Lalitha Sahasranamam | Ms Subbulakshmi

It is said that as she reached the name Chidananda Rupa (the form of consciousness and bliss), a nightingale began to sing outside the studio window, and the engineers chose to keep the sound in the final master, believing it to be a divine blessing.

When one speaks of the Lalitha Sahasranamam —the thousand names of the Goddess Lalitha Tripura Sundari—the voice that almost instinctively resonates in the mind’s ear is that of M.S. Subbulakshmi (Kunjamma, as she was endearingly known). While the Sahasranamam is a staple of ritualistic chanting in South Indian households, M.S. elevated it from a liturgical text to a universal sonic experience, a bridge between the esoteric and the sublime. ms subbulakshmi lalitha sahasranamam

Generations have learned the Lalitha Sahasranamam by ear simply by playing M.S.’s record. When she performed it at the in 1966, she did not need to explain the esoteric meaning of each name; the vibration of her voice transcended language. The audience, largely unfamiliar with Hindu cosmology, sat in stunned, reverent silence. It is said that as she reached the