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[Alexandr Korol]

Yes, the echo of this archetype reverberates through many ancient traditions. Not always exactly the same Brahma, but always — the same deep symbol: all-seeing consciousness, all-encompassing creation, presence in the four sides of reality. Here are the closest and most vivid parallels that humanity has preserved in its sacred images:

• Svetovid (Svantovit, Svantovit / Svetovid) — in Slavic mythology (especially among the Baltic and Western Slavs). The four-faced god of war, of fertility, of divination and of light. Each face looks towards one of the four cardinal directions. He is the supreme god, the creator and keeper of the world, often depicted with a cornucopia and a sword. His temple at Arkona (Rügen) was destroyed in 1168, but the description has remained: four heads on a single body, symbolizing omniscience and power over all directions. Very close to Brahma in meaning — the all-seeing creator/keeper of the cosmos.
• Four-faced Mahakala (Chaturmukha Mahakala) — in Tibetan Buddhism (Vajrayana). A wrathful protective form, but with four faces and often a multitude of arms. Here the four faces are an all-pervading vision, conquering illusions in all four directions. He guards the Dharma, just as Brahma guards creation.
• Four-faced Vairocana — the central Buddha in the Buddhist mandala (especially in Japanese and Tibetan esoteric Buddhism). Vairocana is the cosmic Buddha, the source of everything manifested. In some forms (for example, in the Vajradhatu mandala) he is four-faced or associated with four Buddhas looking in the four directions. He symbolizes omniscience, purity, and the source of enlightenment — very close to Brahman as the Absolute.
• The Tetramorph — in Christian iconography (especially in the vision of Ezekiel and in the symbolism of the four Evangelists). One being with four faces: a man, a lion, an ox, an eagle. This is not directly a creator-god, but a symbol of divine omniscience encompassing all aspects of creation (the human, the kingdom of beasts, the domestic, the heavenly). Often depicted as a single body with four faces — an echo of the same archetype.
• Janus Quadrifrons (Janus Quadrifrons) — the rare four-faced form of the Roman god Janus. Usually Janus is two-faced (the beginning and the end, the entrance and the exit), but sometimes he was depicted with four faces — especially in temples, where he was venerated as the god of all beginnings and transitions. The four faces are a symbol of an all-encompassing gaze upon time and space.