rabindranath tagore, the visionary activist: a critical study in synthesis of religion and politics

Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A criticalstudy in synthesis of Religion and Politics

Rabindranath Tagore, thevisionary activist: A critical study

in synthesis of Religion andPolitics

Shankar Bhattacharya

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Dedicatedtomy mother Mrs.Bela Bhattacharyawho first taught me to recite thepoems of Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A critical study in synthesisof Religion and Politics

Shankar Bhattacharya

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Acknowledgements

I would like to express my deep gratitude to all thosepersons who have rendered to me generous help andencouragement in the preparation of this book.

I am particularly indebted to Professor Partha SarathiSanyal, Department of English, L.N. Mithila University,Darbhanga for his unstinting assistance and valuable supervisionduring my post doctoral research.

I would like to thank those persons who extended mestrong support and unfailing help. I must especially mention thenames, in this connection of Prof Nikhilananda Mukherjee, Prof.Ashis Sen and Dr. Ramdulal Bose.I must also record my gratitude to Miss Lalrammawii, Librarian,Govt. J.B. College, Lunglei, Mizoram for her painstaking effortin preparing manuscript of this book and getting it typed.

I am very grateful to Soumen Bharatiya for kindlyaccepting this book for publication.

I would also like to thank those persons connected byfamily relationship who were behind the progress of this work.To my elder sister Mrs. KumKum Mukherjee and my brother-in- law Subas Chandra Mukherjee, I am greatly indebted fortheir unfailing help, encouragement and affection. I take thisopportunity to thank my wife Mrs. Mitali Bhattacharya for sparingme from many domestic responsibilities so that my academicworks do not lose momentum. My son Abhilash and daughterSwagatalokhi were constant source of inspiration and enjoymentduring my leisure period after serious study.

Special Thanksto

Amaresh Roy, Pintu Gupta, Prasun Barman, Basab Roy, Malek Ali, Nayanjyoti Sarmah

&Saumen Bharatiya

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Foreward

Dr. Shankar Bhattacharya's book entitled RabindranathTagore, the Visionary Activist : A critical Study in synthesis ofReligion and Politics, on a cursory reading may appear to be acompendium of Rabindranath's biographical details and his ideasand views on nationalism and internationalism, religion and politics,education and social reforms etc and more concerned with thevisionary than the activist. But the book is actually a sincere attemptat presenting the world- view of the poet based on his diverseliterary works. It also takes adequate note of the views of theeminent contemporaries of Rabindranath in its discourse.Additionally, it stimulates thinking on the question of synthesis ofreligion and politics which seems to be the main argument of thebook.

When we discuss Religion and Politics academically orfrom the point of view of the visionary, we talk of concepts, ofideals. But in the playing field of life what we encounter isconfrontations even within various religious formations. This is nota new phenomenon. In the past the spiritual authority of the churchclaimed supremacy even over temporal or civic affairs.Ultimately,however, in the western countries, the state or the temporal powermanaged to confine, by and large, religion, religion to its religiousfold. In ancient India the Brahmins and Kshatriyas contended forthis kind of inclusive hegemony . Located mostly in the Afro-Asian sub continent this confrontation has now become a threat topeaceful living all over the world and it seems no reconciliation ispossible in the present global situation. One of the reasons for this

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I pay homage to my father late Bibhuti BhusanBhattacharya whose intense knowledge and intellect enlightenedmy literary sensibility.

Finally, I would like to pay a warm tribute to SwamiBuddhananda, General Secretary, Bharat Sevashram Sanghafor his blessings and good will through many worrying anddifficult times that lay between the start and finish of this poject.

deadlock could be that there is no consensus on the need andvalue of religion and though we admit that the spiritual aspiration isa part of our being we do not direct religion only to that end. Allmajor religious groups claim that God sent his commandments tobe followed in all spheres of life, through his messengers but thesecommandments being different for different sects, it appears thatGod also is different for different groups. The idea that God is onethough called by different names is , on the ground level, only awishful or consoling thought. There is yet no universal acceptanceof the fatherhood of one God and brotherhood of all men. Religionabetted by exclusive nationalism may, therefore, turn more easilyinto fanaticism. Being born into a religious community is not a matterof choice and yet attachment to a religion tends to be more emotionaland is fed and sustained more by community instinct than reason,which naturally leads to disaffection and even murderous rivalryamong the zealots. The only way out of this disaster- spelling roleof religious bigotry, within the perimeter of the model of life that wehave almost universally accepted, is to keep the institutionalizedreligions away from the political and socio- economic activities ofmen.

Rabindranath and Gandhiji all along advocated the idealthat the true religious perception of man and his awareness of hisstatus in the cosmic scheme, should inform and enrich his politicalpursuits and that the exclusiveness of the rigidly defined religiousand their dogmas should not only be eschewed but positive effortsshould also be made to help create an atmosphere for peace andunity among men.

Rabindranath and Gandhiji were both very deeply religious.But both of them fought relentlessly against all types of superstitionsparticularly those based on religion. Rabindranath was not activelyinvolved in practical politics though he was acutely conscious ofthe political forces of his time. Gandhiji, on the other hand was a

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full time political worker. But neither of them allowed his personalfaith to blur his vision of harmonious world. Rabindranath talked ofthe religion of man and Gandhiji of the search for the universal truthof human life and both of them firmly believed that mere politicalfreedom was not the end of the search.

Dr. Bhattacharya, with his wide reading on the subject hasshown, with detailed evidence, how Rabindranath envisioned aworld order of mutual trust and understanding and how he wishedit to be ushered in by religion and politics and how each by fulfillingits mission, in its true spirit and working on each other can lead toour dream world of peace and prosperity for all men.

Dr. Bhattacharya's work deserves to be considered acontribution to the growing critical corpus on Rabindranath'simmortal writing. I am sure the book will be welcomed both by thecommon readers and specialists.

Prof. Amaresh Dutta, D. Lit (Double)Professor Emeritus (English)

Former Chief Editor,Encyclopedia of Indian Literature

Sahitya Academy, New Delhi

Contents

CHAPTER-IINTRODUCTION 13

CHAPTER- IIBankimchandra, Rabindranath and the Religion of Motherland 31

CHAPTER-IIITagore’s Political Doctrine 66

CHAPTER - IVTagore and his views on Religion 109

CHAPTER-VTagore, Gandhi and the vision of a new India 149

CHAPTER- VITHE CONCLUSION 176

Notes and References 183

BIBLIOGRAPHY 189

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CHAPTER-I

INTRODUCTION

Rabindranath Tagore, the most versatile embodiment of the modernIndian Renaissance, was born in 1861 when the current of threetrends (religious, literary and political) had commingled in the lifeof India. One of these, the religious trend, was propelled by RajaRam Mohan Roy who appeared at this juncture to play hisrevolutionary role with a considerable width of vision. In fact, RajaRam Mohan Roy holds the key to our understanding of the originsof the nineteenth century renaissance in India and its far- reachingconsequence.

Ram Mohan was born soon after the East India Companyhad established its rule in Bengal. By the time he took up permanentresidence in Calcutta in 1814- 1815, British domination in Indiawas total. The establishment of commercial and administrativerelations with the British saw the emergence of a new middle classin Bengal which rapidly grew in strength. Ram Mohan and some ofhis close friends, such as Dwarkanath Tagore and Prasanna KumarTagore, were conscious of the historical importance of theemergence of this new class. The editorial that appeared on 13June 1829 in ‘Bengal Herald’ focussed on the British middle classthat grew powerful enough to take a leading role in the establishmentof a new era between the reigns of Henry VIII and Cromwell. Thisclass had widened the sphere of social life in the nineteenth centuryIndia when the British conquest and the consequent expansion ofcolonial culture and ideology had led to an inevitable introspectionabout the strength and weakness of native culture and institutions.1

Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A critical studyin synthesis of Religion and Politics 13

Ram Mohan’s importance in the evolution of modern Indiais enormous. He considered different religions as nationalembodiments of universal theism. He, in fact, restated the doctrineof man’s spiritual pre- eminence by formulating the Brahmo idealismin the opening decades of the nineteenth century, that is, at a timewhen the country wallowed in the conservative ideas of medievalism.Ram Mohan Roy devoted himself with great enthusiasm towardsacquiring a wider, greater and stronger insight into human civilization.Associated with the western intellectuals of the eighteenth andnineteenth centuries- the forerunners of humanism, Ram Mohanwas an extraordinary personality who belonged to his times.

Ram Mohan Roy started as an Arabic and Sanskrit Scholarbut soon took up a serious study of western thought. He was adefender of the basic and universal principles of all religions-themonotheism of the Vedas and the Unitarianism of Christianity. Atthe same time, Ram Mohan Roy forcefully criticized both thepolytheism of Hinduism and the trinitarianism of Christianity. Heeventually established the Brahmo Samaj which was initiallyconceived by him as a universal church. It played a significant rolein the Indian Renaissance that was far greater than one would expectfrom the consideration of their number.2

Ram Mohan’s great intellect, enriched by extensiveknowledge and informed by rational humanism and a universaloutlook, contributed to bring about a renaissance and a reformation.He was no doubt, a great reformer with a pride in India’s gloriouspast and her great achievements and was, in fact, determined touphold all that was noble and great in the Hindu view of life. Henever contemplated any radical change in Hindu religion or for thatmatter, never attempted any total renovation of Hindu society. He,however, advocated the necessary changes which the contemporaryage desired. He had a firm faith in rich cultural heritage of his country.For instance, his opposition to the Christian missionaries attacking

Hinduism was as great as his aversion to the Hindu orthodoxywhich defended the evil and obsolete practices of that religion.There is no denying the fact that Brahmo Samaj has rendered usefulservice to Hinduism. It generated social reform; it preventedconversion to Christianity by creating a half-way house and itaroused the orthodox Hindus to organize themselves and work fora genuine revival of their religion.

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan voiced the same idea with deepenthusiasm for the uplift of Muslims but did not meet with similarsuccess in comparison to what Ram Mohan Roy did for the Hindus.His reinterpretation of the teachings of Islam in the light of westernknowledge was another exemplary attempt at reconciling value ofthe East and the West. Moreover Sir Syed Ahmed Khan’s greatestcontribution was that he laid the foundation of a new scholasticismand initiated comparative religious studies. He wrote a commentaryon the Quaran. His intention to write a commentary was not dueto any religious exuberance but was inspired by a desire to createeffective step against the permeation of ideas, which, he considered,would shake conviction in the validity of the principles of Islam.He also wrote a commentary on the Bible. This was the firstsignificant attempt at a comparative study of religions in the 19 thcentury India.

Interestingly, it was at the court of Akbar Shah II that SirSyed Ahmed Khan for the first time, had a golden opportunity ofmeeting the great Indian reformer Raja Ram Mohan Roy.Significantly, at that young age, the impression that he formed ofRaja Ram Mohan Roy was one of ability, scholarship, seriousness,culture and urbanity. Indeed, Ram Mohan’s successor Sir SyedAhmed stands out prominently in the history of India’s transitionfrom medievalism to modernism as a dynamic force pitted againstconservatism, superstition, inertia and ignorance. Although he didnot meet with similar success in comparison to what Ram Mohan

Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A critical studyin synthesis of Religion and Politics 15Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A critical study

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did, however the contribution made by Sir Syed cannot be deniedeasily.

It is worth while to mention that although the ambit ofreforms was particularistic, Ram Mohan and Sir Syed Ahmed’sreligious doctrine was universalistic. It is important to rememberthat throughout the eighteenth century, under the counselling of suchprominent western scholars as Halhead, a number of Bengali bookswere Published. Even though they were not works of considerableimportance, they were experimental and innovative. In this context,Bankim Chandra’s critical assesment is quite significant. He writes,“ The Nation which has memories of former greatness canpreserve that greatness, or if lost, try to restore it. Blenheimand Waterloo are the results of the memories of Crecy andAgincourt. Italy has been able to rise again after her fall. Todaythe Bengalis want to be great. Alas! where is their historicalmemory?” 3

Bankim Chandra emphatically advocated: “ We need ahistory of Bengal. Without this, Bengalis can never rise to theirfull stature... Bengalis who are convinced that their ancestorswere always feeble and without substance, that theirpredecessors never achieved anything glorious, such Bengaliscannot aspire to any other than an unsubstantial, ingloriouscondition, nor would they strive for anything different... ...

And where would we find substance? Has a properhistory of Bengal been written yet? Englishmen have writtennumerous histories of Bengal. Stuart Saheb’s book is so largeand heavy that it would kill a strong young man if thrown athim. Marshman, Lethbridge and others have made a lot ofmoney by writing slighter versions of Bengali history.

But do these books tell us anything historical aboutBengal? In our considered opinion, not one of these Englishbooks contains the true history of Bengal.” 4

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Bengali literaturediscovered two specific cores from where to gain new inspirationfor creative activity, the Fort William College and the SeramporeMission. The college, founded in 1800, started the study of Bengaliunder the patronage of William Carey from 1801. He served as aprofessor of Bengali and Sanskrit till 1831. Carey, with the help ofMritunjoy Vidyalankar and some other Bengali scholars, broughtout Bengali books for the use of the civilians who underwent trainingin the college. These attempts brought Bengali literature into touchwith a number of diverse subjects. The missionaries on their part,translated the Bible into Bengali, published newspapers and helpedthe growth of a vigorous Bengali prose-style. Thus the spadeworkbeing done by the missionaries and a few zealous native scholars,Ram Mohan’s pamphlets and essays on the contemporary problemsrelated to social, religious, ethical and moral topics generated theprocess of enriching a vibrant style in Bengali prose. A kind ofrenaissance in Bengali literature dawned with the tremendous effortof Ram Mohan Roy. His disciple in the ‘ Tattvabodhini Society’and the advanced thinkers among the western educated young menwho styled themselves as ‘young Bengal’ gave a great impetus toBengali language in a modern direction.

Hence it cannot be denied that the new spirit of individuationand intellectuality, freedom of inquiry and expression reached Bengalin the wake of the British conquest, and it helped to rearticulatethat critical function of intelligence which had been obscured for along time. The initial infatuation for western values finally led to adeep study of literature, philosophy and religion of the west.Simultaneously, the same was counterbalanced by increasedknowledge of and regard for the values of the East. Western scholarslike Sir William Jones, Maxmuller, Charles Wilkins and WilliamCarey helped to rediscover some of the valuable treasures of Indiantradition and culture.



Among early figures, the most famous and outstanding, ofcourse, was western scholar Sir William Jones (1746-94). Theenthusiastic programme of inquiry which he outlined at thefoundation of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, the total freedom froma tribalist or closed outlook which characterized his approach tonon-European and non-Christian civilizations, the combination ofscientific discipline and aesthetic refinement in his translations anddiscourses, the reconciliation of reason and romanticism which hispersonality embodied- in all these, Jones was a representative ofthe European Aufklarung and not merely an orientalist as he iscommonly supposed to be.3

There were other western scholars like Charles Wilkins(1750-1836), who, besides translating the Bhagavad Gita,established the first vernacular printing press in Bengal, himselfdesigning and casting Bengali types and printing the first book wherethe Bengali types were used. Wilkins also taught a blacksmith fromHoogly, Panchanan Karmakar, punch-cutting, type-setting andother techniques related to printing.Panchanan was engaged byWilliam Carey at the Baptist Press at Serampore and he,togetherwith his son-in-law Manohar, securely laid the foundation ofvernacular printing in Bengal.

Jonathan Duncan (1756-1811), eventually energetic in theabolition of infanticide and creation of a modern Sanskrit collegeof Benaras in 1791, John Gilchrist, surgeon, indigo-cultivator,professor, author of an Urdu grammar and dictionary, and H.T.Cole Brooke (1765~1837) whose painstaking researches laidsecurely the foundations of Scientific Indology. Early in the 19thcentury, we come across stalwarts like David Drummond, the Scotchschoolmaster at Dharmatollah, whose ideas of secularism andlibertarianism fascinated his disciple Henry Louis Vivian Derozio(1809-31). It is important to mention that within ten years of theestablishment of the Hindu College at Calcutta on 20 January 1817,

radicalism occupied the intellectual world of Bengal of whichDerozio was one of the pioneers. The group gathered roundDerozio was known as '' young Bengal ''.

Mr. David Hare (1775-1841), watch-maker andagnostic,also from Scotland, whose life and passionate enthusiasmwere dedicated to the growth of a modern and secular educationin Calcutta. It is important to mention that the meeting of Ram Mohanand David Hare is an important episode in the history of 19th centuryRenaissance. Ram Mohan devoted his indomitable zeal and energyto the translation, interpretation, and publication in several languagesof Vedanta and a selection of the Upanishads.Eventually he realizedthat without the knowledge of western education and modernknowledge, India’s intellectual, ethical, social and economicdevelopment was impossible. It was in his house that his friendDavid Hare first proposed the founding of “a higher institutionfor dissemination of English education,” but when Chief JusticeSir Edward Hyde East positively responded to the proposal andheld a meeting for this purpose at his house which was attended by“50 and upwards of the most respectable Hindoo gentlemenwould not support the project if Ram Mohan were to beassociated with it,” 5 David Hare communicated the decision ofthe meeting to Ram Mohan Roy, and ultimately Ram Mohan kepthimself aloof for the accomplishment of the project. Despite thesuccess of the orthodox in preventing Ram Mohan’s activeparticipation, the Hindu College after a few years developed into aprincipal centre for the dissemination of modern knowledge amongthe students of the new middle class. The new Bengali intelligentsiaof the eighteen thirties emerged as a current of liberal thoughts andideas of which Derozio was one of the pioneers. Derozio who wasenlightened with the progressive outlook of the West, was appointeda teacher in Hindu College. Derozio became very popular amongthe students as his personality and progressive ideas had great



impact on students. Derozio’s radical ideas constituted a group ofintellectuals popularly known as “young Bengal” of eighteen thirtiesand early forties. Derozio taught the young intellectuals to questioncustoms, traditions and scriptures in stead of accepting them asauthentic. The ‘young Bengal’ group shared in common severalfeatures as intellectual enlightenment, openness to new ideas andexperiments, strong interest in history and geography, rejection oftraditional values, advocacy of western social and political ideology.Undeniably the group, created turbulence in the placid cultural lifeof Bengal.

Commenting on the historical significance of “youngBengal,” Reverend James Long (1814-87) wrote on 15th October1842, “there is greater activity of mind among natives inCalcutta , ‘ than in the country.” He thought that Calcutta “insome respects resembles Cambridge or Oxford.” Theintellectualism and passionate enthusiasm of this radical ‘youngBengal’ 7 group expressed itself through the publications ofperiodicals, e.g., The Inquirer, The Quill, Bengal Spectator etc.and in establishing associations, e.g., ‘the Academic Association’and ‘the Bengal British India Society.’ 7 The young radicalintellectuals freely visited Derozio’s house where they not onlychallenged the traditional customs and beliefs of Hinduism but alsotasted wine and beef prohibited in Hindu religion. Someconservatives felt that Derozio was corrupting the youth and thathe was subversive to established religion and tradition. Inconsequence, the Managing Committee of Hindu College and theleaders of the traditional Hindu community like Radhakanta Deb(1783-1867) and Ram Kamal Sen (1783-1844) blamed Derozioas ‘the root of all evils and cause of public alarm’ and proposedthat he 'should be discharged from college.' At therecommendation made by the college visitor, Dr. H.H.Wilson,Derozio was compelled to resign from his job. However, there is

no denying the fact that young Bengal elite group contributed todevelop the intellectual environment which enlightened young mindswith new critical and creative spirit. The elite group established asecular intelligentsia very responsive to the ideas of contemporaryBengal of which the pioneers were Rev. Krishna Mohan Banerjee,an outstanding scholar, linguist and eminent educationist and PearyChand Mitra whose magnum opus Alaler Gharer Dulal is a uniqueachievement during the Indian Renaissance. The other significantpersonalities of this movement were Ram Tanu Lahiri, RadhanathSikdar and Durga Charan Banerjee who carried on some of thereformations started by Raja Ram Mohan Roy. Their vital role inthe intellectual history of modern India cannot be ignored. It isworthwhile to mention that the success of these young radicalintellectuals is considered scanty by the historians as they showedlittle reverence and fascination for vernacular languages. Theypreferred to express their thoughts in English as their mind hoveredwith western thoughts and norms. Ram Mohan had realized therole of vernacular languages as the medium of expression whichwas followed to an extent by some young intellectual radicals likePeary Chand Mitra and Radhanath Sikdar. Indeed, the phenomenaltransformation which took place in Indian life commonly termed as‘The New Renaissance’ was not just confined to religion. Themovement or trend expanded into a comprehensive one, touchingalmost all branches of national life. Consequently,there, emergednew dimensions in the field of literature, art, education, science andpolitics. Significantly, after the religious movement of Ram Mohan,another movement, literary in character, took place about the timewhen Tagore was born. Ram Mohan’s unfinished task to upliftBengali literature was taken up by his successor Bankim ChandraChatterjee, the second historic personality of the IndianRenaissance. In fact, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee was the pioneerof this literary movement in Bengali literature which had been



hitherto cramped by a rigorous rhetoric and poetic diction. It is,however, important to mention that at a time when servile imitationof the West was the fashion of the elite Indians and country’sheritage and culture stood considerably devalued, Bankim Chandracontributed significantly to the growth of self-esteemed nationalism.Indeed, the entire corpus of his thought embodies a constructivepatriotism of a high order which had definitely a stimulating impactupon the contemporary society lying lifeless and decadent underforeign yoke. Moreover, he took the stupendous task of revitalisingIndia’s culture and tradition in the light of challenge from the West.There was yet a third movement which commenced a little later,namely, the National Movement. The National Movement was notcompletely political. The impact of the West had violently joltedthe peaceful surface of Indian life and a new awakening wasspreading gradually throughout the land. Its radiant effect had stirredthe Indian mind and impressed some of the early reformers so muchthat they seemed at times to be blind imitators of the West. Today,one may scoff at their efforts, but without their sincere andcourageous acceptance of western thought, the Indian Renaissancewould not have been so rapid and widely influential. The bastionsof conservatism could be stormed only by a band of youngintellectuals with a crusading spirit. The National Movement usheredin to proclaim that Indians must not be indiscriminate in theirrejection of the past. This was not a reactionary movement but anevolutionary one which gave voice to the Indians. It was a voice ofdisgust and irritation at the humiliation constantly piled on Indiansby the British with an intention to divide the human world into thegood and the bad according to their specific code of conduct.

It is worthwhile to mention that after the conquest andpossession of India, the British power was interested in strengtheningits hold on the country ever since 1857. Indeed, the Revolt of 1857was the earliest manifestation of traditional India’s struggle against

foreign rule. However, it was no sudden occurrence but theculmination of a century-long tradition of fierce resistance to Britishdomination.

British rule also meant misery to the artisans and craftsmen.British policy discouraged Indian handicrafts and promoted Britishgoods. The highly skilled Indian craftsmen were deprived of theirsource of income and were forced to look for alternate sources ofemployment that hardly existed, as the destruction of Indianhandicrafts was not compensated by the development of modernindustries. Moreover, the reforming zeal of British officials underthe influence of utilization had aroused considerable suspicion,resentment and opposition. The orthodox Hindus and Muslimsfeared that through social legislation, the British were trying to destroytheir religion and culture. Both of these communities apprehendedthat legislation was undertaken presumably to aid the missionariesin their quest for evangelism.

The orthodox and the religious, therefore, arrayed againstthe British. The coalition of the Revolt of the sepoys and that of thecivil population made the 1857 movement an unprecedentedpopular upsurge. However, apart from a commonly shared apathyfor foreign rule, the revolutionaries had no concrete politicalperspective or a definite vision of the future. The rebels revealedtheir indomitable courage and valour, dedication and earnestcommitment. Despite the sepoy’s limitations and weaknesses, theeffort of the rebels to emancipate the country from alien rule mustbe viewed as a patriotic act and an important episode of progressivestep. Although the success was limited, it served a grand purposeas a source of inspiration for the national liberation movement whichlater achieved what the Revolt could not.

