Trikhandeshi (त्रिखण्डेशी, IAST: Trikhaṇḍeśī) is a Sanskrit-origin Hindu girl-name meaning “Sovereign lady of the three divisions”. From tri (three), khaṇḍa (division, portion), and īśī (feminine sovereign), this name proclaims Lalitā as the supreme ruler over the threefold divisions — whether of the cosmos, the mantra, or the śrī-cakra.

Meaning, etymology & significance

The trikhaṇḍa most directly refers to the three sections of the Pañcadaśī mantra, which is the primary mantra of Śrī Vidyā sādhanā, making Lalitā the mistress of its inner structure. It may also refer to the three worlds, the three states of consciousness, or the three kūṭas of the Śrī Yantra. As Trikhaṇḍeśī, she reigns over all such triadic divisions with effortless completeness.

This epithet is specific to Lalitā as the deity of the Śrī Vidyā tradition. Pronounced 'tri-khan-day-shee'; the retroflex ṇ in khaṇḍa gives it a distinctive resonance when chanted.

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Scriptural source

Trikhandeshi appears in the Lalitha Sahasranama, among the sacred names of Lalitha.