This is the first dedicated English translation of the songs of the Bengali poet and mystical philosopher Lalan Sai to closely follow the original Bangla text, with all of its dialectical variations, and is here produced alongside the original text. Dr. Carol Salomon used multiple written and oral texts to arrive at a meaning as close as possible to the original works.

Foreword (English) Foreword (Bengali translation) Introduction (English) Editors' Note (English) Editors Note (Bengali translation) Abbreviations Part One: Previous Publications On editiong the Song of Lalan Fakir using both Oral and Written Sources Part Two: Songs of Lalan Sai Alphabetical Song List (Bengali) Alphabetical Song List (English) Bibliography Glossary Index

City of Mirrors is so far the most important publication dedicated to the poetry of Lālan Sā͂i in the international scholarly arena... Apart from representing an unprecedented work for students and schol-ars interested in Lālan Fakir, in Baul studies, and in South Asian literatures, this book can be extremely useful also for those interested in discussions on Sufism, Yoga, Tantra, anthropology and ethnomusicology of South Asia.

"City of Mirrors is so far the most important publication dedicated to the poetry of L=alan S(ai in the international scholarly arena... Apart from representing an unprecedented work for students and schol-ars interested in L=alan Fakir, in Baul studies, and in South Asian literatures, this book can be extremely useful also for those interested in discussions on Sufism, Yoga, Tantra, anthropology and ethnomusicology of South Asia." -- Carola Lorea, Religions of South Asia "City of Mirrors: Songs of Lilan Sai is a magisterial work by the late Carol Salomon, ably reconstructed from notes and drafts by Keith E. Cantú and Saymon Zakaria Salomon's knowledge of, and expertise with, local Bengali dialects, her comprehensive field work, and her remarkable translation skills are all combined in this splendid volume that presents her renderings of one hundred thirty-seven Baul songs by Lalan The scholarly community should embrace this superb publication and remember Carol Salomon for her many years of contributions to our understanding of the fascinating traditions of the Bauls."--Glen Alexander Hayes, Reading Religion "There are very few literary undertakings as risky as translations, and cultural translations from an oriental language to one comprehensible in the West endure a shaky relationship pinned beneath the weight of troublesome, hegemonic histories" -- Robina Rashid Bhuiyan, The Daily Star "Thirty years ago, a passionate Professor from the University of Washington's Department of Asian Languages and Literatures embarked on a unique journey to penetrate the little known spiritual syncretism of Bauls, seeking to undo the much lamented obfuscation of Lalon Shai's works caused by problematic translations, and little concerted efforts towards that direction. Aside from deep research, Dr. Carol Salomon, one of the only few non-Bangalees in the world with a PhD in Bangla, maintained close friendships with folk researchers and artistes in Bangladesh in an endeavour to deliver a project that retained historical and contextual authenticity, with annotated translations offering insight into a virtually unknown world. The work culminated in a volume titled City of Mirrors: Songs of L=alan S=a~i, edited by noted folk researcher Saymon Zakaria and Keith E Cantú, published by Oxford University Press on August 17 this year." -- Saymon Zakaria, The Daily Star "This posthumously published volume contains Carol Salomon's (1948-2009) annotated translation of 137 songs by Phakir ("Fakir") L=alan Sa=&Íi (assertedly 1778-1890), purportedly the most revered B=aul practitioner of all time." -- Ratul Ghosh, Orientalistische Literaturzeitung 2022

Selling point: The first major publication in English on the figure Lalan Sai Selling point: Includes original Bengali source text for immediate comparison with Salomon's translation Selling point: Provides Roman transliteration for easy comparison of precise vocabulary

Carol Salomon was, at the time of her death in 2009, Senior Lecturer in Bengali in the Department of Asian Languages and Literature of the University of Washington. Keith E. Cantú is a doctoral student in Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Saymon Zakaria is Assistant Director of the Bangla Academy. He has delivered academic lectures on language, literature, and culture at the University of Chicago, the University of Washington, the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, and the Sapientia-Hungarian University of Transylvania.

Selling point: The first major publication in English on the figure Lalan Sai Selling point: Includes original Bengali source text for immediate comparison with Salomon's translation Selling point: Provides Roman transliteration for easy comparison of precise vocabulary