Whatever work I did became worship of the Lord;
Whatever word I uttered became a mantra;
Whatever this body of mine experienced became
(*yih yath lagyam dehas paritsay)
the sadhana-s of Saiva Tantra
illumining my path to Parmasiva.

Lalla-Vakhs in Sharda Script (old MS.)
Courtesy: Bhaskar Razdan

Ami pana so'dras nAvi ches lamAn
Kati bozi Day myon meyti diyi tAr
Ameyn tAkeyn poniy zan shemAn
Zuv chum bramAn gara gatshaha.

With a rope of loose-spun thread am I towing
my boat upon the sea.
Would that God heard my prayer
and brought me safe across!
Like water in cups of unbaked clay
I run to waste.
Would God I were to reach my home!

La'lith-la'lith vaday boh vAy(bo dAy*)
Tseyta muhac peyiy mAy
Roziy no pata looh-laengarac tshAy
Niz-swarup kyAh mothuy hAy

I will weep and weep for you, O Mind;
(my Soul) The world hath caught you in its spell.
Though you cling to them with the anchor of steel,
Not even the shadow of the things you love Will go with you when you are dead.
Why then have you forgot your own true Self ?

tala chuy zyus ta pyattha chukh natsaan
vanta mali man khit pachan chuy
soruy sombrit yati chuy machan
vanta mali anna khit rotchan chuy

There is a yawning pit underneath you,
and you are dancing overhead.
Pray, Sir, how can you bring yourself to dance ?
See, the riches you are amassing here,
nothing of them will go with you.
Pray, Sir, how can you relish your food and drink ?

hacivi haa'rinji pyatsuv kaan gom
abahak chaan pyom yath raazdhaana
alanjz bhag bazaras kuluph rous vaan gom
tirith rous paan goam kus maali zaana

A wooden bow and rush grass for an arrow:
A carpenter unskilled and a palace to build:
A shop unlocked in a busy bazaar:
A body uncleansed by waters holy-
Oh dear ! who knows what hath befallen me ?

aayas vate gayas naa vate
suman satha lusum dho
vuchum chandas har no atha
ath nav taras dim kyha bha

By the highway I came,
But by the highway I return not.
And so I find me still on the embarkment,
not having gone even half the way,
And the day is done, the light has failed.
I search my pockets but not a cowrie find:
What shall I pay for the ferry fee ?

Kyaah kara paantsan dahan ta kaahan,
Vakhshun yath leyji yim karith gay;
Saoriy samahan yeythi razi lamahan,
Ada kyaazi raavhe kaahan gaav

Ah me! the Five (Bhuta-s), the ten (Indriya-s),
And the Eleventh, their lord the mind,
scraped this pot* and went away.
Had all together pulled on the rope,
Why should the Eleventh have lost the cow ?
(Why should the soul have gone astray?)

atshyan+ aay ta gatushun gatshe
pakun gatshe then kyho raath
yor aya turiy gatshun gatshe
khenata khenata kheneta kyha

For ever we come, for ever we go;
For ever, day and night, we are on the move.
Whence we come, thither we go,
For ever in the round of birth and death,
From nothingness to nothingness.
But sure, a mystery here abides,
A Something is there for us to know.
(It cannot all be meaningless).

aayas kami dishi ta kami vate
Gatsha kami deyshi kava zaana vath;
antidaay lagimay tate,
Chanis phookas kanh ti no sath.

Whence I have come and by which way,
I do not know.
Wither I shall go and by which way,
I do not know.
Were I to know the end of it all
And gain the knowledge of the truth,
(it would be well, for otherwise)
Life here is but an empty breath.

gaattulah akh vuchum bwachi suu'ty maraan
Pan zan haraan Pohani vaava laah
Neyshibodh akh vuchum vaazas maaraan
Tana Lalla bha praaraan tseyneym-na praah.

I have seen a learned man die of hunger,
A sere leaf drop in winter wind;
I have seen an utter fool beat his cook
(who could not make a toothsome dish).
Since then I, Lalla, anxiously await
The day when the lure of the world will fall away.

Now I saw a stream flowing;
Now neither bank nor bridge was seen.
Now I saw a bush in bloom;
Now neither rose nor thorn was seen.

Now I saw the hearth ablaze,
Now I saw not fire nor smoke.
Now I saw the Pandava Mother,
Now she was but a potters' aunt

tsAmar cha'tu'r rath siihAsan
aahlad nAtiya-ras tuula-paryankh,
KyAh mAnith yeti sthir Aswani?
Kawa zana kAsiy maranann shaenkh

A royal fly-whisk, sunshade, chariot and throne, Merry revels,
pleasures of the theater, a bed of cotton down-
Which of these, you think, will go with you when you are dead ?
How then can you dispel the fear of death ?

