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Studies in Indian Art c13.s4: 37. Pañcha-Vaktra or Kīrtimukha Motif

Studies in Indian Art c13.s4

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37. Pañcha-Vaktra or Kīrtimukha Motif

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Of the Eight Forms of Śiva, as explained in Śaiva philosophy, there are three categories:

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I Mind—called मनस्, यजमान, होत्री, दीक्षित, ब्राह्मण, सोमयाजी, etc.

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II Energy—called प्राण, or प्राणापान, or सूर्यचन्द्रमसौ, representing the dual form of energy.

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III Matter—comprising the Five Elements, पृथिवी, जल, तेज, वायु, आकाश, the पञ्चभूत or the gross material forms.

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This constitutes the *Aṣṭamūrti* principle of manifestation, referred to by Kālidāsa as the eight visible forms of Śiva (प्रत्यक्षाभिः प्रपन्नस्तनुभिरवतु वस्ताभिरष्टाभिरीशः, *Śākuntala*). We find very ample elaboration of these in the *Liṅga Purāṇa* (Uttara Khaṇḍa, chs. 12, 13). The gross Five Elements or the Pañcha Bhūtas are symbolised by the lion, who is mentioned as the servant of Bhūtapati Śiva (*Bhūtanāthānuga*, Raghu. II. 58). The Five Elements were regarded as the five faces of Śiva called Pañchānana or Pañchamukhī, whose iconographic form was concived of as the Liṅga with 5 faces. By the use of double entendre on the word Pañcha the lion was also described as Pañchānana and considered to be an appropriate symbol of the Pañchamūrtis or the Five material Elements of Rudra’s esoteric form.

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The artistic symbol of the lion-face (*Kīrtivaktra* or *Harivaktra*) was gradually sublimated in the temple architecture of the Gupta age. The *Vāyu Purāṇa* giving an elaborate description of a *Sahasrapāda Prāsāda* of Śiva (corresponding to a *Sahasrastambha-maṇḍapa* temple) speaks of the lion-faces carved on the pillars, showing different expressions and beautified by the chain ornament fastened on the four sides of the shafts:

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तस्य प्रासादमुख्यस्य स्तम्भेषुत्तमशोभितु ॥१२९०॥ संयताग्न्यमीभिसु शृङ्खलाभिः पृथक् पृथक् ।
मायासहस्रं सिंहानां मुखं तत्र निवासिनाम् ॥१२९१॥ (*Vāyu Purāṇa*, ch. 101)

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The chain-motif with lion-faces is a typical description of Gupta pillars. Rudra and Agni were both considered to be identical (ŚB. 5.3.1. 10, etc.) and to be Paśupati:

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सोऽसौ रुद्रात्मको वह्निर्ब्रह्मणो मानसः सुतः । (*Śiva Purāṇa*, Vāyavīya Sam., 17.137)
रुद्रास्यानुचराग्नयः (Harivaṃśa, 2.122.24)
अहमग्निर्महातेजाः सोमश्चैषा महाम्बिका । (*Liṅga Purāṇa*, 1.34.7)
अग्निरित्युच्यते रौद्री घोरा या तैजसी तनुः । (*Śiva Purāṇa*, Vāya., 28.3)

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The chain-motif on the pillars thus symbolised the flames of fire and the lion-face the Paśupati aspect of Śiva. मायासहस्रं of Vāyu 101. 21 has reference to the multiple forms created by the Māyā or power of Rudra. Each of the thousand pillars in the temple of Śiva corresponds to the yūpa or stake of a Vedic Yajña. The Purnanio Rishis of naimishāraṇya questioned about the symbolism of the lion-faces and they were told that they represented ‘the wrath’ of Rudra, which born from his body or the single fiery principle assumes diverse myriad forms:

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अथ तत्प्रतिसंपूज्य वायोर्वाक्यं सुविस्मिताः । ऋषयः प्रत्यभाषन्त नैमिष्यास्तेपस्विन्ः ॥१२९२॥
भगवन् सर्वभूतानां प्राण सर्वत्र प्रभो । के ते सिंहमहाभूताः क्व ते जाताः किमात्मकाः ॥१२९३॥

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सिंहाः केनापराधेन भूतानां प्रभविष्णुना । वैश्वानरमयैः पाशैः संरुद्धास्तु पृथक् पृथक् ॥१२९४॥ तेषां तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा वायुर्वाक्यं जगाद ह । यद्वै सहस्रं सिंहानामीश्वरेण महात्मना ॥ व्यपनीय स्वकादेहात्क्रोधास्ते सिंहविग्रहाः ॥१२९५॥ भूतानामभयं दत्वा पुरा बद्धाग्निबन्धने । यज्ञभागनिमित्तं च ईश्वरस्याऽऽज्ञया तदा ॥१२९६॥ (Vāyu P. Ch. 101)

