The Six Sacred Faces
The pinnacle of Lord Murukan's personal alangkaaram is that the Lord has six sacred faces, and is therefore known by the sacred appellation AARUMUKAM in Tamil and as SHANMUKHAM in Sanskrit.
Origin of the Six Faces: Recap
As noted in Paragraphs 4.4–4.6, when the six foster-mothers born of kaarththikai-asterisms wished to suckle the Infant-Lord of six faces and twelve arms, the child split into six forms, so that the foster-mothers could suckle the child individually. Subsequently when Goddess Umaathevi hugged the six forms, they assumed the original single form with six identical faces and twelve arms.
Aarumukam in the Kantharalangkaaram
In the Kantharalangkaaram, the saintly author Arunakirinaathar reveals that:
(a) The Infant-Lord with six faces and twelve hands joyfully clapped with open palms when, as a result of the victorious battle against the demons, the legendary eight hills were split open into two equal halves, the stability of the Mahaameru-mountain was disturbed until it quivered, and the celestials were rescued from the prison of the demons: "இருநான்கு வெற்பும் அப்பாதியாய் விழ மேரும் குலுங்க விண்ணாரும் உய்யச் சப்பாணிகொட்டிய கை ஆறுஇரண்டு உடைச் சண்முகன்" [14].
(b) The saintly author had the sacred vision of the row of six beautiful faces and twelve shoulders of Lord Kanthan as the eternally sweet nectar in the shore-less ocean of supreme bliss: "பத்தித் திருமுகம் ஆறுடன் பன்னிருதோள்களுமாய்த் தித்தித்து இருக்கும் அமுது கண்டேன்...தத்திக் கரைபுரளும் பரமாநந்த சாகரத்தே" [47].
(c) The [so-called 'inauspicious'] days, the results of past deeds, the planets of evil influence, and the messenger of cruel death cannot do anything to him, because Lord Kumaresar graciously appears right in front of him:
நாள் என் செய்யும்? வினைதான் என் செய்யும்?
எனை நாடிவந்த கோள் என்செய்யும்? கொடும் கூற்று என் செய்யும்?
குமரேசர் இருதாளும் சிலம்பும், சதங்கையும் தண்டையும்
சண்முகமும் தோளும் கடம்பும்
எனக்கு முன்னே வந்து தோன்றிடினே.
[38]
The Significance of the Six Faces
The alangkaaram of the six sacred faces and twelve arms of Lord Murukan is most probably meant to be a metaphorical, or figurative, imagery in the puraanic-mythology. Several scholars have explained the significance of the Six Faces:
Swami Sivaananda held that the Six Faces of the Lord signify the six attributes of the divinity, namely, Wisdom [jnaanam ஞானம்], Dispassion [vairaakiyam வைராக்கியம்], Strength [palam பலம்], Fame [kiirththi கீர்த்தி], Wealth [thiru திரு], and Divine Power [aisvaryam ஐஸ்வர்யம்].
Thirumuruka Kirupaananthavaariyaar suggested that the Six Faces represent Six Divine Qualities, namely, Felicity, Fullness, Eternal-Youthfulness, Limitless-Energy, Protection from evil, and Spiritual-Splendour.
Another plausible explanation is that the Six Faces represent the six directions of the universe — north, south, east, west, and the upper and lower directions — and thus the Lord's sacred appellation AARUMUKAM, or SHANMUKHAM, signifies that the Lord is omnipresent in the entire universe and is thus homologous to the world [Clothey 1978: 175].