Lord Brahma Facts: Hindu Mythology Facts For Kids

Among the three gods, Lord Brahma is the creator, Lord Vishnu is the preserver, and Lord Shiva is the destroyer.

In Hindu texts, it is said that the supreme god, Brahma, had five heads and was one of the Hindu Trimurti. According to the sacred texts, he is one of the divine beings and is also known as Prajapati.

Brahma is known as the god of Creation, or the Creative Aspect of god. According to Hindu mythology, Lord Brahma is all-powerful and omnipresent.

He is considered the most important of all the gods of Hinduism, representing universal consciousness and life itself. According to Hindu mythology, Lord Brahma created the universe and life through his will. However, he did not create the universe out of nothing, but rather he transformed the already existing chaos into order.

He created four main groups of living things: humans, animals, demons, and gods. Brahma is often depicted as a four-faced adult male with blue skin, representing the four Vedas.

The four heads represent the four directions in which the earth is encircled. He wears golden yellow garments and has four arms.

He mounts a swan and sits on a lotus flower. He also has a staff with three sections representing the gods Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Brahma is not worshipped so much because he does not have many stories of his exploits and adventures, unlike other Hindu gods, such as Shiva and Vishnu.

In Hinduism, Trimurti-Brahma is considered the oldest god and supreme lord. Many believe Brahma is the third most important god in Hindu mythology, behind Vishnu and Shiva.

Brahma was believed to have been created by Lord Vishnu while others says he was born out of a golden egg. There are no temples devoted to Brahma because he is not an important god in modern times.

There are a few ancient temples devoted to him, but besides those, there are no modern temples. The Brahma Temple at Pushkar, India is a temple devoted to Brahma, but it has no statue of god.

The temple is small and consists only of a hall with ten columns.

Irrespective of the fact that there are not many temples dedicated to Brahma, people worship Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva in their daily prayers. He is also included in all important Hindu ceremonies, such as weddings and naming ceremonies.

Some believe that the supreme god with four arms and four heads, Brahma, was cursed by the god, Shiva. It is said Brahma fell in love with Shatarupa and, to see her, sprouted a fifth head so that the gaze of Shatarupa could not be avoided by him.

With this, Lord Shiva was enraged and it was Lord Shiva's curse that the first god, and one of the major gods, is not worshipped, although he was equally important among the three gods and other deities of Hindu religion.

The facts above are claimed on the basis of Shiva Purana.

Some others believe that Brahma's body, with four heads and four arms, represents the four Vedas of the Hindu religion. The Brahma in 'Art Brahma' would be a perfect example for you to reference to view his four-headed appearance.

Who is Lord Brahma?

Lord Brahma is the Creator of the Universe, one of the Trimurti (three main deities) in Hinduism. He is also known as 'Vaidhyanath' in some parts of India.

Brahma has four heads and he is usually depicted with four arms; however, sometimes he may have only two hands. According to some scriptures, Lord Brahma is said to be have Netra (eyes) on all his faces; however few other scripts suggest otherwise. The four heads symbolize him overseeing the four Vedas - Rigveda, Samveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda.

Each face indicates an important aspect of human life i.e., learning, acquiring wealth, ceremonial sacrifices, and salvation, respectively. His four hands signify the four directions of the universe.

Brahma is often called 'Prajapati', which means creator or source of life for all living beings on Earth. He, along with other Trimurti, is responsible for the creation, upkeep, and destruction of our world.

According to Hindu mythology, Lord Brahma has created four kumaras (young boys) out of his thoughts – Sanaka, Sananda, Sanatana, and Sanat Kumara. They grew up to be great devotees who later became the prophets of Lord Vishnu.

But since they had more knowledge than him, he sent them to a cave where they remain in a state of meditation till date, waiting for the arrival of Kalki, 'the last avatar', who is supposed to emerge at the end of Kali Yuga.

The other name by which Lord Brahma is known is "Nastya", meaning 'impartial'- as he occupies a central position in all religious rites and also because he was born through no fault or sin of his own. He finds mention in several Hindu scriptures like Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda, Atharvaveda, Mahabharata, Vishnupuranam, and many others.

As per Vedic knowledge, there are four classes of beings i-e., divine (Devas), semi-divine half-gods called 'asuras', nature spirits called 'Pisachas', and humans. The main task of Lord Brahma is to manage the whole system from creation till the destruction of each world cycle.

It is believed that he lives in a golden palace on top of Mount Meru in heaven.

Some scriptures also mention him as a chief architect who built palaces for his sons, while living upon this earthly planet, Manidweepa (the island-world). Thus it can be said that Lord Brahma, or Brahmanaspati, is a 'powerful' major god among three gods given all the important tasks required to run a universe successfully in the Hindus' religion.

Brahma being referred to as the first god may not be very popular among Hindus, but his significance cannot be undermined!

The Mythological Origins Of Lord Brahma

The story behind Lord Brahma's existence is rather deep and mystical. According to Hindu scriptures, the Supreme god, Lord Vishnu, created Lord Brahma from his 'navel,' a word that symbolizes life-giving energy.

The navel is also depicted as a lotus, with a stem growing out of Vishnu's navel and petals unfolding into the creator god, Brahma. Even though it might sound weird, there have been many occasions in history where humans have witnessed human beings coming out of the naval.

According to mythology, Lord Brahma emerged with four faces, each turned toward one of the four cardinal points or directions.

As per another version, he was born with eight faces, which later became four. The scriptures also say that the creator god, Brahma, came from water, from inside a lotus that grew out of the navel of Mahavishnu, thus signifying creation out of nothingness. Brahma's consort, Saraswati, is an entity who emerged from Lord Brahma himself.

Saraswati is often depicted sitting next to her husband playing a musical instrument. She represents "speech", which helps in the process of creation, while Lord Brahma represents creativity itself. Hence, collectively, they symbolize creativity and expression coming together and working hand-in-hand for the sake of world order, or simply put, creation.

Brahma holds many other titles, such as 'jagatpita' or 'world father', 'Vishvakarma' or 'architect of the universe', and many more. In Hindu scriptures, Lord Brahma is often depicted as a four-headed man dressed in yellow silk.

He is thought to be a self-taught deity who acquired everything through his own experience, which contributes to his confidence in knowledge and power.

He holds a staff of wisdom in one hand, and an 'akshamala' (rosary) in the other, signifying his role as a creator god, while he also bears lotus flowers, which represent purity and creative thinking.

But it's not just the symbolic meaning behind Lord Brahma that makes him so important to Hindus, it's also the amazing qualities that make him stand out from other gods from various religions.

For instance, unlike most gods who are normally associated with only one aspect of human life, such as happiness or prosperity, almost all aspects of human life, such as happiness, morality, and knowledge, are attributed to Lord Brahma.

Even though we might not know much about this mysterious god and his role in Hinduism, it's quite clear that he is meant for a lot more than just creation.

Brahma is the creator of this universe. He is one of the trinities in Hindu mythology, the other two being Vishnu and Shiva.

In the Hindu Vedas, Brahma has been described as a 'not so clever' demi-god with four heads, or half man and half woman, or a sage, sometimes with a horse face, etc., depending upon the regional legends in various texts.

According to Shiva Puranas, he has four heads representing the cardinal directions, each with a face. But according to Vaishnavism tradition, he has four faces and ten hands, the interpretation of which varies from region to region in Hindu tradition. But, whatever the interpretation, Brahma is considered as a personal god with his own aspects and stories.

The Shiva Purana says that Brahma once paid a visit to Mount Kailash (the abode of Shiva), where he saw Sati, sometimes referred to as Shatarupa, the first wife of Lord Shiva. He was infatuated by her beauty and tried to convince her to marry him, but she was not interested in him because of his ugly looks.

So, one day, when they met on top of Mount Kailash, Sati asked about their creator, Vishnu. To which Brahma replied that Vishnu created everything on earth except her.

Sati knew the reason behind his response and did not pay him any attention. But this enraged Lord Shiva, who cursed Brahma for not showing respect to his wife by lying in front of him.

Due to his extreme penance, he had a new head created based on the old one. That is why, among all the Vedic gods, Brahma has four heads, representing eight directions (four cardinal and four intermediate). There are numerous accounts about how his status altered through time, but whatever the case may be, Hindus hold him in high regard.

The Importance Of Lord Brahma In Hindu Religion

In Hinduism, Brahma, the world's architect, is one of the Holy Trinity. He is considered a very important figure in the Vedas and Upanishads.

Though he was not equal to Trimurti, he also contributed a lot to the religion of Hindus. The Vedas consider him as a reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, while the Upanishads briefly describe his life story.

Other scriptures are written by many saints about his greatness. Interestingly, most of our knowledge about him comes from various saints who wrote various forms of the Ramayana.

There are several stories about how his significance changed over time, but whatever it may be, that doesn't change the fact that he is important to Hindus.

In the religion of the Hindus, he is considered the creator of the world and the father of Lord Brahma, who has played a very significant role in Hindu culture since ancient times.

It's also believed that he wrote all four Vedas, which include 18 Puranas. There are some stories about how his significance changed over time, but whatever it may be, it doesn't change the fact that many people pray to him as an equal to god.

There are some stories about how Brahma helped other gods to kill demons, but it doesn't change the fact that he was equal to Trimurti, along with Lord Shiva and Vishnu.

According to some stories, he is also considered one of the five faces of Shiva. Even though Lord Vishnu is a popular god among all, many stories show how Brahma is more powerful than him, along with his powers from other gods.

Brahma has 4 heads and he is also known as Chaturmukha (meaning four-faced). Each head represents one of four Vedas (scriptures) that were created for the benefit of mankind – Rig, Yajur, Sama, and Atharva.

Brahma is known as Pitamaha, meaning 'grandfather'. Brahma is one of the three major gods in Hinduism. The other two are Vishnu and Shiva.

Unlike Brahma who is a creator god, Vishnu is a preserver god and Shiva is a destroyer god. He did not, however, create the universe from nothing; rather, he converted the chaos that previously existed into order. Humans, animals, demons, and gods are the four basic types of living beings he created.

Powers And Symbols Associated With Lord Brahma

Lord Brahma is a Vaikunta avtar and was born from the navel of Vishnu. Vaikunta is a place where all living creatures go for a rebirth after death. Souls transmigrate from one physical form to another due to karma or dharma until they attain moksha by the grace of Lord Vishnu.

Lord Brahma is believed to be the creator of all human beings, and therefore, he is known as Adi-Kavi (original poet) and also called Jagatguru (spiritual teacher of the world). He is also considered the protector of the world.

He is the father and preceptor of all human beings, and therefore, he is known as Pitamaha (grandfather). He has no birth and is free from the cycle of births and death.

Therefore, he is also known as Aja (unborn). He spends his time in meditation. He is considered a self-taught god who has learned everything from his own knowledge, which contributes to his belief in being omniscient and omnipotent. Each head has a specific name: the east-headed Brahma is called Hiranyagarbha, and he is the creator of the material world.

The west-headed Brahma is called Nārāyaṇa, the maintainer of all life forms. The north-headed Brahma is called Īshāna, who is the destroyer of all life forms. This Brahma is shown as half-animal and half-man. The south-headed Brahma is called Sadāśiva, and is the final destroyer of all life forms. This Brahma is shown as being completely naked.

The four Vedas are celebrated by Lord Brahma in all four directions with their appropriately bestowed names. The east celebrates Rig Veda, the south celebrates Yajur Veda, the west celebrates Sama Veda, and the north celebrates Atharva Veda. The symbols of Lord Brahma are the rosary beads (japamala), the water pot (kamandalu), and the sacred scriptures of the Vedas.