IMPORTANCE OF FIVE FACES OF PARAMESHVARA......................&......Pancha mantra.

IMPORTANCE OF FIVE FACES OF PARAMESHVARA......................&......Pancha mantra.

. "AUM NAMASIVAYA"

The Five Faces of Shiva....................

The five-faced Shiva and associated teachings remains somewhat a mystery to students of spirituality. While the teachings regarding the five faces are somewhat expansive, there is a great deal one can learn from the five faces as they contain numerous lessons and fulfill an important role within ones spiritual practice. Shiva’s five faces can be associated with many groupings of five such as the five elements, the five koshas (sheaths that surround the soul) and the first five chakras.

The five faces of Shiva.......Are..........

1. Sadyojāta

2. Vāmadeva

3. Aghora

4. Tatpurusha

5. Īshāna

1. Sadyojāta........ is associated with the western direction and represents Icchā Shaktī--will power. Sadyojāta is associated with Manomaya Kosha—the sheath covering the soul that consists of mind. Additionally, this face is associated with the fire element representing the fire of the mind and the fire of the body. This face is Shiva’s function as the creative force and is associated with Manipura chakra.

Sadyojata Mantra.....

sadyojātaṁ prapadyāmi sadyojātāya vai namo namaḥ

bhave bhavenātibhave bhavasva māṁ bhavodbhavāya namaḥ

I submit my mind, speech and body totally and repeatedly to Lord Sadyojata, who manifests Himself and instantaneously creates bodies and worlds, who appears to devotees in the forms contemplated by them and yet transcends such forms assumed by Him and who has a retinue of Deities formed of millions of mantras. May He make my form as of His own form.

2. Vāmadeva....... is associated with the northern direction. This face of Shiva is associated with the shakti of strength and beauty as well as the goddess Maya. Vāmadeva is associated with the Vijῆānamaya Kosha. This face is the Citta rūpa, the form of the universal consciousness limited to the individual mind. Several traditions believe that mantra to Vāmadeva has considerable healing benefit. This is the preserving energy of Shiva and is connected with the air element as well as the Ānahata Chakra.

Vamadeva Mantra................

vāmadevāya namo jyeshṭhāya namaḥ śreshṭhāya namo rudrāya namaḥ kālāya namaḥ

kalavikaraṇāya namo balavikaraṇāya namo balāya namo balapramathanāya namas

sarvabhūta damanāya namo manonmanāya namaḥ

Salutations to the luminous Lord who sportively creates everything. Salutations to the One who is eternally the Eldest, transcending the great cycles of time. Salutations to the One whose lordship excels all other Gods. Salutations to the One who wards off the sufferings of all living beings. Salutations to the One who is Eternal Time. Salutations to the One who sets into operation the divisions of time and maintains the worlds in an orderly way. Salutations to the One who, being the source of strength, strengthens the auspicious forces. Salutations to the One who, being the wielder of strength, withdraws the strength of inauspicious forces and extirpates them. Salutations to the One who guides all souls to ultimately reach Him.

3. Aghora........ is associated with the southern direction and jῆāna Shaktī--the power of knowledge; as well as the Buddhi rūpa meaning the form of the intellect. This face is associated with the Pranamaya Kosha, and represents the rejuvenating and dissolving qualities of Shiva as well as being connected to the water element and Svadishthana chakra.

Aghora Mantra............

aghorebhyotha ghorebhyo ghora ghoretarebhyas sarvebhyas sarvasarvebhyo

namaste astu rudrarūpebhyaḥ.

Salutations to Lord Siva who manifests Himself in countless benign forms, in frightful and terrifying forms, and to all those countless forms of Rudra (eulogized in the Sri Rudram hymn). Salutations to all such manifestations of Lord Siva.

4. Tatpurusha....... is the eastern face. This face represents the parātman or supreme soul behind the physical being. This form is Ānānda Shaktī, the power of bliss. Connected with the Annamaya kosha, tatpurusha in its higher manifestation is bliss; in the lower manifestation, it is the concealing power of Shiva. This face is associated with the earth element, muladhara chakra and is considered beneficial for increasing focus.

Thathpurusha Mantra.......

tatpurushāya vidmahe mahādevāya dhīmahi tanno rudraḥ prachodayāt.

