13. Forms are for Visualization

In his commentary on Mṛgendra Āgama, Aghora Śivācārya (12^th century) is careful to point out that while we speak of Śiva with five faces and many limbs, He does not actually possess these features. This visualization is only for the sake of meditation and adoration.

In Śaiva Siddhānta philosophy, Lord Śiva, God, is All and in all, and is understood in three modes: formless (niṣkala), formed-formless (sakala-niṣkala), and formed (sakala). In the formless mode, Śiva is Absolute Reality, Paraśiva; in the formed-formless mode, Śiva is Pure Consciousness, Paraśakti; in the formed mode, Śiva is Personal Lord, Parameśvara. Śiva is represented in the main shrine of nearly all Śiva temples as the Śivaliṅga. This an iconic mūrti represents the formedformless aspect of God. Metaphysically, the Absolute Reality, Paraśiva, which is formless, comes to be known as Sadāśiva when He presents Himself in the Śivaliṅga. Sadāśiva means eternally pure and auspicious. In temple ceremonies (pūjā) based on the Śaiva Āgamas, it is this fivefold form of Śiva that is being worshiped in the Śivaliṅga. To show this, some temples include in their decorations a metal covering over the Liṅga with four faces engraved in it. The fifth face, Īśāna, may be shown on the top, but is most commonly omitted. Some Śivaliṅgas have the faces carved into the Liṅga itself. Thus, the Īśāna face looks upward. Tatpuruṣa faces east. Aghora faces south. Vamādeva is turned northward. Sadyojāta looks west. In some temples, Pañcabrahma is also represented by five distinct mūrtis displayed in a prominent place, such as on the outside of the main tower above the sanctum.

In the Ajita Āgama, Sadāśiva is said to be formed-formless because His body is made up of five Mantras^[1]. In Sanskrit, this etheric vessel is termed vidyādeha or “knowledge body.” The five Mantras, known collectively as the Pañcabrahma Samhitā Mantra, are: Īśāna Mūrdha, Tatpuruṣa Vaktra, Aghora Hṛdaya, Vāmadeva Guhya and Sadyojāta Mūrta. At the subtle level at which Sadāśiva exists, there is still not a definite body in form, only the seeds or potentialities of sound, colour and knowledge.

In his introduction to the Ajita Āgama, Pierre-Sylvain Filliozat, offers insight into Sadāśiva in Śaiva Siddhānta: “Śaivism is a religion of one God, the supreme Śiva (Paraśiva). Numerous entities are around Him. They are His creations and consequently His subjects with definite functions. They participate of His own essence in different degrees. The major ones among them are said to be engendered by Him or to be outward manifestations of Himself. We use the word hypostasis, or “substate,” to refer to the concept of emanation of a subsidiary entity from the Supreme, as it expresses in the most general way the idea of existence separated from the essence without altering the unity of the latter. The reason given for the fact of hypostasis of the Supreme God is the necessity of communication. The Supreme is characterized as inaccessible to senses, speech and mind. That would render worship impossible. The Supreme makes Himself accessible through accessible hypostases. In the Śaiva religion, the main hypostasis is Sadāśiva; and Śaiva worship is precisely the worship of Sadāśiva. The communication with the entity comes through five Brahma Mantras, which are formulas of homage to five entities: Īśāna, Tatpuruṣa, Aghoraśiva, Vāmadeva and Sadyojāta. Communion is realized through the mental image of five heads, bearing the same names and placed, respectively, at the zenith, in the east, south, north and west. The basic action of the worshiper is meditation (dhyāna) on these five heads. Meditation and bodily actions need a point of fixation (dhāraṇa), a material support and target. This is the Liṅga, a name given in the Ajita Āgama only in its sense of ‘sign.’^[2]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

vide. Śi.s.p.120 See the Appendix-V.

[2]:

Swami Bodhirathe, Article, Intro-The five powers of Śiva-Hinduism Today-July/Aug/Sep. 2012.