Gayatri Mahima

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Q.7. Why is Gayatri represented as a deity with five faces?

 

Ans. Descriptions of deities and characters in mythology showing many heads and

arms are common and may appear odd and paganish to a person not familiar with

the subtleties of Indian spiritual tradition. Brahma and Vishnu have been

described as having four faces, Shiva with five, Kartikeya with six, Durga with

eight and Ganesha with ten heads. It is said that the demon king Ravana had ten

heads and twenty arms; and sahastrabahu, another demon had a thousand hands.

Here, the numbers do not refer to the physiology, but to characteristics of the

divine or evil attributes of the deities or demons as the case may be.

 

Indian spirituality frequently mentions five-fold classifications - such as the

five basic elements of the cosmos (Tatvas); the five sheaths (Koshas) covering

the human soul; the five organs each of perception and action in the human body

(Gyanendriyas and Karmendriyas), the five life-forces (Prans); the five types of

energies operating in human bodies (Agnis); the five types of Yoga ....etc. The

Gayatri Mantra, too is divisible in five parts namely (1) Om (2) Bhurbhuwaha

Swaha (3) Tatsaviturvareniyam (4) Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi (5) Dhiyo Yonaha

Prachodayat. Each of these corresponds to the five primary emanation of the

supreme spirit: Ganesh, Bhawani, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh respectively. The

entire super-science of spirituality too is encapsuled in the four Vedas and one

Yagya. The five faces of Gayatri refer to these Divine attributes, which the

Sadhak has to deal with in course of Sadhana.