Sweet On My Lips: the love poems of Mirabai

Sweet On My Lips: The Love Poems of Mirabai, a selection of poems written by 16th Century Mirabai, in Braja Basa or Middle Hindi, translated fr. the original by Louise Landes Levi. Mira Bai, an Indian princess turned poet/ rebel adept, the most significant female voice in the Bhakti Kal or yoga of love that swept through No. India in the 16th century. In addition to the translations, Sweet presents historic and linguistic contexts that deepen our understanding, of this period & of the language in which the poems were written, a revolutionary use of the spoken tongue liberating the populace from social & religious systems largely defined by caste prerogative & Bhramanic male preference.

"...this book will help the West to understand the culture of the East." Shrimata Annapurna Devi, in a letter. ca. 1998

"Mirabai's spiritual vision and poetic genius shine through these pages. Verses of wounded pathos and soaring ecstasy are rendered here as vividly as if they had been spoken yesterday, yet with the incantatory power of sacred text. Levi's translations, brilliant in their lucidity, usher the reader directly into the heart of Mira's rare, impassioned devotion." - Miranda Shaw. Author of Passionate Enlightenment.

"The West has St. Teresa d'Avila - the East has Mirabai. Whosoever understands them both understands all there is to understand." - Claudio Rugafiori

"These poems of Mirabai have been beautifully translated from the Middle Hindi by Louise Landes Levi, and they should serve as a fine key to this tantric poet's consciousness. " - Lawrence Ferlinghetti

"Sometimes ancient voices speak more clearly and directly to our inner ear than any today. Their power and beauty, preserved throughout the ages, are a fresh breeze resonating with familiar longings. Mirabai's legend reads like a fable from an Indian Arabian Nights or a tapestry woven with colored threads - stories that reach from medieval India to the present to tell a tale of nonconformity and devotional love to Lord Krishna. - Griselda Steiner from PARABOLA (Aug 1 '98)

"...these are excellent translations." Kathleen Raine, in a letter. ca. 1978

Among poets universally there prevails a passionate tradition of the poet as the 'outsider.' While entire civilizations may come and go, with the names of its despots, warlords, local heroes and heroines lost for naught, mere fragments of verse have survived centuries as fresh utterance. Such was the case for Mirabai, the 16th century Rajastani princess who's songs are still sung today in an unbroken lineage of bhakti yoga or devotional love throughout the sub-continent of India, strangely immune to ancient rivalries of caste, religion and tribe. Much has been made of Mirabai's 'outsider' qualities by contemporary Western translators of her work, drawn, no doubt, from the biographical details of her life.