Tripurasundari

Tripurasundari, also known as Lalita Tripurasundari or Lalita, is a principal Hindu goddess in Shakta and Sri Vidya traditions. She is regarded as a primary manifestation of the divine feminine and, within Sri Vidya, as the supreme goddess who embodies beauty, knowledge, and bliss. The name Tripurasundari means “beautiful one of the three cities” or “the beauty who pervades the three worlds,” referencing mythic concepts of Tripura and her role in cosmic unity.

Iconographically, Tripurasundari is often depicted seated on a lotus or throne, sometimes with four or eight arms, and adorned in red or gold garments. Her worship is closely tied to the Sri Chakra, a complex yantra that serves as a focal point for meditation and ritual in the Sri Vidya tradition. In this framework she is seen as the inner goddess within the Sri Chakra, and she is commonly invoked through Sri Vidya mantras. In many depictions she represents the feminine aspect of the divine, often described as the consort of the divine masculine principle in this tradition, symbolizing the unity of feminine and masculine energies.

Key scriptures associated with her tradition include the Lalita Sahasranama, a devotional hymn that extols her thousand attributes, and the Lalita Upanishad within the Srividya corpus. Her worship is central to Navaratri rites and other Shakta practices, where she is honored as a supreme cosmic principle.

Tripurasundari is venerated in temples and shrines across India and in diaspora communities as a central figure of the Shakta tradition, reflecting her enduring symbolism as beauty, wisdom, and spiritual unity.