The government was subsequently transferred from the EastIndia Company to the crown after the Great Revolt of Sepoys.Peace and harmony was restored in 1858 A.D. and with it gradually



came a uniform system of administration, law and coinage. Indianeeded the importance of political unity which had been absent formany centuries and she was at the same time brought into themainstream of modern European civilization and culture. Her owncivilization and culture had been at the lowest ebb for over a hundredyears from about the middle of the eighteenth century.

The onrush of a totally different civilization put an end to allcreative work for a time and an uncritical admiration for all thingswestern took possession of the mind of the educated class coupledwith a contempt for things of native origin. This was the first timeperhaps that the Indian mind was thrown off its balance. Even theravaging waves of Muslim invasions and conquests had notproduced a result of this kind but already there were new forcesworking like undercurrent towards a great renaissance which cameinto tremendous enthusiasm in the early years of the nineteenthcentury itself.

Indeed, the most significant development was the spreadof the English education which broke the intellectual isolation of theIndian mind and brought it into contact with western science,literature and history. The result of this interaction was a great mentalexpansion similar to that which the European nations experiencedat the time of the Revival of Classical learning in the fifteenth andsixteenth centuries. Along with the progressive knowledge camethe fierce attacks of the early Christian missionaries on the doctrineof Hinduism. The missionaries never missed a chance to scoff atIndian religions and social institutions though they performed therole of educationists. They opened schools and colleges wherethey not only imparted the new secular knowledge, but also taughtand interpreted Christianity as the only true religion.

When one turns from political scenario to the religiousatmosphere, an important event which merits attention is the birthof an organization called’ Brahmo Samaj’ which gained forces

because of matching of two minds Devendranath Tagore andKeshab Chandra Sen. For the following ten years, the two greatpersonalities worked together, and the Brahmo Samaj was a beaconof light in Bengal, the nerve centre of both the religious and theCultural Renaissance. But Keshab Chandra was more and moredrawn to Christ and His gospels, though he always gave it a Hindutwist, and this in time brought about a split in the Brahmo Samaj.Keshab Chandra Sen felt that Christianity was not inconsistent withthe spirit of Hinduism, and he was convinced that a closeunderstanding between India and England was not only possiblebut also desirable. He was also an ardent orator, and his oratorymade a profound impact on his listeners in India as well as inEngland.

As against the former, in spite of all his rationalism,Devendranath Tagore was a conservative Hindu whose spirituallife was nourished by the Upanishads and as such he favouredintroducing reforms into Hindu society in a gradual and systematicway. By contrast, Keshab Chandra Sen was, fervent admirer ofChrist and he delivered two lectures, one on ‘Jesus Christ: Europeand Asia’ and another on ‘Great Men.’

Devendranath, a great friend of Ram Mohan Roy, was anessentially spiritual person and like Ram Mohan Roy, he remainedfaithful to the rich cultural heritage of his country. Devendranath’sautobiography is a valuable religious document in which he explainshow he passed through a spiritual crisis at the age of eighteen onthe occasion of his grandmother’s death. This incident changed hismaterialistic life-style and an intense feeling of renunciation camewithin him.

The first excitement of enthusiasm for the West thusgradually paved the way for its balanced valuation around the timeTagore was born. In his essay “The Religion of An Artist,” Tagoreexplains: “People who cling to an ancient past have their pride


in synthesis of Religion and Politics2 4

in the antiquity of their accumulations, in the sublimity of time-honoured walls around them. They grow nervous and angrywhen some great spirit, some lover of truth, breaks open theirenclosure and floods it with the sunshine of thought and thebreath of life. Ideas cause movement and all forwardmovements they consider to be a menace to their warehousesecurity.

This was happening about the time I was born. I amproud to say that my father was one of the great leaders ofthat movement, a movement for whose sake he sufferedostracism and braved social indignities. I was born in thisatmosphere of the advent of new ideals, which at the sametime were old, older than all the things of which that age wasproud.,’8

Tagore was very close in spirit to European Renaissance.In fact, what is generally termed as the Indian Renaissance of thenineteenth century was largely a product of this western influence.

As for, Rabindranath Tagore, the youngest of the sevensons and the fourteenth child of Maharsi Devendranath Tagore,affluence and aristocratic culture surrounded him, and as a boyRabindranath grew up enthusiastically animated and vigilant to theworld of man and nature surrounding him. Tagore writes, “I wasborn in what was once the metropolis of British India. My ownancestors came floating to Calcutta upon the earliest tide ofthe fluctuating fortune of the East India Company. Theunconventional code of life for our family has been aconfluence of three cultures, the Hindu, Mohammedan andBritish. My grandfather belonged to that period when theamplitude of dress and courtesy and a generous leisure weregradually being clipped and curtailed into Victorian manners,economical in time, in ceremonies, and in the dignity of personalappearance. This will show that I came to a world in which

the modern city-bred spirit of progress had just begun drivingits triumphal car over the fuscous green life of our ancientvillage community. Though the trampling process was almostcomplete round me, yet the wailing cry of the past was stilllingering over the wreckage.’’9

The peculiar status of the family helps to explain thecombination of tradition and experiment that characterized Tagore’sattitude to life. It had already produced three generations ofexceptionally noble men when Tagore was born. Rich and well-known, the family still had an invidous position among the Brahmins.Conscious of its wealth and talents, the family reacted by a proudunconcern to many of the social taboos of the day, but clung to thedeeper values of Indian life. Tagore’s grandfather, known as PrinceDwarkanath Tagore for his grand lavish living, was one of thepioneers of western education in India and a friend of Ram MohanRoy. Dwarkanath Tagore went to Britain in defiance of the existingprejudices and conventions. His son, Maharshi Devendranath, onthe other hand, himself went from house to house from morning tillevening, entreating Hindu parents not to send their children tomissionary schools but to native schools. Most of the members ofTagore’s family were endowed with some gift (some were artists,some poets, some musicians) and the whole atmosphere of hishome was permeated with the spirit of creative elegance.

Tagore’s father Devendranath, a sincere student of Indianphilosophy, Islamic mysticism and western thought, began hismorning with chanting verses from the Upanishads and mystichymns from Hafiz. Known as ‘Maharshi’ for his profound religiousfaith, Tagore’s father stood against orthodoxy in his championshipof the Brahmo faith and became the most prominent leader of theBrahmo Samaj after the death of Ram Mohan Roy.

Deeply steeped in the Upanishadic and the Islamictraditions, the Tagore family was thus at the same time one of the



pioneers of western education and the western way of life. Tagorecomments with a touch of irony: “We were ostracised because ofour heterodox opinions about religion and therefore we enjoyedthe freedom of the outcast; we had to build our own worldwith our own thoughts and energy of mind."10

The young Rabindranath grew up, as a matter of fact, inan atmosphere thick with western influence, and imbibed furtherdoses of it on his first visit to England at the age of seventeenwhere he studied for two years (1878-1880), first at Brighton,and subsequently at University College in London. He had alreadybeen recognised as a prolific poet of Bengal but, of course, in thatremote island in the northern ocean, he was a stranger in a strangeland. Here he attended lectures on English literature at the UniversityCollege. Tagore was under the guidance of the noble teacher anddistinguished scholar, Professor Morley who had left a uniqueimpression on his mind. Tagore pays him a high tribute in his MyBoyhood Days. Indeed, it is one of his most lively recollections ofstudying under the eminent, rather formidable Henry Morley whoencouraged him to appreciate seventeenth century prose, andparticularly Religio Medici by Dr. Thomas Browne. Undoubtedlyit was a time when Tagore, with his oriental ideas, was drawingavidly on the precious stores of the West, and the rich elite familiesin Bengal in those days were most sensitive to western literature,art and thought. Tagore was no exception.

In the years following his return from England, Tagore spenta good deal of his time delving deep into western literature andthought. Apart from the atmosphere of home, Rabindranath wasfortunate enough in his early literary associates; there was, besideshis elder brother Jyotirindranath Tagore, the latter’s classmate,Akshay Chandra Chaudhari, and there were Priyanath Sen,Ashutosh Chaudhari and Loken Palit, men who helped him to widenhis acquaintance with western literature. In fact, western education

led, paradoxically, to a re-discovery of the national heritage. Thesubsequent growth of the Indian national consciousness throughoutthe second half of the nineteenth century was fostered by and in itsturn fostered an increasing knowledge and appreciation of the culturallegacy of the country’s noble heritage.

Indeed, no family in Bengal had a finer awareness of thislegacy than the highly enlightened Tagores. Significantly enough, thepoet’s father Maharshi Devendranath Tagore made it a specific pointto cultivate this awareness in his family in vision and in activity.

Rabindranath Tagore’s educational ideals rested uponancient Indian thought and literature as well as western culture andliterature. Accordingly, Sanskrit and Pali literature were greaterformative influences on the writings of Tagore than western literatureand thought. Another major influence was the mysticism of Vaishnavpoets of medieval Bengal, which as his own words show, deeplyaffected his creative imagination. In his essay entitled ''The Religionof An Artist,'' Tagore writes. “ When I began my life as a poet,the writers among our educated community took their guidancefrom their English textbooks which poured upon them lessonsthat did not fully saturate their minds, I suppose it was fortunatefor me that I never in my life had the kind of academic trainingwhich is considered proper for a boy of a respectable family.....What gave me boldness when I was young was my earlyacquaintance with the old Vaishnav poems of Bengal, full ofthe freedom of metre and courage of expression.”11

Tagore explains how his imagination was fully occupied withthe magnificent beauty of their forms and the magniloquent music oftheir words laden with erotic flavour and voluptuousness. However,he found his way into it at the age of thirteen or so, and some of hisearliest verses were outright imitations of Vaishnav poetry and weregiven out to the world as the writings of a Vaishnav poet of the nameof’Bhanusingha Thakur’ much like the ‘Rowley Poems’ of



Chatterton. Tagore,very much in tune with western values, carriedwithin him a practical and rational direction of mind towards amethod of unification which is European in its manner and its politicalvalues. It was this combination of two forces which made him soinfluential not only as an educationist and as a social doctor inIndia, but as also India’s cultural ambassador to world at large andthe western world in particular.

Rabindranath Tagore was a consummate artist as well as agreat thinker and philosopher. Politics, public administration andeducation claimed his attention as well as social and religiousreforms. It is in the field of politics, education and religion that heshows his innate feelings and noble vision. In the sphere of education,Tagore played an important part as he placed an exalted value onscientific education. Indeed, the background of the poet as well asthe contemporary social scene reveals this fact that Tagore tried tosynthesise religion and politics of enslaved Indians who were underdouble threat of both political and cultural domination. Intenselyaware of this twin danger of enslavements which led to the rise ofnationalistic forces and onslaught on the religious rituals and practicesof the people, he was deeply moved by Raja Ram Mohan Roywho was engaged in extricating Hindu society from a morass ofdead beliefs and obnoxious customs that had latterly come to bereferred as Hinduism. As a poet and man of vision, Tagore’s impacton Indian political development was not direct, but neverthelesspervasive and far-reaching. Primarily a creative artist, nevertheless,he continuously evinced a keen interest in social, political andreligious issues and in his works these matters are taken up in greatdetail and depth, and thus not only his writing but his whole personallife assumes symbolical importance, reflecting his time as well asmoulding it. At the end of the feudalist eras of India’s history, andthe beginning of the modern age, Tagore’s eighty years of lifespanned the era of conflict between Asia and Europe. But he did

not submit to the conflict or content himself with writing panegyricsto the Indian princes or the English rulers of his time as noticed inthe works of major Indo-Anglian novelists such as Mulk Raj Anand,Bhabani Bhattacharya and Manohar Malgonkar. Unlike most Indianwriters, Tagore looked at the problems of home and abroad, fromthe perspective of a world-poet seeking a certain harmony in thewhole of human experience.

Tagore is one of the few ‘Indo-Anglian’ writers whosepersonal history has become the mental and emotional history ofour own epoch. He was at once the inaugurator of the heightenedconsciousness of our age, even as he was its product. At any rate,we cannot understand the inner fabric of our relations with theoutside world without understanding him, particularly hishumanitarian attitude towards basic conflicts of the East and theWest and his constant search for reconciliation of these two politicalconcepts into a larger mental perspective.

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poet. Both of them were perceptive critics and assessed each otherfrom their own angles of vision. In his essay Bankim Chandra:His Continuing Relevance, the eminent critic and novelist Prof.Gopal Haldar comments:- “I feel Bankim and Rabindranath, asmuch as Shakespeare in world literature, will remain undyingsources of inspiration to the human mind.” 2

As a writer, Rabindranath was influenced by his predecessorBankim Chandra and he frankly acknowledged it. Tagore had deepappreciation for the outstanding pioneer role of Bankim.On his part,Bankim had no reservation against Tagore in welcomingwholeheartedly young Rabindranath, the rising creative genius onthe literary horizon of India. Rabindranath first met Bankim Chandrain 1876 when he was a boy of fifteen. But even before thatRabindranath had come to know the uncommon genius of Bankimthrough his writings, especially those published in the Vangadarsan,the monthly journal founded and edited by Bankim. To propagatehis ideas more clearly and forcefully, he took to writing essays inVangadarsan on subjects like literature, history, religion, musicand science. It is important to mention that the first flush of Englisheducation was over when Bankim Chandra started writing. Englisheducation had a disturbing effect as it had shaken the fabric ofIndia’s social, cultural and religious life. Indeed it was an age oftransition. Rabindranath praised the role of the Vangadarsan, whichheralded a new dawn in Bengali literature. Rabindranath wrote thatthe tidal waves of new ideas that the Vangadarsan brought in hadflooded all the rivers and rivulets of Bengali literature and they startedflowing with youthful joy and vigour. Tagore’s ardent desire to seeBankim Chandra was fulfilled when he had an opportunity when a‘college re-union’ of old and new students was organised atEmerald Bower in 1876. Rabindranath was then fifteen and BankimChandra thirty-eight. Chandranath Basu volunteered to takeRabindranath to the meeting. Ever since the momentous glimpse of



CHAPTER- IIBankimchandra, Rabindranath and the

Religion of Motherland.

In his essay The Religion of An Artist, Rabindranath Tagore hailedBankim Chandra Chatterjee as the pioneer in the literary revolutionof India. Tagore appreciates the indomitable courage, masculinefirmness and extraordinary zeal of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee whoplayed a very important role in the cultural and political renaissanceof India. Rabindranath comments:“Bankim Chandra was brave enough to go against theorthodoxy which believed in the security of tombstones and inthat finality which can only belong to the lifeless. He lifted thedead weight of ponderous forms from our language and with atouch of his magic wand aroused our literature from her age-long sleep. A great promise and a vision of beauty she revealedto us when she awoke in the fullness of her strength and grace.”1

Indeed, Bankim Chandra and Rabindranath are luminaries in Indianliterature. Rabindranath was born twenty three years after BankimChandra. Tagore was a mere child when Bankim began writingnovels. Since his youth, Rabindranath was attracted by the magneticpersonality of Bankim Chandra and held him in high esteem for hisbrilliant literary works. They were well-acquainted with each other.Rabindranath looked up to Bankim Chandra as a mentor fromwhom he received encouragement and enthusiasm, and BankimChandra himself had much affection and expectation for this young

Bankim Chandra, Rabindranath was very keen to be acquaintedwith him. Tagore called upon Bankim Chandra in Howrah.Rabindranath records his meeting with Bankim in the following lines:“After this occasion, I have met him many a time, have receivedmuch encouragement and advice from him, and have seen howthe gentle smile of affection gave his face a tender graciousness,but I have not forgotten till today that bright and keen intensitylike flaming sword that l found on his face.” 3

Rabindranath found a remarkable combination of strength anddelicacy in the temperament and genius of Bankim Chandra.Tagore’s poetic talent was appreciated by Bankim for the first timewhen Bankim had an occasion to see Tagore’s musical play ValmikiPratibha, staged at Rabindranath’s ancestral home of Jorasankoin the year 1881. Eventually, Bankim’s contact with Rabindranathbecame closer. Bankim Chandra read more of Tagore’s writingsand his appreciation of the young author grew as profound as didhis affection for him. Bankim Chandra was quite impressed byTagore’s Evening Songs. The episode is revealing of the rise ofTagore as witnessed by a literary stalwart. In his first two novelsBauthakuranir Hat (The Young Queen’s Market) published in1883 and Rajarsi published in 1887;Rabindranath was very muchinfluenced by Bankim Chandra. In these two novels, Tagorefollowed Bankim, taking the setting, major characters and eventsfrom history but he gave more emphasis on the psychologicalanalysis of the character. Tagore’s novels are marked by incisiveanalysis of the human mind and inward development of characters.

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, the pioneer of the modernIndian novel, started his literary career with the novel Raj Mohan’sWife in English in the year 1884 at the age of twenty six when hewas a Deputy Magistrate posted in Khulna District (BengalPresidency) for about four years, from November 1860 to March1864. During this time there was a big challenge before Bankim to

deal with some notorious indigo-planters and river-pirates. It isevident from the statement of C.E. Buckland that while Bankimwas posted as a Deputy Magistrate at Khulna subdivision, hesuccessfully suppressed river-pirates and established peace andorder in the eastern canals. Obviously Bankim’s life at Khulna wasfull of exciting and thrilling incidents. His life was full of adventuresand risks and he had to go through critical and odd situations. Hislife was saved many times from possible death. At the same time itwas convenient for Bankim as he had enough time to dedicate forhis creative writing. Most probably the novel Raj Mohan’s Wifewas written at the inspiration of Kishori Chandra Mitra (1822-’73), a Deputy Magistrate. In 1857, Kishori Chandra Mitra startedto publish a journal in English entitled Indian Field. Raj Mohan’sWife was serialized in Indian Field in 1864, a short-lived weeklymagazine published from Calcutta, but did not appear as a book inthe author’s life time. Later on, Brajendranath Banerjee, a sincerereader of Bankim rescued this forgotten book from the files of thatweekly magazine in the year 1935. Raj Mohan’s Wife is a fascinatingnovel for various reasons. When Bankim wrote Raj Mohan’s Wifein 1864, the novel as a genre in India was in its infancy. BankimChandra with his width of vision presented realistic contemporarysociety in a very convincing way in his first literary work RajMohan’s Wife. Moreover, this novel was Bankim’s initial andtentative attempt to write fiction based on a Victorian narrativemodel to which colonial education exposed a new generation ofurban Indians.4 The story of the novel Raj Mohan’s Wife dealswith the passionate love of Matangini for the landlord Madhav, anEnglish educated gentleman who is married to her sister Hemangini.Matangini is married to Raj Mohan who is a staff in the estate ofMadhav. Raj Mohan is a villainous character who tortures his wifein a rude manner, confining her to the domestic world. Bankimdelineates the character of Matangini with compassion as she



accepts the harsh realities of life. Eventually, Raj Mohan joins upthe gang of robbers who plan to steal the will made by Madhav aswell as gold and money kept in the treasure box. Matanginioverhears the planning of the gang of robbers and her husband RajMohan.Matangini with her indomitable courage and extraordinarypresence of mind goes to Madhav’s house and informs him aboutthe intended robbery. Matangini’s secret journey through a darkand stormy night is adroitly presented by Bankim. Although Madhavconceals the will and the precious ornaments, he is entrapped bythe gang of robbers who plan to bury him alive. Raj Mohan discoversthat his wife has turned informer and been to Madhav’s house. RajMohan tortures Matangini during interrogation while Matanginiconfesses her love for Madhav, the landlord. As the crime of therobbers and Raj Mohan is proved, they are punished by thelandlord. The novel Raj Mohan’s Wife ends on a tragic note asMatangini returns to her father’s house as a widow. The life ofMadhav is saved but according to Hindu custom, Matangini couldnot live with him in his house. The novel Raj Mohan’s Wife reflectsthe novelist’s command of the English language, his ability to mouldit to his purpose in describing Indian life and to express moodsfreely in Indian English.

In this context Dr. Meenakshi Mukherjee’s comment issignificant when she writes,“In Raj Mohan’s Wife BankimChandra's attempt to negotiate the semantic and connotativehurdles that are involved in rendering an Indian ethos in theEnglish language, without any previous model whatsoever,forces us to think about the interconnectedness of culture andlanguage, narrative voice and implied readership- issues thathave not ceased to be relevant. It is indeed worth consideringthe complex circumstances that made Bankim Chandra shiftfrom English to the mother tongue before he could gain nationalrecognition, while in late twentieth century India, the process

may well get reversed.” 5

There is no denying the fact that Raj Mohan’s Wife, the first Indiannovel, is a successful attempt in the domain of characterization.Bankim’s focus on Matangini is unique, she is a woman ofuncommon verve and vitality as she refuses to be completelysubjugated either by her ruthless husband Raj Mohan or by theexpectations of society. Dr. Meenakshi Mukherjee is of the viewthat the abrupt and the ambivalent ending of the novel reflects anunresolved dilemma in the novelist’s mind regarding “such womenof energy” who may pose a threat to the existing social order.6

It may be thus inferred that Bankim’s first novel RajMohan’s Wife is in no way a‘premature’ English rendering,betraying “visible signs of immaturity”7 as alleged by somecarping critics. Bankim Chandra brilliantly executes thecontemporary Indian society in his novel Raj Mohan’s Wife.Besides the realistic representation of traditional Indian society,Bankim Chandra introduces the new liberal humanist ethos of Englisheducation as revealed in the refined, aristocratic and sympatheticcharacter of Madhav, the product of English education.Unfortunately the novel Raj Mohan’s Wife was overshadowed bythe fourteen Bengali novels of Bankim and he abandoned hiscreative writing in English. In retrospect it seems Bankim was notsatisfied with the performance of his first literary effort in English.

The novel Raj Mohan’s Wife is still relevant as it is anattempt “to foreground the ways in which the home and theworld are inextricably linked, a relationship which alsohappened to be of some concern to the classic realist novelistsof nineteenth century Europe about the helplessness andclaustrophobia of women, a recurrent concern in Indian fictionfor many years to come.” 8

Bankim Chandra concentrated on historical romances when heswitched over to Bengali novels from English writing. The



publications of historical romances reveal Bankim’s strongfascination for historical subject. His three novels Anandamath,Debi Choudhurani, and Sitaram, published between 1882 and1887, when his mind was occupied with the deeper problems ofsociety and life, are indeed remarkable in terms of their impact inbuilding a sense of nationalistic fervour. It is important to mentionhere that around July 1880, Bankim Chandra started to writeAnandamath which was first serialized in Bangadarshan. Lateron Anandamath was published as a book in December 1882.The novel Anandamath is based on certain historical events suchas the dreadful famine of 1770 in Bengal which took the lives ofone third of Bengali population. It seems that Bankim used theBengal famine as the background of this novel for which he collectedmaterials from eminent historian Hunter’s The Annals of RuralBengal published in 1868. The first chapter of Bankim’s novelAnandamath records the horrors of the famine on the basis ofHunter’s vivid and realistic picture of the calamity as presented inhis book The Annals of Rural Bengal.“All through the stifling summer of 1770, the people went ondying. The husbandmen sold their cattle, they sold theirimplements of agriculture, they devoured their seed-grain, theysold their sons and daughters, till at length no buyer of childrencould be found, they ate the leaves of trees and the grass ofthe field, and in June 1770, the resident at the Durbar affirmedthat the living were feeding on the dead. Day and night a torrentof famished and disease-stricken wretches poured into greatcities.”9

In the novel Anandamath Bankim first used ‘prologue’ as a stylisticdevice which focuses on the author’s major concern of patriotism,revolt and ultimate atonement. Besides the dominating theme ofmilitant patriotism and nationalism, there are other themes ofpassionate love and temptation brilliantly executed by the novelist.