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The *Vaiśvānara* Fire manifesting in each body is the fiery chain that keeps the five elements in the form of lions (*Simha Mahābhūtas*) tied together. That Fire represents a flicker of Śiva's Anger (*Krodha*), which is the same as the *manyu* of the *Śata-rudriya* litany of the *Yajurveda*:

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नमस्ते रुद्र मन्यवऽउतोतऽ इषवे नमः । बाहुभ्यामुत ते नमः ॥

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Each lion symbolises the wrath of Rudra, but is kept restrained by the fiery chain forged for him in each *Yajña*. One of the beasts was permitted to get loose from this ordered dispensation (*Vidhāna*) and he as Vīrabhadra wrought havoc to Dakṣa's sacrifice:

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तेषां विधानमुक्तेन सिंहेनकेन लीलया । देव्या मन्युं कृतं ज्ञात्वा हतो दक्षस्य सक्रतुः ॥१२९७॥
स एष भगवान् क्रोधो रुद्रावासकृतालयः । वीरभद्रो प्रमेयात्मा देव्या मन्युप्रमार्जनः ॥१२९८॥

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The grotesque lion-face, *Siṃhamukha* or *Kīrtimukha* as described by the *Mānasāra* seems to have become very popular and a universal feature of Gupta temple architecture. From India the motif travelled to Indonesia where enormous *Kīrtimukha* crown the main entrance of the magnificent Śiva temple of Chandi Kalasan in the Prambanam group (Comaraswamy, *History of Indian and Indonesian Art*, p. 203).

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This *Kīrtimukha* motif received the technical name of *pañcavaktra* and found a conspicuous place on medieval temple gateways, as mentioned in the following:

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मन्दारोमयपक्षे तु कीर्तिवक्त्रद्वयं भवेत् ॥१५९॥ भुकुट्या कुटिलाक्षं च दंष्ट्राभिः समलंकृतम् ।
कर्णोपश्रृंगैस्तदधः शाखापत्रैलङ्कृतम् ॥१६१॥ (*Aparājitaprichchhā*, ch. 129)

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*i.e.* on the sides of the two festoons (*mandāra*) there should be two *Kīrtivaktra*, whose grotesque appearance should be indicated by frowning eyebrows, and bulging eyes, fangs, ears and projecting horns (*upśṛnga*). Or, we find in the *Kāśyapa-śilpa*,

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पञ्चवक्त्रसमायुक्तं पार्श्वयोर्मकरास्यकम् ।

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*i.e.* on the gateway known as *makaratoraṇa*, there should be a *pūrima* (spase-filling spiral or festoon) motif in the centre and on its two sides two makara-faces combined with the grotesque form of *Pañcavaktra* or *Kīrtimukhas* (*Kāśyapa-śilpa*, 12.8). Describing a *stambha-toraṇa*, it is said:

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फलकं पञ्चवक्त्राढ्यं प्रागुक्तविधिना कुरु । वक्त्राढ्यं मकरास्यं वा चित्रतोरणमेव वा ॥
(*Kāśyapa-śilpa*, 14.27)

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*i.e.* the front portion of the beam or lintel of a *toraṇa* should be adorned with the lion-face (*pañcavaktra*) motif, and it is variously named as *vaktratoraṇa*, *makaratoraṇa* or *chitratoraṇa*. Indeed in the medieval art-motifs the *pañcavaktra* or *Kīrtimukha* decoration had become very much formalised so that it also seemed to resemble a makaramukha, specially owing to goggle eyes and projecting horns. The traditional architects name it as girāsaḍā from the word grās meaning a lion-face, and also śaṅkaḍā, from śaṅku or an elongated horn-like appendage.

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We have in the Padma Purāṇa a parable relating to the origin of this rather important motif of the Kīrtimukha. It is said that once Rāhu, as the emissary of the demon-king Jalandhara, approached Śiva, causing great consternation amongst members of his family and their vāhanas:

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अथेश्वर जटाजूटादाविरासीद् गणो महान् ।।३६।।
त्रिआन नस्त्रिचरणस्त्रिपुच्छः सप्तहस्तवान् । स च कीर्तिमुखो नाम पिंगलो जटिलो महान् ।।३७।।
तं दृष्ट्वा च कपालाली भयात्तस्थौ मृतेव सा । पुरतः प्राह सगणस्ततः कीर्तिमुखः प्रभुम् ।।३८।।
प्रणिपत्य शिवं देवमत्यर्थं क्रोधितः प्रभो । तदोक्तः शंकरेणास भक्षयत्वं रणे हतान् ।।३९।।
क्षणं विचार्य सगणः क्वाप्यदृष्ट्वा रणं तदा । ब्रह्माणं भक्षितुं प्राप्तः शंकरेण निवारितः ।।४०।।
ततः कीर्तिमुखेनाथ स्वांगं सर्वं च भक्षितम् । भुक्षितेन चात्यन्तं निषिद्धेन च सर्वतः ।।४१।।
तत्साहसं तदा दृष्ट्वा भक्तितं कीर्तिमुखस्य च । तमुवाचेश्वरः प्रीतः प्रासादे तिष्ठ मे सदा ।।४२।।
त्वच्चित्तरहितो यश्च भविष्यति ममालये । स पतिष्यति शीघ्रं हीत्युक्तः सोऽन्तर्हितोऽभवत् ।।४३।।
(Padma Purāṇa, Uttara Khaṇḍa, ch. 11).

