Panchadeva
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Panchayatana puja'' (
IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Brahmic family, Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that ...
') also known as Pancha Devi Deva Puja is a system of ''puja'' (worship) in the
Smarta The ''Smarta'' tradition (, ) is a movement in Hinduism that developed and expanded with the Puranas genre of literature. It reflects a synthesis of four philosophical strands, namely Uttara Mīmāṃsā, Advaita Vedanta, Advaita, Yoga (philo ...
sampradaya ''Sampradaya'' (/ səmpɾəd̪ɑjə/,; ), in Indian-origin religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, can be translated as 'tradition', 'spiritual lineage', 'sect', or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and transmissi ...
, which is one of four major ''sampradaya'' of
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
. It consists of the worship of five deities set in a
quincunx A quincunx ( ) is a geometry, geometric pattern consisting of five points arranged in a cross, with four of them forming a Square (geometry), square or rectangle and a fifth at its center. The same pattern has other names, including "in saltire" ...
pattern, the five deities being
Ganesha Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...
,
Adi Shakti Mahadevi (, , IPA: / mɐɦɑd̪eʋiː/), also referred to as Adi Parashakti, and Mahamaya, is the supreme goddess in Hinduism. According to the goddess-centric sect Shaktism, all Hindu gods and goddesses are considered to be manifestations of t ...
,
Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...
,
Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
and
Surya Surya ( ; , ) is the Sun#Dalal, Dalal, p. 399 as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchaya ...
. Sometimes an Ishta Devata (any personal god of devotee's preference) or
Kartikeya Kartikeya (/Sanskrit phonology, kɑɾt̪ɪkejə/; ), also known as Skanda (Sanskrit phonology, /skən̪d̪ə/), Subrahmanya (/Sanskrit phonology, sʊbɾəɦməɲjə/, /ɕʊ-/), Shanmukha (Sanskrit phonology, /ɕɑnmʊkʰə/) and Murugan ...
is the sixth deity in the mandala (see
Shanmata ''Shanmata'' () meaning "Six Sects" in Sanskrit, is a system of worship, believed in the Smarta tradition to have been founded by the Hindu philosopher Adi Shankara, whose lifetime was during circa 8th century CE. It centers around the worship ...
). Panchayatana puja has been attributed to
Adi Shankara Adi Shankara (8th c. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya (, ), was an Indian Vedanga, Vedic scholar, Hindu philosophy, philosopher and teacher (''acharya'') of Advaita Vedanta. Reliable information on Shankara's actual life is scant, and h ...
, the 8th century  CE Hindu philosopher. It is a practice that became popular in medieval India. However, archaeological evidence suggests that this practice long predates the birth of Adi Shankara. Many Panchayatana mandalas and temples have been uncovered that are from the
Gupta Empire The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE. At its zenith, the dynasty ruled over an empire that spanned much of the northern Indian ...
period, and one Panchayatana set from the village of Nand (about 24 kilometers from
Ajmer Ajmer () is a city in the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Ajmer district and Ajmer division. It lies at the centre of Rajasthan, earning it the ...
) has been dated to belong to the
Kushan Empire The Kushan Empire (– CE) was a Syncretism, syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi in the Bactrian territories in the early 1st century. It spread to encompass much of what is now Afghanistan, Eastern Iran, India, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbe ...
