125. Śarma-dāyinī
Śarma-dāyinī reveals the Divine Mother as the giver of lasting peace, spiritual fulfillment, and inner refuge. The name teaches that true happiness is not found in changing circumstances but in the recognition of the ever-present wholeness of Consciousness, which is the source of all genuine well-being.
Śarma-dāyinī (शर्मदायिनी)
This is the 125th name of the Lalitā Sahasranāma.
Having revealed the Divine Mother as Śarvāṇī, the power that dissolves ignorance and limitation, the Sahasranāma now reveals the fruit of that liberation:
Śarma-dāyinī - She who bestows supreme peace, blessedness, and abiding happiness.
When ignorance is removed and Reality is recognized, what remains is not emptiness, but profound fulfillment. This is the gift of Śarma.
1. Literal Meaning
Word-by-word
Śarma – peace, bliss, welfare, refuge, happiness, spiritual well-being
Dāyinī – giver, bestower
Literal translation
"She who bestows peace and blessedness."
or
"She who grants supreme spiritual welfare and happiness."
2. Traditional Meaning
In Sanskrit, Śarma signifies far more than ordinary happiness.
It refers to:
inner peace,
auspicious well-being,
spiritual fulfillment,
lasting contentment,
refuge in the Divine.
The Divine Mother is called Śarma-dāyinī because She grants these blessings to Her devotees.
3. Devotional Meaning
For a devotee, this name reveals the Mother as the giver of true solace.
Her grace brings:
peace amidst turmoil,
courage amidst uncertainty,
hope amidst suffering,
contentment amidst change.
The devotee discovers that the greatest comfort is the nearness of the Divine itself.
4. Śrīvidyā Meaning
In Śrīvidyā, true happiness is not dependent upon external circumstances.
It arises from alignment with Reality.
As ignorance diminishes and awareness becomes established in its source, a natural peace emerges.
Thus Śarma-dāyinī signifies:
She who bestows the inner fulfillment born of spiritual awakening.
5. Advaita Vedāntic Meaning
Now the deeper layer.
What is Śarma?
Ordinary happiness depends on conditions.
It comes and goes.
Śarma refers to something deeper:
the peace that arises when the search for completion ends.
It is not produced by an experience.
It is revealed when misidentification ceases.
Why is the Divine Mother its giver?
Because ignorance obscures the fullness already present within Consciousness.
The Mother removes this obscuration.
She does not create peace.
She reveals the peace that was always there.
What is the highest refuge?
The world offers many temporary refuges.
Yet everything external changes.
The highest refuge is:
the recognition of the Self.
That recognition cannot be lost because it is the very nature of Awareness itself.
This is the ultimate Śarma.
The hidden teaching
The previous name:
Śarvāṇī
The Divine dissolves ignorance and limitation.
This name:
Śarma-dāyinī
The Divine reveals the peace and fulfillment hidden beneath them.
The progression is beautiful:
Ignorance is removed.
Inner blessedness shines forth.
A deeper contemplation
Every human pursuit ultimately seeks peace.
Whether through achievement,
relationship,
knowledge,
or experience,
the underlying longing is the same.
The seeker yearns for wholeness.
Śarma-dāyinī reveals that this wholeness is not something acquired from the world.
It is the natural condition of Consciousness when it ceases to identify with what is transient.
The Divine Mother bestows this supreme gift by guiding the seeker back to the source of peace already present within.
One-line Essence
Śarma-dāyinī reveals the innate peace and fulfillment of Consciousness, bestowing the supreme blessedness that arises when the search for completion ends in the recognition of one's true nature.
