Nandpur baba. People stood in queues to see the dog as he slept on a makeshift bed, covered with a red quilt. They showered him with food, money and faith. But animal activists noted that Bhairav was suddenly listless and looked frail.
Getting the dog treatment was an arduous and even dangerous task, said Ashwini Chitransh, the founder of Prem Path. The priest and devotees initially didn’t allow it, but it was finally agreed that a drip would be given to Bhairav on the temple premises, so supplicants could still do darshan. But when the dog didn’t get better, Chitransh coordinated with other activists in Delhi-NCR to get him smuggled out of the temple in the dead of night, leaving a decoy in his place.
“By god’s grace we were able to get him out of there. Staying there was a danger to his life— and even our lives with so many angry devotees,” he said.
According to the caregivers who travelled with Bhairav to Delhi, he vomited throughout the four-hour journey. Weak, dehydrated, and underweight at only 14 kg, he was first taken to Max Vets in East of Kailash on 17 January, and then transferred to House of Stray Animals, run by activist Sanjay Mohapatra.
Bhairav’s care was officially entrusted to science, but even here the aura of the ‘sacred’ followed him. After arriving at the shelter, Bhairav initially refused to eat. But when a shelter worker chanted the Hanuman Chalisa, he ate some paneer, Mohapatra said. After that, the prayer was played for him every day.
Recovery was difficult. On his fifth day at the shelter, as caretakers tried to hold him steady for an injection, Bhairav curled into himself, snapping defensively whenever a hand came close. As four men struggled to place a muzzle on him, Mohapatra began to chant: “Jai Hanuman gyaan guru…” He seemed to calm down and the muzzle was placed.
“He is Bhairav, our god, he is important for us,” said Mohapatra, who supported the dog being sent back to Bijnor even though he “would have died” without the rescue. He’s worried about the uncertain fate of Delhi’s stray dogs amid the Supreme Court case on how they should be managed.
“Bhairav is safer there than in Delhi NCR,” he said.
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The return
Devotees jostled to catch a glimpse as a hesitant Bhairav was led into the temple for a quick darshan. Hungry, he began chewing on marigolds strewn on the floor. A bowl was quickly arranged and this time, he was fed packaged dog food rather than prasad.
“We will take care of him, he is our god. We will feed him whatever the doctor has asked for,” said Bijnor resident Mahesh Saini, who sped over on his bike as soon as he heard Bhairav was back.
As night fell, men using their mobile phones made their way to the temple from nearby lanes. “A lot of women are just finishing making rotis for the night and will come soon, said resident Sudha Devi. Children gawked, but kept a respectful distance.
The wait for his return had been restless. In his absence, villagers organised a bhandara with the Rs 30,000 given as chanda for Bhairav, though residents said it was not the same without him. Every day two or three cars would drive up to the temple, only to leave disappointed.
Even when he wasn’t there, villagers spoke of blessings Bhairav had bestowed. One “miracle”, they said, was a new entry gate for the temple.
“For the last two years we have been trying to get a gate for the temple premises, but a Muslim family that lived there refused to let us build it,” said resident Sanjib Lal. “After Bhairav came and the number of devotees increased, the family agreed for the gate to be put up.”
But there was also a hint of anxiety. When Bhairav, now on medication for the tick-borne infection, was taken near the Hanuman idol, he did not circle it. Village elders told the doubtful to be patient and reassured them that it’s only a matter of time.
“Bhairav is just confused,” said Narendra Kumar. “Once the god understands he is home, he will start taking rounds again.”
(Edited by Asavari Singh)