era (pre-300 CE). The Kushan period set includes Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Shakti and one deity whose identity is unclear. According to James Harle, major Hindu temples from 1st millennium CE embed the ''pancayatana'' architecture very commonly, from
Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
to
Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
to
Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...
; and the temples containing fusion deities such as
Harihara Harihara (Sanskrit: हरिहर) is the dual representation of the Hindu deities Vishnu (Hari) and Shiva (Hara). Harihara is also known as Shankaranarayana ("Shankara" is Shiva, and "Narayana" is Vishnu). Harihara is also sometimes used as ...
(half Shiva, half Vishnu) are set in Panchayatana worship style. Philosophically, the Smarta tradition emphasizes that all ''
murti In the Hinduism, Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' (, ) is a devotional image, such as a statue or icon, of a Hindu deities, deity or Hindu saints, saint used during ''Puja (Hinduism), puja'' and/or in other customary forms of actively expressing d ...
'' (idols) are icons of ''saguna''
Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' (; IAST: ''Brahman'') connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality of the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part XII In the ...
, a means to realizing the abstract Ultimate Reality called ''nirguna Brahman''. The five or six icons are seen by
Smartas The ''Smarta'' tradition (, ) is a movement in Hinduism that developed and expanded with the Puranas genre of literature. It reflects a synthesis of four philosophical strands, namely Uttara Mīmāṃsā, Advaita, Yoga, and theism. The Smart ...
as multiple representations of the one ''
Saguna Brahman ''Saguna brahman'' ( 'The Absolute with qualities'; from Sanskrit ' 'with qualities', ''guṇa'' 'quality', and ''Brahman'' 'the Absolute') is a concept of ultimate reality in Hinduism, close to the concept of immanence, the manifested divine ...
'' (i.e., a personal God, with form), rather than as distinct beings. The ultimate goal in this practice is to transition past the use of icons, then follow a philosophical and meditative path to understanding the oneness of ''Atman'' (soul, self) and Brahman – as "That art Thou". Depending on the tradition followed by Smarta households, one of these deities is kept in the center and the other four corners of a square surrounding it. Either an iconic idol(s) or aniconic representation(s) or a combination for each deity is used. The five may be represented as simply as five kinds of stones called a ''Pancayatana puja set'', or just five marks drawn on the floor. This arrangement is also represented in ''Smarta Pancayatana'' temples found in India, with one central shrine, and four smaller shrines at the corners of a square. Panchayatana puja has predominantly been a tradition within Hinduism. However, the ''
Udasi Udasis ( Gurmukhi: ਉਦਾਸੀ ਸੰਪਰਦਾ; ''udāsī saparadā'') (Devanagari: उदासी संप्रदाय), also spelt as Udasins, also known as Nanak Putras (meaning "sons of Nanak"), are a religious sect of ascetic ' ...
s'' – a tradition that reveres the
Guru Granth Sahib The Guru Granth Sahib (, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion. The Adi Granth (), its first rendition, w ...
of
Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...
- also worship the five panchayatana deities.


