Lalleshwari, ( also commonly known as Lal Ded (), was a Kashmiri mystic of the

Kashmir Shaivism Kashmir Shaivism tradition is a 20th century umbrella-term for a body of Sanskrit learning, Sanskrit exegetical literature from several Nondualism, non-dualist Shaivism, Shaiva-Shaktism, Shakta Tantra, tantric and Monism, monistic religious t ...

school of

Hindu philosophy Hindu philosophy or Vedic philosophy is the set of philosophical systems that developed in tandem with the first Hinduism, Hindu religious traditions during the Iron Age in India, iron and Classical India, classical ages of India. In Indian ...

. She was the creator of the style of mystic poetry called vatsun or ''Vakhs'', meaning "speech" (from Sanskrit ''

vāc Vac (, ') is a Vedic goddess who is a personified form of divine speech. She enters into the inspired poets and visionaries, gives expression and energy to those she loves; she is called the "mother of the Vedas" and consort of Prajapati, the Vedi ...

''). Known as Lal Vakhs, her verses are among the early compositions in the

Kashmiri language Kashmiri ( ) or Koshur (Kashmiri: , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language of the Dardic languages, Dardic branch spoken by around 7 million Kashmiris of the Kashmir region, primarily in the Kashmir Valley and surrounding hills o ...

and are a part of the history of modern

Kashmiri literature Literature of Kashmir has a long history, the oldest texts having been composed in the Sanskrit language. Early names include Patanjali, the author of the ''Mahābhāṣya'' commentary on Pāṇini's grammar, suggested by some to have been the sam ...

.Lal Ded's Vakhs
/ref> Lalleshwari ("Mother Lal" or "Mother Lalla") is also known by various other names, including Lal Dyad (''Dyad'' means "Grandmother"), Lalla Aarifa, Lal Diddi, Lalleshwari, Lalla Yogishwari/Yogeshwari and Lalishri.

Life

Most modern scholars place Lalleshwari's birth between 1301 and 1320 C.E., near Sempore or

Pandrethan The Pandrethan Shiva temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva at Pandrethan, in the city of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir, India. The current structure of the temple dates to , and stands at the centre of a ...

. She is estimated to have died in 1373, and a grave near Bijbehara is attributed to her, although there is no confirmation. Lalleshwari is believed to have been born to a Kashmiri Brahmin family, and was married at the age of twelve in accordance with the local customs. Following her marriage, she was renamed, as is custom, to Padmavati, but continued to be known as Lalla or Lalleshwari. Some reports suggest her marriage was unhappy, and that she left home, between the ages of twenty-four and twenty-six, to become a disciple of a spiritual leader, Siddha Srikanth or Sed Boyu, who was a

Shaivite Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the supreme being. It is the second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million Hindus, found widely across South Asia (predominantly in ...

. As part of her religious education, she travelled alone on foot, surviving on alms, before becoming a teacher and spiritual leader herself. Records of Lalleshwari's life are contained in oral tradition, and consequently, there is variance on the details of her life and beliefs. Numerous contemporary Kashmiri histories, such as those prepared by Jonaraja, Srivara, Prajyabhatta, and Haidar Malik Chadura, do not mention Lalleshwari. The first written record of Lalleshwari's life is contained in the ''Tadhkirat-ul-Arifin'' (1587), a collection of biographies of saints and religious figures written by Mulla Ali Raina, and followed by an account of her life in Baba Daud Mishkati's Asrar ul-Akbar (1654). In these texts, Lalleshwari is described as a mystic saint who appears in the forest to travellers. In 1736, Khwaja Azam Diddamari's ''Tarikh-i-Azami'' contained a more detailed account of Lalleshwari's life. She is also noted in a Persian chronicle, the ''Waqiati-e-Kashmir'' (1746) in which she is described as being known in the reign of Sultan Alau-ud-din (1343–54) and died in the reign of Sultan Shihab-ud-din (1354–73). Lalleshwari is also believed to be a contemporary of Mir Sayyid Ali-Hamdani, an Iranian

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

scholar and poet who recorded stories of her in his own verse during his travels to Kashmir.

Influence on Nund Rishi and The Rishi Sufi Order

The profound connection between Lal Ded (Lalleshwari) and

Nund Rishi Nund Rishi ( c. 1377 – c. 1438; born Noor-ud-Din) was a Kashmiri Sufi saint, mystic, poet and Islamic preacher. Nund Rishi was among the founders of the Rishi order, a Sufi tradition of the region, and is also known by the titles ''Sheikh- ...

(Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Noorani) is a cornerstone of Kashmir's spiritual and cultural heritage. Their intertwined legacies symbolize the syncretic traditions that have shaped the region's identity. A widely recounted legend narrates that as an infant,

refused to nurse from his mother. Lalleshwari (Lal Ded), upon visiting, addressed the child:

''"If you are not ashamed of being born,'' ''why are you ashamed of being breastfed?"''

Following her words, the child began to nurse, an act interpreted as Lal Ded imparting spiritual wisdom to

. This anecdote underscores the deep spiritual bond between the two mystics. Both Lal Ded and

employed vernacular Kashmiri poetic forms ('Vakhs' and 'Shruks') respectively to convey their mystical experiences and teachings. Their verses emphasize themes such as the impermanence of the material world, the importance of self-realization, and the unity of existence.

's poetry often reflects the influence of Lal Ded's thought, acknowledging her spiritual stature and expressing a desire to attain similar enlightenment, he writes:

''That Lalla of Padmanpore,'' ''The one who drank the nectar,'' ''The one who kept gazing at Shiva,'' ''God, give me a gift like that!''

The spiritual kinship between Lal Ded and

symbolizes the harmonious blending of

Shaivism Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Para Brahman, supreme being. It is the Hinduism#Demographics, second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million H ...

and

Sufism Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

in Kashmir. Their teachings transcended religious boundaries, fostering a culture of tolerance, compassion, and unity. Their combined legacy laid the foundation for the

Rishi order The Rishi order is a religious tradition, concept for the mystical teaching or spiritual practices associated with religious harmony of Sufism in the Kashmir Valley. The Sufi saints of the Rishi order influenced Kashmiris and its culture. The promi ...

in Kashmir, which emphasizes inner spirituality over external rituals and promotes a universal message of love and understanding. In summary, the profound connection between

and Lal Ded exemplifies the rich tapestry of Kashmir's spiritual heritage, characterized by a deep commitment to inner realization, universal love, and the transcendence of religious divisions. Lal Ded (Lalleshwari) profoundly shaped the Rishi Sufi Order in Kashmir through her mystic poetry, known as 'Vakhs'. These verses, blending elements of

and

, emphasized direct personal experience of the divine, transcending ritualistic practices. Her teachings inspired

, who further developed the

, promoting values of simplicity, equality, and non-violence. Lal Ded's influence is evident in the Rishi Sufi Order's emphasis on spiritual unity and communal harmony, laying the foundation for a syncretic religious culture in Kashmir.

Literary Works

Lalleshwari's poems represent some of the earliest works of Kashmiri literature, written as Kashmiri began to emerge as a distinct language from Apabhramsa Prakrit, which was spoken in North India. A total of 285 poems, known as ''vakhs,'' are attributed to Lalleshwari. Lalleshwari's ''vakhs'' drawn from influences and languages that made contact with the Indian sub-continent in her life, drawing from Sanskritic, Islamic and Sufi cultures.

Translations

Lalleshwari's work were first recorded in writing in the twentieth century, and have been republished since, in Kashmiri as well as in translation. In 1914, Sir George Grierson, a civil servant and the Superintendent of the Linguistic Survey of India, commissioned a copy of Lalleshwari's ''vakhs''. A written record of the ''vakhs'' was unavailable at the time, and one was prepared by transcribing an oral narration of the ''vakhs'' performed by Dharma-dasa Darwesh, a story-teller residing in Gush, Kashmir. This manuscript was translated in English by Grierson and published as ''Lalla-Vakyani'', or ''The Wise Sayings of Lal Ded''. Grierson consolidated and expanded on the partial translation prepared by the Hungarian-British archaeologist and scholar Sir

Marc Aurel Stein Sir Marc Aurel Stein, (; 26 November 1862 – 26 October 1943) was a Hungarian-born British archaeologist, primarily known for his explorations and archaeological discoveries in Central Asia. He was also a professor at Indian universities. ...

, and incorporated some archived poems that were contained in the ''Dictionary of Kashmiri Proverbs and Sayings'' (1888). Grierson's translation was the first printed and published volume of Lalleshwari's works. Following his translation, a number of English translations have been produced, those by Pandit Ananda Koul (1921), Sir Richard Carnac Temple (1924) and Jaylal Kaul (1973). Recent translations include those by

Coleman Barks Coleman Barks (born April 23, 1937) is an American poet and former literature faculty member at the University of Georgia. Although he neither speaks nor reads Persian, he is a popular interpreter of Rumi, rewriting the poems based on other Engl ...

, Jaishree Odin Kak, and

Ranjit Hoskote Ranjit Hoskote (born 1969) is an Indian poet, art critic, cultural theorist and independent curator. He has been honoured by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, with the Sahitya Akademi Golden Jubilee Award and the Sah ...

. Her poems, (''vakhs'') have been translated into English by Richard Temple, Jaylal Kaul,

, Jaishree Odin, and

Legacy

The leading Kashmiri

figure

Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali Nund Rishi ( c. 1377 – c. 1438; born Noor-ud-Din) was a Kashmiris, Kashmiri Sufism, Sufi saint, mystic, poet and Da'i, Islamic preacher. Nund Rishi was among the founders of the Rishi order, a Sufi tradition of the region, and is also known b ...

(also known as Nooruddin Rishi or Nunda Rishi) was influenced by Lalleshwari. He led to the formation of the

of saints and later gave rise to many Rishi saints like Resh Mir Sàeb. One Kashmiri folk story recounts that, as a baby, Nunda Rishi refused to be breast-fed by his mother. It was Lalleshwari who breast-fed him. Lalleshwari and her mystic musings continue to have a deep impact on the psyche of Kashmiris, and the 2000 National Seminar on her held at New Delhi led to the release of the book ''Remembering Lal Ded in Modern Times''. In his book "Triadic Mysticism", Paul E. Murphy calls her the "chief exponent of devotional or emotion-oriented Triadism". According to him, three representatives of devotionalism emerged in Kashmir in the five hundred years between the last half of the ninth and the end of the fourteenth centuries. What this points to is the non-sectarian nature of Lalleshwari's spiritual life and her song-poems. Yet, her life and work have been used for various religious and political agendas over time. As author and poet

writes:I, Lalla: The Poems of Lal Ded, translated by Ranjit Hoskote with an Introduction and Notes, Penguin Classics, 2011, p. xiv . Beyond several new translations of Lalleshwari's vakh, there are other contemporary performative arts that are based on Lalleshwari's life and poetry. For example, there are contemporary renderings of Lalleshwari's poetry in song. In addition, a solo play in English, Hindi, and Kashmiri titled ''Lal Ded'' (based on her life) has been performed by actress

Mita Vashisht Mita Vashisht (born 2 November 1967) is an Indian actress. Known for her work on screen, stage and television, she has played a wide range of roles. Her most prominent appearances includes; sci-fi television series '' Space City Sigma'' (1989- ...

across India since 2004.Bhumika K
All for theatre
''The Hindu'', 7 November 2011.

References

External links

Kashmiri Saints and Sages
* The Wise Sayings of Lal Ded, translated by Sir George Grierson * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lalleshwari Hindu female religious leaders Hindu mystics Kashmiri Shaivites Hindu poets Kashmiri people Kashmiri writers Kashmiri women writers Kashmiri poets Indian women poets 1320 births 1392 deaths 14th-century Indian poets 14th-century Indian women writers Women mystics Hindu saints