Statue of Brahma with four heads
The statue of Brahma stands inside the inner chamber of the Brahma Temple, which is one of the several Hindu temples of the Prambanan Temple complex located near Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In Hindu mythology, Brahma is responsible for the creation and is one of the Trimurti (Hindu Trinity) and the other two being Vishnu and Shiva.
As you can see from the image, the statue has four heads, each facing a cardinal direction, and four hands. According to a legend, Brahma used to have five heads with the fifth head gazing upwards. Shiva cut off the fifth head when he realized Brahma became infatuated with a female goddess he created.
Although Brahma is the creator in Hindu mythology, he is not worshiped as widely as Vishnu or Shiva. There are very few temples dedicated to Brahma in the world. The Brahma Temple in Prambanan is one of the few temples dedicated to Brahma. The other well-known Brahma Temple is in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India. The Belur Chennakeshava Temple, Karnataka, India, has a beautiful relief depicting Brahma.
There are several legends why Brahma is not worshiped. According to one legend, Brahma’s consort Savitri cursed him not to be worshiped anywhere in the world except in Pushkar because she was angered by his extreme lust. In another legend, Shiva cursed Brahma because he lied to him and Vishnu about their creation.
Related Pages
Prambanan, Borobudur, Indonesia
Angkor Wat, Banteay Srei, Cambodia
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