In the opinion of some critics, they are the remarkable achievementsof his life whereas others assert that they are more of a messagethan of art. In his book History of Bengali Literature Dr. SukumarSen, a renowned critic and scholar, says that Bankim Chandrawas a great novelist “in spite of the fact that his outlook on lifewas neither critical nor was his canvas wide.” 10

The comment made by Dr. Sen seems unfair and unjust to a writerwho was trying to restore the glory of the country at a time when itwas struggling to maintain its identity. Annada Shankar Roy’scomment as quoted by K.R. Srinivas Iyenger is more pertinent inhis comparative observation of Bankim Chandra and Tagore. Hewrites: “When Bankim wrote, the chief question was to restorethe nation's self-respect. In Rabindranath Tagore's time it washow to bridge the East and the West.” 11

One cannot deny the relevance of Roy’s comment in this respect.Indeed Bankim’s canvas is wide with a marvellous presentationand uncommon precision. Behind the romantic or obscure idealismof Bankim or say behind his spiritual exploration of the mystery ofhuman existence, there lies a cool, detached, analytical observation.Hence his literary creations are at once colourful and vibrant.Bankim’s emotions and passions radiate warmth and his charactershave tremendous vitality who pass through awful spiritualexperiences. The novels Anandamath, Debi Choudhurani andSitaram represent Bankim’s idealistic prediction for service to thecountry and, on a wider canvas, to humanity and also his passionfor a social order, based on uprightness, ethics and impartiality.There is a conflict of two contradictory ideals, romanticism and thedoctrine of utilitarianism in Bankim’s novels.

Indeed, Bankim achieves perfection in the creation ofromantic atmosphere in his novels because they contain the fervourof patriotism in a very artistic and inspiring manner. His creativeimagination has its intellectual aspect as well as emotional aspect



and his knowledge and imagination work in perfect balance.According to Aurobindo, the great poet and philosopher, “It ispossible that the literary critics of future will reckonKapalkundala, Visbriksha and Krishnakanter Will as his artisticmasterpieces and speak with gratified praise about his DebiChoudhurani, Anandamath. Krishna Charitra andDharmatattwa.” 12 Indeed, any categorization of Bankim’s novelsis bound to be overlapping. Most of them have some commoncharacteristics viz skilful plot construction, mastery of art ofcharacterization, sparkling flow of narration and splendour ofdescription; these are some of the marked traits of BankimChandra’s novels. The quality most obvious in Bankim’s work ishis genius for vitalizing the past. Like Walter Scott, Bankim was aborn skilful story-teller, and had that delightful power ofimprovisation which is the secret of all successful story-telling. SirWalter Scott is the greatest novelist of the Romantic Revivalbecause, while seizing upon the picturesque elements ofmedievalism, he does not reject the great tradition of the eighteenthcentury in the direction of transcript of life. His romanticism istempered with cool common sense very similar to Bankim Chandra.It is true that Scott is an historical novelist by temperament, not byprofession. In this context mention may be made that Charles Readereconstructed the past with the art of a brilliant journalist, Thackerayrefashioned it as a sympathetic critic and George Eliot treated itfrom the scholar’s stand point. Scott simply breathed it as it waspart and parcel of his thinking about life. No one had a keenersense of the pomp and pageantry of a bygone age. All Scott’s bestwork is marked by three characteristics: a genius for vitalizing thepast, a love of nature and a study of humanity.

When Bankim started writing, novel as a genre of literaturewas at its highest peak. Some great novels appeared duringBankim’s life time- Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Vanity

Fair (all written in 1847), David Copperfield (1850), MadamBovary (1856), War and Peace (1862), Crime and Punishment(1866), Anna Karennina (1877) and The Brothers Karamazov(1880). Bankim witnessed the growth of the novel in Europeancountries as well as in other countries but he was not willing toimitate the trend of realism which was very common during hislifetime. Bankim’s vision was romantic but unlike the Europeanromantics he did not challenge the established social order. He didnot pretend to be a social reformer. Obviously his romanticism ismanifested in his passionate description of beauty. In Europe, asBertrand Russel mentions in his book History of WesternPhilosophy, ‘the type of man encouraged by romanticismespecially of the Byronic variety, is violent, and anti-social, ananarchic rebel or a conquering tyrant.’ 13

Despite Bankim’s appreciation for romanticism he wasunwilling to liberate human personality from social commitment andmoral obligations. As a romantic novelist he discarded the ‘prosaicreality’ of the contemporary novelists. However, there is no denyingthe fact that Bankim’s characters are more appealing in comparisonto the contemporary realistic novelists.

Throughout his life Bankim was absorbing the folklore ofhis country, and he exhaled antiquarianism as a flower exhalesfragrance. There is therefore about his books a fine atmosphere ofimprovisation while his rich and varied knowledge flowed from hispen with the ease and naturalness, he is true to the inmost spirit ofthe age he is depicting. In Bankim’s novels, the delight and relishfor the past was warmed by a genuine love of nature. He loved notmerely the institutions of his country but also his country’s soil. Theinfluence of Sir Walter Scott is obvious in the historical novels ofBankim Chandra Chatterjee. It is worthwhile to mention that SirWalter Scott drew historical scenes from his special readings andresearches into the past history of Scotland and England of the



Medieval Ages as well as Elizabethan and Jacobean period butwhat made his novels unique was the combination of realism andhistorical insight. His main characters were splendid masculine figuresand his mission was to portray them with skill and authenticity.Most of his characters are shadowy figures but he treated theirmanners, customs and behaviour in such a way as he became amodel for the subsequent authors to follow him. He particularlyloved the spirit of Middle Age because he thought the men of thoseperiods believed in values like loyalty, brotherhood and chivalry.Scott’s choice of language was another reason of his popularity.He followed a middle course which was a kind of compromisebetween pedantry and contemporary idiom. Scott’s individualitylies in creating characters who represent the virtues of romanticimagination and contain a vast range of personages from peasantsand wild people of the hills, heroes, kings, traitors and saints.However, while his masculine characters are quite fascinating, hisfemale heroines are generally lovely, tender, virtuous and two-dimensional types.

Ivanhoe (1819), one of Scott’s characteristic novels dealswith a typical situation and the period is once again early MiddleAges where we have a lion-hearted good Richard, Coeur-de -Lion contrasted by the black-hearted John and followed by aglamorous figure of Robin Hood. The novel Ivanhoe is full of clashesof steel and the dashing knights riding in full armour against oneanother. Scott’s sincere attempt to present the medieval atmospheremakes it decorative and provides gaiety and gallantry. Scott’sinterest in Middle Ages and his understanding echo Shakespeareancadences. In the novel Ivanhoe, there is sombre power, plenty ofheroic action and histrionic episodes which make it an exceptionwork of art. The cumulative power of drama and compactnessmake the novel Ivanhoe very much effective. The characters aredescribed with the authenticity that springs from direct knowledge

and deep understanding of the novelist.Bankim’s passionate enthusiasm reminds us of Scott.

However, unlike Scott, Bankim was a sublime and inevitable artist.There is tremendous sweetness and intensity in Bankim’s novelswhich one cannot find in Scott’s novels. In comparison to Scott,there is much integrity, precision and organic quality in Bankim’snovels. Bankim Chandra in his uncommon zeal for patriotic fervourwas indebted to Sir Walter Scott in violating chronology and ininventing situations so that he could make the past come alive,glamourize it and create the value of tradition in his scheme of re-interpretation. In this context, the comment made by Dr. MeenakshiMukherjee seems significant when she writes: “The influence ofSir Walter Scott is often cited as important in shaping thehistorical novel in India, specially the works of Bankim andRomesh Chandra Dutta; on a closer examination Scott'sinfluence turns out to be much less than is rumoured, butperhaps Scott acted as a catalyst for the feeling of nationalismthat was germinating in the country.” 14

Kshetra Gupta, an eminent critic, in his essay “The ArtForm” comments :- “Bankim was acquainted with the novelsof Scott and Dickens. Reference to one of Victor Hugo's novelsis found in an article. It is an accepted fact that as a novelist,Bankim was inspired by Western novels in general. But he didnot imitate any Western novelist in particular. Nevertheless,Scott s method of combining history and imaginative fictionserved as a model for his historical novels. But that is true foralmost all early European writers of this type of tales. Bankimwas not in debt to Scott in any other way. His motivation andsense of art-form were very much different from those of Scott.Similarly, in treating social themes he did not follow CharlesDickens, whose sketch-like tale had not much appeal forhim.”15



Indeed, Bankim Chandra’s works have spontaneity, andease which one may not find in the novels of Sir Walter Scott.Endowed with this creative energy of imagination, he made thereader also feel the glamour of places and the actuality of the past.By reason of his intuitive perception that Bankim had of his ownday, the product of the past was organically connected with that ofpresent. Thus he united together the past and the present in a uniformconsistency and explained to the reader the spiritual continuity ofhistory. He makes manifest how the national type of character isthe vital embodiment of centuries, and the result of the assimilationfrom innumerable rituals and traditions. With this creative enthusiasm,wherein one can see the finer aspects of traditional concept, Bankimreconstructed Indian society and he was very much worried aboutthe dangers that threatened to demolish the precious cultural identityof the nation. Bankim’s indomitable fascination for the age-longtradition of his country is mingled with his spiritual attachment to itssoil. He had a passionate love for his country’s soil, particularly ofmany ideas, concepts, memories and feelings embedded in themind of his countrymen. Anandamath, Debi Choudhurani andSitaram were written with a definite purpose. In all these novels,Bankim chooses an indistinct period of history so that loftyimagination can be executed brilliantly. In a social context, Bankimchooses the characters whom he can use and manipulate accordingto his necessity and give a new dimension.

It is important to mention here that the publication of Englishbooks on Indian history made it possible for Indian writers exploithistorical material from other part’s of India and create a new mythof valour. The three books most important in this connection areTod’s Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan (2 vols, 1829), GrantDuff’s The History of the Marathas (3 vols, 1826) and Counter’sRomance of History: India (2 vols). The significance of Tod’sAnnals and Antiquities of Rajasthan lies in its rich collection of

fables, folk tales and legends of Rajasthan. Many Indian novelistsincluding Bankim Chandra were influenced by Tod’s historicalworks. Bankim’s novel Raj Singha (1893) may be mentioned inthis context which is considered as the most successful and genuinehistorical novel written in Indian literature.16

Bankim’s Raj Singha was first published in the journalBangadarshan in 1877-78 and later on it was developed into afull length novel in 1893. In Bankim’s opinion, the novel Raj Singhais his only complete historical novel. It is generally considered thatBankim collected his materials for the novel Raj Singha from JamesTodd’s Annals of Rajasthan, Orme’s Historical Fragments andthe accounts of Manucci.

In this novel, the major concern of Bankim is that ofpatriotism as he wants to reveal the indomitable courage and noblededication of the Rajputs in defence of their motherland during theMughal empire. In Raj Singha, Bankim Chandra tried to portraythe ideal of human excellence through the protagonist of the noveland he succeeded in his mission as Raj Singha serves as the moralist’smodel by virtue of his righteousness. About Raj Singha BankimChandra clarifies his mission:“Human body becomes weak through lack of exercise. Thesame is true in regard to a nation. The Hindus have lost theirphysical prowess during the British regime, but it was not soduring the Pre-British period. My aim is to establish that truth.I have taken up Raj Singha to illustrate the truth.” 17

Bankim Chandra does not distort historical facts.Contemporary evidence projected Raj Singha as a man of strongcharacter, determination and valour. He has been praised for hismasculine firmness, indomitable zeal and energy, extraordinarypresence of mind, uncommon courage during his confrontation withAurangzeb. Raj Singha, the Mewar king, and his Rajput chivalrymade the proud and arrogant imperial army of Aurangzeb kiss the



dust, by dint of efficient generalship.Bankim Chandra appreciates Raj Singha not only for his

valour and skill in politics and heroic battle but also for the refugeof the rejected and the protector of the weak’18, the epithetused for Lord Krishna in Hindu mythology. Perhaps Bankim’scharacterization of Raj Singha is based on Bankim’s favouritehistorical character of Krishna of Krishnacharitra. He brings outthe enthusiasm and passion of the Rajputs and depicts the defeatof great emperor Aurangzeb which creates a feeling of epic grandeur.The major characters in the novel such as Aurangzeb, Raj Singha,Zebunnisa, Mobarak, Daria, Udipuri, Chanchal, are executedmarvellously by Bankim Chandra. The valiant Rajputs and the worn-out Moghuls are drawn with powerful deftness. The success ofRaj Singha is the victory of righteousness and the failure of Aurangzebis the defeat of unrighteousness. The design, structure, charactersand situations make the novel Raj Singha sublime and majestic.Rabindranath Tagore is charmed with the magical quality of thisnovel as is evident from his heartwarming comment: ‘Events surgeand fall and a chapter of Indian history closes and anotherbegins.’19 It is relevant to mention that while Rabindranath Tagorewas fascinated by the history of three different groups of people-the Marathas, the Rajputs and Sikhs, each is valiant and heroic in adifferent way.

Bankim Chandra after drawing upon Rajput history in RajSingha looked wistfully backwards into the past of Bengal to findinspiring event on which to base his novels. But the historical recordof Bengal of past centuries was one of defeat, surrender, humiliation,atrocity and exploitation. Bankim Chandra’s mission was to createa new myth for Bengal as well as India in order to shake peopleout of their somnolence, and he found in the historical record of theSannyasi rebellion a convenient point where elements of valour,religion, culture, nationalism and patriotism would be made to

converge. With this mission and a definite purpose, Bankim Chandrawrote Anandamath. Indeed, the most important quality of the novelAnandamath is tremendous vitality and it is considered as one ofthe best-known novels.

It is significant to recall that the period from the Battle ofPlassey to the days of Hastings’ reforms, a period of power withoutresponsibility, of civilization without mercy, was one of the darkestperiods in India’s history. Anandamath takes us back to thoseanarchical days of the 1770’s when, under a curious dual system,the Nawab was the titular head, while the East India Companywas functioning as Dewan.

The Nawab was powerless to protect his subjects whilethe company whose only object was revenue collection, had littlecare for the welfare of the public as well as maintenance of Lawand Order. In consequence under the pressure of this dual system,there was dual torture on the people, by Nawabs as well as thecompany’s servants. Against their atrocities, the people had no voiceand they felt quite insecure and humiliated. Ultimately many of themhad to leave their home and property, roaming as helplessvagabonds. To add to their agony, famine came as a disaster in1770. It is against this background that Bankim presents the actionof the novel Anandamath. The plot of the novel Anandamath isbased on the important historical event commonly known as theSannyasi rebellion that took place in North Bengal in the year 1773.These Sannyasis were roving pilgrims from the upcountry visitingin large numbers the various districts of Bengal. These rebel gypsiesinspired Bankim to recreate a magnificent band of dedicated patriots,the followers of the teachings of the Gita the most holy book ofHindu religion. They revolted against the British atrocities and theyconsidered the British as their enemy responsible for the famine ofthe preceding year.

In fact, the historical material receives a grand and noble



transformation with artistic excellence of Bankim. Here Bankim’sinventive powers are certainly brilliant and striking. His literary styleis evocative and attractive, and his craftsmanship invariably soundand conscientious. Bankim’s purpose in the novel Anandamath isnot the cinematographic presentation of the historical facts but ahighly imaginative transformation of historical material to serve hisdual objectives. Indeed, the author excels in producing a parableof patriotism on a historical canvas.

In the novel Anandamath, Bankim first used ‘prologue’as a stylish device. This short prologue is extremely thoughtful andsignificant in itself as it focuses on the author’s major concern ofpatriotism, revolt and ultimate atonement. In a dead silence of adense, dark forest, two unknown persons talk in a mysterious way,one offering to lay down his life for the fulfilment of his solemnpledge and the other demanding devotion of the former- withoutpersonalizing these two shadowy figures, the novelist gives a hintthat the story that follows is one of a stern oath and sincere devotion.Then the story begins with a detailed description of the village‘padachinha’ completely ravaged by the disaster of famine. Deathand impoverishment has made the land silent and desolate. Duringthis chaos, a Zaminder (landlord) Mahendra Singh finds himselfhelpless and goes out in search of food in the company of his wifeKalyani and little daughter Sukumari. Strange and unexpectedcircumstance separates the husband and the wife. UnfortunatelyKalyani is entrapped by the robbers but she is successful in herescape and eventually reaches under the shelter of Satyananda,the chief of Anandamath, the monastery of bliss. Anandamath, amonastery of nationalist ‘Sannyasis’ (saints) stands hidden in adense forest. A huge building is the abode of ‘Sanatans’ of thechildren of the mother, as the ‘Sannyasis’ call themselves. It isworthwhile to mention that the ‘Sanatans’ are motivated not byany political ideology, but by a passionate feeling for freedom. The

intense and active awareness of patriotism and nationalism of the‘Sanatans’ is marvellously presented by Bankim Chandra. Thereis no denying the fact that the real struggle of the’Sanatans’ isagainst the British dynasty to maintain the dignity of rich culturalidentity of India. Whatever its aesthetic worth, Anandamath needsto be evaluated for its unique contribution to the movement forIndia’s independence. Hence it is insignificant to evaluateAnandamath on its artistic merits alone. Dr. Sukumar Sencomments on Anandamath, “Anandamath is a political novelwithout a sufficient plot. It definitely marks the decline ofBankim Chandra's power as a novelist. As fiction it cannot becalled an outstanding work.” 20

Indeed it is quite difficult to subscribe to the comment ofDr. Sukumar Sen which is a kind of sweeping assertion withoutany objective scrutiny. As any perceptive reader feels, Anandamathis no ordinary novel. Indeed, it is a great and memorable workwith a definite purpose. It gives a powerful message of nationalismand patriotism in extricating Hindu society from a morass of orthodoxand conservative ideas. In the novel Anandamath, Bankim triedto synthesize religion and politics of enslaved Indians who wereunder double threat of political and cultural domination. Bankimtook the stupendous task of revitalizing India’s culture and traditionin the light of challenge from the West. It is evident that the novelhas plenty of didacticism and some of the characters have beentoo much idealized which are certainly weaknesses from the purelyaesthetic point of view. What is, however, remarkable is that it isthe message or gospel of patriotism that throws artistic limitationsinto the background. At the same time it is obvious that Bankim’sbrilliant realism, vivid description, economy of expression anddramatic conflicts give the novel Anandamath uncommon artisticexcellence. A close observation of the novel Anandamath givesthe impression that for the fulfilment of the noble vision of the



deliverance of the nation, it calls for supreme sacrifice under arigorous vow of renunciation, unless and until the mother’s badgeof slavery is removed. Bankim’s stand is that the position of themother Kali (Goddess Kali) is very great for the religious worship,so is true for the patriotic man who worships his land as a holymother. Incidentally, the hymn Vande Mataram (I WorshipMother)’ mentioned in Anandamath became the mantra ofnationalism with a tremendous impetus and appreciative attention.It is also important to mention here that before Bankim Chandrawrote 'Vande Mataram' in a moment of patriotic and nationalisticinspiration, a number of moving songs of patriotic expression werewritten in Bengal by some eminent personalities. One of theremarkable National Songs, composed by Satyendranath Tagore,elder brother of Rabindranath, begins thus: “Children of India,sing together, and in complete unison, the glory that India is.”21

The remarkable thing is that the song written by SatyendranathTagore was sung at several sessions on the occasion of the ‘HinduMela’ or ‘Chaitra Mela’ started from 1867 onwards by a trueand loyal nationalist Naba Gopal Mitra. The purpose was definitelynoble as to create a sense of patriotism among the citizens of India.The poets and intellectuals through their patriotic poems and songsstarted idealizing India. Satyendranath’s song has been describedin some quarters as India’s first National Song. It was commendedby Bankim himself22. In a book review dealing with the merits ofthe Hindu religion, Bankim says that Satyendranath’s great songshould be sung all over India and by twenty crore Indians.23

With intense patriotic enthusiasm Bankim composed thefamous lyric 'Vande Mataram' to mother India. Mention may bemade that this patriotic song did not receive any political legitimacyduring Bankim’s lifetime. Later on the famous hymn ‘VandeMataram’ received grand recognition by the revolutionaries in thefirst decade of the twentieth century. Uncommon importance was

given to the patriotic song 'Vande Mataram' in different politicaland national activities. This is evident from its inclusion in the musicalsection of the Tagores family journal called Balaka in 1885 andthe echo of this song in a poem written by Hem ChandraBandopadhayay in commemoration of the 1886 Congress atCalcutta. It was for the first time sung at the 12th Congress sessionat Calcutta in 1896 by Rabindranath Tagore. From contemporaryrecords it is known that the poet’s melodious and powerful voicereverberated in the whole pandal moving the audience visibly andtransporting them to a higher plane of patriotism.24 ‘VandeMataram’ became extremely popular during the national movementthat took place against the partition of Bengal by the British and thesong was taken up by the rest of India in its wake. During thosetempestuous days of political upheaval, the song 'Vande Mataram'became inner cry of Bengal against the British atrocities. ‘VandeMataram’ was sung at the vast gathering in Calcutta Town Hall on7th August 1905 when the famous boycott resolution was adoptedand the Swadeshi movement was inaugurated on October 16, theday on which the partition of Bengal came into effect, no hearth firewas lit in whole Bengal as a sign of protest, while the volunteerswent about singing the patriotic hymn‘Vande Mataram’ on thestreet. Eventually, the government sedition notification came banningits public performance.

Indeed, in many ways, the anti-partition movement wasamong the first steps in non-violent passive resistance practised ona mass scale and set the pattern for the country’s subsequentmovement for independence. The patriotic hymn 'Vande Mataram'became a slogan symbolising a new movement all over India. Thetwo Congress sessions of 1905 and 1906 were relevant in thesense that they adopted resolutions vehemently protesting againstthe dismemberment of the province of Bengal. The 1906 Congresssession in Calcutta passed a resolution to that effect and also



favoured boycott and Swadeshi movement organised by thenationalists. It is important to recall that during the Congress sessionin 1905, Gokhle expressed his grave concern for the woes of Bengalwhereas Sir Surendranath Banerjee moved the resolution againstthe partition of Bengal amidst thunderous slogan of 'Vande Mataram'and explained in detail the atrocities committed by the British onthe singers of 'Vande Mataram'. Since then, almost in every sessionof the Congress 'Vande Mataram' was sung with great enthusiasmand solemnity. Indeed, all the national deliberations of India beganinvariably with the 'Vande Mataram' song sung as a prelude.Needless to mention 'Vande Mataram' automatically became thecountry’s unofficial National Anthem even before the independenceof the country. In the beginning, a controversy started regardingthe interpretation of the hymn. It is interesting to note that duringthe period of the partition of Bengal, no objection was raised against'Vande Mataram' by the Muslim community. In fact, the Swadeshimovement inspired both the Hindus and the Muslims uttering 'VandeMataram' against the British atrocities. But during the heyday ofthe same Muslims, raised objection that 'Vande Mataram' was anidolatrous song and thus contrary to the ethics of Islam.

