Soundarya Lahiri and Lalita Sahasran

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In the Lalita sahasranama the lalitya or beauty

of Lalita Maha Tripurasundari is very well depicted.

Beauty is of two kinds the internal and the external;

the internal is of the form of

Sat-Chit-Ananda(existence-knowledge-bliss) and the external is of namarupatmaka

or of the

form of names and forms. Sachchidanandamaya Brahman is

the internal form of Lalita, Sridevi, or Sri

Mahatripurasundari; and this world of names and forms, is Her

external form. Though name and form are only symbolic of

the external form of Brahman, in the initial states

of sadhana, the sadhaka shall have to take recourse

to name and form since the internal form of the

Absolute Brahman is not easily comprehensible. Again, of

the two, name and form, name is considered superior

to the form. The author of Soundarya Lahiri has

described in beautiful, fascinating, soul stirring and

thrilling masterly poetic way Sridevi's physical form, from

head to foot, and as well the internal beauty of the

Sacchidananda form. The first forty one Slokas of

Saundaryalahiri mainly elaborate the Srividya; and the remaining

slokas describe the beauty of Sridevi's physical form.

So it can easily be said that Saundaryalahari is in

a way the essence of Sri

Lalitasahasranama.<br><br>Om Shakti