Why have you sunk deep in the sea
of the illusory pleasures of the world ?
Why have you pulled down the high-banked road
which could have led you safe across ?
The dense darkness of tamas surrounds you now,
and, at the appointed time,
Yama's apparitors prepare to drag
your body bleeding to death.
Who can dispel your fear of death ?

Why do you dote upon someone, my Soul,
who is not your true love ?
Why have you taken the false for the true?
Why can't you understand, why can't you know?
It is ignorance that binds you to the false,
To the ever-recurring wheel of birth and death, this coming and going.

haa manshi kyaazi chukh vuthaan s'ki lavar

O man, why do you twist a rope of sand?
You cannot tow your boat with it.
What God has written "in karma's line"#
Cannot be altered or reversed.

tsarman tsa't.ith ditith pa'ny paanas
 

What was it you had sown which should have borne a rich harvest?
You had but tanned a carcass hide,
shaped and stretched it taut on pegs,
(Your only care your own body which you pegged to the bonds of desire).
But counsel to a fool is labour lost,
Like a ball thrown at a big-sized pillar,
rebounding but not hitting the mark;
Or fruitless as feeding a tawny bullock on sweet molasses,
And expect a yield of milk from him.

In your mother's womb you vowed
not to be born again.*
When will you recall the vow ?

And die, even while alive
(to all desire, and be released from birth and death)**;
Great honor will be yours in this life and greater honor after death.

muddas gyaanu'c kath no va'ny-ze
Kharas gor dina raaviy doah.
Yus yuth kare su tyuth sware
Krere Karizina panun paan.

Impart not esoteric truth to fools,
Nor on molasses feed an ass.
Do not sow seed in sandy beds,
Nor waste your oil on cakes of bran.

da'chinis o'bras zaayun zaanahaa

I might disperse the southern clouds,
I might drain out the sea,
I might cure the incurable sick,
But I cannot convince a fool.#

ttyotth mo'dur tay myuutth zahar
 

What is bitter at first is sweet in the end,
What is sweet at first is poison in the end.*
(To everyone is given the choice)
It all depends on the effort put in,
and the unflagging determined will;
For whoever strives must soon arrive at the city of his choice.

gwaran vo'nam kunuy vatsum
Neybra doupanam anndaray atsun;
Suy gav Lali mey vaakh ta vatsun,
Tavay mey hyotum nagay natsun.

My Guru gave me but one percept :
"From without withdraw your gaze within And fix it on the Inmost Self."
Taking to heart this one percept,
Naked I began to roam.**

raajas baa'j ye'my kartal paa'j
Swargas baa'j chiy taph tay daan;
Sahazas baa'j yami gwarakath paaji
Paapa-pwanni baa'j chuy pananuy paan.

He who wields the sword a kingdom gains;
Paradise is gained by penance and alms.
Follow the Guru's word and gain
True knowledge of the Self within.
Of his own virtue and his sin
Man himself surely reaps the fruits.

naaba'dy baaras attagand ddyo'l gom
Diha-kaan hol gom hyaka kiho;
Gwara sundh vanun raavan-tyuol pueom,
Pahali-rost khyuol gom hyaka kiho.

The sling of my candy load has gone loose, (and it galls my back);
My body has bent double under its weight*;
how shall I carry the load ?
The word of my Guru (that I must lose the world to gain my soul),
Has been a painful ''loss-blister''** for me.
I am become a shepherdless flock, ah me !

gwaras pritshom saasi latte
Yas na ke'nh vanaan tas kyaah naav:
Pritshaan pritshaan thachis ta luusas,
Ke'nh nasa nishi kyaahtaam draav.

A thousand times my Guru I asked:
'How shall the Nameless be defined?'
I asked and asked but all in vain.
The Nameless Unknown, it seems to me,
Is the source of the something# that we see.

zanam praa'vith vyabhav no tsonddum
Luubhan bhuugan baram na pray
Somuy Ahaar suetthaah zonum,
Tsolum dwakha-vaav polum Dai.

In life I sought neither wealth nor power,
Nor ran after the pleasures of sense.
Moderate in food and drink, I lived a controlled life,
And loved my God.

I came straight,
And straight I shall return.
How can the crooked lead me astray?
Surely, no harm can come to me:
He knows me from the beginning of time,
And loves me.

By pandering to your appetites,
you get nowhere;
By penance and fasting,
you get conceit.
Be moderate in food and drink
and live a moderate life,
The gates of Heaven will surely be
thrown open wide for you.

tsaalun chu vzmala ta trattay
Tsaalun chu mandinyan gattakaar
Tsaalun chu paan-panun kaddun grattay
Heyti maali santuush vaati paanay.

Patience to endure lightning and thunder,
Patience to face darkness at noon,
Patience to go through a grinding-mill --
Be patient whatever befalls, doubting not
that He will surely come to you.*

tsala tsitta vwandas bayi mo bar
Chon tsinnth karaan paana Anaad,
Tsey kawa zananiya khyod hari kar
Kival tasunnday taaruk naad.

Have no fear, O restless mind,
The Eternal One takes thought for you.
He knows how to fulfil your wants.
Then cry to Him alone for help,
His Name will lead you safe across.

The joys of palate and fine apparel
bring man no lasting peace.
They who give up false hopes and don't
put trust in the things of the world,
Ascend, unafraid of Death's terrors
by scriptures told;
For having lived contented lives,
they are not debtors of Desire.**

kandyav karak kandi kande

O embodied One, dote not upon your body thus, embellishing it, adorning it,
providing luxuries for it.
Even its ashes will not endure.

Should you, in this body, seek
The Supreme Self that dwells within,
Greed and illusion soon removed,
A halo of glory will surround
this very body of yours.

This counsel to the body give, O Soul*:
Wear only such clothes as ward off cold;
Eat only to satisfy your hunger;
Devote yourself with all your heart
to the knowledge of the Supreme Self.
Consider this body to be food for the forest ravens.

treshi bwachi mo kreshinaavun

Let not your body suffer
from hunger and thirst,
Feed it whenever it feels famished.
Fie on your fasts and religious rites;
Do good: therein your duty lies.

Do not let loose your donkey** lest
he damage others' saffron fields;
For none will bare his back to suffer
sword cuts and blows for you.#

ye'my luub manmath mad tsuur morun
Vata-naash maerith ta logun daas;
Tamiy sahaza Ishwar gorun,
Tamiy soruy vyendun saas.

Who slays the highway robbers three,
Greed, Lust and Pride,
And yet, in utter humility, serves
his fellow-men--
He truly seeks out the Lord,
disregarding as worthless ashes
all other things.

Slay the murderous demons,
Lust, Anger and Greed;
Or, aiming their arrows at you, they will
surely shoot you dead.
Take care, feed them on self-restraint
and discrimination of the Self;
Thus starved these demons will become
powerless and weak.

gaal ga'ndiy-nyam bol pa'diy-nyam
Dapineym tiy yas yih routse,
Sahaza-kusamav puuz karineym,
Boh amalloun ta kas kyaah mvotse

They may abuse me or jeer at me,
They may say what pleases them,
They may with flowers worship me.
What profits them whatever they do ?
I am indifferent to praise and blame.

A'saa bol pa'ddiy-nyam saasaa
Mey mani waasaa khiid na heaye;
Boh youd sahaza Shankar-bakts aasaa,
Makris saasaa mal kyaah peyye

Let them mock at me and call me names.
If a true devotee of Siva I be,
I shall not feel distressed nor hurt.
Can a few ashes a mirror befoul* ?

Though you are wise, be as a fool;
Though you can see, be as one blind+;
Though you can hear, be as one deaf**;
Patiently bear with all you meet,
and politely talk to eveyone.
This practice surely will lead you
to the realisation of the Truth.

Ocean and the mind of man are both alike:
Under the ocean's bottom lies
the destructive fire, vadvaagni#;
And in the breast of man doth rage
the fire of wrath.
When the fire breaks out, its flames
of angry, abusive words,
sear and scorch and burn.
But if one ponders unruffled and calm,
and weighs the words, though angry they be,
They have no substance, no, nor weight.

Ill or well, whatever befalls,
let it come.
My ears will not hear,
My eyes will not see.
When the Voice calls from within
the inmost mind,
The lamp of faith burns steady and bright
even in the wind.

When can I break the bonds of shame ?
When I am indifferent to jibes and jeers.
When can I discard the robe of dignity ?
When desires cease to nag my mind.

I have worn out my palate and tongue
reading the holy books,
But I have not learnt the practices
that would please my Lord.
I have worn thin my finger and thumb
telling the rosary beads,
But I have not been able to dispel
duality from my mind.

It is easy to read and to recite;
It is hard to practice what one reads,
And, reading seek out the Self within.
By constant practice, not by books,
Conviction grew in my heart
Of God, Who is Consciousness-Bliss.

I practiced what I read,
And learnt what was not taught.
From its jungle abode
I brought the lion down
as I a jackal would;
(From pleasures of the world
I pulled my mind away).
I practiced what I preached,
and scored the goal.

You will not know peace of mind
if you a kingdom gain,
Nor will you gain content or rest
if you give it away.
Only the man, free from desire,
will never die.
Only he has true knowledge
Who, though alive, is as one dead,
dead to all desire.

I have to suffer the consequence
of whatever I do,
even if I work for others' gain.
But if, with mind from attachment free,
I dedicate all works to God,
It will be well for me wherever I be,
here and hereafter.

Why do you grope thus like the blind ?
Pray, doubt not what I say to you:
If you are wise, enter within
And see the Lord Himself is there.
You need not search Him here and there.

He who can direct his praana aright,
is not troubled by hunger or thirst.
And he who can do this unto the end
is born fortunate* in this world.

The steed of mind speedeth over the sky,
And, in the twinkling of the eye,
A hundred thousand leagues traverseth he.
Yet a man of discrimination can control
the curvetting steed,
And, on the wheels of praana and apraana, guide
his chariot aright.

Keep your mind intent upon
the path that leads to immortality.
Should it stray from the path,
it will fall into evil ways.
Be firm with it and have no fear;
For mind is like a suckling baby,
which tosses restless even in its mother's lap.

Who dies? Who is slain ?
He who forsakes God's Name,
And gets involved in worldly cares.
It's he who dies. It's he who is slain.

He who has faith in Guru's word,
And with true knowledge for the rein
guides aright the seed of mind,
And holds his senses in control,
'Tis he enjoys the peace of mind.
He will not die, nor be slain.

Sure and steady the mill will turn
once you propel the wheel.
Mind is the pivot, it should know
how best to turn the mill.
And once it turns, it will grind fine,
And grain will find its way to the mill.

Siva abides in all that is, everywhere;
Then do not discriminate between
a Hindu or a Mussalman.
If thou art wise, know thyself;
That is true knowledge of the Lord.

I renounced fraud, untruth, deceit;
I taught my mind to see the One
in all my fellow-men.
How could I then discriminate
between man and man,
And not accept the food offered to me
by brother man ?

O fool, right action does not lie
in observing fasts and ceremonial rites.
O fool, right action does not lie
in providing for bodily comfort and ease.*
In contemplation of the Self alone
is right action and right counsel for you.

First feed the Five Bhuuta-s+ on the grain
and cates of self-awareness;
Thus fed, offer these fatted rams
as sacrifice unto the Lord.
Then you will know, O restless one,
the abode of the Supreme.
Ceremonial rites and pieties
will cease to be binding on you;
And even the 'left-handed'# practices
will bring no harm to you.

Lady, arise and prepare for worship
with wine and flesh and cates.
If you know the changeless Supreme State
(of Parmasiva),
Take and eat them in the company of
fellow Tantric adepts.
(It matters not if, violating custom,
you practice "left-handed'' rites.*)

The pathway of Jnana is a kaiyard;
Fence it with self-restraint and pious deeds.
Then let the goats of former karma
browse in it and fattened be
as animals fit for sacrifice
at the altar of the Mother.
(Goats of past actions and their fruits
slain in sacrifice,
leaving no karma behind),
The kailyard of karma thus browsed away,
you gain release.

Who can stop the eaves' drip during the frost ?
Who can hold wind in the palm of his hand ?
Who can see the sun in the darkness of night ?
He who holds his senses under control,
Can in the dark catch hold of the sun,
(Can see the Light in the darkness of the soul).

Like water in a colander are name and fame:
they do not last.

Whoever in his fist can hold* a storm,
Or tether an elephant with a hair of his head,
(Whoever controls the storms in his breast,
Or tethers the wild elephant of desire),
'Tis he whose name and fame endure.

It covers your shame,
Saves you from cold,
Its food and drink-
Mere water and grass.
Who counselled you, O brahmin,
To slaughter a living sheep
as a sacrifice
Unto a lifeless stone ?

diiva vattaa divur vattaa
Peythha bvona chuy ikavaathh:
Puuz kas karakh huutt bhattaa,
Kar manas ta pavanas sangaatth.

The idol is but stone,
The temple is but stone,
From top to bottom all is stone.
Whom will you worship, O stubborn* Pandit ?
Let praana and the mind unite
(as an offering to your God).#

He does not need the kusa grass,
nor sesame seed;
Flowers and water He does not need.
He who, in honest faith, accepts
his Guru's word,
On Siva meditates constantly,
He, full of joy, from action freed,
will not be born again.*

Who is the florist, who the flower-girl ?
With what flowers should He be worshipped ?
In what water should He be bathed ?
With what mantra should we awaken Shankara,
Who abides in the Self ?

Mind is the florist, Devotion the flower-girl,
who bring flower-wreaths for Him.
He should be worshipped with the flowers
of faith,
And bathed in the nectar of the Mystic Moon.
Silence is the mantra that awakens Him;
(And, in the deep stillness of the mind,
He wakes up in the inmost Self).

Thou art the earth, Thou art the sky,
Thou art the air, the day and the night;
The sacrificial corn Thou,
And unction of the sandal-paste.
Thou art the water, Thou art the flowers,
Thou art all these and everything.
What may I, in worship, bring to Thee ?