Lalita ( sa, ललिता, ), also commonly called Lalita Sakhi, is the Hindu goddess and one of the most prominent associates of the divine couple Radha Krishna. In many Vaishnaite traditions and literatures, she is revered as the

gopi Gopi ( sa, गोपी, ) or Gopika in Hinduism are worshipped as the consorts and devotees of Krishna within the Vaishnavism and Krishnaism traditions for their unconditional love and devotion ('' Bhakti'') to god Krishna as described in the ...

(milkmaid) of the Braj region and is mentioned as the chief of Ashtasakhi, the eight closest eternal companion of

Radha Radha ( sa, राधा, ), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is worshiped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. She is the avatar of goddess Lakshmi and is also de ...

and Krishna. Lalita is considered as the expansion of Radha and the consort of Krishna. Unchagaon, near

Barsana Barsana is a historical town and ''nagar panchayat'' in the Mathura district of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Barsana is believed to be the birthplace and home of the Hindu goddess Radha, the chief consort of Krishna. It is in the Braj re ...

, is considered as the birthplace of Lalita in

Dvapara Yuga ''Dvapara Yuga'' ( Dwapara Yuga), in Hinduism, is the third and third best of the four ''yugas'' (world ages) in a ''Yuga Cycle'', preceded by ''Treta Yuga'' and followed by ''Kali Yuga''. ''Dvapara Yuga'' lasts for 864,000 years (2,400 divine y ...

while Goloka is mentioned as her spiritual abode. Her birth anniversary is celebrated annually on the occasion of Lalita Saptami in Braj, which falls one day before the festival of

Radhashtami Radhashtami is a Hindu holy day commemorating the birth anniversary of the goddess Radha, the chief consort of the god Krishna. It is celebrated with great fervor in her birthplace Barsana and the entire Braj region on the eighth day ( Ashta ...

Life and legends

Lalita is revered as the eldest

among Ashtasakhi and is described as 27 days older than goddess

. Lalita was born to her parents, Visoka (father) and Saradi (mother) in Unchagaon, near

. According to the scriptures, it is the duty of the Lalita to arrange the meetings and different pastimes of

and Krishna smoothly in

. She was the integral part of many pastimes of the divine couple including

Raslila The rasalila (), also rendered the raslila or the ras dance, is part of the traditional story of Krishna described in Hindu scriptures such as the Bhagavata Purana and literature such as the Gita Govinda, where he dances with Radha and the gopis ...

, Radha Krishna Vivah lila and

Lathmar Holi Lathmar Holi (Holi of sticks) is a Hindu festival celebrated in the twin towns of Barsana and Nandgaon, also known as the towns of Radha and Krishna respectively. Every year, during the period of Holi, thousands of devotees and tourists visit ...

. According to Brahma Vaivarta Purana and Garga Samhita, when Krishna left Vrindavan, all the Ashtasakhi, headed by Lalita left their villages and accompany

to Kadli forest. Once the 100 years of separation period was over for Radha Krishna, Krishna came back to Braj and met all the Ashtasakhi and Radha in the Kadli forest. There Krishna summoned a huge divine chariot and took Radha, all the gopis including Lalita and residents of Braj back to their celestial abode Goloka.

Literature and symbolism

Lalita gopi was mentioned within multiple Vaishnavism scriptures. In some scriptures, she was mentioned as the

or chief of Ashtasakhi while in others, she is described as the closest associate of Radha Krishna. Some of the common scriptures with her mention are - '' Garga Samhita'', '' Padma Purana'', '' Narad Purana'' and '' Brahma Vaivarta Purana''. In Shaktism, Lalita gopi and other Ashtasakhi are considered as the embodiment of the Ashta Siddhis which are - Aṇimā, Mahima, Garima, Laghima, Prāpti, Prākāmya, Iṣiṭva, and Vaśitva.

Worship

Lalita gopi is worshiped in many traditions including - Radha Vallabh Sampradaya, Gaudiya Vaishnavism,

Nimbarka Sampradaya The Nimbarka Sampradaya (IAST: ''Nimbārka Sampradāya'', Sanskrit निम्बार्क सम्प्रदाय), also known as the Hamsa Sampradāya, and Sanakādi Sampradāya (सनकादि सम्प्रदाय), is ...

, Pushtimarga Sampradaya, Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat and Haridasi Sampradaya.

Hymns

Shri Lalita Ashtakam
by

Rupa Gosvami Rupa Goswami ( sa, रूप गोस्वामी, bn, রূপ গোস্বামী, ; 1489–1564) was a devotional teacher (guru), poet, and philosopher of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. With his brother Sanatana Goswami, he is ...

* Shri Lalita Dhyan Mantra in Skanda Purana

Temples

The main temple of Lalita is situated in her birth place, where she is worshiped with Krishna as his consort. The temple is called ''Shri Lalita Sakhi temple, Unchagaon.'' She is also venerated in other temples including '' Shri Radha Madan Mohan Temple, Vrindavan'',
Shri Radha Rasbihari Ashtasakhi Temple
' in Vrindavan and '' Shri Radha Madan Mohan Temple, Karauli, Shri Ashtasakhi temple, Barsana.''

Incarnation

In Kaliyuga,

Swami Haridas Swami Haridas (1480—1573) was a spiritual poet and classical musician. Credited with a large body of devotional compositions, especially in the Dhrupad style, he is also the founder of the Haridasi school of mysticism, still found today ...

, the popular saint and musician of Vrindavan is said to be the incarnation of Lalita. He manifested the idol of Banke Bihari in Nidhivan, Vrindavan.

Adaptation

In popular culture, Lalita Sakhi is portrayed by artists in TV series. * In Ramanand Sagar's 1993 series '' Shri Krishna'', Lalita was portrayed by Papiya Sengupta. * In the 2018 series '' RadhaKrishn'', Lalita was portrayed by Tanishq Seth.

Life and legends

Literature and symbolism

Worship

Hymns

Temples

Incarnation

Adaptation

See also

References

Further reading

External links