Bankim Chandra was thus severely condemned by asection of Muslim community and a demand was made for banningAnandamath and Raj Singha, the two major novels of BankimChandra. Replying to the objection, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the firstPresident of India had said that “It did not urge idol worship”and that “Durga did not mean any idol but was another namefor the mother country.” 25According to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru,the first Prime Minister of lndia, “I think that the whole song andall the words in it are thoroughly harmless and nobody cantake exception to their meaning.” 26

The Editor of the Modern Review, himself a noted memberof 'Brahmo Samaj' and no admirer of idolatry, strongly urged that

the patriotic song 'Vande Mataram' has no animus against Islamand that the seventy million throats referred to in the song comprise,in fact, the total population of the Hindus and the Muslims of thethen Bengal, including Bihar and Orissa.27

Mr. Rezaul Karim, a veteran author and Congress leaderof Bengal, has vehemently objected to the allegation that BankimChandra was a Muslim hater and that 'Vande Mataram' itself wasidolatrous. He is of the view that 'Vande Mataram' does notrepresent worship of God but is the worship of the motherland. Heconsiders the song 'Vande Mataram' as an imperishable contributionof Bankim. He believes that Bankim Chandra had a genuine loveof humanity, a compassion for the oppressed and sufferings.According to him, “There is one clear difference between Bankimand Shakespeare. Shakespeare was not an idealistic poet; hedid not promote any moral ideal; he did not represent anyonemorality; he did not offer any solutions. He created a ‘non-moral atmosphere’. But Bankim was a moral sage. He wantedto create a moral ambience. His fervent desire was for thereform of the society. He wanted to give mankind clear moralguidance through the trials and tribulations of life.”28 HenceRezaul Karim is of opinion that Islam does not restrict conceivingthe motherland as mother which has already been done by severalArabic and Persian poets. Consequently, there had been a strongdispute regarding the hymn 'Vande Mataram'. In October, 1937the Congress Working Committee took off official notice of thematter and ultimately recommended the singing of only the first twostanzas of the song 'Vande Mataram'. It is important to note thatRabindranath Tagore in his letter to Jawaharlal Nehru datedOctober 26, 1937, recommended the singing of the first two stanzasof the song. In its resolution, the Working Committee explainedhow the song 'Vande Mataram' had become emotionally attachedwith the independence movement of India. The song and the words,



explained by the Committee as “a living and inseparable part ofour national movement.”30

However, once again warm controversy arose around thepatriotic song 'Vande Mataram' when after independence theNational Anthem of India was to be declared officially and theConstituent Assembly was seized of the problem. In the mean time,Rabindranath Tagore’s patriotic song ‘Jana Gana ManaAdhinayaka Jaya He’ had appeared which was first sung at theCalcutta Congress of 1911, preceded, of course by the singing ofBankim’s ‘Vande Mataram’. Again, in 1917 at the CongressSession of Calcutta, ‘Jana Gana Mana’ was sung along with theinaugural song 'Vande Mataram'. Tagore’s song ‘Jana GanaMana’ became very popular onwards and eventually it wasrecognised as the National Anthem of India. At the same time,from some quarters there was some misapprehension about ‘JanaGana Mana’ that it was composed in honour of King George V,which was completely eliminated. The Azad Hind Fouz organisedby Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose adopted the song ‘Jana GanaMana’ as the National Anthem, and this to a large extentstrengthened its claim for genuine acknowledgement as such bythe government after independence. After the independence of India,the government declared ‘Jana Gana Mana’ as the NationalAnthem in reaction to the claim from the country’s U.N. delegation.In this context, the comment made by Pandit lawaharlal Nehru, thefirst Prime Minister of India in August 1948 is significant: “It isunfortunate that some kind of argument has arisen between‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Jana Gana Mana ‘. 'Vande Mataram'is evidently and unquestionably the first National Song of Indiawith a great historical tradition; it was thoroughly connectedwith our struggle for freedom. That position it is bound to retainand no other song can displace it"31 Indeed, ‘Jana Gana Mana’was found to be more convenient for orchestration by many distinct

persons and eventually the steering committee of the ConstituentAssembly decided in January, 1950 ‘Jana Gana Mana’ as NationalAnthem and “the same honoured place” was given to ‘VandeMataram’ as it had great historical tradition in the independencemovement of India. The Congress party amended the Committee’sdecision by adding “the same status” to the words “the samehonoured place.” Ironically, in stead of a resolution being passedby the Constituent Assembly, the President of India Dr. RajendraPrasad himself made an announcement about the National Anthemsaying, “The composition consisting of the words and musicknown as ‘Jana Gana Mana’ is the National Anthem of Indiasubject to such alterations in words as the Government mayauthorize as occasion arises; and the song ‘Vande Mataram'which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indianfreedom shall be honoured equally with ‘Jana Gana Mana’and shall have equal status with it. I hope this will satisfy themembers.” 32

The noteworthy thing regarding Bankim’s ‘VandeMataram’ is that the song achieved glorious position withspontaneity. Mahatma Gandhi pointed out that “Bande Mataram,apart from its wonderful association, expresses the one nationalwish- the rise of India to her full height.” 33 Thus, Anandamathis Bankim Chandra’s greatest gift to the development of intensepatriotic feelings and deeper sense of national identity and the song'Vande Mataram' became the heartthrob slogan of revolutionarypatriots as well as nationalists during the Indian National movement.

Infact, the novel Anandamath is an important documentof Bankim’s convictions. Bankim’s noble vision of selflessdedication gave the political aspirations a solid moral basis andprovided indomitable zeal and energy to the revolutionarymovement. Patriotism was to him the highest form of religion. ToBankim, life was a continuous search for self realization which found



its fulfilment in the harmonious development of all human faculties,physical, intellectual, aesthetic and spiritual. There is no denyingthe fact that Bankim’s novel Anandamath explored the theme ofpatriotism and nationalism which enlightened his successors to dwellupon this sublime subject. Rabindranath Tagore explained hispolitical doctrine and his sense of nationalism and revolution in hisnovels Ghare Baire (The Home and the World), Char Adhyay(Four Chapters) and the most popular Bengali novelist SaratChandra Chatterjee dwelt on the subject of revolution in his Bengalinovel Pather Dabi which was banned by the British Government.

In Dharmatattva (The Doctrine of Religion), BankimChandra propagates a religious system based on reason and heconsiders patriotism as the highest virtue to be cultivated. Bankimconsiders that all human virtues and qualities of excellence dependon the viable existence of a society which gives rise to a governmentor state responsible for the protection of the social organization. InBankim’s view, patriotism is supremely significant as a quality andshould be cultured by all societies. It is not limited within theperiphery of self-protection or protection of one’s near and dearones. Patriotism demands the sacrifice of life for saving the nationfrom foreign aggression. In the history of the world, enlightenedand cultured citizens have sacrificed their lives for the sake of theirnations inspired by the feeling of patriotism. The interpretation ofpatriotism which Bankim Chandra proposed in Dharmatattva (TheDoctrine of Religion) is a unique practical solution, not a utopianidea. Commenting on the virtue of patriotism, Bankim Chandrasays that only Indians have been deficient in cultivating theexcellence of patriotism and have suffered to a great extent in thewake of every foreign conquest. This is due to the fact that Indiahad given excessive emphasis on universal love and brotherhoodwithout cultivating the intense feeling of patriotism. It is thus evidentthat without the idea of patriotism, there is no safeguard for social

polity. With the precise purpose of propagating his ideas aboutpatriotism, Bankim says that patriotism does not disrupt the universallove for mankind. Bankim reveals to us radiant visions of patriotismin Dharmatattva (The Doctrine of Religion). He integratesnationalism with religion with his evocative and original conception.This humanistic religion expounded by Bankim is unique andremarkable which was never attempted before by any Indiantheologian, philosopher or author.

By incorporating the selfless and unattached performanceof duties (niskam karmayog) as explained in the Gita, Bankimdeclares that it is the only comprehensive system of religion. He isready to welcome an agnostic and even an atheist to join thecomprehensive system of religion, as far as they are ready to acceptthe theory of culture, and he is not willing to discard anyone on theground of his being a Christian, Hindu or Muslim. Bankim Chandrahad tremendous faith in Hinduism and he believed that Hindu religionis the most perfect of all religions as it is basically a religion ofculture, and Hindu scriptures, particularly the Gita, containing thehighest spiritual doctrine.

In his magnum opus Krishna Charitra (The Characterof Krishna), Bankim presents Lord Krishna as the most perfectideal of manhood, with all his faculties perfectly developed,performing all his responsibilities with absolute non-attachment.Mention may be made that Krishna Charitra, a treatise on Krishnawas first published in the journal Prachar (Propagation) whichwas started by Bankim Chandra in 1884. This enormous bookconsists of seven parts divided into sixty nine chapters. For BankimChandra, Krishna, the greatest Hindu mythological character is notan abstract doctrine alone but a historical authenticity. Bankim’smission to write Krishna Charitra is to project Krishna as a symbolof sublimity and all-comprehending personality. In his interpretationof Krishna, Bankim is most probably encouraged by the attempts



of David Strauss and Joseph Renan had done with regard to JesusChrist, in their presentation of Jesus. They had tried to presentJesus as a human personality rather than an incarnation in theirbooks both entitled Life of Jesus published in 1835 and 1863respectively. In this context it is relevant to note that before Bankim,neither any theologian nor any historian attempted to dwell on thehistorical authenticity of Krishna, a legendary figure as depicted inthe epics and in the Puranas. In Krishna Charitra, Bankim Chandrabrilliantly examines the texts and their chronology, their relevanceand reliability in the first part which consists of seventeen chapters.From Part two to Part seven, Bankim marvellously executes themultifaceted personality, divine life and multi-dimensional activitiesof Krishna, the phenomenon beginning from his birth to his death.Bankim discards the popular legends and poetic imagination relatedto the life of Lord Krishna, the incarnation.

It is significant to mention that Strauss and Renan in theirbiography of Christ had tried to unearth the human aspect of Jesus,from the legends of the mythical figure Christ, the divinity shroudedunder an impenetrable aura of miracles. The humanism andrationalism of the nineteenth century, which encouraged theseauthors, insisted on discovering the human truth behind the imageof God.Unlike Strauss and Renan, Bankim Chandra wanted topresent 'Krishna' the man, to his age, as well as he wanted toproject him up as the supreme instance of his precise theory ofculture. In Bankim’s presentation, Krishna appears as a man whohad attained sublimity of all his faculties, that worked in perfectharmony for the welfare of the cosmos. In Krishna Charitra andDharmatattva, Bankim Chandra’s main focus is on the Principleof all comprehending which embraces, develops and refines themulti-dimensional faculties of human being. Like Tagore, Bankimalso rejects the doctrine of renunciation. He declares unequivocallythat an ideology or religion, which is not concerned with natural

laws or phenomenon cannot exist for a long time. Herbert Spencer,Jeremy Bentham, Auguste Comte, John Stuart Mill and the Englishhistorian, John Robert Seely are some of the western philosophers,who influenced Bankim Chandra most and their western scientificoutlook and progressive ideas including humanism are integratedin Bankim’s concept of theology or culture. In Bankim’s writing,there is ‘enthusiasm of humanity’ which one finds in the writingsof John Stuart Mill. The seed of this integral culture is latent inhuman personality and through proper nurture it can unfold itself infull glory. Bankim’s contemporary author Mill was a man of highintegrity and sincerity. Bankim’s intellectual eminence hascertain’resemblances with Mill. Like Mill, Bankim is a systematicthinker concerned with social grievances and weaknesses. InBankim’s writing, one may find a sense of justice which is obviousin Mill’s social and political writings.

In Krishna Charitra ‘Sri Krishna’ whom Bankim exhibitsas the embodiment of the ultimate and a sublime human personalityand whose historical authenticity Bankim attempts to establish byinventing rigorous analysis, incarnates, in his opinion, this unity ofBeing. In Bankim’s view, the perfection of existence lies in theunion of nature with soul and of the human with the divine. There isno denying the fact that Bankim Chandra’s three major novelsAnandamath, Debi Choudhurani, and Sitaram are illustrationsof his doctrine of culture and religion which is explained withelaborate argumentation in Dharmatattva. The novels and essayswritten by Bankim reveal the fact that the major concern of this'Serious and Sage' author was to revitalize the cultural identityofthe nation and establish righteousness and purity ofthe mind. InKrishna Charitra, Bankim propagated the ideals of a perfect manwhereas in Dharmatattva he explained the religion of humanism.Indeed, Bankim’s humanism as interpreted in these books isremarkable for his original thinking and intellectual integrity, and



not an imitation or adaptation of any European philosopher orthinker. He has presented references from Comte, Mill and Seeley’sdoctrine of humanism only to establish the fact that there is auniversality in human thinking. The comment made by Tagore onBankim Chandra is relevant when he says, “In Literature onefinds two kinds of yogis- those devoted to knowledge and thosedevoted to action, Bankim was devoted to action.” 35

Human life in all its glory and splendour inspired the creativeimagination of Bankim Chandra. Indomitable courage and supremesacrifice for the motherland are important aspects of humancharacter as considered by Bankim Chandra. Bankim Chandra,being not satisfied with his contemporary society, turned to thepast and created characters like Jagat Singha, Pratap, Raj Singha,Satyananda and Sitaram. The women characters likewise are notconfined to the narrow domestic world as they throw off theshackles of bondage. Vimala, Matibibi, Debi Choudhurani, Brhamar,Shri are enlightened female characters of Bankim’s novels as theyare symbols of beauty, valour and wisdom. Bankim Chandra wrotesome social novels of which Bisha Briksha (The Poison Tree)and Krishnakanter Will (The Will of Krishnakanta) deal withthe controversial problem of widowhood. Bisha Briksha is thefirst novel of Bankim dealing with the contemporary social lifewhich first appeared in the journal Bangadarshan. The mainepisode of the novel revolves round Kunda, a widow. It isworthwhile to mention that the widow-remarriage Act was sixteenyears old at the time of publication of this novel, but the widow-remarriage had been strongly criticized by the contemporary society.Bankim’s own attitude towards Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, theeminent scholar and one of the pioneers of modern Indianrenaissance, who launched the widow-remarriage movement in1856, was clearly ambivalent. In an article published in 1872,Bankim severely criticized Vidyasagar and his reformation

movement regarding widow-remarriage. In fact this article ofBankim is a manifestation of Bankim’s dilemma. Although he agreedwith Vidyasagar on the compassionate and humanitarian groundthat it was unjustified to deprive the right of the widow of remarriagewhen the same right is enjoyed by a widower, however he wasafraid of social chaos and dire consequence caused by widow-remarriage. Bankim could not ignore conventional morality. Bankimearnestly believed that chastity is the greatest virtue for women.Hem Chandra, the protagonist of the novel Mrinalini expressedhis feeling without any hesitation to Manorama, “Being a widowyou should not think of anyone. If you do so, you are condemnedforever, not only in this life but also in the next. If you happento love someone, forget him.”36

Bankim’s concern with the problem of widow-remarriageinspired Rabindranath Tagore to write Cokher Bali (1903), animportant social novel. Like Aeschylus, Bankim was an idealistwhereas Tagore was a romanticist as his novels have extraordinarypoetic beauty that transforms the events of life into external truths.Bankim wanted to maintain moral order within the social frame butkeeping the view of artistic presentation of his characters in themind, he explains the weaknesses and downfall of his noblecharacters like Bhavananda, Nagendranath, Govindalal andSitaram, whose inner conflicts and sufferings show the readersexternal mystery and universal truth of human life.

In fact, the framework of Bankim’s novels reminds us ofShakespeare’s dramas. The downfall of Bankim’s noble charactersis very similar to Shakespeare’s noble tragic characters likeMacbeth, Othello and King Lear. Bankim Chandra exploitsShakespeaerian technique of plot and character in his novels. LikeShakespeare’s plays, Bankim’s novels have sub-plots and theyemerge from the main plot, help its development and return to themain stream. Indeed, Bankim’s novels have compactness very



similar to plays of Shakespeare. There is conflict in the charactersof Bankim and they are dramatic as well as life-like and three-dimensional like those of Shakespeare’s dramatic characters.Bankim Chandra, like Shakespeare, observes that no man isabsolutely good or absolutely bad either. Therefore, his charactersreveal the complexities of human life. Bankim Chandra, being awareof this complexity, presents the whole truth about man in his novels.That is why Bankim’s characters, for example, Nagendranath,Suryamukhi, Rohini, Chandrasekhar, and Saivalini are neither angelsnor devils. Unlike Bankim Chandra, Rabindranath Tagore venturedto ‘go down into the pit of the human mind where, as in asmithy, the hard-metal images take shape, burn in the furnaceand beaten by hammer.,, 37

It is important to note that the current trend in literary art isnot to depict the sequence of events but to dissect the inner worldof characters. In this respect there are certain reservations againstBankim’s art of characterization. However, one cannot deny theartistic excellence, tremendous and rich variety of Bankim’s novels.

The opinions of Bankim and Tagore as related to art andliterature are interesting and relevant. Bankim believed that whilethe main purpose of literature is to create the image of beauty withoutviolating the laws of probability, he was at the same time equallyconscious of the fact that it must reflect the conditions of the societyand supply a remedial measure. In this respect, he was very closeto Aeschylus and Plato than to Aristotle who believed that theprimary duty of an artist is to provide delight or pleasure. Thus, likePlato and oriental thinkers, Bankim Chandra held that art mustenlighten, ennoble and elevate. He believes that poets are theteachers of humanity but they do not preach moral lessons.According to him, beauty, truth and religion are the ideals of apoet. Bankim’s novels reveal the fact that the theory of art for art’ssake was repugnant to him. Bankim’s purpose of writing was multi-

dimensional. His aim was at once to create beauty and maintain themoral standard of a strong, purposeful society. Another majorconcern of Bankim was to construct a dedicated,disciplined andcultured society based on the teachings of the Gita and to liberatethe motherland with the help of sincere patriots and nationalistswho could renounce all personal desires inspired by sublime spiritualideals.

Like Bankim Chandra, Rabindranath Tagore also thinksthat the main purpose of art and literature is to create pure artisticbeauty linked with eternal good or truth. Bankim ridicules the ideathat literature should aim at pleasing people. But Tagore does notignore amusement, an important aspect of literature. He believesthat literature gives pleasure and amusement to the readers. Thereare certain differences between Tagore’s works and the novels ofBankim. While Bankim Chandra inspired a strong nationalistenthusiasm to liberate the nation from foreign bondage, Tagore wasagainst narrow nationalism as revealed in his novels The Homeand the World (Ghare Baire) and Gora. The story of Tagore’spolitical novel The Home and the World is narrated by differentcharacters like Nikhilesh, Sandip and Bimala, a form first executedsuccessfully by Bankim Chandra. While Bankim shows acompassionate psychological understanding of his characters, inTagore the characters are idea-oriented, for instance, Nikhilesh inthe novel The Home and the World is a spokesman of the novelist’sideology. Tagore criticises the emotional outburst and coercivemethods in the novel The Home and the World and he is againstmilitant nationalism and misguided terrorism which is also evidentin his brilliant political novel Four Chapters (Char Adhyay). Inthe novel Gora the conflict between the Hindus and the Brahmasin the contemporary society has been presented with intellectualintegrity by Tagore. Gora, the protagonist of the novel is a powerfulsymbol of Hindu nationalism and cultural identity of India having



irresistible and passionate love for his motherland. The revelationat the end of the novel that Gora is the son of an Irish lady is liketragic 'discovery' in a Greek drama and eventually the character ofGora is transformed as he has a wonderful realization of all-inclusive.He comes to believe in one unified India without distinction of caste,creed or religion. Indeed, Tagore’s faith in pluralism is reflectedthrough the character of India. Unity in diversity was the main mottoof Tagore’s life which is the spirit or cultural identity of India. Thisidea of all- comprehending recurs time and again in Tagore’s novels,articles, poems, lectures including the National Anthem. WhileBankim Chandra strictly adhered to the moral order, Rabindranathwas cool to the question of social morality. Tagore wanted toemancipate human mind from all bondages of ignorance, superstitionand traditionalism. His social views were more liberal andprogressive than those of Bankim Chandra. Bankim’s language ispicturesque and sonorous whereas Tagore’s language is lyrical andembellished. Bankim effects a sublimation of characters whereasTagore projects his characters with fine delicacy of touch. The veryspirit of the nineteenth century Indian renaissance revolved roundthe two poles of patriotism and humanism. Before the advent ofthe British, nationalism did not exist in the mind of the Indian people.Love for one’s caste and faith was so dominant that made peoplenarrow and parochial. The enlightened Indians felt that patriotismwas the strength of the ruling British people. The elite class of Indianrealized that it was patriotic intensity that had encouraged and framedthe history of Europe and therefore they cultivated the enthusiasmof patriotism in their character. Bankim Chandra had studiedEuropean history and literature passionately and he was intenselyimbibed with the feeling of patriotism. With tremendous vitalityBankim propagated the sentiment of patriotism in his writings inIndian context.

The other important value which inspired the pioneers of

the Indian Renaissance of 19th century adopted from the Westwas that of humanism. The secular and egalitarian concept ofhumanism enlightened the Indian intellectuals to value man withoutany discrimination of caste and creed. Indeed, patriotism andhumanism were major concerns for the nineteenth century Indiansocial reformers and thinkers. In all his writings, Bankimcommunicates his ideology of humanist culture as a liberal andpluralist novelist. The remarkable thing in Bankim is that to establishhis ideology of humanism, he never forgets his commitment as anartist and he does not ignore the demands of art and life. Bankim’scommitment to a particular ideology compels him to perform theresponsibility of a humanist teacher, who has to empower hiscountrymen with the noble vision of nationalism and encourage themto action for the implication of their sublime thoughts. Bankim withhis tremendous enthusiasm is committed to instruct his readers aboutthe precious cultural identity, political doctrine and the philosophyof ancient India which are very much relevant in the modern time.

Hence it would be only natural to conclude that the geniusesof Bankim and Rabindranath were complementary and both thestalwarts of Indian Renaissance were committed to the glorioustask of national reconstruction of India’s character and destiny withtheir own original thinking. Tagore and Bankim, like all great writersof the world, belonged to their own country and to humanity. BankimChandra and Rabindranath stand before us as the embodiment ofintellectualism and liberal thought, of universalism and love ofhumanity, of imaginativeness, and of an emotionalism which linksitself up to the eternal verities of human life, as well as of a supremerealization for beauty and sense of the ultimate reality.Bankim and Rabindranath were equally great patriots andinternationalists and visionary activists. Both of them offer awonderful analogue to William Shakespeare, the greatest poetand dramatist of 16th century Elizabethan age who was closely



associated with England throughout his life and yet he representedthe whole of European culture of the contemporary period, and hisspirit of thrilling adventure and his intense humanism held in itsbosom, the whole of mankind. Tolstoy is another instance of thoseclassical authors who remained a true witness of the important socialand political episodes which occurred in the national scenario ofhis country and yet he maintained his liberal and universal vision ofmankind. Thus Bankim Chandra and Tagore, like Shakespeareand Tolstoy, are great inheritors of the ages, and herein lies theireternal appeal as universal personalities in literature.

000



CHAPTER-IIITagore’s Political Doctrine

Tagore proclaims that the real problem in India is not political thoughpolitics has entered in every sphere of life of India following thewestern ideals where politics is the dominating factor of nationallife. “Those of us in India who come under the delusion thatmere political freedom will make us free have accepted theirlessons from the West as the gospel truth and lost their faith inhumanity. We must remember whatever weakness we enrichin our society will become the source of danger in politics. Thesame inertia which leads us to our idolatry of dead forms insocial institutions will create in our politics prison-houses withimmovable walls”, so wrote Rabindranath Tagore in his essay“Nationalism in India.”1

Though not considered a systematic thinker, Tagore withhis sure intuition and maturity over the years, had a very clear graspof various ailments that plagued the Indian mind. A clear evolutionof his mind is detected in his various writings over a long stretch ofyears. There is a close relationship between Tagore’s politicaldoctrine and his social and intellectual views. With a profoundintuition the political and social views expressed in Tagore’s songs,short stories, plays, novels, essays, letters, addresses and lecturesenlighten the whole world for their intellectual and moral integrity.Tagore does not believe in an exclusive political interest and he iscritical of Europe’s political and commercial aggressiveness. Thetendency of political aggrandizement in the present age of westerncountries is the root cause of the exploitation of the whole world.

