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Sri, Shri, Shree, Siri or Seri (Devanagari
Devanagari

, or 'Nagari', is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal. It is written from left to right, lacks distinct letter cases, and is recognizable by a distinctive horizontal line running along the tops of the letters that links them together....
: ????, Indonesian
Indonesian

The word Indonesian may refer to:* Anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, a country in Southeast Asia* A person from Indonesia, or of Indonesian descent....
: Seri, Kannada: ????, Tamil
Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has Official language in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore....
: ????, Thai
Thai language

Thai , is the national language and official language language of Thailand and the mother tongue of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group....
: ??? or ????; IAST
IAST

The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration is a popular transliteration scheme that allows a lossless romanization of Brahmic family....
; Sri) is a Sanskrit
Sanskrit

Sanskrit is a historical Indo-Aryan language, one of the liturgical languages of Hinduism and Buddhism, and one of the 22 official languages of India....
 title of veneration
Veneration

In Christianity, veneration , or veneration of saints, is a special act of honoring a saint: a dead person who has been identified as singular in the traditions of the religion....
. It is an honorific
Honorific

An honorific is a word or expression that conveys esteem or respect when used in addressing or referring to a person. "Honorific" may refer broadly to the style of language or particular words or grammatical markings used in this way, including words used to express honor to one perceived as a social superior....
 stemming from the Puranic conception of prosperity and frequently used in Hinduism
Hinduism

'Hinduism' is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as , a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal dharma", by its practitioners....
, Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
, Sikhism
Sikhism

Sikhism , founded on the teachings of Guru Nanak and ten successive Sikh Gurus in fifteenth century Punjab region, is the Major religious groups organized religion in the world....
 and Jainism
Jainism

Jainism is one of the oldest Indian religions that originated in India. Jains believe that every soul is divine and has the potential to achieve God-consciousness....
.

It signifies the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi
Lakshmi

Lakshmi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity, purity, and generosity; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are found also in Jainism and Buddhist monuments, with the earliest archeological representation found in Buddhist monuments....
, who symbolizes beauty, wealth and grace. According to Sanskrit
Sanskrit

Sanskrit is a historical Indo-Aryan language, one of the liturgical languages of Hinduism and Buddhism, and one of the 22 official languages of India....
 grammar, Sri belongs to the feminine subjunctive gender
Gender

Gender comprises a range of differences between man and woman, extending from the biological to the social. Biologically, the male gender is defined by the presence of a Y-chromosome, and its absence in the female gender....
 but nowadays it is written as a masculine name prefix, short for Sriman
Sriman

Sriman means one who has Sri .* Sriman is another name of Vishnu or God and appears as 22nd, 178th and the 220th names in the Vishnu sahasranama....
 and it is akin to Mr.
Mister

Mister may refer to:* The full spelling of the title Mr.* A device that makes or sprays mist* Personal rapid transit system - MISTER...
 in English
English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
, kyrios in Greek
Greek language

Greek is an Indo-European languages native to the southern Balkan peninsula, the language of the Greek people. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European....
, Effendi
Effendi

Effendi or Efendi is a nobility title meaning a lord or Master . It is a title of respect or courtesy, equivalent to the English Sir#Formal styling, in Turkey....
 in Turkish
Turkish language

Turkish is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Cyprus, with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and other parts of Eastern Europe....
, or Thiru
Thiru

Thiru ...
 in Tamil
Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has Official language in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore....
.






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Sri, Shri, Shree, Siri or Seri (Devanagari
Devanagari

, or 'Nagari', is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal. It is written from left to right, lacks distinct letter cases, and is recognizable by a distinctive horizontal line running along the tops of the letters that links them together....
: ????, Indonesian
Indonesian

The word Indonesian may refer to:* Anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, a country in Southeast Asia* A person from Indonesia, or of Indonesian descent....
: Seri, Kannada: ????, Tamil
Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has Official language in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore....
: ????, Thai
Thai language

Thai , is the national language and official language language of Thailand and the mother tongue of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group....
: ??? or ????; IAST
IAST

The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration is a popular transliteration scheme that allows a lossless romanization of Brahmic family....
; Sri) is a Sanskrit
Sanskrit

Sanskrit is a historical Indo-Aryan language, one of the liturgical languages of Hinduism and Buddhism, and one of the 22 official languages of India....
 title of veneration
Veneration

In Christianity, veneration , or veneration of saints, is a special act of honoring a saint: a dead person who has been identified as singular in the traditions of the religion....
. It is an honorific
Honorific

An honorific is a word or expression that conveys esteem or respect when used in addressing or referring to a person. "Honorific" may refer broadly to the style of language or particular words or grammatical markings used in this way, including words used to express honor to one perceived as a social superior....
 stemming from the Puranic conception of prosperity and frequently used in Hinduism
Hinduism

'Hinduism' is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as , a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal dharma", by its practitioners....
, Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
, Sikhism
Sikhism

Sikhism , founded on the teachings of Guru Nanak and ten successive Sikh Gurus in fifteenth century Punjab region, is the Major religious groups organized religion in the world....
 and Jainism
Jainism

Jainism is one of the oldest Indian religions that originated in India. Jains believe that every soul is divine and has the potential to achieve God-consciousness....
.

