The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1356 page)

 
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(Skt.,
lalita
, ‘played’, +
vistara
, ‘details’). A Buddhist text of about 2nd cent. CE, highly valued in
Mah
y
na
. The
Lalitavistara
gives a poetical account of the early life of the
Buddha
up to the beginning of his ministry.

 
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Lall
or Lal Ded
.

14th-cent.
Kashmiri
aivite
poetess. Little is known of her life apart from an immense proliferation of stories, which attest to her popularity, but cannot be verified historically. She composed verse sayings, known as
vakh
, which are often direct and simple. But many of them are in fact complex in their associations, so that translations cannot convey why they remain so deeply loved among Kashmiris, both Hindu and Muslim.

 
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(Tib.,
bla.ma
., ‘Higher One’). An honorary title in Tibetan Buddhism conferred upon anyone accepted as a ‘spiritual teacher’ (corresponding to Skt.,
guru
), but generally only given to one who has completed particular scholastic and yogic training.

 
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(Tib.,
lha.'cham
, ‘sacred dance’). Tibetan Buddhist
mystery play
. A drama of great colour, costume, masks, and music, enacted predominantly by
lamas
as a form of mime, in which every bodily movement carries a precise symbolic meaning. Such dances are normally performed at festivals, particularly those of the new year (
losar
) such as the Great Prayer held around the
jokhang
, when they can double as
exorcism
ceremonies, banishing evil from the community in order to begin the new year auspiciously.
Lama dancing should not be confused with a popular form of dance called
A che lha mo
(‘elder sister-goddess’) which is performed by travelling theatrical troupes and where the subject-matter is more profane.

 
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