In his 1667 epic poem, Paradise Lost, writer John Milton had referred to Lahore as one of the few cities that the archangel Michael showed to Adam before his expulsion from Paradise as a great example of God’s future creations: “To show him all Earth’s kingdoms and their glory… city of old or modern fame… to Agra and Lahore of great Mogul”. While these lines are from a Christian epic, the name of Lahore itself is supposed to have derived from its old name Lava, after the son of Lord Ram, who, according to myth, founded the city.
In my week-long travels across this bustling, enchanting place, I took pleasure in observing and capturing this polyphonic identity of the city. From the sprawling stateliness of the Badshahi Masjid to the magical interiors of the Lahore Fort, endlessly detailed with Sikh, Islamic, and Hindu motifs, and from the energy of the Anaarkali Bazaar to the solemnity of Emperor Jahangir’s tomb, Lahore had it all