In his appraisement of Indian tradition and heritage, Tagore writes,“In spite of our great difficulty, however, India has donesomething, she has tried to make an adjustment of races, toacknowledge the real differences between them where theseexist, and yet seek for some basis of unity. This basis has comethrough our saints like Nanak, Kabir, Chaitanya and others,preaching one God to all races of India”.2

Tagore gives emphasis to sympathy and mutual help. Hisidea of Universal Humanism and design for a co-operative living isnot a static ideal, a distant utopia, it is a way of living which can beincreasingly made more real and wide spread to solve the crisis ofthe modern world. He believed that the aim of a free society is theharmonious and creative manifestation of all individuals. Theperennial endeavour of mankind is to expand the frontiers ofindividual freedom and social welfare. Such a society of enlightenedco-operation shall create a congenial cultural moral atmosphere.According to Tagore, “The people who are lacking in this highermoral power, and who therefore can not combine in fellowshipwith one another must perish or live in a state of degradation.Only those people have survived and achieved civilization whohave this spirit of co-operation strong in them”.3 The sense ofunity or the moral spirit of combination is the demand of the presentage which has brought all the different races of men close together.In fact, it is the true basis of reconciliation and mutual help or co-operation. Tagore considers that the atmosphere of co-operativeliving and cosmopolitan humanism shall gradually remove all falsedivisions and boundaries between man and man, geographical,racial, religious, sexual, political, economic and cultural. Heunhesitatingly declares that “those who are gifted with the moralpower of love and vision of spiritual unity, who have the leastfeeling of enmity against aliens, and the sympathetic insightto place themselves in the position of others, will be the fittest

to take their permanent place in the age that is trying beforeus, and those who are constantly developing their instinct offight and intolerance of aliens will be eliminated''.4 Tagore, onthe one hand was critical of the megalomania of the west, on theother he had no illusion about’the development in western countries,which has come to be synonymous with multiplication of luxuriesand appreciation of materialistic life-style. The real conflict, accordingto Tagore, is not between the East and the West but betweenmechanized life and the life of spiritualism.

Tagore considers violence to be the very negation offreedom, reason and personal integrity. In his view, cosmopolitan,secular, liberal co-operative philosophy mark the emergence of aglobal Renaissance which would provide inspiration and guidanceto restructure societies and politico-economic system. Tagore’sobjective and tangible explanation in this regard is valuable whenhe writes emphatically "I believe in life only when it is in harmonywith life, I preach the freedom of men from the servitude of thefetish of hugeness, the non-human”.5

By progress, Tagore meant a continuous development of humanpersonality, both individual and corporate. Tagore’s statementreveals that he was a true nationalist and patriot and not merely anordinary politician or statesman. He was never interested in involvinghimself with active politics. On 15th November 1936, in a letter toMaharaja Bahadur (of Darbhanga?) who was a candidate for theelection in 1937, Tagore wrote: “For various reasons, chiefamongst which is my general apathy towards, and ignoranceof the present day politics in the country, I had long ago decidednot to be identified in any way with coming elections. Quitedeliberately I have not even registered myself as a voter. Variousparties have already approached me to support their favouredcandidates and I have denied the request in every case.”6

Earlier,Tagore was requested to be the President of the Indian



National Congress. In a Letter to Tagore on 5th of October 1918,Annie Besant wrote.-7

Theosophical Society,Adyar,

Madras,Dear Sir Rabindranath Tagore, Oct.5.1918.

I wonder if you will let us have the great joy of electing youas President of the Congress. Your words would go everywhere &you could claim India’s freedom as none other can. The subjectcommittee can be taken by some ex-President & thus spare yourstrength. It is the speech that matters. Would it be of any help if Ibecome one of the Congress Secretaries for the year?

Please let me know if we may propose your name.Yours ever,

Annie Besant.

What Tagore wrote to Besant is not known to us but we are surethat Tagore never became the President of Indian NationalCongress. This ‘general apathy’ started in him after the Partition ofBengal. Though Tagore was not in favour of the interference ofpolitics directly in his creative works, he could not afford to beindifferent to his environment. He realized that the link between artand politics is an organic part of the consciousness of every artistof integrity. At the same time, Rabindranath Tagore believed that awriter could only serve true art when he stood above classes andset himself apart from political movement. He was basically acreative writer, a poet as singer who experienced an inner urge toexpress his feelings in songs and poems and other genres withoutany pressure. However, Tagore’s writings are the varied andcontinuous expression of a distinctive comprehensive vision. As a

keen observer, Tagore could not fail to see the intellectual povertyof modern life. Whether one may agree or disagree with his viewson religion or politics or purely literary standpoint, the fact remainshe never wrote anything without experiencing or feeling the samesteadily and wholly.Although primarily a creative artist, Tagore’s writing on social andpolitical issues were quite considerable. In some of his politicalessays and in his Presidential address at the Provincial conferenceat Pabna (1906), Tagore drew up a programme for ruralreconstruction of our country which is even now far in advance ofanyone outlined by the Government of the Present day.Tagore’s views on politics are scattered in his lectures andaddresses, letters and articles, some of his early critical writingsand suggested alternatives were offered in Atmashakti (1905),Bharatbarsha (1906), Raja 0 Praja, Swadeshi and Samaj(1906). These writings were further developed and elaborated inNationalism (1911), Creative Unity (1922), Kalantar (1937),Crisis in Civilization (1941), A vision of lndia’s History (1951)and other works.

Tagore was not primarily a political leader, but at everymoment of India’s political crisis he was one of the most outspokenspokesmen of the nation. When in the first decade of the centuryBengal was partitioned, he was one of the first to protest againstthe act. His patriotic songs and poems inspired men to acts ofheroism and sacrifice, and for a while he took a leading part in thepolitical movement that swept through the land. In that famous anti-partition movement of 1905 in Bengal, Tagore marched on thestreets along with teeming millions to register the protest of thepeople against the imperialist machinations of the British rulers. Hecondemned the British policy of divide-and-rule as he could sensethe sinister design of Lord Curzon in a speech at Dacca whichhinted at the creation of a Muslim-dominated separate province.



This protest of Tagore was clearly revealed in his protest marchesand writings, wherein he analysed the grass root problems of atruly Indian social polity. As the time of partition (October 16, 1905)drew near, the attitude of the people stiffened. A slogan was givento boycott of British goods. In Calcutta’s Town hall, Tagorepresented a paper The Situation and The Remedy (Abastha 0Byabastha) in which he strongly recommended the setting up of aparallel government. Besides, his songs were quite popular and hehad earned his fame as an established poet. Young martyrs wentup the scaffold singing fragments of a Tagore song. It was duringthese stirring days that he wrote ‘Sonar BangIa (Golden Bengal)’,which was to become, by an irony of the Muses, the NationalAnthem of Bangladesh. Singing his own song “Let the hearts ofour people be one”, Tagore actively participated in a procession.He had probably come closer to the life of the people than everbefore. The idea of boycott included an alternative educationthrough National Schools (Jatiya Vidyalaya). Inconclusivearguments went on over the methods and there were numerousprotest meetings everywhere. In Barisal (presently in Bangladesh)the police fired on an unarmed crowd. When the revolutionary-idealist leader Aurovindo (then Principal of the National College)was charged with sedition, Rabindranath expressed his reverencefor the great Patriot-philosopher Aurovindo.

For all his love of the country, Tagore was averse to violenceand the politics of assassination. He made his statement clearly forwhich he was often criticized. Perhaps looking for an alternative,he concentrated on rural reconstruction in his own country estatewhere a few enthusiastic young men encouraged him in his mission.To add his mental agony, his favourite son Shamindra died on 23rdNovember 1907. Those who think Tagore’s life was “untouchedby the tempest”8 are quite misinformed. To the reactionary,Tagore’s growing global perspective must have been doubtful and

they scoffed at him. For himself Tagore was beginning to lookbeyond the national horizon and the urgencies of politics. Theunfortunate massacre at Jalianwala Bagh occurred on April 13,1919.The police fired on an unarmed crowd at Amritsar. Many innocentpeople were brutally killed. Tagore was the first to protest againstthe inhuman and the repressive measures of the government.Eventually he surrendered his knighthood as a token of protestagainst the British atrocities. He unhesitatingly declared that anincident like the one at Jalianwala Bagh could take place onlybecause of the gulf of separation between the rulers and the ruled.Renouncing the Honour of Knighthood, Tagore wrote a letter tothe Viceroy on 30th May, 1919. “The enormity of the measurestaken by the Government in the Punjab for quelling some localdisturbances has, with a rude shock, revealed to our minds thehelplessness of our position as British subjects in India knowingthat our appeals have been in vain and that the passion ofvengeance is blinding the noble vision of statesmanship in ourGovernment, which could so easily afford to be magnanimous,as befitted its physical strength and normal tradition, the veryleast that I can do for my country is to take all consequencesupon myself in giving voice to the protest of the millions of mycountrymen, surprised into a dumb anguish of terror And theseare reasons which have compelled me to ask your Excellency,with due reverence and regret, to relieve me of my title ofKnighthood..."9

Tagore’s active involvement in politics, from which he laterbroke away, had made him deeply aware of the sources of Indianculture and creativity. Out of this came his A vision of India’sHistory. Tagore writes, “the history of India has been the historyof the struggle between the constructive spirit of the machine,which seeks the cadence of order and conformity in socialorganization, and the creative spirit of man which seeks



freedom and love for its self-expression.We have to watch andsee if the latter is still living in India; and also whether theformer offers its service and hospitality to life, through whichits system can be vitalized”.10

Tagore did not confine himself to narrow parochialism. He reactedagainst the catastrophic disaster of the West under the tramplingtread of contending commerce and politics, the monstrous greedand hatred. Appreciating the spiritual wealth and welfare of India,Tagore says: “I love India, not because I cultivate the idolatryof geography, not because I have had the chance to be born inher soil, but because she has saved, through tumultuous ages,the living words that have issued from the illuminatedconsciousness of her great sons: Satyam, Jnanam, AnantamBrahma, Brahma is truth, Brahma is wisdom, Brahma isinfinite; Santam, Sivam, Advaitam, peace is in Brahma,goodness is in Brahma, and the unity of all beings”.11

Tagore’s exposition of the main historical movements of India isquite relevant. Interpreting India’s past history and civilization,Tagore says that India’s problem has been far more complex thanthat of the West. In western countries the state forms the core ofthe national life, but in ancient India the life of the people had littleto do with the state and its activities. Tagore reiterated that theproblems that confronted Indian society were not so much politicalas cultural and social. Various people with their divergent culturecame to India. Hence the most important problem before Indiawas to adjust and harmonize these diverse cultures into a concretesynthesis. The spirit of India lies in “unity in diversity” and thisexpression was explained time and again in Tagore’s creative works,lectures and addresses. Tagore’s major concern in A vision ofIndia’s History is that Indian history belongs to all who belong toIndia. There was nothing narrow about his cultural synthesis, as hewrites in Nationalism in India: “India tolerated differences of

races from the first, and that spirit of toleration has acted allthrough her history. Her caste system is the outcome of thisspirit of toleration”.12

It is worthwhile to mention that the two basic facts of our politicallife since independence are that India has decided to be a seculardemocratic state and has accepted for her constitution a quasi-federal form which recognizes the value and constituent units of hernational life. The secular nature of the state flows from equal regardfor citizens of all religions and communities. Its democratic idealscan be fulfilled only on the basis of social, economic and politicalequality among all citizens. Its federal character follows from therecognition of the equality of men and women speaking differentlanguages, professing different religions and following traditions andcustoms. While there are many elements in India’s ancient historywhich support the federal approach, it can not be denied that theconscious acceptance of the secular democratic ideal marks perhapsthe greatest movement that India has known in her history. Indiansociety has, from the earliest times, been hierarchical and remaineddominantly so till the advent of the British. In the earlier ages, therewas hierarchy of caste in which the position of an individual wasfixed by the accident of Birth. The rule of the Pathan or the Moghulmay have loosened the bonds of Caste, but did not challenge itsbasis. As regards the political hierarchy which gave almost unlimitedpowers to the rulers, there was hardly any change as a result ofchange of rulers.

The advent of the British brought a radical change in thesituation. There was rule of law in place of the earlier rule of might.It is true that in practice the British also deviated from their ownprinciples. The establishment of British power in India was aprolonged process piecemeal conquest and consolidation andcolonialization of the economy and society. This process produceddiscontent, resentment and resistance at every stage. The reason



for this apathy of mass Indians towards British rule was due to theatrocities committed by the British people which affected theinterests of almost all sections of society. Under the burden ofexcessive taxes the peasantry became progressively indebted andimpoverished. The only interest of the company was the realizationof maximum revenue with minumum effort. Consequently,settlements were hurriedly undertaken, often without any regardfor the resources of the land. One of the commonest expressionsof social system in India was found in untouchability and caste.From the earliest times, reformers in India have condemned them.The institutions of Lord Buddha had softened the severity of caste.The influence of Islam had further weakened it through the teachingof the medieval mystics and saints. Reformers like Ram MohanRoy, Dayananda, Vidya Sagar, Swami Vivekananda and SwamiPranavananda had struggled against this system. Gandhi dedicatedhis life for its eradication, but, nevertheless, caste till remains apowerful factor of Indian life. In Tagore’s poetry, stories, novelsand essays there is a voice of conscience, an appeal for justice andconcern for man’s unsettled life. The appeal was addressed to Indianintellectuals whom he called upon to free life of slavery, humiliation,caste hostility, poverty, religious fanaticism and national animosity.The thundering voice of the writer’s conscience did not remainwithout response, but there were lots of serious obstacles on theway to liberation from centuries of prejudice. In spite of that,Tagore’s love of truth never wavered as his moral principles wererooted in deep compassion for the common man of India. Tagoregave whole-hearted support to action capable of destroying evil,restoring justice and helping the downtrodden and sufferers. Wehave in Gitanjali (Songs Offering) one of the most powerfulcondemnations of untouchability that has ever been written.Addressing India, Tagore said, “Those whom you seek tosuppress shall pull you down by the burden of their suffering.

Those whom you have deprived of their human rights, shalldrag you down to their own level till their shame is yours.''13

Tagore warned that if the country did not wake up and provideequality to all her children, the result would be common destructionin which there would be equality in death in the ashes of the funeralpyre. While legislation has made such a concept a cognizableoffence, thereby vindicating the stand of both Tagore and Gandhi,in actual implementation much still remains to be done. While Tagoreunhesitatingly approved the western notion of democracy, he addedto it the Indian principle of social activity and social obligation. Hepointed out that in ancient and medieval India, kings might havegiven up valuable possession and political strength, but the affluentand effective men were not contented till they had accepted theappreciation of their community. The existence of many communitieswith differences in languages, religions and customs is one of theharsh realities of Indian life. Tagore, therefore suggested that all ofthese communities should be offered fullest opportunity and freedomfor maintaining their ethnic identity and culture. Of these manycommunities, the two largest are the Hindus and the Muslims. Theirinteraction would thus set the pattern for relations among thedifferent communities of India. Speaking of the relation betweenHindus and Muslims, Tagore observed that it is only when theyattained a unity of purpose on the basis of equality and harmony,there would be an actual unity among them. So long as there wasinequality, there could not be amity, for there will always remain anarrow wall of conflict and suspicion.

Tagore was almost prophetic in his observation. He wasagainst regimentation or standardization at every stage of life, andrejected the uniformity which does not approve of different shadesof views and opinions. Any action which threatens man in one wayor another was unacceptable to Tagore. Tagore had realized thatthe bubble of communalism would burst one day in India. He had



recognized the rot in the Hindu-Muslim equation. About seventyyears ago, in his essay Kalantar Tagore observed, “Muslimsrepresent numbers to us today. Of late, they had become aproblem of addition and subtractions. They are throwing uparithmetic of division.”14 Indeed, Tagore had his first glimpse ofthe Hindu mindset on this problem when he was engaged in theaffairs of the estate. Tagore narrates his experiences, “When I firstentered the zamindari office, I saw that the naib had folded ina corner of the divan cover in his drawing room. On askingwhy, he was told that the corner was for those respectableMuslim subjects who were allowed in; the area with the coverwas for the respectable Hindus, we invite them in and pointout that they are different.”15

Tagore never could accept this distortion in Hindubehaviour. Few leaders of the times realized this despite their activeinvolvement in the freedom struggle. Rabindranath Tagore hadrealized that if Muslims were excluded from the main stream ofnational life, the country would remain forever divided. In thiscontext, one may recall the incident when Tagore rushed to tiea‘Rakhi’ on Muslims during 'Rakshabandhan'. Describing theincident Abanindranath Tagore writes: “We were returning fromthe Pathureghata when we saw some stable hands groomingthe horses in Binu Mullick s stable. Suddenly Rabikaka made adash and went and tied Rakhis on them. God! What is Rabikakaupto, I wondered, they are Muslims. There's bound to be troublenow..... Far from it, Rabikaka even hugged them after tyingRakhis in their hands. The stable boys were flabbergasted, tosay the least. That was not all. We set off on our way onceagain when Rabikaka thought he’d go to the masjid in Chitpurand tie a Rakhi on everybody. ‘Chalo sab, ‘he ordered.”16

Tagore’s reaction to religious fanaticism is spontaneous. He neverregarded contemplation as the absolute. He spoke of the need to

achieve a balance between action and contemplation. Tagore’s ideawas that Muslims did not come to join in the independencemovement of the nation because the conflict between these twocommunities was “so naked, so ugly.” He further says that“sometimes ago a Hindu Swadeshi activist without battlingan eyelid asked his Muslim colleague to get off the Verandahbecause he was going to have a glass of water.”17

One can hear the voice of conscience in the following linesof Tagore. The humanitarian spirit of Tagore is manifested in thisextract. His dissatisfaction is evident as he stated explicitly withlamentation: “I was there when the Swadeshi Movement waslaunched. Some of our leaders were angry with the Muslimsand wanted to disown them altogether... Hindu Bengalis hadcome together like never before. But this strong tide of emotionwas confined only among Hindus. It did not reach the Muslims.We did not learn any lesson that day. We let the deep schismbetween us remain and blamed it on society. And now we wantto keep that schism intact, and at the same time jump it. Thatis absurd.”18 Five years later Tagore wrote ironically: “Let us notsit to judge the Muslims. If we have not been able to bringthem closer to us, let us at least be ashamed of that.”19

Pointing out discrepancies in the Swadeshi movement hefurther explained, “For some reason, we were drawn towardsSwadeshi Salt that day. We proclaimed Muslims as our brothers,as our near ones, in an unnaturally loud voice. And whenMuslims did not melt our call of love, we were angry. It wasrather wicked of them, we thought. Never for once did wethink there was initiative in our call, true, but there was notruth in it.”20 Tagore was very much aware of the fact that “whenever we have drawn the Muslims closer, it was to serve ourown purpose. We never thought of him as our own. And wewill not hesitate to push him aside when we find that he is not



needed any more.''21

Tagore’s observation about Hindu psyche was accurate and justifiedas Subash Chandra Bose, the pioneer of Indian National Movementalso shared Tagore’s valuable ideas. It is clear when in 1938, SubashChandra Bose wrote to Gandhi saying, “Today a coalitionministry in Sindh, Bengal and Punjab is within the domain ofpractical politics. If the changes could be brought about (andin my humble opinion it can be) the Congress will be in aposition to speak to the British Government on behalf ofProvincial governments. This will mean that even without aHindu-Muslim settlement, the Congress will be able officiallyto represent the people of British India, while dealing with theBritish government, and we shall not be seriously handicappedbecause there has been no settlement with the MuslimLeague.”22

In his ironical comment Tagore clearly states his idea, “Itis pointless digging for water when the house is on fire. We didnot do that when the Muslim was needed during the partitionof Bengal. We thought we would stamp on the ground andwater would gush out. And when all our stamping did not yieldany water- it only raised dust we were bewildered. Even nowwe do not realize that we have forgotten to dig deep. We willtherefore continue to trample upon the ground and upon ourdestiny."23

It is a matter of great regret that it continues to be trampledupon even today. The attitude of the Hindu community towards theMuslim community was extended to the weaker sections of theHindu society as well. And in consequence “all kinds of insultsare heaped on the simple folk. We have to admit that to usIndia means the India of the elite.” 24And that is why Tagorebelieved, the percentage of Muslims among the poorer sectionshad become so high particularly in Bengal. The Hindu elite never

considered the downtrodden class and the Muslim community asone of them.

Tagore’s grave concern for this social discrepancy isrevealed through Nikhilesh, the central character of The HomeAnd The World (Ghare Baire): “The Muslims in our area werealmost as much against cow-slaughter as the Hindus. But cowshave been slaughtered in a couple of places. It was my Muslimsubjects who came and gave me the news. And there havebeen protest, too. I dont think we can go on like this muchlonger: There is anger at the root of all this, a superficial anger.Any resistance will only drive it deep.”25 The political leaders ofthe contemporary India had no realization of the liberal idea ofNikhilesh that “in this country buffaloes give milk as wellbuffaloes till the land too. So when dance around with the headof a sacrificed buffalo, sprinkle its blood all around and fightwith Muslims over cow-slaughter, the Almighty must surely besmiling to himself.”26 Nikhilesh is sincere in his approach and hediscards the orthodox social and religious taboos and declares that"When cows have sanctity and buffaloes do not. it cannot bereligion. It is superstition."27

Tagore was not challenging religion, but he was against ofsocial and religious restrictions imposed in the garb of religion,“When religion says reach out your hand to the Muslim, I willgladly accept that. But when religion says you cannot eatanything that has been touched by a Muslim, I will have toquestion that. Logic will decide whether I will accept or rejectsuch a dictate... ." 28

Tagore further comments explicitly: “Once upon a timepeople of varied race- Persians, Greeks, Shaks- wouldfrequently travel to India. But that was before the (Puranic)Hindu age. It was basically a reactionary age. It was duringthis period that Brahminism dug its roots. It raised an



impenetrable wall and made itself unreachable. Brahminismchose to overlook the fact when any living creature is soughtto be brought under such control, it ceases to exist.”29

Tagore has no prejudice against any community as he isequally critical of fundamentalism of Muslim community. Quitegenuine in his belief that Islam was the first to attack Brahminismfrom the outside; he was indeed convinced that Islam was confinedin its own limitation and time frame. In his essay Kalantar Tagoreexpresses his view without any hesitation. He writes, “The Muslimconquered territories with force, but that did not help himevolve.”30 Indeed, Tagore never spared Hindu obscurantism ofany kind either. He explains,“The Hindu calls himself religious.So does the Muslim. In other words, each one shuts each otherand the rest of the world off with his religion. This wall ofalienation has prevented them from any kind of humaninteraction....that is why the external behaviour patternbecomes more important in their cases.”31 As a result, it hasalways been a serious concern between the two communities.Tagore’s observation is minute as he says that “To the Muslim theHindu is a Kafir. To the Hindu the Muslim is an irreligiousmlechha."32

Unfortunately the Hindus and the Muslims, the majorcommunities of India have failed to unite even after so many yearsof independence. “Pity be the nation that uses religion to divide.It is the most dangerous divide.”33

Rabindranath Tagore believed that Mahatma Gandhi alsohad failed to build a bridge between the Hindu and the Muslim.That was because of the wavering foundation, believed Tagore.One cannot erect a lasting structure on weak foundation. Internalweaknesses are sure to bring it crumbling down. Tagore is convincedwith the fact “That the Khilafat was only a patch up job isevident from the Hindu- Muslim differences we find today. But

some people do not seem to agree that the problem lies withus. They argue that the British are creating the differences...Have we not lived in harmony so far, they ask.”34 Tagore couldnot accept such an argument: “When we erect walls of differenceamong our people, it is religion. But when foreigners use thatdifference to their advantage, it is evil."35

Tagore with his sure intuition and maturity over the years,had a very clear grasp of various ailments that plagued the Indianmind. “The crack was always there. As long as the sea wascalm, the ship kept sailing. On occasions we even threw outbuckets of sea-water from its hull- and somehow managed tostay afloat. But when there was a storm, the crack grew wider.And now the ship can sink any moment. But the captain says itis the fault of the storm. He asks us to deplore it, and criticiseit. And the crack yawns wide. Can we expect such a leader totake us to the shores? Or to the seabed?”36

