Pashupati (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

''Paśupati'';

devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental Writing systems#Segmental syste ...

पशुपति ) is a Hindu deity and an

incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It refers to the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or the appearance of a god as a human. If capitalized, it is the union of divinit ...

of the

Hindu god Hindu deities are the gods and goddesses in Hinduism. The terms and epithets for deities within the diverse traditions of Hinduism vary, and include Deva, Devi, Ishvara, Ishvari, Bhagavān and Bhagavati. The deities of Hinduism have evolved ...

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

as "lord of the animals". Pashupati is mainly worshipped in Nepal and India. Pashupati is also the national deity of Nepal.

Etymology

''Paśupati'' or ''Pashupatinath'', means "Lord of all animals". It was originally it is also was the epithet of

Rudra Rudra (; sa, रुद्र) is a Rigvedic deity associated with Shiva, the wind or storms, Vayu, medicine, and the hunt. One translation of the name is 'the roarer'. In the Rigveda, Rudra is praised as the 'mightiest of the mighty'. Rud ...

in the

Vedic period The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betw ...

. and it is one of the epithets of Shiva also.

History

The earliest claimed evidence of Pashupati comes from the

Indus Valley civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900&n ...

(3300 BCE to 1300 BCE), where the Pashupati seal has been said to represent a proto-Shiva figure.

The Deity

Pashupatinath is an

avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...

, one of the

Hindu Trinity The Trimūrti (; Sanskrit: त्रिमूर्ति ', "three forms" or "trinity") are the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity in Hinduism, in which the cosmic functions of creation ex nihilo, creation, Conservation ...

. He is the male counterpart of

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and rep ...

. The five faces of Pashupatinath represent various incarnations of Shiva; Sadyojata (also known as Barun), Vamdeva (also known as Uma Maheswara),

Tatpurusha Sanskrit inherits from its parent, the Proto-Indo-European language, the capability of forming compound nouns, also widely seen in kindred languages, especially German, Greek, and also English. However, Sanskrit, especially in the later stages of ...

, Aghor &

Ishana Ishana (Sanskrit: ईशान, IAST: Īśāna), is a Hindu god. He is often considered to be one of the forms of the Hindu destroyer god Shiva, and is also often counted among the eleven Rudras. In Hinduism, some schools of Buddhism and Jainism ...

. They face West, North, East, South and Zenith respectively, representing Hinduism's five primary elements namely

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...

and ether.Encyclopaedia of Saivism
Swami P. Anand, Swami Parmeshwaranand, Publisher Sarup & Sons, , , page 206 Puranas describe these faces of Shiva as:

By country

Nepal

Although Nepal is a secular state, its population is predominantly Hindu. Pashupatinath is revered as a national deity. The

Pashupatinath Temple Pashupatinath Temple ( ne, श्री पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, and is located in Kathmandu, Nepal. This temple was classified as a World Heritage Site in 1979. This "extensive ...

, located at the bank of the river

Bagmati , "Tiger Gate") , source1_location = Shivapuri, Sundarijal, Kathmandu, Nepal , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , mouth = Confluence with Kamala River , mouth_location = Jagmohra, Bihar, India , mouth_coord ...

, is considered one of the most sacred places in Nepal. In mythology it is said that Lord Pashupatinath started living in Nepal in the form of a deer because he was enchanted by the beauty of

Kathmandu Valley The Kathmandu Valley ( ne, काठमाडौं उपत्यका; also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley ( ne, नेपाः उपत्यका, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः)), ...

India

A Pashupatinath temple is sited on the banks of the Shivana river in

Mandsaur Mandsaur is a city and a municipality in Mandsaur district located on Border of Mewar and Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is one of the most important shrines of Mandsaur, and Lord Shiva in the form of Lord Pashupatinath is its primary deity. Its main attraction is a unique

Shiva Linga A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional im ...

displaying eight faces of Lord Shiva. The shrine has four doors, representing the

cardinal direction The four cardinal directions, or cardinal points, are the four main compass directions: north, east, south, and west, commonly denoted by their initials N, E, S, and W respectively. Relative to north, the directions east, south, and west are at ...

Pashupata Shaivism

Pashupata Shaivism Pashupata Shaivism (, sa, पाशुपत) is the oldest of the major Shaivite Hindu schools. The mainstream which follows Vedic Pasupata penance are 'Maha Pasupatas' and the schism of 'Lakula Pasupata' of Lakulisa. There is a debate about p ...

is one of the oldest Shaivite sects that derives its name from ''Pashupati''. The sect upholds Pashupati "as the supreme deity, the lord of all souls, and the cause of all existence".Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide, p. 923, Roshen Dalal, Penguin UK

References

Sources

* * * * * * Includes ''Śivasahasranāmakoṣa'', a dictionary of names. This work compares eight versions of the Śivasahasranāmāstotra. The preface and introduction (in English) by Ram Karan Sharma provide an analysis of how the eight versions compare with one another. The text of the eight versions is given in Sanskrit. * {{Shaivism Forms of Shiva Animal gods Horned deities Hindu gods Shaivism