LAL DED: The Great Kashmiri Saint-Poetess

Naman Mukesh Chuadhary

The valley of Kashmir is de­scribed as an emerald, set in pearls. The Himalayas crowing it proves the statement. It is a land of lakes, clear streams, green turf, mag­nificent trees and mighty mountains. And in the valley are born many poets, scholars and mystics.

But one among the very prom­inent, who remains renowned among the people of Kashmir, is Lal Ded.

The Hindus called her Lallesh­wari and the Muslims Lalla Arifa. Some considered her a Sufi and some a yogi.

Lalla’s belly had grown like a hanging lump down to her knees. Lal Ded in Kashmiri means an un­natural growth, an internal or ex­ternal bodily projection.

Lal Ded was born to a Kash­miri Pandit family at Panderethan in 1355, the time of Sultan Ala-ud-din. Being wise and pious, she was married early in Pampor, where she was given the name Padma­vati, but she was given no peace or happiness there. As the lore says, Lalla’s hypocritical mother-in-law was cunning and tricky. She would place a large round shingle underneath the cooked rice in her plate so as to display her deceptive affection for Lal Ded and at the same time, to show to others how hefty the latter was. Lalla would always finish eating quickly the scanty rice; wash her plate and the shingle. She would not utter a word of protest, much less com­plain against such a strange way of ill-treatment, but she took every care to shield her husband as well as mother–in-law and their honor.

When Lalla was twenty six, she renounced her family and pursued Yoga until she reached the abode of nectar. But in her ambience was chaos and she knew her people needed guidance, the right way. So she gave up her yoga and turned into a wandering preacher. She conveyed her teachings, living an ascetic life and forsaking all the comforts of life.

She effectively performed the task she’d set on in her life for, moulding the lives of people, transforming their characteristics and spreading love and even now after centuries many Kashmiri’s have one of the two hundred sayings of Lalla on the tip of their tongues.

But the question remains. Why is Lalla so famous in Kashmir?

It is because even though she was illiterate but what mattered was wisdom. In these sayings, she dealt with everything from life, yoga, and God to dharma and aatma. Lalla’s sayings still touch the Kashmiri’s ears, as well as the chords of their heart.

The Author is the writer of  “Kashmir of my Story.