Ironically the conflict between the Hindu community andthe Muslim community remains as it is. Tagore denied that Gandhijihad been successful in bringing Hindus and Muslims close together.“No I cannot accept that, you have only brought about apolitical unity. The two are now united against the British. Butwhat happens when the British are gone? Ask your consciencejust once. Have you really removed the suspicion vis-a-visMuslims?”37

The integration of the Hindu and the Muslim communityhas been one of our main objectives since independence but werealize that it remains incomplete as yet. In this regard we mayrecall Tagore’s message. Indeed his intuition is profound and mature.There is no denying the fact that Tagore’s letters, articles, lecturesand addresses reveal his concrete political sensibility. Unlike theopportunist politicians, Tagore with his pure secular views believedthat the harmony between the two communities lay in the uplift of



Muslims. “Even if we don’t like the fact that the Muslim istrying to improve his lot independent of us, we must bear withit whatever the irritants may be. That is bound to bring ustogether one day.” 38

True harmony and amity, Tagore believed, could exist onlyamong equals. “We did not pay attention to modern educationin time. That is why the Muslim has fallen behind. He has tohelp himself become an equal. That is why he is today askingfor more than the Hindu in all respects. And we ought to supportthat whole-heartedly. The day Muslims acquire equal status, itcan only be good for the Hindu."39

Tagore had no faith in political solution. He earnestlybelieved that only a social and cultural revolution could bring abouttrue egalitarianism. “We must not fear the word. True revolutionhas come about through perseverance in other places. Theyhave left their cocoons and learnt to fly. We must also overcomethe barriers within our minds.”40 Of all great personalities whodominated India’s cultural renaissance and the run-up to thecountry’s political independence, Rabindranath Tagore was the leastdeflected from his vision of the future by immediate events andgoals. When he asked Gandhijee what would keep Hindus andMuslims united after the British departed, he exposed the ricketybasis on which a purely political early pre-independence unity waspatched up. He saw the need for an overhaul and a modernizationof Hinduism itself to rid it of its exclusive, divisive characteristics,its mentality of apartheid. It is the Hindu, he realized, whose food ispolluted by the shadow of a Muslim and whose temple is defiledby other religions and not vice versa. The problem, as he saw it,was not merely one of Hindu and Muslim; it proceeded from thevery concept of ritual purity and the infrastructure of the castesystem based on the principle of exclusion.Tagore’s deep concernwith the cultural identity of India is presented passionately in an

essay written in the early years of the twentieth century- “The timehas come now to discuss this change because an element ofdoubt has certainly crept in. We seem to be sitting undecidedat the cross roads of ancient India and modern civilization.Even a few years ago, our educated people had no genuinehesitation. Whatever the nationalists might have professedverbally, their faith in western values was unshakable. Theemotional effusion generated by the French Revolution, theeffort to abolish slavery and English poetry written at the dawnof the nineteenth century had not yet subsided. Westerncivilization seemed to proclaim an inclusiveness for allhumanity irrespective of race and colour. We were spellboundby Europe. We contrasted the generosity of that civilizationwith the narrow-mindedness of our own, and applauded theWest.” 41

The novel Gora which was published about seven yearsafter this essay, focus on Tagore’s growing nationalist consciousnessand his social and cultural awareness in the context of humanrelations that transcend racial or religious boundaries. There is nodenying the fact that in the novel Gora the problems of the individual,of the society and of the state are intertwined in a marvellous way.In the comprehensiveness of the canvas of the plot as well as in thebrilliantly execution, the novel Gora has been correctly assessedas Mahabharata of modern India. The epic grandeur of the novelGora is excellent and universal. Indeed, the novel Gora revealsTagore’s profound intuition as there is a clear prediction of theNon-cooperation movement of Mahatma Gandhi which was tocome a decade later. In Tagore’s concept of religion of man, allhuman beings deserve honour and reverence. In his novel Gorawritten in 1907, Tagore held that religion is a personal matter andthat faith and sincerity of heart are far more important than ritesand rituals. Institutionalised practice of religion through rites and



rituals is not essential. Tagore adroitly presents the disillusionmentwhich hovered the British occupied India in his novel Gora.

The debate on cultural identity, religion, caste and class,hesitation and introspection, religious orthodoxy and secularism,modernization and Hindu tradition intervene in the novel Gora.There are varied and interesting characters like Krishnadayal,Anandamoyee, Gora and Abinash who belong to Hindu traditionwhereas Paresh Babu, Barada Sundari, Sucharita and Haranbabuare the followers of Brahmo Samaj. The intellectual discussionpresented by Tagore gives the novel Gora a new dimension toIndian literature.

Dr. Meenakshi Mukherjee’s articulate observation is quitesignificant as she writes, “... the ideas and praxis of the majorfigures in this novel get modified constantly through mutualinteraction- logic and instinct, intellect and emotionalattachments often getting into each other's way to complicatethe drift of the arguments. By the end of the novel, we recognisethis interpretation to be an enrichment; the reticulation of thepublic domain of debate and the private arena of love, affectionand friendship seem to initiate a process that might leadtowards wholeness.The wholeness always remained an elusivegoal in Rabindranath's work. Reconciling the integrity of aperson with the public demands of a group was for him a taskfraught with irreducible conflict. In his own life as in his novelswe repeatedly see the tension between the introspectiveindividual and the collectivity that tends to flatten out thenuances of his ideas through mindless adulation or hostility.”42

Tagore explores the problem of humanism against religiousnationalism. Humanism, Tagore believed was above all politicalideologies. Once he wrote: “I felt I found at last my religion- thereligion of man.”43

Covering a wide canvas, the novel Gora marks an important

phase of Tagore’s mature work. Harmonized with brilliant intellectualdebate and two love stories, the novel Gora has both exuberantenergy and commendable dignity. Every major character is a kindof mouth-piece of a distinct point of view. Some critics havecompared Gora to Rudyard Kipling’s Kim, but the treatment andatmosphere of the two novels are very different. Kipling was perhapsa better craftsman, but Tagore had a deeper insight into humannature. The humanitarian aspect remains insignificant in Kipling’snovel. In the novel Gora Tagore has reflected with great sinceritythe intellectual and emotional change that swept in the wake of theIndian Renaissance. Gora is a militant Hindu and accepts the spiritas well as rigid rituals and practices of upper-caste Hindu tradition.He is critical of his own mother Anandamoyee’s liberal views. Gora,the orthodox follower of Hindu tradition when discovers that he isan Irish orphan brought up in a Hindu household, suddenly realizesthe importance of humanism against all social conventions andtaboos. The introspection in Gora creates a sense of tremendousrespect for Anandamoyee, “You are the mother,” he tellsAnandamoyee at the end of the novel, “Sitting right here at homeand I have been wandering far and wide seeking for you. Youhave no caste, you make no distinction between your children,Hindu, Mussalmann or Christian. You are the benefactress ofus all. In you I have found my India."44 This is paralleled by apoem written by Tagore about this time.“Awake my mind, gently awake, in this holy land ofpilgrimage,On the shores of this vast sea of humanity that is India.Here I stand with arms out stretched to hail Man, divine inimage.And sing to his glory in notes new and free.No one knows whence and at whose call came this endlessmultitude. Pouring- to lose themselves in this sea



Aryans, Non-Aryans, Dravidians, Chinese,Scythians, Hun, Pathans and Moghuls.all mixed and merged in one single bodyNow the west has opened its doors -they will giveAnd take, and none shall be turned back from the shores of this vast sea of humanity India.”45

Tagore pointed with appreciation towards the westernnations whose members co-operate with one another in spite ofgreat differences in political, economic and social matters. Tagorewas fairly conversant with different liberal thought currents emanatingfrom both East and West. W.H. Auden, one of the foremostspokesmen of the English poetry of thirties diagonised the ailmentsof modern life in terms of acute selfishness, hypocrisy and lack ofcompassion. Auden writes,“Let the winds of dawn that blowSoftly round your dreaming headSuch a day of Sweetness showEye and knocking heart may bless.Find the mortal world enough.Noons of dryness see you fedBy the involuntary powers,Nights of insult let you passWatched by every human love.”46

At first sight, no two poets would appear to be moredissimilar than W.H. Auden and Rabindranath Tagore. This isbecause Auden was the most remarkable poet of the thirties andthe chief spokesman of Marxist ideology. He was at once inspiredby his search for a new spiritual order and moral responsibility.However, in the end even Auden turned to his search for a personalfaith based on a synthesis between scientific culture and liberalinfluence of Christianity as well as other areas of new psychologyand new economic order.

Rabindranath Tagore was the finest flower of liberaltradition and he went on in his relentless search for synthesis betweenscience and religion, nationalism and internationalism, above allbetween tradition and modernity. Specially after getting the NobelPrize, Tagore went on a world tour and visited some of the countriesand was impressed by their achievements but at the same time healso viewed with dismay the disturbing trend such as the rise ofanarchy, fascism, tyranny and exploitation both in Asia and in Africa.W.B. Yeats, like Tagore, had the wisdom of heart. Yeats also offersa parallel case of development. Initially he was an Irish poet buthis career started with the imitation of Britain's Romantic tradition.Alongwith the influences of Spenser, Shelley and Blake, thediscovery of his Irish background and meeting with Maud Gonneprovided a new strength and identity to his poetry. Like Tagore, heinitially kept himself aloof from political movement because thepresent day leaders appeared to be petty politicians interested inpublicity and character assassination.

Yeats was basically a traditionalist and loved the aristocraticway of living and wanted to spend his time and energy in spreadingcultural Renaissance and establishment of Irish National Theatre,but Easter Rebellion and the Communist revolution in Russia andrise of Hitler and Mussolini in Germany and Italy forced him tohave a fresh look at the disturbing trend. His subsequent poems ofprophecy e.g. The Second Coming, Leda and the Swan, A PrayerFor My Daughter reflect his concern at the rise of violence. Thecase of W.H. Auden is much more explicit because he took a directplunge in politics and wrote a typical poem about the Spanish CivilWar. Outlining the role of intellectuals however Auden appreciatedYeats with certain reservation which is beautifully presented in abalanced poem In Memory of W.B. Yeats. Auden therein isparticularly critical of the callous majority who were making moneyand were indifferent to the misery of the suffering humanity,



“When the brokers areroaringlike beasts on the floor of the Bourse,And the poor have the sufferings to which they are fairlyaccustomedAnd each in the cell of himself is almost convinced of hisfreedom.“47

Auden pays tribute to Yeats for his courage of convictionand capacity of rising to the occasion without compromising hisideals of freedom of expression. Tagore also in his poems of thirtiessimilarly expresses strongly in favour of suffering humanity andparticularly disapproves of the cult of violence and rigidityperpetrated by the autocratic rulers in different parts of the world.Thus, in spite of apparent difference, these major poets of India,Ireland and Britain showed their remarkable response to theinternational situation and the political climate of the then times. Allhis long life Tagore was deeply interested in and in close touch withgoings on in western countries which he visited several times. Hewas an indefatigable world traveller and in the five continents hehad visited most of the great countries, and a number of little onesalso. It is worthwhile to mention that Tagore spent some of hismost fruitful years in England beginning, the year 1878 andintermittently during the nineties and finishing his last visit in 1930.England became his door to Europe and to modern westerncivilization. The several visits of Tagore to England and then toEurope made him an unofficial ambassador of India to thesecountries. One of his thoughts was to establish a relationship ofgive and take between the East and the West. He believed thatunless the relationship grows, there will be no intellectual progressof the East particularly India. Tagore held up Raja Ram MohanRoy, the celebrated social reformer as a tangible symbol of thisprocess of give and take between the East and the West. Indeed,

Rabindranath Tagore who has joined the East to the West, is quitethe universal man in his appeal to all the sections of Humanity indifferent countries and climes. He is the finest representative of theIndian Renaissance which was occasioned by the cultural and literarycontact established between India and the West in the nineteenthcentury. Tagore belonged to a family which was intimatelyacquainted with the best art and thought of Europe; he belonged toa religious group which had been deeply influenced by the westernideal; he knew English and loved English poetry; he spent in Englandsome of the formative years of his adolescence. The young Tagoregrew up, as a matter of fact, in an atmosphere thick with the westerninfluence, and imbibed further doses of it on his first visit to Englandat the age of seventeen where he studied for two years (1878-’80), first at Brighton, and subsequently in London. Through hisworks as much as through his travels, his talks and his personalcontacts, Rabindranath Tagore has left his impression on the civilisedmodern cultural mental horizon of the present age in a way whichwas quite impossible for his predecessors in world literature duringthe days of restricted communication. An indefatigable worldtraveller, it is not wrong to present him as a roving Odysseus ofculture and internationalism.

Romain Rolland appreciates the noble and harmoniouswisdom of Tagore as revealed in Tagore’s Nationalism. In hisappraisement of Tagore’s essay Nationalism, Romain Rollandwrote to Tagore: “The reading of Nationalism has also been agreat joy for me; for I entirely agree with your thoughts it painsme very deeply (and, I might say, I am conscience-stricken, if Icould not consider myself a human being as well as a European)when I consider the monstrous abuses which Europe makes ofher power, this havoc of the universe, the destruction anddebasement of so much material and moral wealth of thegreatest forces on earth which it would have been in her interest



to defend and to make strong by uniting them to her own...Afterthe disaster of the shameful world war which marked Europe'sfailure, it has become evident that Europe alone cannot saveherself. Her thought is in need of Asia's thought, just as thelatter has profited from contact with European thought, theseare the two mental hemispheres of mankind.” 48

Like Tagore, Romain Rolland felt it necessary to re-establish the union of Asia’s thought and European thought. In fact,Romain Rolland sent an appeal to Tagore seeking his co-ordinationalong with the intellectual elite of all the nations for his venture of aDeclaration of Independence of the spirit. It is worthwhile tomention that W.B. Yeats also acknowledged the political relevanceof Tagore’s writing in the contemporary political scenario of Europe.Tagore’s prose essays, his criticisms, reminiscences, travel diariesand correspondences, and his translations reveal an extensiveacquaintance with and a profound appreciation of the intellectualheritage of the West- a heritage which formed a major componentof the cosmopolitan culture in an Indian framework that he tried tobuild up in later years at the Visva-Bharati. It is of some interest tonote in this connection that Tagore’s early literary writings,composed before he had left for England, included on Anglo-Saxonliterature, Anglo-Norman literature and on Dante, Petrarch andGoethe. All these literary essays were written when Tagore wasseventeen or so. Tagore has something in common with every oneof them; but to give a complete idea of his poetry, one should includeall of them together with Spenser and the Irish symbolists and yetothers. Tagore assimilated much, he benefitted artistically andspiritually, by his contact with the world and its writers; but he hadno western preceptor.

Tagore’s romanticism was certainly deepened by his youthfulreflections on Dante, Petrarch and Goethe; Shelley and Keats firedhis young mind and heart. Much later, he came to know and

appreciate the Irish symbolists; he met and certainly esteemed, Yeatsand Ezra Pound, Robert Bridges and other English poets; hefollowed with great interest the developments of the new Bengalipoetry and was thus brought into contact with the more recentpoetry of Europe. But Rabindranath Tagore’s work was littleaffected by these outside influences or contacts.

There is no denying the fact that Tagore, a 20th centuryworld celebrity, was the most prominent of the great thinkers whotried utmost to draw the East and the West closer together. Indeed,he was one of the most active participants of the dialogue betweenEastern and Western cultures. Tagore’s love for Europe was quitegenuine and spontaneous. This is clear from his visit to England.Tagore visited England for a very short time in the autumn of 1890.At that time he was twenty nine and a married man with two children(and one more expected). He was not happy to be away fromhome and his family; however he was delighted with ‘unfamiliar’experiences. Tagore wrote in his diary on September 16: “It ispleasure to go out into the streets here. One is bound to comeupon beautiful faces. My lord patriotism will forgive me if hecan, but it is my conviction that nowhere in the rest of theworld can you find girls to compare with English girls for beauty.On the ground of a snow white and butter soft complexion area pair of thin rosy lips, a shapely nose and clear blue eyes withlong lashes. To look on all this is to have the fatigue of travelwashed away. Well wishers will become alarmed and dearfriends will aim jests, but I do have to admit that when I seebeautiful faces I fall for them. Otherwise the very intention ofthe creator would have been failed.” 49

Tagore’s experience was really unique and it had atremendous impact upon him. Five years later Tagore experiencedanother unique impression when staying in his country estate incentral Bengal. Tagore was one day humming the tune of an old



Bengali song he had heard in his childhood but only the first line heremembered. The eloquent magic tune and the magniloquent wordsevoked in his mind the wondrous vision of a foreign maiden whichinspired him to write a marvellous melodious song. Nirad C.Choudhari in his essay Buried Treasures ofTagore remembers thisepisode and gives the first and last lines of the song with their scoreas written by the English musicologist A.H. Fox Strangways in 1911when he visited Tagore. The words mean: “I know you. I do knowyou. O foreign maiden!” And “After wandering over the worldI have at last arrived in a new land. I am the guest at yourdoor, O foreign maiden!”

Tagore’s later experience of his visit to England in thesummer of 1912 is quite relevant in his literary career. At that timeTagore was fifty. During his way to England, Tagore in his cheerfulmood wrote from the Red Sea that it was a joyous voyage in searchof a new life. Eventually Tagore passed through Paris on his way toCalais and discovered the great city to be a wonderful theatre ofentertainment. However the experience Tagore gathered was quitedifferent as soon as he reached Dover. Tagore narrates his peculiarexperiences: “When I took my seat among Englishfellowpassengers I had a decided feeling of being comfortable. Why?Because I knew the Englishman's language. Human speech islike light. The more it spreads, the more does the heart revealitself. By securing the language of the Englishman I had alsosecured his heart. There is joy only in what can be known.With France my acquaintance was of the eyes, and I wasdeprived of acquaintance with the heart. That was animpediment to joy. But as soon as I stepped on to the Dover,the barrier vanished, I did not stand merely on English soil, Ihad entry to a heart.” 51

There was an important turn in the literary career ofRabindranath Tagore when William Rothenstein, the eminent painter

and artist, visited Tagore in Bengal. Later on, William Rothensteininvited Rabindranath at his home in Hampstead and introducedhim to many important literary personalities of the day. There is nodenying the fact that William Rothenstein played a significant role inthe life of Tagore. Tagore expresses his gratitude towards WilliamRothenstein with intense and passionate feelings, “The friend whomI had found had an unlimited capacity to receive as well asgive the joy of friendship. The advantage of being with a manwho had this ‘affluence of friendliness’ was that in getting onefriend I was able to gain many more."52

In 1912 during his stay at Shelaidah, Tagore had translatedsome of his Bengali poems of Gitanjali into English. Later, on theship, during his journey to England, he went on translating poemsbut he was not confident about his effort. It is important to recallthat in the house of his English friend Rothenstein at Hampstead,Tagore met W.B. Yeats, Ezra Pound, George Bernard Shaw, H.G.Wells, John Galsworthy, Andrew Bradley, John Masefield, RobertBridges, Alice Meynell, Evelyn Underhill and other eminent writersof the day. ‘It looks as though we have at last a great poetamong us again,’ said Andrew Bradley on reading the manuscriptof Gitanjali (Song Offerings). W.B. Yeats was delighted at thediscovery of a great poet, “some one,” he said, “greater thanany of us.” Ezra Pound and other contemporary young poetsexpressed their reverence for Tagore. The esteemed Americanmagazine Poetry of which Ezra Pound was the foreigncorrespondent, published in December 1912, six poems fromGitanjali and soon the whole collection of the Gitanjali poemswas published by The India Society of London with a relevantpreface written by W.B. Yeats, one of the greatest literary stalwartsof the contemporary age. In the mean time, Tagore visited Americaand delivered lectures on religion and spiritualism at Harvard whichwere later published in Sadhana.



Other important works of Tagore were subsequentlypublished in England and the important English periodicals reviewedTagore’s poetry with great enthusiasm and passionateunderstanding. It is important to remember that Tagore wasunfamiliar in the West; he was more than fifty years old, he hadalready established himself as one of the pioneers of Bengali poetryrecognized by his countrymen as ‘the king among Bengali poetsand authors.’ Eventually Tagore became popular in the West buthe was known primarily as a spiritual teacher and philosopher.When Tagore’s works were translated into all the importantlanguages of the world, only then the western scholars, poets andphilosophers noticed the excellent creative genius of Tagore. Tagorewas very much in demand for his creative works and his brilliantlectures in the western countries, and as a great internationalist hevisited many countries with noble mission almost every year. Hewas regarded as one of the most important celebrities of the worldby eminent personalities of almost all spheres, whether Humanitiesor Science, Social Service or Administration. In this connectionthe names of Romain Rolland, Albert Einstein, GB. Shaw, H.GWells, W.B. Yeats, C.F. Andrews, Bertrand Russel and quite anumber of other illustrious contemporaries may be mentioned.Particularly Tagore’s contact with the literary world of Englandduring this time was quite relevant. Among them the name of H.GWells, an eminent novelist and short story writer, may be mentioned.Tagore was impressed to read the novels of H.G Wells, a prolificwriter who dealt with European civilization in his novels. He isacknowledged as an author of scientific and utopian romances, thedomestic novels with an emphasis on character and humour andsociological novels in which destiny plays a significant role. Indeed,the novels of H.G Wells are masterpieces of marvellous imaginativepower. In H.G Wells’ first scientific romance The Time Machinepublished in 1895, the novelist is concerned with the scientific

discoveries of his time. This novel is remarkable for the author’sextensive range of concrete perception and his ability to grasp vividtechnical details.

Like Tagore, H.G Wells is essentially an ideologist withtremendous literary vitality. In his major novels The Invisible Man(1897), The War of the Worlds (1898), Anticipations (1901), AModern Utopia (1905), The Future in America (1906), NewWorlds for old (1908) there is a conflict between emotional lifeand intellectual life. Wells has a definite theory of life. He believedpassionately in civilization in which he observed the triumph of humanmind over the primitive instincts. His novels have a constancy ofthought and there is a continuous expression of his distinctivesystematised perception. Obviously, he is one of the most stimulatingand original ideologists.

Mr. Britling Sees it Through is a profoundly interestingand suggestive rendering of Wells published in 1916. This book isa study of people’s reaction to the First World War.Mention maybe made that Rabindranath Tagore appreciated the brilliant andmagniloquent style of H.G Wells. The meeting of Tagore and Wellsis worth mentioning episode for both the artists. Tagore’s friendRothenstein had arranged a dinner where he met H.G Wells. Tagorehad a close conversation with H.G Wells which he records in thesewords: “At the very outset I was reassured to find that the manwas not of the porcupine species, but thoroughly gentle. Idiscovered that the sharpness he had was in his thinking, notin his nature. The truth of the matter is that he is sincerelyconcerned about mankind, has hatred for wrong and injustice,and attachment to progress for all men.”53 Tagore narrates hisunique experience and expresses his intimate feelings for Wells inthe following lines: “After talking with Wells, I realised that thebasis of the thinking power and writing skill of these men isman. Therefore, these do not resemble the desire for prey of



the hunter which is only an exercise of strength. The sharpnessof their thinking is not the sharpness of knives, it is a livingsharpness which has life, behind which stands both heart andlife.”54

H.G Wells on his part was so impressed with the toweringpersonality of Rabindranath Tagore that he presented Tagore in hisnovel Mr. Britling Sees it Through, published in 1916, and wroteprecisely and appreciably of him in his book God, The InvisibleKing, published in 1917. Tagore’s first novel appeared in Englishversion was The Home and The World (1919), translated fromoriginal Bengali Ghare Baire. In this controversial political novel,Tagore criticizes the western type militant nationalism which tookits root in India during British rule. The novel Ghare Baire (TheHome And The World) provides not only a critical analysis of theIndian National Movement but also a portrayal of the dark side ofIndian politics and politicians. The novel shows how Gandhi’sSwadeshi Movement based on Non-violence was bound to failperilously as it did with the kind of followers he had. Sandip is therepresentative of these aggressive politicians who become theleaders of the people. He is a charismatic Swadeshi leader whomobilises people for the purpose of political aggrandizement.

