Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 148
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
दण्डी छत्री च कुण्डी च द्विजानां धारणस्तथा । षण्मुखो वै बहुमुखस्त्रिनेत्रो बहुशीर्षक:
daṇḍī chatrī ca kuṇḍī ca dvijānāṃ dhāraṇas tathā | ṣaṇmukho vai bahumukhas trinetro bahuśīrṣakaḥ ||
ವಾಸುದೇವನು ಹೇಳಿದರು—ಅವನು ದ್ವಿಜರ ಚಿಹ್ನೆಗಳಾದ ದಂಡ, ಛತ್ರ ಮತ್ತು ಕುಂಡಿ (ಕಮಂಡಲು)ಗಳನ್ನು ಧರಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಕೆಲವೊಮ್ಮೆ ಷಣ್ಮುಖನಾಗಿ, ಕೆಲವೊಮ್ಮೆ ಬಹುಮುಖನಾಗಿ; ಕೆಲವೊಮ್ಮೆ ತ್ರಿನೇತ್ರನಾಗಿ, ಮತ್ತೊಮ್ಮೆ ಬಹುಶಿರಸ್ಕನಾಗಿ ಕಾಣಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ.
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
External religious insignia—staff, parasol, and water-pot—can be adopted as a mere disguise; ethical discernment should look beyond appearances, since beings may assume frightening or deceptive forms (many faces, three eyes, many heads).
Vāsudeva describes shape-shifting figures who take on the recognizable emblems of the twice-born and also manifest extraordinary, multi-faced and multi-headed forms, emphasizing the theme of deceptive appearances and the need for discrimination in matters of dharma.