Yajñamurti
From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia
By Swami Harshananda
Yajñamurti literally means ‘personified sacrifice’.
Some of the branches of the Vedas like the Taittiriya Samhitā[1] identify Viṣṇu with yajña or Vedic sacrifice. This Yajñamurti or Yajñapuruṣa is described to be having:
- Three heads
- Three legs
- Seven hands
- Four horns
His body is red in color and wears a vanamālā.[2] Apart from exhibiting the postures of protection and bestowal of boons[3] he holds several implements of sacrifice like the sruk and sruva.[4] This is a symbolic representation of a sacrifice.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore