JK/NKK 15
ha: manaSi kya:zi chukh vuTha:n sèki lavar
ami ràkhi ha: ma:li pakiy na na:v |
lyu:khuy yi na:rö:ny karmàni rakhi
ti ma:li hèkiy phi:rith na ka:nh
O fellow Human,
why are you twisting
a rope of sand?
This line, good Sir,
will not move
your boat.
The line that God
has written in your karma,
that, good Sir,
cannot be changed
by anyone.
Note: There are different interpretations of this poem (as well as textual variants). Some believe that the "rope of sand" represents man-made, formal religion. Alternatively, it may just refer to our own poor efforts to safely cross the river or ocean of embodied existence. To some, the last part of the poem suggests predestination, but I don't believe that Lalla meant it that way. The "line" that God has written into our karma is also a life-saving "line," and that cannot be changed or taken away by anyone, though we are free to reject it.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Monday, December 26, 2016
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 22
JK/NKK 22
ra:jas bö:ji yemy kartal työ:ji,
svargas bö:ji chuy taph tà da:n |
sahazas bö:ji yemy gvarà-kath pö:ji,
pa:p-pvany bö:ji chuy panànuy pa:n ||
He enjoys the kingdom
who gives up the sword.
He enjoys heaven
who does penance and charity.
He enjoys the Supreme
who follows the guru's word.
The enjoyer of the fruits
of evil and virtue
is one's own self.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ra:jas bö:ji yemy kartal työ:ji,
svargas bö:ji chuy taph tà da:n |
sahazas bö:ji yemy gvarà-kath pö:ji,
pa:p-pvany bö:ji chuy panànuy pa:n ||
He enjoys the kingdom
who gives up the sword.
He enjoys heaven
who does penance and charity.
He enjoys the Supreme
who follows the guru's word.
The enjoyer of the fruits
of evil and virtue
is one's own self.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 24
JK/NKK 24
gvaras pRtsha:m sa:si laTe,
yas nà kenh vana:n tas kya: na:v |
pRtsha:n pRtsha:n thacis tà lu:sàs,
kenhnas niSe kya:hta:m dra:v ||
I asked the guru
a thousand times,
That which cannot be described,
what is Its name?
Asking and asking,
I grew tired
and worn out.
From that Nothing,
Something came.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
gvaras pRtsha:m sa:si laTe,
yas nà kenh vana:n tas kya: na:v |
pRtsha:n pRtsha:n thacis tà lu:sàs,
kenhnas niSe kya:hta:m dra:v ||
I asked the guru
a thousand times,
That which cannot be described,
what is Its name?
Asking and asking,
I grew tired
and worn out.
From that Nothing,
Something came.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 49
JK/NKK 49
yuh yi karm karà pètàrun pa:nas,
arzun-barzun bèyis kyut |
antiH la:gi-rôst puSirun sva:tmas,
adà yu:ry gatshà tu:ry chum hyôt ||
Whatever my actions,
their burden is mine,
though their fruits
be for others.
In the end I offer them
without attachment
to the Self,
and wherever I go,
it is beneficial to me.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
yuh yi karm karà pètàrun pa:nas,
arzun-barzun bèyis kyut |
antiH la:gi-rôst puSirun sva:tmas,
adà yu:ry gatshà tu:ry chum hyôt ||
Whatever my actions,
their burden is mine,
though their fruits
be for others.
In the end I offer them
without attachment
to the Self,
and wherever I go,
it is beneficial to me.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 8
JK/NKK 8
a:yas kami diSi tà kami vate,
gatshà kami diSi kavà za:nà vath |
antiH da:y lagimay tate,
chanis phôkas ka:nh ti no sath ||
From which direction
did I come, and
by what road?
In which direction
shall I go, and how
know the path?
In the end, may I
receive right guidance
to take me there.
There is no substance
in an empty breath.
Note: It is clear that Lalla is telling us the importance of a trustworthy guide (called "gu:ru" in the Indian tradition). What is not so clear is how to interpret "There is no substance (nothing true or real) in an empty breath." Some have interpreted this to mean that controlling the breath (to which she refers elsewhere) is not enough. Grierson pointed out (page 61) that we are to think of our life as one breath. It is subject to illusion (ma:ya), but in Kashmiri Shaivism it is not thought of as unreal, but rather part of the Divine, as are we. But I am inclined to the view that she meant empty words, not backed up by experience. Fortunately, I am only a translator, and do not have to decide among the various interpretations.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
a:yas kami diSi tà kami vate,
gatshà kami diSi kavà za:nà vath |
antiH da:y lagimay tate,
chanis phôkas ka:nh ti no sath ||
From which direction
did I come, and
by what road?
In which direction
shall I go, and how
know the path?
In the end, may I
receive right guidance
to take me there.
There is no substance
in an empty breath.