As guided by my guru, I realize the form of Siva known as Tatpurusha. I meditate with pure mind and refined intellect on the Great Illuminator. Let Tatpurusha—who cuts asunder the limiting bonds of the souls and by this act comes to be known as Rudra—guide, enlighten and strengthen my organs of knowledge and action and my internal faculties.

5. Īshāna........... is the upper or skyward face. It is the Citta Shaktī or power of the individual consciousness to realize the universal consciousness. This form is associated with Akasha or ether, and the Vishuddha chakra. This is the total energy of Shiva encompassing all attributes of Shiva. This is the face of Shiva that is the revealing power and is associated with the Anandamaya kosha.

While one can benefit from chanting a mantra to all the faces before beginning one’s sadhana, meditation or other spiritual activity, it is important to note that there is an astrological aspect as well. Each of us has a karmic disposition to one face over the other regarding a particular karmas within this lifetime.

Ishana Mantra..............

īśānassarva vidyānām īśvaras sarva bhūtānām brahmādhipatir brahmaṇo’dhipatir

brahmā śivo me astu sadāśivom.

Lord Ishana—the Supreme Lord and Revealer of all knowledge and spiritual disciplines, the nourisher and controller of all living beings, the Directing Lord of Sadasiva, He who is the guiding and directing authority for the eight Vidyeshvaras, who directs Brahma, Vishnu and others—may He present Himself in this Sivalinga. By such benign presence, let there occur absolute purity and auspiciousness in me. Om.

Five Main Functions of Lord Shiva.........

Panchanana Aspects or Forms of Lord Shiva - Panchamukhi Shiva.

Panchamukhi Shiva – Aum Pancvaktraye Vidmahe Mahadevaye Dhimahi Tanno Rudra Prachodayat.

1. Destruction (Laya or Samhara)......

He is the creator as we as the one who ends things. He is responsible for controlling the life cycle. So the things he creates are also destroyed or brought to an end by him. Hence he is the destroyer.

2. Creation (Shristi)........

He is responsible for all forms of creation around us. He manifests himself into this nature and the individual souls of the living. He is responsible for balancing this creation and the life in it.

3. Preservation (Sthiti).......

He is the preserver of everything that he creates and manifests. He is the one that provides us the power of breathing and the fire that helps us in digesting. He provides all living beings with water, air and food and makes life possible.

4. Revelation (Anugraha)......

Lord Shiva represents the truth as well as supreme knowledge. He is the one responsible for providing liberation to all the beings. Without his blessings attaining inner peace and liberation is not possible. In order to attain liberation one must do good karma and worship Shiva with faith and devotion.

5. Concealment (Tirobhava)................

He is responsible for concealing or keeping this world under delusion. He does not let the living beings perceive their true nature or become aware of his presence. He remains hidden and keeps the beings suppressed in order to maintain order and stability in the world.

Lord Shiva is a five faced God. These five faces represent the five different forms of Lord Shiva. These forms represent the following things-

Five different directions.

Five different elements.

Five divisions of the human body.

Five divisions of time.

Five senses of the humans.

Five different energies.

Five different colors.

The five faces of Shiva are responsible for the creation of this world and its beings. Creation is made using the five forms of Shiva. Without it creation is not possible.

Panchanana Aspects or Forms of Lord Shiva - Panchamukhi Shiva......

1. Sadyojata (the Revealer).........

Direction– West

Color– White

Element– Fire

Sense– Taste

Body organ– Sex organ

Sadyojata is a combination of two words – ‘Sadyaha’ which means just now and ‘Jataha’ which means now born. Shiva manifests himself and makes his presence known through the newborn souls. In this he is the creator. Shiva enters the Jeevi and causes Jeevana. Sadyojata shows the creative aspect of lord Shiva. As a being exists in this world through his birth, this aspect of Lord Shiva is worshiped first. This aspect is associated with the color white which represents purity. Shiva is shown as white holding the Vedas and rosary in two hands and showing gestures of protection and granting wishes in the other.

This aspect is associated with the western direction and it also represents our will power. It represents our mind and our tastes and pleasures life. As the aspect is associated with fire it represents the fire in our body as well as mind.

