Kal Bhairav temple, Hindu temple in Ujjain district, India.

Kal Bhairav Mandir is a Hindu temple on the banks of the Shipra River in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. Its pale cream base and pink upper walls rise to a stepped pink shikhara topped by a small orange flag. Eight cream pillars with rounded capitals and red square blocks support the entrance porch, where a brass bell hangs from a curved yellow arch above broad white marble steps.

Archaeologists found images of Shiva, Parvati, Vishnu and Ganesha from the Paramara period between the 9th and 13th centuries at this site. These finds show that the location served as a center of worship in medieval times and underwent rebuilding over the centuries.

Worshippers pour alcohol directly before the shrine as an offering to Bhairav, a practice tied to releasing attachment to worldly concerns. This tradition connects to tantric rituals still followed in Ujjain and draws pilgrims from across the country who come to participate.

The temple stands on the bank of the Shipra River, with the sanctum reached by a flight of white marble steps. Priests do not allow visitors to examine the deity's rock face closely, and only the officiating priest performs the liquor offering. During the 2016 Ujjain Simhastha, the state government banned liquor sales across Ujjain for a month but exempted the shops in front of this temple.

The temple's silver head of Kal Bhairav wears a Maratha-style pagri, a tradition traced to Mahadaji Shinde. A replica of the temple stands on the Bhuj-Mundra road in Gujarat. The priest alone is said to perform the liquor-swallowing ritual, and visitors are not allowed to examine the statue.