ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR KS 152

KS 152
dod kya:h za:ni yas no bane,
gamàky ja:mà ha: vàlith tane     |
garà-garà phi:ràs pèyam kane,
Dyu:Thum nà ka:nh ti panàni kane     ||

What does one know about pain
who has not suffered it?
Covering my body
with a robe of sorrow,
I went from door to door,
and found only stones.
I did not find anyone
who was on my side.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 96

JK/NKK 96
nö:bhistha:nas tsèth zalàvàni:,
brahmastha:nas SiSirun mvakh     |
brahma:NDas chuy nad vahavàni:
tavay turun huh ha:h gav tôt     ||

The region of the navel
is a blazing pyre.
The abode of Brahma
is of the nature of ice.
Through all this
a great river flows.
Therefore, "huh" is cool,
and "hah" is hot.

Note: I have seen two variants, in addition to this version of the poem, which makes for a confusing situation. Lalla had noticed two types of exhalations, one of which, called by her "huh," was cool, while the other, which she called "hah," was hot. She asked her guru about this many times, as related in several poems, and this is the explanation that she received. The "abode of Brahma" is at the top of the head, in or near the sahasrara chakra (the thousand-petaled lotus). The "flowing river" is the energetic channel flowing between the "kanda," or "bulb," in the region of the pubic mound, and the top of the head. Depending on the type of exhalation, the vital airs are influenced primarily by one or the other of these extremes. All of this is related to the yogic practice of "pranayama," or breath control.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR KS 135 / AK 1930-6

KS 135 / AK 1930-6
azapa: ga:yatri hamsà hamsà zapith,
aham trö:vith suy adà raTh     |
yèmy trov aham suy ru:d pa:nay,
bà na ö:sun chuy vvapàdi:S     ||

Recite the unchanted mantra
(hamsa or so'ham)
with every breath.
Having cast away "I,"
meditate on Him.
They who renounce
the ego,
find the Self.
The lesson
to be learned
is that there is
no "I."

Note: When one chants the famous "so'ham" mantra (I am He), with repetition it tends to become "hamsa," which means "swan." In either case, the sound of the mantra imitates the sound of the breath, so one can chant this mantra by simply breathing. When this is done, the mantra is said to be "unchanted" ("ajapa" in Sanskrit, or "azapa" in Kashmiri). In another poem, Lalla told us that she had removed "aham" ("I"") from the so'ham mantra, leaving only "sa" (He). This was her figurative way of saying that she had rejected the sense of a separate "I."

 
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 138

JK/NKK 138
yih yih karm kôrum suy artsun,
yih rasani vvatsorum tiy manthàra     |
yahay lôgamo dihas partsun,
suy yih param Sivun tanthàra     ||

Whatever work I did
became worship.
What my tongue pronounced
became mantra.
What my body experienced
became tantra
of Supreme Shiva.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 136

JK/NKK 136
pa:nas lö:gith, ru:dukh mè tsà,
mè tsè tsa:NDa:n lu:stum dôh     |
pa:nas manz yèli Dyu:NThukh mè tsà,
mè tsè tà pa:nas dyu:tum tshôh     ||

While I was attached to myself,
You hid from me.
Searching for both of us,
I wore out the day.
But when you showed yourself
to me in myself,
then You and I
celebrated our union
in ecstasy.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR JK/NKK 127

JK/NKK 127
àndariy a:yès tsöndarày ga:ra:n,
ga:ra:n a:yès hihè hih     |
tsày he na:ra:n, tsày he na:ra:n,
tsày he na:ra:n yim kam vih     ||

I went within,
looking for the
(mystic) moon,
I came out searching
for the same.
But it was You,
O Narayana,
all was You.
Why all these rôles?

Note: In the poem, Lalla does not use the word "mystic," but it is understood that she is not searching within for the ordinary moon. She is referring to a stage of the kundalini experience in which one sees an inner "moon" in the sahasrara chakra, from which drips a nectar known as "shashikal," the "digit of the moon," mentioned several times in these poems. When she looks for a similar experience in the outer world, she finds that everything is the all-pervading Narayana, who is also Shiva. Lalla's choice of the name "Narayana" is thought-provoking. It is a deity name generally used by Vaishnavas (worshippers of Vishnu), but here it is used by Lalla, the Shaivite. I would translate "Narayana" as "the One whose vehicle is a personal (or human) form." It is frequently used as a name of Krishna. Lalla may have written this poem during one of the periods when she was being strongly influenced by the Bhagavad Gita. She has referred, elsewhere, to such influence.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ THE POEMS OF LALLA OF KASHMIR KS 128 / AK 1930-8

KS 128 / AK 1930-8
damà-damà omka:r man paranovum,
pa:nay para:n tà pa:nay boza:n     |
su:'ham padas aham golum,
tèli lala bà vö:tsas praka:Sastha:n     ||

With every breath I taught
my mind the sacred OM.
From "I am He,"
I took away "I am."
Then, both hearer
and heard,
the seer
and the sight,
I, Lalla, reached
the place of light.

Note: The version above is a bit free, but I like it, as do others. Here is a more literal translation:

AK 1930-8 (KS128)
I ever taught my mind the sacred OM,
I myself did hear, I did myself recite.
From "I am He," I took away "I am."
Then I, Lalla, reached the place of light.

ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