The Secret Doctrine of Goddess Lalita
(Sri LalitaAṣṭottara Rahasyārthamu)
by Brahmasri Yellamraju Srinivasa Rao
Translator Padma Neppalli
Translator’s Note
This commentary is an interpretive translation of the original Telugu commentary written by Sri Yellamraju Srinivasa Rao. The literal one-line translations, additionally provided in this English translation, have been taken from various sources, including sources freely available online and from the printed copy of the Thousand Names of the Divine Mother published by Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Trust.
Sometimes a single name of the Goddess has been expounded in each section and other times a collection of related names. The names are sometimes referred to simply as Divine Names and other times as nāma-s or mantras. The terms, names, nāma, and mantra have been used interchangeably throughout this book since they all refer to the one Goddess Sri Lalita. The Goddess has also been variously referred to as the Goddess, Devī, Divine Mother, or śakti (energy/power). Shiva is referred to as śiva, the Supreme Consciousness whose supreme power is śakti.
The tables in the beginning of chapters 1 and 2 list the order in which the mantras are discussed in this book and their corresponding location in the original 1000 names of the Divine Mother. Note that the locations provided in these tables are approximations only and may vary from publication to publication, since there is no strict order in which the divine names are typically chanted.
Padma Neppalli Fremont, CA, US March 2023
Index