Bankasura
Every question on the site tagged Bankasura, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
A demon slain by Lord Virabhadra (Sokha Baba) while terrorizing the islands toward Lakshadweep and Sri Lanka — like other slain demons in Tantric legend, he requested and was granted a place of worship, and is venerated today at a temple in Surajpur, Chhattisgarh with full sacrificial rites.
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Who is the demon Bankasura, and how is he connected to Virabhadra's legend?
Bankasura was a demon who terrorized the islands toward Lakshadweep and Sri Lanka, killing many but consuming only one person daily under a treaty with local residents — he is still venerated today at an established temple in Surajpur, Chhattisgarh with full sacrificial rites.
How did Virabhadra, in his child form, save the devotee Pingala's son from Bankasura?
When it was widow Pingala's turn to sacrifice her son to Bankasura, she invoked Virabhadra, who manifested in a terrifying thousand-armed form before assuming the gentle child form Bala Virabhadra, assuring Pingala he would slay the demon that day — which he did once Bankasura reached to devour him first.
Why did Virabhadra grant Bankasura a place of worship after slaying him?
While being slain, Bankasura requested to also be worshipped — following a recurring Tantric motif of slain demons (Mahishasura, the Bhairava at Vaishno Devi, Durgamasura, Kolhasura) requesting worship — and Virabhadra granted him the Surajpur region, where he would later be worshipped under specific Tamasic Tantric rites.
How did Virabhadra earn the name 'Sokha'?
After slaying Bankasura, whose massive collapsing body submerged the path between the battle site and Pingala's home under the sea, Virabhadra swallowed the entire ocean to create a passage back for Pingala and her son, then released the water back — earning him the name 'Sokha' (one who dried up the ocean).
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