In Puranas

Contrary to the objections raised by some rival schools of the Smarta sampradaya, the practice of Panchayatana Puja is found to be enshrined in several as well, further substantiating its ancient origins. The presence of this practice in all categories of Puranas, be it
Vaishnava Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, '' Mahavishnu''. It is one of the major Hindu denominations along wit ...
,
Shaiva Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the supreme being. It is the second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million Hindus, found widely across South Asia (predominantly in ...
or
Shakta Shaktism () is a major Hindu denomination in which the deity or metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically to be a woman. Shaktism involves a galaxy of goddesses, all regarded as different aspects, manifestations, or personificatio ...
is a thorough testament to the fact of it being a widely popular form of worship in the ancient times. The
Narada Purana The ''Naradiya Purana'' (, ) or ''Narada Purana'' (), are two Vaishnavism texts written in Sanskrit language. One of the texts is termed as a Major Purana, also called a Mahapurana, while the other is termed as a Minor Purana (''Upapurana'' ...
III.65.44-50 states:- "44–50." ''When he worships Visnu in the middle, he shall worship Vinayaka, Ravi (Sun) Siva and Sivaa outside them. When he worships Sankara in the middle, he shall worship the Sun, Ganesa, Amba and Hari outside them. When he worships Siva in the middle, he shall worship Isa, Vighnesvara, the Sun and Govinda outside. If he worships Gananayaka (Ganesa) in the middle he shall worship Siva, Sivaa, the Sun and Visnu outside. When the Sun is worshipped in the middle he shall worship GaneSa, Visnu, Amba, and Siva respectively. Thus he shall worship respectfully the five deities every day''". In the Kārttikamāsa-māhātmya of the
Skanda Purana The ''Skanda Purana'' ( IAST: Skanda Purāṇa) is the largest '' Mukhyapurāṇa'', a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts. The text contains over 81,000 verses, and is of Shaivite literature, titled after Skanda, a son of Shiva and Parv ...
Lord
Surya Surya ( ; , ) is the Sun#Dalal, Dalal, p. 399 as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchaya ...
states:- "16–18." ''Viṣṇu, Śarva, I, Goddess and Vighneśvara i.e. Gaṇeśa (are to be worshipped). Though I am only one, I have become five as in the case of a Stage Manager in the course of a play. Know, O lord of birds, that these are all our own different forms. Hence holy bath in the month of Kārttika should be taken for the purpose of dispelling all sins by Sauras (followers of the Sun), Gāṇeśas (followers of Vighneśvara), Śāktas (followers of Śakti or Goddess), Śaivas (followers of Śiva) and Vaiṣṇavas (followers of Viṣṇu).''". In
Padma Purana The ''Padma Purana'' (, or ) is one of the eighteen Puranas#Mahapuranas, Major Puranas, a genre of texts in Hinduism. It is an encyclopedic text, named after the lotus in which creator god Brahma appeared, and includes large sections dedic ...
6.88.43-44 Lord
Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...
Tells
Satyabhama Satyabhama (IAST'': Satyabhāmā)'' , also known as Satrajiti, is a Hindu goddess and the third queen consort of the Hindu god Krishna. Satyabhama is described as an incarnation of Bhumi, an aspect of Lakshmi. She is the goddess and the per ...
:- "''As the rainwater goes to the ocean, the followers of Śiva, the Sun, Gaṇeśa, Viṣṇu, so also the worshippers of Śakti come to me only. I am one, born in five ways, and play with names—as one Devadatta calls his sons etc. with (various) names.''" The
Devi-Bhagavata Purana The Devi Bhagavata Purana (, '), also known as the Devi Purana or simply Devi Bhagavatam, is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas as per Shiva Purana of Hinduism. Composed in Sanskrit by Veda Vyasa, the text is considered a major purana for Devi ...
11.17.34-36 reads as follows:- "''Thus the rules of the morning Sandhya are prescribed. Doing works so far, bid farewell to the above-mentioned Gayatri. Next finishing the Agnihotra Homa sacrifice, worship the five Devatas, S’iva, S’iva, Ganes’a, Surya and Visnu. Worship by the Purusa Sukta mantra, or by Hrim mantra, or by Vyahriti mantra or by S’rischate Laksmis’cha, etc., place Bhavani in the centre; Visnu in the north east corner, S’iva in the south-east corner; Ganes’a in the south-west corner, and the Sun in the north-west corner; and then worship them. While offering worship with the sixteen offerings, worship by repeating sixteen mantras.''"


See also

*
Adi Shankara Adi Shankara (8th c. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya (, ), was an Indian Vedanga, Vedic scholar, Hindu philosophy, philosopher and teacher (''acharya'') of Advaita Vedanta. Reliable information on Shankara's actual life is scant, and h ...
*
Shanmata ''Shanmata'' () meaning "Six Sects" in Sanskrit, is a system of worship, believed in the Smarta tradition to have been founded by the Hindu philosopher Adi Shankara, whose lifetime was during circa 8th century CE. It centers around the worship ...
*
Smartism The ''Smarta'' tradition (, ) is a movement in Hinduism that developed and expanded with the Puranas genre of literature. It reflects a synthesis of four philosophical strands, namely Uttara Mīmāṃsā, Advaita, Yoga, and theism. The Sm ...


References

{{Worship in Hinduism Worship in the Smarta tradition Adi Shankara Ganesha Shiva Vishnu Surya