From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia
By Swami Harshananda
Pañcabrahmamantras literally means ‘five mantras concerning five aspects of Brahman’.
Though Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara are often described as the three aspects of the Supreme Brahman each one of them also is sometimes praised as Brahman Himself. In one such description, the five mantras on the five aspects of Śiva given in the Mahānārāyaṇa Upaniṣad are known as ‘Pañcabrahmamantras’. These five aspects are:
Sometimes, these are shown as five faces of the Śiva. These mantras are employed in the worship and meditation of Mahādeva with these five faces.
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore