“My guru gave a single precept: turn your gaze from outside to inside; fix it on the hidden self. I, Lalla, took this to heart and naked, set forth to dance.”

This photograph is inspired by a famous painting of 14th-century Kashmiri saint and mystic poet Lal Děd (also referred to as Lalleśvarī or Lalla Yogini); grandmother of Kashmiri literature, whose vāhks (poems) share wisdom for those seeking direct spiritual experience that challenges religious division, orthodoxy, and societal constraints.

She was married at the age of 12 into a family that was reported to have mistreated her. After becoming a disciple of Sidh Srikanth, she renounced her material life and marriage to become a devotee of Kashmir Śaivism. As a mystic, she wandered naked, reciting her proverbs and quatrain-based poems. Lal Ded often used her poetry as a peaceful means of engagement with Kashmiri Śaivism, Sufism, Buddhism, Nath Yoga, and Tantra during the political and religious turmoil that has been present in Kashmir since her time through the current moment. Shah Hamdan, the great Sufi teacher, recognized her as a Saint, as many modern Kashmiri Sufi Saints do today. To this day, she represents unity and symbiosis across Hinduism and Islam, sacred rebellion, freedom of expression, and the true spirit of a seeker. Her body of work and legacy ask people to look within, free-think, and liberate themselves from the bondages of society. Now more than ever let us embody her teachings towards a unified South Asia and a free Kashmir.

Taken on: Lenape Hoking land. This area called Wissahickon Park, where Meesha lived in 2024, resembles the scene in the photo very closely. The final composit image combines a raw image at the park as well as photos of Kashmir from their visit in 2010.

Photography: Rashmi Gill

Model and Styling: Meesha Sharma