It signifies the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi
Lakshmi

Lakshmi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity, purity, and generosity; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are found also in Jainism and Buddhist monuments, with the earliest archeological representation found in Buddhist monuments....
, who symbolizes beauty, wealth and grace. According to Sanskrit
Sanskrit

Sanskrit is a historical Indo-Aryan language, one of the liturgical languages of Hinduism and Buddhism, and one of the 22 official languages of India....
 grammar, Sri belongs to the feminine subjunctive gender
Gender

Gender comprises a range of differences between man and woman, extending from the biological to the social. Biologically, the male gender is defined by the presence of a Y-chromosome, and its absence in the female gender....
 but nowadays it is written as a masculine name prefix, short for Sriman
Sriman

Sriman means one who has Sri .* Sriman is another name of Vishnu or God and appears as 22nd, 178th and the 220th names in the Vishnu sahasranama....
 and it is akin to Mr.
Mister

Mister may refer to:* The full spelling of the title Mr.* A device that makes or sprays mist* Personal rapid transit system - MISTER...
 in English
English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
, kyrios in Greek
Greek language

Greek is an Indo-European languages native to the southern Balkan peninsula, the language of the Greek people. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European....
, Effendi
Effendi

Effendi or Efendi is a nobility title meaning a lord or Master . It is a title of respect or courtesy, equivalent to the English Sir#Formal styling, in Turkey....
 in Turkish
Turkish language

Turkish is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Cyprus, with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and other parts of Eastern Europe....
, or Thiru
Thiru

Thiru ...
 in Tamil
Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has Official language in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore....
. The related veneration terms Shrimati (which is the equivalent of Mrs.) and Sushri (the equivalent of Ms.) are used for women.

The honorific can also be applied to objects and concepts that are widely respected, such as the Sikh
Sikh

Sikh is the title and name given to an adherent of Sikhism. The term has its origin in the Sanskrit ' "disciple, learner" or ' "instruction"....
 religious text, the Shri Guru Granth Sahib
Guru Granth Sahib

The Guru Granth Sahib , or Adi Sri Guru Granth Sahib, is the holy scripture and the final Guru#Classification of gurus of the Sikhs. It is a voluminous text of 1430 pages, compiled and composed during the period of Sikh Gurus, from 1469 to 1708....
. Similarly, when the Ramlila
Ramlila

Ramlila is a dramatic folk re-enactment of the ten day battle between Rama and Ravana, as described in the Hindu religious Epic poetry, the Ramayana....
 tradition of reenacting the Ramayana is referred to as an institution, the term Shri Ramlila is frequently used.

Pronunciation

The letter S
S

S is the nineteenth letter in the modern Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled ess or generally es- when part of a compound word, plural esses....
 in IAST actually stands for the voiceless postalveolar fricative
Voiceless postalveolar fricative

The voiceless palato-alveolar fricative or domed postalveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some Speech communication languages....
. English "sh" is also the voiceless postalveolar fricative
Voiceless postalveolar fricative

The voiceless palato-alveolar fricative or domed postalveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some Speech communication languages....
. This means that the "S" in "Sri" is pronounced almost the same as the "sh" in "sheep". There is a widespread misunderstanding that ? is English "sh", and that S is somewhere in between English s and English sh. This is not true.

Significance

Sri is an epithet
Epithet

An epithet is a descriptive word or phrase accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a person or thing, which has become a fixed formula....
 of some Hindu god
God

God is a deity in theism and deism religions and other belief systems, representing either the sole deity in monotheism, or a principal deity in polytheism....
s. It is also used as a prefix to the names of men and women who are considered great or holy, or who derive their power from that which is holy. When used as a title for gods, Sri is sometimes translated into English as Lord.