The novel The Home And The World is an allegorical onein which Tagore sincerely executes his doctrine of nationalism andpatriotism. Nikhilesh, the protagonist of the novel is a man of integrityand radical principles. His political ideology is sharply contradictoryto the aggressive and doubtful integrity of Sandip, the leader of theextremist group. Sandip openly advocates the western military styleas a substitute for the traditional system. Nevertheless he iscompelled to acknowledge the importance of the Indian tradition:“I was born in India,” he says, “and the poison of its spiritualityruns in my blood. However loudly I may proclaim the madnessof walking in the path of self-abnegation, I cannot avoid it

altogether.”54

Nikhilesh is the real inheritor of the cultural tradition of India.He cannot think of achieving success at the cost of integrity ofconscience, for, to him, the voice of inner self is greater than allearthly possessions. This is evident as his radical ideals about hisproject of economic independence fails due to the lack of publicsupport. He remains isolated as he is unable to mobilise the publicbut he never compromises with the corrupt and evil forces. On thecontrary, Sandip,the fanatic and opportunist political leader believesthat all is fair in love and political warfare; it is right “to dilute tenpercent of the truth with ninety percent of untruth “ and thereality is that “man's goal is not truth but success.”55

Commenting on The Home and The World, KrishnaKripalani thinks that its political message is as if it were an anticipationof Gandhi’s doctrine of non-violence, for the Mahatma too was towarn over and over again that “evil means must vitiate the end,however nobly conceived.”56

The entire story of the novel The Home and The World isnarrated through autobiographical explanation of three majorcharacters, Nikhilesh, the landlord of the estate and the husband ofBimala, the nucleus of the novel and the wife of Nikhilesh andSandip, the political activist and a close friend of Nikhilesh. Thereare twelve chapters in the novel, divided into twenty fiveautobiographical narratives out of which ten are Bimala’s, eightNikhilesh’s and five Sandip’s and significantly the novel begins withBimala’s narrative explanation as well as ends with the narrativeexpression of Bimala. Nikhilesh, a cultured and young aristocraticesquire gives his lovable wife Bimala a good private Englisheducation by engaging a governess. The troubles start in the familywhen the young, dynamic and ambitious politician Sandip comesto stay with them. Bimala, the sheltered wife of Nikhilesh isenchanted by the passionate enthusiasm and magnetic personality



of Sandip as he is polished and literate, handsome and attractive.The background of the novel is set in the revolutionary

Bengal of 1905 rent with the slogans of “Swadeshi”and “VandeMataram.” Bimala who has enjoyed the calm and placid life of aHindu wife in the company of her husband suddenly hears thehypnotizing voice of the outside world. She is fascinated by Sandip’soutlook and his political slogan’ Vande Mataram’ like a firebrandinspires Bimala to rebel against her husband who has a distrust ofsuch slogans and ideology of Sandip. Bimala is lost in the illusioncreated by Sandip who knows well the weaknesses of a woman.He betrays his friend Nikhilesh to serve his own interest, and politicsbecomes his business. Bimala is thus entrapped between the pullof the ‘home’ and the pull of the ‘world.’ ‘Home’ symbolizes peace,prosperity, stability and security whereas the attraction of theexternal world symbolizes tremendous excitement, enthusiasm,adventure and immense possibilities. The psychological .conflictwithin Bimala is marvellously presented by the novelist. Bimala’sgradual change in her attitude and behaviour compels Nikhilesh todiscover for the first time, after nine years of their married life, thatthere is an authoritarian attitude within him to mould his wife into aperfect woman. He realizes that Bimala’s caged life within theboundaries of family is willing to find an outlet. Ultimately Bimalarealizes that she has been drifting away from her husband who isreally an ideal person, a man of character and firmness. He is not acoward or weak person. On the contrary she understands thatSandip is a crooked, self-centred and corrupt politician. She realizesthe hyprocrisy of Sandip who represents the unscrupulous politiciansof India. She records. “Let those who are snake charmers playwith snakes... But these boys are so innocent, all the world isready with its blessing to protect them. They play with a snakenot knowing its nature..." 57

Bimala understands how the venom of hatred Sandip is

pouring in the souls of the idealistic boys like Amulya eventuallyleading them to utter destruction and perversion. On the contrary,Amulya’s sincerity and devotion overwhelms Bimala. Thereforeshe wants to escape from Sandip’s evil design of misguiding politicalactivity. The metamorphosis which took place within Bimala isexplained in her autobiographical narrative which gives a real imageof Sandip. Bimala writes, “Sandip, the weilder of magic spells,is reduced to utter speechlessness, whenever his spell refusesto work. From a king he fell to the level of a boor. Oh, the joyof witnessing his weakness. His snaky coils with which he usedto snare me, are exhausted, I am free.”58

After a painful experience, husband and wife come closerto each other and eventually goes out of their lives. Through thisconflict of the home and the world Bimala comes out successfullywith her profound constancy, the ideal of traditional Indian woman.Indeed, Bimala’s ultimate triumph over temptation and acceptanceof her husband’s noble thoughts, the novelist elucidates his firmfaith in the final victory of the Indian tradition of non-violence, truthand spiritual doctrine of self-abnegation over the growing tendencyof aggressive militant nationalism.

Through Nikhilesh, the protagonist of the novel, Tagoreexpresses his radical views and he unhesitatingly declares thathumanism is more important than nationalism. Nikhilesh says, “Iam willing to serve my country, but my worship I reserve forRight which is far greater than my country To worship mycountry as a God is to bring a curse upon it.”59 Again, “Theday that we seek the good of the country along the path ofrighteousness, He who is greater than our country will grantus true fruition.”60 Although Tagore was deeply stirred by themarch of events during the Partition of Bengal, he did not considernationalism or patriotism enough in itself. He was against religiousand political fanaticism. Two notes dominate Tagore’s novels The



Home And The World and Four Chapters, the author’s devotionto liberty, and his whole-hearted belief in love as the prime factor inall human progress. The Revolution to Tagore was much more thana political upheaval, it was a spiritual awakening, the beginning of anew life enlightened with profound love and understanding.

The intensity of passionate love and revolutionary politicsplay a significant role in the novel The Home And The World. Thistheme of love and revolutionary politics reappears in Tagore’s majornovel Four Chapters inspired by Gandhi’s march to Dandi in 1930.In the novel Four Chapters Tagore has adroitly presented thetheme of aggressive political fanaticism as well as his intimateexperience of love. The story of the novel Four Chapters beginsin Kanai’s tea-stall at Calcutta where Ela, a young, vibrant andbeautiful lady, aged twenty six, meets Indranath, a dynamicpersonality and the leader of a revolutionary group. The image ofIndranath is very similar to Sandip, the revolutionary character ofthe novel The Home and The World. However, Indranath appearsmore rude and cruel in comparison to Sandip. Indranath empowersthe young boys with his ideology of aggressive politics or militantnationalism. In fact, the boys are like puppets in the hands oflndranath. Ela plays a significant role as she is the nucleus of thisrevolutionary group as she attracts the young boys with heruncommon beauty and glamour. Ironically Ela struck the passionof love in young and enthusiastic Atin and Ela captured him for thegroup of political activists.

In the second chapter of the novel, Atin and Ela discusstheir hopelessness of the present critical situation as they are cagedto their political commitment. They have profound love for eachother but they cannot break the barriers and hence unable to comeout of restrictions imposed by their group leader. They are quitehelpless before the magical power of their ruthless leader Indranath.In the third chapter, Atin is surprised in his place of retreat, first byKanai and presently by Ela, who has come in defiance of lndranath’s

strict orders. Caged as they are, Atin and Ela desire passionatelyfor liberty and love but they cannot escape from the snare ofIndranath. Atin and Ela ultimately realise the harsh reality thatagressive political revolution is a corrupting process. The fresh,bright and high-spirited boys are converted to mere puppets in thehands of corrupt, materialistic and selfish politicians. The young,sharp and enthusiastic boys lose their masculine firmness, courage,conviction and presence of mind. Bimala’s ultimate realization ofSandip’s mission in the novel The Home And The World makesthis point clear. Bimala writes, “From some realm of calamityhas Sandip come as its messenger; and as he stalks the land,muttering unholy incantations, to him flock all the boys andyouths. The mother, seated in the lotus heart of the country, iswailing her heart out; for they have broken upon her storeroom, there to hold their drunken revelry.. True, I feel with herbut at the same time, cannot help being infected with theirexcitement.”61

In the novel Four Chapters, the political power and theglory of the revolution attract the enthusiastic youths but ultimatelythey experience surrender and humiliation. Atin expresses his sincerefeelings to Ela, his beloved: “The patriotism of those who haveno faith in that which is above patriotism is like the crocodilesback used as a ferry to cross the river. Meanness, unfaithfulness,mutual distrust, secret machination, plotting for leadershipsooner or later, these drag them into the mud at the bottom.That the life of the country can be saved by killing its soul, isthe monstrously false doctrine that nationalists all over theworld are bellowing forth stridently. My heart groans, to giveit effective contradiction.”62

Atin is aware of his destiny as he knows the direconsequence of his profound love for Ela. He realizes that he cannotbe relieved from Indranath’s crooked design of political snare: “the



arrow can miss the mark, but it cannot return to the quiver.”63

As soon as the whistle blows Atin leaves Ela. In the meantimeIndranath appears and scolds Ela and orders her to return to herown house. In the last chapter of the novel, Atin and Ela meetsagain. Atin expresses his profound grief and appropriately quotesfrom Ibsen’s Brand. His integrity of soul, agony and his sadrealization of love and life are evident in these lines: “I have slainmy soul; the biggest sin of all. Not a single evil have I beenable to uproot from our country. I 've only uprooted myselfFor that sin I am condemned not to take you even when you’regiving yourself. Accept your hand? With this hand! All stainswill be washed away by the waters of Lethe, on whose brinkwe now stand.'' Ela’s eternal love for Atin is marvellously presentedin her confession, “Let me die awake, in your arm. Let our lastkiss be eternal...”65

Tagore’s statement is obviously clear when he declares hismission, “the only theme of the book is the love of Ela andAtindra...On the one hand, there is the inner feeling, on theother the conflict with outward circumstances. It is thecombination of these two factors which gives the completepicture its individuality.”66

Indeed, the novel Four Chapters is an intense love storywith a political background. Four Chapters (Car Adhyay) waswritten in Ceylon in 1934. This novel is remarkable for wonderfulprecision as in length it is not an exhaustive exploration. Tagore hascritically examined the actual motives and values of the revolutionaryactivities in Bengal that followed the Non-cooperation movement.

Tagore’s profound sympathy for the young, passionateenthusiastic men and women who sacrificed their precious lives forthe nation, is revealed in Four Chapters, the last novel of Tagore.At the same time his penetrating observation and sure intuition couldnot ignore the evils and weaknesses of this revolution. That Tagore’s

analysis and evaluation of the revolutionary movement which tookplace in India in the opening decade of the twentieth century wasunerringly correct and relevant. In his brilliant political novel FourChapters, Tagore reverts to a theme of political revolution whichhe had convincingly and boldly projected in his earlier novel TheHome And The World. The major concern of these two novels isthe conflict between political agitation and human values. As in theearlier novel, Tagore’s main purpose is not to highlight the politicalissues, but his commitment is to project their impact on individualswhich creates a psychological intensification due to the upheaval ofpolitical revolution. In this regard Tagore affirms his doctrine thatthe true field of material and spiritual focus is the human being ratherthan merely the historical context.

It is worthwhile to mention that Tolstoy’s War And Peace,with its political setting in one of the climactic moments in Russianhistory Napoleon’s invasion of Russia reveals that its principal focusis not on the projection of historical episode but in the depiction ofthe profound love story of Pierre and Natasha. Tagore isstraightforward in his statement that the exterior circumstances inthe novel Four Chapters help in projecting the images of thecharacters and play a vital role in the development of the plot.Tagore says: “What might be called the only theme of the bookis the love of Ela and Atindra. The nature and course of thelove between man and woman is determined not only by theindividual characters of the lovers; it is influenced also by theimpact of their circumstances on them. The river brings downits gushing nature from the mountain top that gives its birth,but it acquires its distinctiveness from the contour of the landthrough which it flows. The same is the case with love. On theone hand, there is the inner feeling, on the other, the conflictwith outward circumstances. That is the combination of thesefactors that gives the complete picture its individuality. I have



tried in this story to body forth that individuality in the love ofEla and Atindra. I have had to show the capital asset of theirnatures, as well as to render an account of their transactionswith the outside world with which they had to deal to the last.”67

Tagore’s last novel Four Chapters has like The HomeAnd The World, a political background of Swadeshi movement,picturizes the disastrous eventuality of the political ideology ofterrorism. Ela’s character in the novel Four Chapters is anenlightened character very similar to Bimala in The Home AndThe World. Like Bimala, Ela’s character has universal appeal asshe has indomitable zeal and energy and sharpness of intellect. Atthe end of the novel she emerges as the liberated and emancipatedwoman, independent, courageous, free, fair and frank to declareher profound love to the world. The movement is controlled fromthe outset with the deliberation of conscious art. But there issomething more, there is poetry; the magic brought upon the spiritby the alchemy of sense.

In the political novels The Home And The World and FourChapters, there is a truthful representation of reality, not a didacticillustration of political slogans in the novel. Tagore, a reformer bynature, wanted to work for a better world and he believed thiscould best be achieved through humanity. These political novels, inthis sense, breathes more a spirit of humanism than a spirit of Indiannationalism. Love to Tagore was above all political ideologies. It isevident from these novels which span nearly four decades ofTagore’s literary and creative career that he has been extraordinarilysuccessful in projecting a realistic image of Indian society in transitionor in the throes of a struggle to cope with a troubled social order.There is no denying the truth that while being the most universal ofpoets, Tagore is intensely Indian at the same time. Like Goethe,Tolstoy and Shakespeare, Rabindranath Tagore is a conspicuousexample of the truth that he alone can be truly universal who is

intensely national. The four great authors of the world literature,Shakespeare, Goethe, Tolstoy and Tagore differed from each otherprofoundly, in their lives and in their times, in the circumstancesunder which they had to express their mission, and in the sum totalof their achievements with their diversity of impact upon mankind.Tagore saw life as a whole. He saw the religion in the backgroundof man. He believed in the spirituality of life, in the intrinsic value ofpersonality. A study of his biography and of his intimate social andpersonal life, and his relation to the realities of life and to the UltimateReality behind life make it clear. There are few poets in the worldwho have touched the entire gamut of human emotions andsentiments, human motives and actions with a knowledge andintimacy as well as understanding and sympathy in the way Tagorehas done. His genius enriched whatever it touched. The vitality ofhis genius is really amazing. Every field of literary activity wasexplored and enriched by Tagore very sincerely. The religious,political, social, moral, aesthetic and intellectual aspects of hispersonality were so mature and all-inclusive that he saw life steadilyand that is what makes his message to humanity all-comprehendingand universal. That is why Tagore’s political thoughts are still relevanttoday. His political ideas are different from those Who are merepoliticians. As Krishna Kripalani accurately observes:“In national no less than in individual life there are nowatertight compartments. No sharp lines can be drawn tomark off the politician from the moral, the social from theeconomic regions of life. Politicians often talk as though onehas only to introduce certain political and economic changesfor paradise to descend on earth, forgetful of the fact that theefficiency of an insitution depends on the way it is worked,which itself is determined by the character and wisdom of themen who work it Tagore was not a politician. He was notinterested in wielding power over the lives of others, for good



or for evil.”68

Kripalani appreciates the ‘unerring instinct’ of Tagore whosummed up in an aphorism the tragedy of power politics, “theclumsiness of power spoils the key and uses the pickaxe.”69

The solutions offered by the statesmen and politicians havetemporary significance as they are obsessed with politicalproblems.Tagore’s thought related to the political problems of thenation have universal significance. Gandhi rightly termed Tagore as“The Great Sentinel.” Krishna Kripalani shares the views ofTagore that mere political freedom is not sufficient. No politicalmiracle can be achieved unless the social slavery is removed.Political freedom without spiritual freedom, i.e., the freedom of themind is worthless. Tagore with his clear and steady vision thoughtof a world which is "not broken up into fragments by narrowdomestic walls."70 Throughout his life, Rabindranath Tagorereacted against every form of authoritarianism or tyranny- domestic,institutional, social, cultural, political and economic. Tagore’sconviction is that every individual has his unique identity, and hiscreativity and inquisitiveness is rooted in his identity, hence, individualfreedom is essential for all round development of a person. Tagorewas passionately opposed to narrow nationalism, chauvinism,xenophobia, imperialism and cultural aggressiveness. He wasdepressed to see the people of his country carried away by trampledvalues and violent political and social currents, and narrow brutalitythat have affected a breach in the religious soul of ancient India, hernoble mission, her eternal aim. Indeed he was very much unhappywith the political system of injustice, crime and hypocrisy. Withprofound observation Tagore writes: “As is livelihood for theindividual, so is politics jor a particular people a field for theexercise of their business instincts of patriotism. All this timejust as business has implied antagonism, so has politics beenconcerned with the self-interest of a pugnacious nationalism...

the present day politics is a manifestation of extremeindividualism in nations.”71

In his essay “Pluralism, Cultural conflict andRabindranath,”72 Prof. Sibnarayan Ray observes that the issueof pluralism and cultural conflict occupied Tagore throughout hislife. There is a close relationship between Tagore’s political doctrineand his social and intellectual views. Indeed, Tagore’s core idea of‘unity in diversity’ has great relevance and intellectual, aestheticand moral appeal even in this modern age of globalisation. With aprofound intuition, the political and social views expressed inTagore’s thousand poems, songs, short stories, plays, novels,essays, letters, addresses and lectures enlighten the whole worldfor their intellectual and moral integrity. Tagore is a personality whichseems to be all-inclusive and he gives the message of cheer andhope to humanity which is all-comprehending and universal. Hisliterature is realistic concerning itself with the domain of the intellectand the spirit. Tagore’s literary works have emphatic universal appealas they have the quality of both immanence and transcendencewhich are considered as the fundamental qualities of a classic workof art.

000



through intuitive awareness of an unseen power guiding his creativeand aesthetic sensibilities. Rabindranath Tagore, an artist of profoundand forceful talent, had vast reading and experience of men to drawupon and had a mature philosophy to guide him. One of theinseparable parts of his art is his vision of the infinite in the finite;earth - consciousness owes its origin to his boyhood experiences.The Sacred thread ceremony, and the text of the Gayatri especially,supplied him the path to extend the range of his consciousness totake flight into the infinite ( firmament, heaven) from the caged stateof his boyhood days. Rabindranath writes... I became very keenon repeating the Gayatri. I would meditate on it with greatconcentration. It is hardly a text the full meaning of which I couldhave grasped at that age I well remember what efforts I made toextend the range of my consciousness with the help of the initialinvocation of 'earth, firmament and heaven”.3

If truly realized, such consciousness can send a great forceto a person or thing, according to Rabindranath Tagore. With aremarkable sustained poetic imagination, he conveys the idea of“the being that is in the clouds and air,” the soul that penetratesall things, the spirit, the mystical essence, the divine knowledgethat, as far as he was concerned, lies behind all nature. This fusionof intense feeling, forceful expression, elegant imagery, ardentimagination and sweet and delightful music showed very early in hislife. When he was eighteen, he composed The Awakening of theWaterfall(Nirjharer Swapnabhanga) which is one of the finestlyrics in any language. In this poem, the waterfall realizes this infiniteforce, as does the hard iron lying under deep slumber in a famoussong, awakened and held in control by a superior force. Thespontaneity and freshness of this poem reminds us of Robert Herrick.The rhythmic cadence of the poem appears like the activities of thewaterfall, sometimes gentle and placid, often impetuous, forcefuland vigorous. The passionate experience of the poet reveals the



CHAPTER - IVTagore and his views on Religion

Religion is an inclusive as well as elusive notion, whichdefies all attempts at definition. It is a universal human phenomenon,which has appeared in various forms in different societies and hasproduced different interpretations with different individuals. Wemay, for example, begin with George Santayana’s remark, “whatreligion a man shall have is an historical accident, quite asmuch as what language he shall speak.”l or refer to WalterKaufman’s remark,“one inherits a religion like a house andmakes slight changes to make it more comfortable.”2 Forconsideration yet, at the same time, we find that whenever, anyreligious thinker begins reflecting upon his conception of religion ,he comes out with an account of religion expressed in a particularform which is at once expression of the former’s own personality.The result has been varied, and even different attiudes about thenature of religion have been put forward by everything making itquite difficult to arrive at a consensus or commonly approveddefinition of religion. Hence no such attempt has been made toexplain the general meaning or nature of religion. In stead an humbleattempt is being made herein to explain Tagore’s conception ofReligion or Dharma. It is pertinent to draw attention that Tagore’sviews on religion especially the universal religion of humanism isexpressed in his various novels, poems and essays and booksparticularly Sadhana, Religion of Man, Towards a universalReligion and other stray articles and addresses.

Tagore treats religion not in a purely academic manner but

fact that the poet has been inspired by a philosophical conceptionof the universe and the role assigned to the human spirit in the greatphenomenon of existence. In the other poem Balaka (The Flightof the Swans), a mountain wishes to become free like thewandering clouds. A good idea of Tagore's metrical ability may begained from the study of his poem Balaka, a wonderful piece ofrhythmic cadence, artfully devised, and happily successful. Tagorewas at heart a mystic and he had a considerable gift of fantasy.Tagore has left on record how one morning he stood and watchedthe sunrise. It seemed to him that suddenly a mist lifted before hiseyes and he saw the vision of all-inclusive image. A sense of spiritualexaltation swept away all barriers and he felt an intimate sense ofbelonging with the cosmos. The Awakening of the Waterfall(Nirjharer Swapnabhanga) was composed that very day whenTagore experienced spiritual ecstasy. In his essay Vision, Tagorewrites:-"When I was eighteen,a sudden spring breeze of religiousexperience for the first time came to my life and passed awayleaving in my memory a direct message of spiritual reality.One day while I stood watching at early dawn the sun sendingout its rays from behind the trees, I suddenly felt as if someancient mist had in a moment lifted from my sight and themorning light on the face of the World revealed an innerradiance of joy, The invisible screen of the commonplace wasremoved from all things and all men, and their ultimatesignificance was intensified in my mind, and this is the definitionof beauty. That which was memorable in this experience wasits human message, the sudden expansion of my consciousnessin the super personal world of man.”4

Tagore further describes the spiritual realization thatoccupied his mind for a certain period. He writes.“The poem Iwrote on the first day of my surprise was named. ‘TheAwakening of the Waterfall’.The waterfall, whose spirit lay

dormant in its ice-bound isolation, was touched by the sunand, bursting in a cataract of freedom, it found its finality inan unending sacrifice, in a continual union with the sea. Afterfour days, the vision passed away, and the lid hung down uponmy inner sight. In the dark the World once again put on itsdisguise of the obscurity of an ordinary fact”.5

Indeed, the poem The Awakening of the Waterfall is notonly remarkable for its lyric fervour, wealth of imagery and musicalfelicity, one of the most supreme lyrics that Tagore ever wrote buteven more important, it is inspired by a deep consciousness of allcomprehending and all inclusive , a theme which occures again andagain in Tagore’s poems.