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The Chandralekha ornament on Śiva's head oozed out its ambrosial fluid owing to the fiery sniffings of the serpent Vāsuki, as a result of which Śiva's body was drenched with it, and the series of heads became fresh with life again and muttered their practised recitations. There ensued a lively debate amongst them as to each one's superior rank and priority of function, and they also became depressed with the thought of omissions in their duties. (Thus when the five heads were in a state of confusion) there sprang up a mighty Gaṇa from the pile of Śiva's matted locks. He has three faces, three feet, three tails and seven hands,—he was the mightly Kīrtimukha, having a resplendent tawny colour on the body and massive locks on the head.

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The five heads of Śiva were struck dead at the sight of this strange creature. He bowed at Śiva's feet to pacify his enormous rage, and Śiva thereupon conferred on him the boon: 'You maintain yourself by making food of those who are killed in battle. But the Gaṇa Kīrtimukha, unable to find any battle ground ready at hand, pounced upon god Brahmā to devour him, but was restrained by Śiva. There upon the Gaṇa Kīrtimukha under the pangs of consuming hunger devoured his own body, and limbs. This bold action and devotion of his pleased Śiva who assigned to him an abode in his temples with the following stipulation 'he who enters my place but does not pay heed to you or does not become conscious of your presence, shall face an instantaneous doom.'

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The above legend makes the Kīrtimukha motif a part of Śiva's iconography. Śiva is Rudra and identical with Agni or Prāṇic energy. He manifests himself as Pañcha-Brahman or the Five Gross material Elements which are symbolised as the Five Heads on his body. On the plane of manifest life they have their respective functions and governed by an orderly dispensation. But when there is disorder and confusion amongst them in the *ante principium* stage, *i. e.* when their duties are not specifically marked or differentiated, they have the form of a single monster concealing all the heads in the form of matted locks. That is the Kirtimukha emanation of Śiva himself. Śiva as Agni is represented by a *maṇḍala*, which is occupied by a pulsating Purusha of tawny colour (*Piṅgala Purusha*), who is no other than the *Akshara Purusha*, or Sūrya, or Agni himself, or Kālāgnirudra, the personified *rajoguṇa* or principle of activity. His place is very conspicuous, occupying the centre or apex of the main doorway of the divine temple. Any one who enters the tempe but is not conscious or attuned in mind to this presiding genius of life and prāṇic activity, becomes devoid of life in no time. The word *kīrti* originally signifying a rock-excavation, now becomes synonymous with *maṇḍala*, *mahimā* or *yaśas* and the 'face' filling it becomes esoterically identical with Yājusha Purusha or Akshara Purusha, which is the same as Cākshusha Purusha residing in the Sun. Sūrya himself is the *Siṃhamukha*, the lion-face, the gaping mouth in respect of this cosmos. The *Kīrtimukha* or 'Face of Glory' is Āditya itself, where *Kīrti* from its inceptive meaning of 'a chaitya-window to a rock-cut interior' is synonymous with *Yaśas*:

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अथैष वावयशः य एष (आदित्यः) तपति (ŚB 14.1.1.32)
असौ वा आदित्यः पिंगल एष शुक्ल, एष नील, एष पीत, एष लोहितः
(Chhāndogya U. 8.6.1)

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The Āditya is called Piṅgala and so is *Kīrtimukha* described to be *Piṅgala*; both are forms of Rudra or Agni. The *Kīrtimukha* is born of the matted locks of Rudra and is himself hairy (*jaṭila*). The significance of this is also clear. Keśa or hair is the *pravargya* or refuse or ejected portion of live energy. Rudra is the predominant principle of 'Life' and *Kīrtimukha* is its material manifestation pulsating with rhythm of expansion and contraction, which are spoken of as the two jaws (*hanū*) of an open mouth. The *Kīrtimukha* in this new setting assumed an all-comprehensive significance, equal to that of Rudra himself, and as the principal *Gaṇa* became the most important architectural feature of medieval temples both in India and Indonesia. The Purāṇas testify to the various stages in the evolution of the *Kīrtimukha* or *Pañchavaktra* motif of literature and art.

Cites (13)