Sri Devi (or in short Sri, another name of Lakshmi
Lakshmi

Lakshmi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity, purity, and generosity; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are found also in Jainism and Buddhist monuments, with the earliest archeological representation found in Buddhist monuments....
, consort of Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
) is the Devi
Devi

Devi is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism. Devi is synonymous with Shakti, the female aspect of the divine, as conceptualized by the Shakta tradition of Hinduism....
 (goddess) of wealth according to Hindu beliefs. Lakshmi is the embodiment of Love, from which devotion to God or Bhakti
Bhakti

Bhakti is a word of Sanskrit origin meaning devotion. Within Vaishnavism bhakti is only used in conjunction with Vishnu, Krishna or of the associated avatar, who are the source of attractiveness....
 flows from. It is through Love/Bhakti or Lakshmi that the atma or soul is able to reach God or Vishnu. Sri or Lakshmi is also the personification of the Spiritual energy within us and universe called Kundalini
Kundalini

Kundalini Sanskrit, literally "coiled". In Indian yoga, a "corporeal energy" - an unconscious, instinctive or libidinal force or Shakti, envisioned either as a goddess or else as a sleeping serpent coiled at the base of the spine, hence a number of English renderings of the term such as 'serpent power'....
. Also, She embodies the Spiritual World or Vaikunta
Vaikunta

Vaikuntha , Param Padam , or Paramapadham is the abode of Lord Vishnu. It is believed to be the place of eternal bliss, exclusive to the Lord, His eternal consort which is the Goddess Lakshmi, and the three-folded serpent Sesha Naga, upon whom the Lord and his wife rest....
; the abode of Lakshmi-Narayana
Narayana

Narayana or Narayan is an important Sanskrit name for Vishnu, and in many contemporary vernaculars a common Indian name. Narayana is also identified as the original man, Purusha....
 or Vishnu, or what would be considered Heaven
Heaven

Heaven may refer to the physical heavens, the atmosphere or the seemingly endless expanse of the universe beyond. This is the traditional literal meaning of the term in English, however since at least AD 1000, it is typically also used to refer to an afterlife plane of existence in various religions and spirituality philosophy, often descri...
 in Hinduism
Hinduism

'Hinduism' is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as , a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal dharma", by its practitioners....
. She is also the Divine qualities of God and the soul. Lakshmi is God's superior spiritual feminine energy or the Param Prakriti, which purifies, empowers and uplifts the individual. Hence, She is called the Goddess of Fortune.

Sri is one of the names of Ganesha
Ganesha

Ganesha , also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh and also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most widely worshipped Hindu deities in the Hinduism Pantheon ....
, the Hindu god of prosperity. The origin of the word Sri is traced to the account of Lord Ganesha losing his head while protecting his mother Parvati
Parvati

Parvati , sometimes spelled Parvathi or Parvathy, is a Hinduism Devi. Parvati is also regarded as a representation of Shakti, albeit the gentle aspect of that goddess because she is a mother goddess....
. This is why he is the first to be worshiped in all the yagyas.

Current usage

Sri/Shri is often used by Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains as a respectful affix to the names of celebrated or revered persons. It is not gender-specific in Sanskrit, but the assumption that it is masculine has resulted in the titles of Shrimati (abbreviated Smt
SMT

SMT may refer to:*Satisfiability Modulo Theories*Statistical machine translation*Scottish Motor Traction, a former bus company in Scotland*Sequential manual transmission...
) for married women and Sushri for women (independent of marital status).

There is a common practice of writing Sri as first word centralised in line at the beginning of a document.

Another usage is as an emphatic compound (which can be used in multiple: shri shri, or sri sri sri, etc.) in princely styles, notably in Darbar
Darbar

Darbar can refer to:* A surname used in the Indian Subcontinent, it originated during Mughal rule.* An a term for a court in Urdu from the Persian - Durbar ....
 Shri, Desai
Desai

Desai is an Indo-Aryan languages administrative title and surname derived from the words "dah sai", which mean "ten parts". Desai's were revenue collectors who looked after a region or area on the ruler's behalf and in return earned a ten percent share of the revenue....
 Shri, and Thakur
Thakur

*Thakur *Thakore*Thakur *Thakur one of the scheduled tribes of India.Thakur may refer to:*Hindu Gods: In Bengali, deities are refer to as Thakur....
 Shri or as in Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is a spiritual and humanitarian leader. He was born on May 13, 1956 in Tamil Nadu, India. He is often referred to by the double-honorific "Sri Sri", Guruji or Gurudeva....
, a Hindu spiritual Guru and leader.

Place name

It is used in the name of the country Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India....
, which means venerable island and as in Sri Perambadur, a town in the State of Tamil Nadu, where the Srivaishnava pontiff Ramanujacharya was born.