About
Shrideva — Daughter of Devaka, Wife of Vasudeva
Shrideva · Śrīdeva · fourth daughter of Devaka
Shrideva is the fourth of the seven daughters of Devaka, a chief of the Kukura branch of the Yadava confederation and the paternal uncle of Kamsa, the king of Mathura. She is one of seven sisters given collectively in marriage to Vasudeva, son of Shurasena of the Vrishni clan, as part of a dynastic alliance within the Yadava confederation. Her sisters in this alliance are Dhritadeva the eldest, Shantideva, Upadevi, Devarakshita, Sahadeva, and Devaki the youngest. Shrideva appears in the Harivamsa Purana's Chapter 35 enumeration of Vasudeva's fourteen wives and is corroborated in the Bhagavata Purana, Vishnu Purana, and Matsya Purana as one of Devaka's seven daughters. No children are individually attributed to her in any primary source currently available, and her profile accordingly reflects the honest limits of the textual record. She is the maternal aunt of Krishna, the divine hero and avatar of Vishnu born to her youngest sister Devaki.
✦ The Name
The name Shrideva is a Sanskrit compound of shri and deva. Shri carries connotations of radiance, beauty, prosperity, auspiciousness, and the divine feminine grace associated with the goddess Lakshmi; deva means god or divine being. The compound may therefore be rendered as "she who embodies divine radiance," "the auspicious divine lady," or "she of divine prosperity." Within the naming pattern of Devaka's household, where all seven daughters bear names incorporating divine referencing, Shrideva's name places particular emphasis on luminous auspiciousness.
✦ Lineage
- Father: Devaka, chief of the Kukura branch of the Yadava confederation, paternal uncle of Kamsa the king of Mathura; he gave all seven of his daughters to Vasudeva in a single dynastic alliance
- Sisters: Dhritadeva the eldest, Shantideva, Upadevi, Devarakshita, and Sahadeva — all wives of Vasudeva by the same alliance; and Devaki the youngest, who became the mother of Krishna
- Husband: Vasudeva, son of Shurasena of the Vrishni clan, ruler of the Surasena janapada; father of Krishna and Balarama by other wives
✦ Textual Placement
Shrideva is named in the Harivamsa Purana's Chapter 35 enumeration of Vasudeva's fourteen wives as one of the daughters of Devaka given to Vasudeva. The Bhagavata Purana (9.24.23), Vishnu Purana (Book 4, Chapter 15), and Matsya Purana corroborate her inclusion in the seven-daughters tradition, and the Brahma Purana corroborates her position in the household sequence. No children are attributed to her individually and no narrative episode involves her independently in any primary source currently available.
✦ References
Primary Sources
- Harivamsa Purana, Harivamsa Parva, Chapter 35: Names Shrideva among Vasudeva's fourteen wives as a daughter of Devaka.
- Bhagavata Purana, Canto 9, Chapter 24, verse 23: Records the seven daughters of Devaka given to Vasudeva, within which Shrideva is included.
- Vishnu Purana, Book 4, Chapter 15: Corroborates the seven-daughters-of-Devaka tradition.
- Matsya Purana: Corroborates the collective seven-daughters tradition.
- Brahma Purana, Chapter 112, verse 35: Corroborates her position in the household enumeration.
Secondary and Reference Works
- Wisdomlib.org, Harivamsa Purana (Dutt translation), Chapter 35: Used for verification of Shrideva's placement in the fourteen-wife enumeration.