The prayer for this form of Lord Shiva is

Shivam Shaantam Jagannatham

Lokaanugraha Kaaranam

Shivam Ekam Param Vande

Shikaaraaya Namo Namaha

2. Vamadeva (the Concealer)..............

Direction– North

Color– Red

Element– Air

Sense– Sight

Body Organ– The feet

The term Vama means left as well as innocent. When we stand facing the east direction, the north is to our left. If we stand facing east, north direction is to our left. So, in this aspect Shiva is the north faced lord and hence he is worshiped as Vamadeva. In this aspect Shiva is shown as red in color wearing red ornaments with four hands- rosary and hatchet in two hands and the other two showing gestures of protection and granting wishes.

This face of Shiva is associated the Shakti i.e. strength. It represents Maya, the grand illusion and feminine strength and beauty. It also represents the power of action in our body.

The prayer for Lord Shiva in this aspect is...............

Vaahanam Vrushabho Yasya

Vasukihi Kantha Bhushanam

Vaame Shati Dharam Vande

Va Kaaraaya Namo Namaha

3. Aghora (the destroyer)......

Direction– South

Color– Dark red or black

Element– Water

Sense– Hearing

Body organ– Speech

Panchanana Aspects or Forms of Lord Shiva - Panchamukhi Shiva Linga.....

This aspect is also known as Rudra. When we stand facing the east south is to our right. Hence in this aspect Shiva is the south faced lord. In Aghora – ghora means the dreaded. So in this aspect Shiva has raw powers and his main function is destruction and hence he is also called the destroyer. He provides justice and enforces law. He shown having four faces and nine hands that carry an axe, shield, elephant hook, noose, spear, skull, drum and rosary.

This aspect is associated with the power of the mind and represents the power of knowledge as well as intellect in a person. Those who worshiped the aghora form of Shiva were called as Aghoris. Their main belief is that there is no such thing called “inauspicious” in this world because all that exists if Shiva himself.

The prayer for Lord Shiva in this aspect is-......

Mahadevam Mahatmanam

Maha Paataka Nashanam

Maha Paapa Haram Vande

Makaaraaya Namo Namaha

4. Tatpurusha (the Cosmic being).....

Direction– East

Color– Golden

Element– Element

Sense– Smell

Body organ– Anus

In Tatpurusha, the word ‘Tat’ means Paramatma. Altogether Tatpurusha means Saguna filled Parabahma form. This form of Shiva is always in mediations and provides abundant blessings to the world. Also this form of Shiva is the east faced god hence he represents the rising sun. He is shown as golden in color with three eyes and four faces. He wears clothes that are yellow in color and stands in the company of Goddess Gayathri. Also Tatpurusha signifies Shiva as a protector of all living beings.

This form represents the power of bliss. Also since it is associated with earth, it also represents our focusing power.

The prayer for this form of Lord Shivais-.....

Namaste Deva Devesha

Namaste Parameshvara

Namaste Vrushabharuudha

Na Kaaraaya Namo Namaha

5. Ishana (the Lord).......

Direction– Upward or Skyward

Color– Copper

Element– Space or ether

Sense– Touch

Body organ– Hands

Ishana is derived from the word ‘Ishvara’ which is a combination of ‘Isha’ and ‘Aishwarya. Hence this form of Shiva represents him as the lord or Ishana of all the fourteen worlds. Also in this form the face of Shiva is towards the sky. This shows us that the fifth face is on top of the other four faces that are facing the four different directions. This face is skywards. Which means it is on top of the other four faces which face the four directions. In this aspect Shiva is shown as copper in color standing alongside a she-goat. He has a total of 10 hands. In his hands he carries the Vedas, an elephant hook, a noose, hatchet, skull, drum, rosary and trident. The remaining two hands show the gesture of protection and granting wishes.

This fifth face of Shiva represents the creation – balance – annihilation energies and control and chaos energies. It indicates the total encompassing energy of Lord Shiva. In humans it represents the power of their consciousness to realize universal consciousness.

The prayer for this form of Lord Shiva is............

Yatra Kutra Sthitam Devam

Sarva Vyaapi Namishvaram

Yallingam Puujayeennithyam

Ya Kaaraaya Namo Namaha

These five forms and functions of Shiva are essential for our existence, continuation, transformation, purification and liberation. So we be aware of them and worship them accordingly.

J.KANNAN, M.Com, FIATA

"WE DON'T THINK TO BREATHE

 WE BREATHE TO THINK"