Panchanana & Ashtamurti
Shiv's five-faced and eight-fold forms, read directly from the Shiva Purana and corroborated by the Murtyashtaka Stotram.
A note on sourcing
Both form-schemes below are read directly from this site's own Shiva Purana translation - Vayaviya Samhita's "Shiva's Forms" chapter, where the sage Upamanyu explains both schemes to Krishna in the same breath. Ashtamurti is independently corroborated by the Murtyashtaka Stotram, which praises the same eight elemental forms by element, without naming them - a second, older primary source for the same scheme.
The name "Ishana" appears in both lists, presiding over different things in each - ether/space in Panchanana, the sun in Ashtamurti. This is how the source itself presents it, not a discrepancy this page resolves by picking one.
Panchanana - The Five Faces
पञ्चानन - Ishana, Purusha, Aghora, Vamadeva, Sadyojata
Ishanaईशान
Above / crown · Space (akasha) · Hearing
Ishana enjoys Prakriti and is himself established as kshetrajna, the knower of the field. He presides over the ears, speech, sound and space - the subtlest of the five faces, placed uppermost.
Purusha (Tatpurusha)पुरुष / तत्पुरुष
East · Wind (vayu) · Touch
Purusha resorts to the gunas and presides over the unmanifest. He presides over the skin, the hands, touch and wind - the face most often called Tatpurusha in later iconographic tradition.
Aghoraअघोर
South · Fire (agni) · Sight
Aghora presides over the tattva of intelligence and its eight parts - dharma and the others. He presides over the eyes, the feet, form and fire - the terrible, southward-facing form.
Vamadevaवामदेव
North · Water (jala) · Taste
Vamadeva presides over ahamkara. He presides over the tongue, the anus, taste and water - the northward-facing form, the one most often depicted in a feminine or gentle aspect.
Sadyojataसद्योजात
West · Earth (prithvi) · Smell
Sadyojata presides over the mind. He presides over the nose, the genital organs, smell and the earth - the westward-facing, grossest of the five forms, closest to manifest creation.
Ashtamurti - The Eight Forms
अष्टमूर्ति - Sharva, Bhava, Rudra, Ugra, Bhima, Pashupati, Ishana, Mahadeva
Sharvaशर्व
Earth (prithvi)
In the form of Vishvambhara, he holds up the universe with its mobile and immobile entities - the form of the sacred texts about Sharva's auspicious, earth-bearing nature.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 7 →Bhavaभव
Water (jala)
In the form of water, there is a form that gives life to the entire universe - the paramatman's form known as Bhava.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 5 →Rudraरुद्र
Fire (agni)
In the form of the auspicious fire, he pervades the universe, inside and outside. This fierce and terrible form is spoken of as Rudra.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 4 →Ugraउग्र
Wind (vayu)
In the form of the wind, there is a form that throbs and makes everything throb. This frightful, but virtuous, form of the lord is spoken of as Ugra.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 3 →Bhimaभीम
Space (akasha)
The terrible form of Bhima splits the elements, pervades everything in the form of space and provides space to everything.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 6 →Pashupatiपशुपति
The individual self (kshetrajna)
There is a form known as Pashupati, presiding over all atmans and residing in all bodies. He frees Pashus from their Pashas - the form identified with the embodied self rather than an outer element.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 8 →Ishanaईशान
The sun (surya)
Known as the sun, there is a form that illuminates the entire universe. This is Mahesha's form, known as Ishana, and he moves around in the sky.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 1 →Mahadevaमहादेव
The moon (chandra)
In the form of the moon, he nourishes the universe with his beams of amrita. This is the great divinity's form, known as Mahadeva.
See Murtyashtaka Stotram verse 2 →Frequently Asked Questions
What is Panchanana?
Panchanana ("five faces") names Shiv's five brahmana-forms - Ishana, Purusha (also called Tatpurusha), Aghora, Vamadeva and Sadyojata - each presiding over one sense, one organ and one element. The names are consistent across sources; this page follows the element/sense mapping given directly in the Shiva Purana's own Vayaviya Samhita.
What is Ashtamurti?
Ashtamurti ("eight forms") names eight further forms of Shiv - Sharva, Bhava, Rudra, Ugra, Bhima, Pashupati, Ishana and Mahadeva - presiding over earth, water, fire, wind, space, the individual self, the sun and the moon. This page follows the Shiva Purana's own mapping, independently corroborated by the Murtyashtaka Stotram, which praises each of the eight elemental forms by element without naming them.
Why does the name 'Ishana' appear in both lists, for different things?
Because the Shiva Purana itself uses the same name for two different forms in two different classification schemes. In Panchanana, Ishana presides over ether/space and the ears. In Ashtamurti, Ishana presides over the sun. This isn't an error to resolve - it's how the source itself names things, and this page keeps both meanings clearly separate rather than merging them.