Note: It is clear that Lalla is telling us the importance of a trustworthy guide (called "gu:ru" in the Indian tradition). What is not so clear is how to interpret "There is no substance (nothing true or real) in an empty breath." Some have interpreted this to mean that controlling the breath (to which she refers elsewhere) is not enough. Grierson pointed out (page 61) that we are to think of our life as one breath. It is subject to illusion (ma:ya), but in Kashmiri Shaivism it is not thought of as unreal, but rather part of the Divine, as are we. But I am inclined to the view that she meant empty words, not backed up by experience. Fortunately, I am only a translator, and do not have to decide among the various interpretations.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 6
JK/NKK 6
kya:h karà pa:ntsan döhan tà ka:han,
vvakSun yath lyaji yim körith gay |
sö:riy samàhan yith razi lamàhan,
adà kya:zi ra:vihe ka:han ga:v ||
What shall I do with
the five, the ten, and
the eleven?
They have all
scraped out the pot.
If they had all pulled
together on the rope,
then the eleven
would not have lost
the cow.
Note: The "five" are the five elements of earth, air, fire, water, and vacuity. The "ten" are five motor-nervous system organs (karmendri:yas) plus five senses of perception (gya:nendri:yas). The "eleven" are these ten plus the mind, which supposedly controls them. They are here visualized as masters of a single cow, which is the spiritual self with its aspirations regarding realization of the Supreme. When the cow is being pulled in many directions by these eleven masters with their individual ropes, the "pot" (either the physical body or its head) is "scraped out" by all of them (loss of energy, vitality, and concentration occurs), and the "cow" is lost, which would not have happened if all these sensory "masters" had been working together, pulling in the same direction.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
kya:h karà pa:ntsan döhan tà ka:han,
vvakSun yath lyaji yim körith gay |
sö:riy samàhan yith razi lamàhan,
adà kya:zi ra:vihe ka:han ga:v ||
What shall I do with
the five, the ten, and
the eleven?
They have all
scraped out the pot.
If they had all pulled
together on the rope,
then the eleven
would not have lost
the cow.
Note: The "five" are the five elements of earth, air, fire, water, and vacuity. The "ten" are five motor-nervous system organs (karmendri:yas) plus five senses of perception (gya:nendri:yas). The "eleven" are these ten plus the mind, which supposedly controls them. They are here visualized as masters of a single cow, which is the spiritual self with its aspirations regarding realization of the Supreme. When the cow is being pulled in many directions by these eleven masters with their individual ropes, the "pot" (either the physical body or its head) is "scraped out" by all of them (loss of energy, vitality, and concentration occurs), and the "cow" is lost, which would not have happened if all these sensory "masters" had been working together, pulling in the same direction.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
Sunday, December 25, 2016
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 14
JK/NKK 14
ha: tsyata: kavà chuy lôgmut parà mas,
kavà gôy apàzis pazyuk bront |
dàSi-bôz vaS kôrnakh par-darmas,
yinà-gatshanà zyanà-marànas kront ||
O Mind, why have you gotten drunk
on foreign wine?
Why have you put the unreal
before the real?
Lack of wisdom has put you
on an alien path,
and the ordeal of
coming and going,
birth and death.
Note: This poem contains tricky symbolism and double meanings. The wordplay is extremely clever, and makes the translator's job harder. I've tried to translate on the level that makes for the best poetry. What Lalla is suggesting here is that she was, for a time, seduced by alien (probably theistic/dualistic) doctrine. There is other evidence that this may have been the case, because in another poem she says that she has read (and is still reading) the Bhagwad Gita. Lalla's work (which has been claimed by Hindus, Sufis, and Buddhists) goes beyond the sectarianisms of her day, but I think it is closest to Kashmiri Shaivism. That she intended it to be universal is indicated by the words, in another poem:
"mo za:n hyond tà musalma:n," Forget about "Hindu" and "Muslim,"
because "Shiva lives everywhere" and "the sun shines on all alike." Too bad this tolerant attitude is not coming into play today.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
ha: tsyata: kavà chuy lôgmut parà mas,
kavà gôy apàzis pazyuk bront |
dàSi-bôz vaS kôrnakh par-darmas,
yinà-gatshanà zyanà-marànas kront ||
O Mind, why have you gotten drunk
on foreign wine?
Why have you put the unreal
before the real?
Lack of wisdom has put you
on an alien path,
and the ordeal of
coming and going,
birth and death.
Note: This poem contains tricky symbolism and double meanings. The wordplay is extremely clever, and makes the translator's job harder. I've tried to translate on the level that makes for the best poetry. What Lalla is suggesting here is that she was, for a time, seduced by alien (probably theistic/dualistic) doctrine. There is other evidence that this may have been the case, because in another poem she says that she has read (and is still reading) the Bhagwad Gita. Lalla's work (which has been claimed by Hindus, Sufis, and Buddhists) goes beyond the sectarianisms of her day, but I think it is closest to Kashmiri Shaivism. That she intended it to be universal is indicated by the words, in another poem:
"mo za:n hyond tà musalma:n," Forget about "Hindu" and "Muslim,"
because "Shiva lives everywhere" and "the sun shines on all alike." Too bad this tolerant attitude is not coming into play today.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