Prof. Sisir Kumar Ghosh has aptly commented, “The soft,gentle wonder has its counterpart in a corybantic release,unusual in the Indian context. That is how Tagore begins hisfirst real poem The Awakening of the Waterfall with a rushand an energy born of ‘early vision’ as he later called it cosmic,oceanic, its elan is more romantik (early romantic) thanclassical upanishadic, more of sensibilia than of self-controlor self-knowledge.”6

Tagore’s art transformed this personal consciousness intocosmic, because he believed that art not only reveals the personalityof the artist but also endeavours to explain the hopes and aspirations,joys and sorrows of the entire mankind. The imagination of a greatpoet, unified and illumined his comprehension of life, intensifiedand heightened his personal consciouness of joy and sorrow, ofhope and despair, revealing to him the simplest experiences of thesurface of life and the mystery in cosmos. This self-realization isexplained by Tagore in the following lines: “Our union with a Beingwhose activity is world-wide and who dwells in the heart ofhumanity cannot be a passive one. In order to be united withHim we have to divest our work of selfishness and become



Visvakarma,‘The World-Worker’, we must Work for all’.7

Since his youth, Tagore had been a skilled poet, and fromhis reading of the Upanishads,he developed his high moralprinciples. His views on religion were inherited to a great extentfrom his father Maharshi Devendranath Tagore . His own study ofthe Upanishads, the songs and the views of the Sufis, his ownthinking and meditation gave a deeper content to his ideas on religion.The purpose of life, in Tagore’s view is to acquaint man with thecharacter of his own powers and he must always be open to freshimpressions, and beware of the stereo-typed static mind. As avisionary activist ,Tagore believed that human life is full of dynamicthoughts and actions. So gentle, so calm, so temperate is his methodthat one may not realize at once the extent of his spiritual radicalism.

There are many explanations for the origin of thisconsciousness in Tagore but undoubtedly the beginning of thisconsciousness is referred to in his Reminiscences (Jivan Smriti).One may recall that the children in the Tagore’s house at Calcuttawere looked after by servants. Rabindranath describes his days ofisolation and restrictions when the servant was called away, madeto sit near a window, depending upon his glimpse of a part of thecampus and its pond, yearning to make contact with the visiblebeyond his reach, afraid to cross the borderline drawn on the floorwith a chalk by the servant.

Rabindranath’s superior sensitiveness might have beensearching for a way out of this caged condition. Ultimately he foundan outlet when he was invested with the Sacred thread ceremony.Rabindrananth narrates his experience of this episode in hisReminiscences(Jivan Smriti): “ Caged in the house as we were,anything savouring of foreign parts had a peculiar charm forme ... ... ...This was also the reason why Gabriel, the Jew, withhis embroidered gaberdine, who came to sell attars and scentedoils, stirred me so; and the huge Kabulis, with their dusty,baggy

trousers and knapsacks and bundles, wrought on my youngmind a fearful fascination”.8

In Rabindranath Tagore’s extraordinary short story TheKabuliwalah, Mini, the little girl has the same ‘fearful fascination’for the kabuli and the knapsack. Ultimately her fearful fascinationturns into intimate friendship. Her father understands the inner feelingof Kabuli and his fascination for Mini as he is also the father of adaughter.As he is far away from his native place Kabul, theKabuliwalah remembers his daughter during his crucial days in prisonwhen he is charged with murder.In his isolation he glances at theimprint of her little hand on a piece of paper which is tucked awayin his pocket with great care. The Kabuli as a sojourner is therepresentative of all fathers who are away from their children. Hence,the story The Kabuliwalah is the study of the yearning of the boyRabindranath for things visible but beyond reach. One can realizethe finite (a Kabuli) transfonned into the infinite (all fathers in sojourn).

It is evident that the myth-making power of the great poetis illustrated by the well-known story The Kabuliwallah in whichthe, character is seized by inward vision and presented with totalunderstanding and love. Love is the foundation of all religion, that isthe ultimate message conveyed by Tagore in this story. The childobserves the Kabuliwallah with a feeling of faith and love andconsequently the unknown becomes well-known. Later on, the childMini “Who is incapable of wasting a minute in silence, becomesa bashful girl, and with a few deft touches, Tagore suggeststhe miracle of the bud’s unfoldment as the full- blown flower”9,said K.R. Srinivas Iyenger about Tagore’s story The Kabuliwalahin his book Rabindranath Tagore: A Critical Introduction.

In majority of Tagore's short stories, there is a touch ofgreatness and elegance. His short stories are profound andsuggestive. Like Mini in The Kabuliwalah, Charulata in the novelNastanir(The Ruined House) looks at the daily activities of the



people outside through blinds in her doors, caged as she is in herhome. She is fascinated when her brother- in- law comes in her lifebecause he belongs to a world beyond her home. Charulataexperiences the feelings of unknown independence as she wasconfined in a limited domestic world of binding.

The adventure of the human soul seeking the Divine-andthe Divine in its turn pursuing the fleeing soul-is also the majorconcern of Tagore in his poetic play The king of the DarkChamber. He who opts for the Divine has already been markedand chosen by the Divine. There is a suggestion of this doctrine inthis play. It is important to mention that while the play The King ofthe Dark Chamber is effective and evocative enough as a dramaembedded with spiritual insights,Tagore's popular play The Postoffice has a compact structural unity and the story reveals thepoet’s childhood experiences as he had to spend isolated life in aroom sitting near a window. Indeed, the introvert boy Amal in theplay The Post Office is like the boy Rabindranath. Amal is ill andthe doctor has advised him (as the boy Rabindranath was treatedby his servants) to be confined in his room. In Act I of the play,sitting near the window he talks with the strangers passing throughthe way with their daily activities. In the second Act, Amal is confinedto bed and visitors come to see him. In the first movements the boyAmal looks out into the world; in the second, the World flows in tothe child’s consciousness.

The post Office, the Postman, the king and eventually astorm before the death of the boy Amal, released him from thecage or binding. Earth-consciousness and God consciousness areunited in Amal, the ultimate message conveyed by Tagore in theplay The Post Office.

Tagore’s religion is the result of a direct vision. Heinterprets the vision and expresses his joy in lively and evocativeimage in his poetry, drama, short stories and novels. He was not

convinced with the doctrine of an impersonal absolute in hisinterpretation of religion. Ultimate reality was for him not anabstraction. To him, ultimate reality was a supreme personality,full of glory, compassion, tremendous energy and spiritual power.

Tagore held God or the Providence as the embodiment ofauspicious virtues. He belives in the spirit which infinite, eternaland full of bliss. This spiritual power or the ultimate reality is immanentas well as transcendental. In this respect , the comment made byP. Nagaraja Rao seems accurate when he says,“Tagore is againstthe erection of all forms of dualism, spirit and flesh, natureand man, art and religion.”10 The King of the Dark Chamberis about a woman with a sick soul and The Post Office is about achild Amal with a sick body. The King enters the dark chamber orthe inner recesses of the Queen’s heart, and all is well. In ThePost Office the king visits the sick chamber of the little boy, andall is well again.

In the Play The King of the Dark Chamber and in ThePost Office, the adventure with the Divine leaves man cured insoul as well as body .Amal’s aspiration and the Divine responsemeet and the consequence is new birth, not physical death. TheDivine has penetrated the parched human heart, and there willensue the burst of a new spring of life and joy. Hence, the ‘king’ ofThe Dark Chamber symbolises the Divine responding to theinvitation of innocence. In the same way The Post Office, havingan organic plot is a living unity by virtue of the indwelling soul.

In this context, it is significant to mention that all aspectsof Tagore's life, thought and action were dominated by his deepreligious faith. With his deep sense of the unity of life, it was naturalthat Tagore’s view of religion should be syncretic and not sectional.He accepted life wholly without any mental reservation. He wasnot therefore prepared to discard any of the essential elements inhuman nature. He proclaimed again and again that he was no



believer in asceticism. In his opinion, the individual will find salvationonly when he accepts his manifold obligations to his fellow beingsin society. He regards man as potentially divine and affirms thedignity and divinity of man. Man has a significant role in the purposivemanifestation of the ultimate reality in creation. Tagore’s idea ofGod is unique. In his vision, the image of God is humanistic andspirirual. Man can overcome any circumstance whether favourableor unfavourable and ultimately uphold the glory of moral andspiritual values. The undercurrent of Tagore’s doctrine of religionreveals that his faith in man is invincible and his belief in the essentialgoodness of man is almost superhuman. Tagore writes: “Of allcreatures man has reached that multi-cellular character in aperfect manner, not only in his body but in his personality. Forcenturies his evolution has been the evolution of aconsciousness that tries to be liberated from the bounds ofindividual separateness and to comprehend in its relationshipa wholeness which may be named man... the evalution of man’sconsciousness sought for truth in a perfect harmony with theworld of personality.”11

Tagore cherished the view that human being is essentiallythe purpose of the Providence. In most of his poems the majorconcern of Tagore is that God needs man as much as man needsGod. Hence the relationship between God and man is reciprocalwhich is revealed in many poems and songs of Tagore.He laysequal importance on the humanity of God as on the divinity of anindividual. This vibrant idea is beautifully presented in the followinglines,

“ I Know there as my God and stand apart I donot know there as my own and come closer.I know there as my father and how before they feelI do not grasp thy hand as my friend’s.”12

In these lines Tagore projects a grandiloquent image of the

ultimate reality. The poet looks upon himself as the bride of theLord waiting to receive Him every hour. He deeply and movinglyexpresses his anguish at the separation from the Lord. There is anexpression of joy in re-union after anguish of separation which isbrilliantly executed by Tagore in the following lines:

“ My poet, is it thy delightTo see the creation through my eyesAnd stand at the portals of my earsSilently to listen to thine own eternal harmony?”13

Tagore realizes that God is pleased with his creation through themanifestation of it in man. Like all mystics, Tagore feels the activepresence of God in all objects of the cosmos.

Tagore's tremendous love for man unconsciously andinevitably merged into love for God. For him God was essentiallylove.The love of the mother for her child and the lover for thebeloved are only instances of the supreme love that is God and thislove reflects itself not only in the passionate devotion of the mysticbut also in the day-to-day life of common man.Tagore’s precise idea is that the presence of the Almighty is to berealized in the common relations of life and in the everyday routinework which sustains the world with magnificent spiritual power.The passionate love of nature and man had, by unconscious stepsmerged into the eternal love of God.

In his later poems dedicated to man and God, Tagore hasshed all adornment with extraordinary intensity and vitality. Thesimplest of human situations are presented adroitly to explain hisvision of the Divine. For Tagore, close association with God wasto be realized only through union with his unique and marvellouscreation.

In the play Visarjan (Sacrifice), there is intense dramaticconflict which is indeed multi-dimensional. There is confrontationbetween man and wife, between love and duty, between humanity



and religious rituals, between king and the priest. In this play, theBrahmin priest Raghunath failed to understand that the essence ofreligion is humanity and love. He regarded sacrifice of animals as ameans to be used for the attainment of his own salvation.Ironically,the play ends in tragedy with the sacrifice of an innocent man Jaysinha,the adopted son of Raghunath. It was only when Jaysinha dedicatedhis own life to meet Raghunath’s demand for sacrifice that the priestrealized, the futility of his quest. By giving his life Jaysinha enlightenedRaghunath with the power of eternal love.

Tagore identified religion with the integral harmony of allthe faculties. To him, religion is a way of establishing harmony. Theharmony that he discovers in the growth of plants, in music, and inthe movement of the stars, man's feeling of an embracing love forall that resembles divine creativeness, beauty, and perfection, allthese powers flow into the nature and human beings through themysterious channels which connect individual life with the soul ofthe Ultimate Reality. In the Song offering(Gitanjali),Tagorewrote:-

“He is there where the tiller is tilling the hard groundWhere the path-maker is breaking stonesHe is with them in sun and showerHis garment is covered with dustPut off thy holy mantle and even like himCome down on the dusty soil.” 14

Prof. S.K. Ghosh is accurate in his estimate of Tagore’smajor concern as revealed in Song Offerings (Gitanjali). Hewrites, “A mixed bag, Gitanjali has several ingredients. Oneof these is social and religious criticism such as we find in themedieval poets of India. The man of prayers can be angry. In agood deal of Tagore, there is a strong protestant note, therhetoric is worth investigating...For Tagore God is almost agenius of the place, the soul of the Seasons ,the cycle of

existence.”15

Fr. Fallon, writing of Tagore in the west maintains that thewestern Gitanjali although lacking much of the musical beautyand creative power of the original Bengali is yet.”a jewel, even ajewel of English religious poetry... Today still Tagore’s for thewest, the author of Gitanjali”16

The poems of Song Offerings (Gitanjali) are remarkablefor infinitude expressed with extraordinary spontaneity anduncommon ease. The awareness of an eternal and universal religioncame to the poet from the inner recesses of his soul. The NobelLaureate novelist Halldor Laxness has also acknowledged theprofound impression made by Gitanjali on him and those of hisgeneration: “ This strange, distant and subtle voice, at oncefound its way to the very depths of my youthful spiritual ear;and ever since, at given moments, I feel its presence in theinnermost labyrinths of my mind. In my country and elsewhereamong western readers the form and flavour of the Gitanjalihad the effect of a wonderful flower we had not seen or heardof before.”17

With his profound realization, Tagore advocates that man'sdesire is infinite and the grace of the Divine is equally infinite. In hiswonderful vision, the image of God is that of a friend, lover andprotector of mankind. As Laxness comments : “ What an enviableGod, this God of Tagore; the great friend - the beloved, thelotus flower, the unknown man playing a lute in the boat yonderon the river! A god akin to Tagore’s can be found in the JewishBiblical poetry belonging to the Mediterranean basin ...Nowadays our god in the west is either the director of the BigAll World Firm Inc; or the primitive imaginary playmate ofthe childish mind... This is why a spiritual reality like Tagore’sprobably shall remain only one more eastern wonder to theWestern mind yet for a long time to come”.18



Tagore had a great reverence for human beings and hecould not ignore the realities of everyday life. Although he was amystic, he had a vivid sense of actuality. He was against all kinds ofpuritanism and Orthodox rituals. Hence, his poems are sincereattempts to explain man’s relation to his fellow-men, to Nature, toGod. The feeling of isolation makes the life of a man critical andmiserable. On the other way when a man links his life with cosmosor God, he is transfigured by eternal bliss or spiritual ecstasy. Indeed,the impulse behind the creativity is religion.

According to Tagore “ To the man who lives for an idea,for his Country, for the good of humanity, life has an extensivemeaning and to that extent pain becomes less important tohim. To live the life of goodness is to live the life of all. Pleasureis for one’s own self but goodnesses is concerned with thehappiness of all humanity and for all time.”19

This is, indeed the most comprehensive view of life whichmay be obtained by man’s inherent power of the moral vision ofthe wholeness of life. Tagore considered the joys and pleasures oflife and the gift of the body and senses as divine bliss. Tagore haspropounded his affirmative ideology in well-known poem inNaivedya(1901) included in the English version of Gitanjali,“Deliverance is not for me in renunciation . I feel the embraceof freedom in a thousand bonds of delight.Thou ever pourestfor me the fresh draught of various colours and fragrance,filling this earthern vessel to the brim. My World will light itshundred different lamps with thy flame and place them beforethe altar of thy temple”.20

This is the keynote of Tagore’s abounding sympathy for allcreation, his versatility, his universality. He has viewed the worldwith an open mind, so his philosophy has always been of abidinginterest. Tagore's journey was from life to the fountainhead of alllife. The spiritual unity of life and aspiration is Tagore’s metier and

mainstay. He believes in incessant toil and work for humanity. Heclinches the issue in a celebrated statement in Realisation in Action(Sadhana):- “ Joy without the play of joy is no joy at all - Playwithout activity is no Play. Activity is only in the play of joy”.21

Tagore criticizes the doctrine of inaction which declaresthat action weakens contemplation, art leads to wickedness, Politicsto corruption and evil. He invests life on earth with great significanceand tremendous purpose and value. Tagore humanizes the UltimateReality or Absolute and declares that the God himself does not siton the wings of the earth and watch the drama of human miseryunconcernedly.Tagore writes,

“ Leave this chanting and singing and telling of beads!whom dost thou worship in this lonely dark corner of atemple,with doors all shut?Open thine eyes and see thy God is not before thee”!22

Tagore holds the World as the scene of all great action.He stands for the perfect and free expression of human emotionsand passions. He has a firm faith in the fundamental free will ofman. The presence of imperfection in the World is not the negationof the perfect. This idea of Tagore is expressed in a striking way,“The progressive ascertainment of truth is the important thingto remember in the history of Science, not its innumerablemistakes... An intellectual error, so in evil of any other form,its essence is impermanence, for it cannot accord with thewhole”.23

Explaining his idea, Tagore holds that when the veil of thenarrow self is lifted, the state not yet achieved begins assuminggreater reality for him than his present existence. The perspectiveof life changes and a conflict begins between one’s lesser self andone’s greater self Dharma, or religion, which liberates man fromthe ignorance of his true identity is revealed in man's mind as the


in synthesis of Religion and Politics1 2 2

consciousness of a transcendental spiritual unity.In man’sconsciousness, there is an innate feeling of cohesiveness whosenature is spiritual and which uncovers before him a vision of thetruth beyond the facts of his present existence. Tagore explicitlystates, “The freedom of the seed is in the attainment of itsdharma, its nature and destiny of becoming a tree; it is thenon- accomplishment which is its prison. The sacrifice by whicha thing attains its fulfilment is not a sacrifice which ends indeath; it is the casting- off of bonds which wins freedom. Whenwe know the highest ideal of freedom which a man has, weknow his dharma, the essence of his nature, the real meaningof his self...The higher nature in man always seeks forsomething which transcends itself and yet it is deepest truth;which claims all its sacrifice, yet makes this sacrifice its ownrecompense. This is man’s dharma, man’s religion, and man’sself is the vessel which is to carry this sacrifice to the altar”. 24

The religious attitude, according to Tagore, provides manwith a vision of the beyond. The religious soul“feels in its core thecall of the beyond.”25 The inherent truth within a man constantlypushes us beyond our circumscribed present and makes him awareof his claim to express the eternal in him “Consciously orunconsciously”, Tagore says, “We have in our life this feelingof truth which is ever larger than its appearance; for our lifeis facing the infinite, and it is in movement. Its aspiration istherefore infinitely more than its achivement, and as it goes onit finds that no realization of truth ever leaves it stranded onthe desert or finality, but carries it to a region beyond”.26

This reference to the 'beyond' is an unavoidable factorrelated to religious striving. We cannot attain the entirety of ourexistence restricting our present self- existence. Only by penetratingthrough the envelopment of our limited existence, we can realizethe Ultimate Reality or the Absolute. The chick gets the glimpse of

vast universe by breaking through the hard shell of the egg and ishence known as twice-born.27 Human being also, according toTagore, must be twice-born by coming out of the darkness of hisegoistical existence.Tagore says, “Man must realize thewholeness of his existence,his place in the infinite; he mustknow that hard as he may strive, he may never create his honeywithin the cell of his hive, for the perennial supply of his lifefood is outside their walls.”28

For Tagore, religion has a predominantly spiritualsignificance. Human beings neglect their spiritual obligations as soonas they are pre-occupied with the secular affairs of the world.Religion makes a man aware of inclusiveness from a sphere ofaction beyond the physical universe.

The mystic element in Tagore’s religious thought is matchedby his immediate concern with the practical affairs of everydaylife, This followed from his firm faith that salvation for the individualand the race will be found not in some isolated place of realitybeyond our everyday life and activities, but in the ordinary pleasuresand sorrows which make up the world of day to day. Tagore'sreligion was thus one essentially of equality, self-expression andlove as expressed in our everyday life of thought and action.

Indeed, Rabindranath is in the line of ancient religio-philosophical 'rishis' or seers whose work is a synthesis of bothreligion and philosophy. He was primarily influenced by theUpanishads, Brahmoism ,Vaishanavism , Buddhism andChristianity. Tagore’s metaphysical writings are very muchconcerned with the doctrine of Upanishads. Tagore’s statement inthis context is quite relevant when he says:''To me the worship ofthe Upanishads and the teaching of Buddha have been thingsof the spirit, and therefore endowed with boundless humangrowth”.29

As Tagore derived his faith from the doctrines of the



Upanishads, he projected it with a modern and progressiveinterpretation. In fact, this practice has been followed by manyIndian thinkers and philosophers who have interpreted the ancienttexts in the light of modern requirements. It was the Isha Upanishadwhich appealed to Tagore most. The Isha Upanishad declares,“Be active in the world with all your vigour and hope to live ahundred years to be able to continue to be active. The fulfilmentof the work enjoined upon you does not create Karma, but isitself the way of salvation”.30

Tagore re-interpreted the Upanishads to come to a logicalconclusion that the achievement of salvation is not only limited toselected people but for every individual who is inclined to embracethis sublime and active way of life on the universe. Every individual,according to him, has an active participation in the cosmicendeavour towards greater and nobler prefection.

In 1931, Tagore was invited to deliver the Hibbert lecturesat the Oxford University. The topic of his lecture was Religion ofMan. Tagore did not dwell upon religion in the traditional sense.To him religion was a series of actions piercing into deeper selfwhich would reinvigorate the personality of man. What he meantwas that a man would rejuvenate his life in its immediate environment;by constant effort, cultivating ideas and education, he transcendsthe limit of present environment, becomes pre-occupied and in itsturn makes the environment splendid. The steps to such an educationof a man depended on rigid self-dicipline and sincerity, the immediateobjective of such education was, according to him, manifestationof a creative being- a better man (but not a superman) in everysphere of life and world situation. Again and again, Tagoreemphasized the task of reconstructing of man through earnest effortand spiritual introspection.

It is worthwhile to mention that Rabindranath Tagore’sinvolvement with the Brahmo Samaj and the effect of Brahmoism

upon him were extremely significant phase of his life. Rabindranathwas born in 1861, a time when his renowned social-reformer andspiritualist father Maharsi Devendranath Tagore’s life was whollydedicated to the practice of Brahmoism. The year also witnessedMaharshi’s most favourite disciple, Brahmananda Keshab ChandraSen, leaving his job, devoting himself fully to the Brahmo movementand starting with the patronage of his wise and experienced advisor.Rabindranath was a minor boy when the first split in the BrahmoSamaj occurred in 1866. According to the Adi Brahmo Samaj asto followers of Devendranath called it 'Brahmoism is reformedHinduism'; While the followers of Keshab Chandra's'Bharatvarshiya Brahmo Samaj' believed that Brahmoism is‘Catholic and universal’

Young Rabindranath grew up in this Adi Brahmoatmosphere which did not allow a definite deviation from traditionaldoctrine of Hinduism. The anti-Keshab feeling in the family, visibleparticularly in Dwijendranath Tagore and Jyotirindranath Tagore,two of the Keshab Chandra’s loyal rivals, had its naturalcharacteristics on Tagore's immature personality.

When in his teens, Tagore was very much involved in Hindurevivalist projects like the 'Hindu Mela' or the 'National SecretSociety' which recommended protection of the cultural identity ofHindu tradition. Yet like most of his contemporaries in Bengal,Tagore too could not remain isolated from Keshab Chandra’sinfluence for long. On the basis of his writings, we can reach to alogical conclusion that Brahmananda very much influenced him.Tagore writes. “ I was fortunate enough to receive his (Keshab’s)affectionate caresses at the moment when he was cherishinghis dream of a great future spiritual illumination.”31 Surprisinglyat the age of only twenty three, Tagore became the Secretary ofthe Adi Brahmo Samaj. Thus he became an active Brahmo Samajworker opposing to Keshabite radicalism and the ancient tradition



of adhering to caste system and supporting Brahmin’s exclusiveright to 'Samaj's (Society) altar of 'Acharya(Priest)'. Withuncommon enthusiasm Tagore began to conduct divineperformances to the 'Samaj Upasanas (Prayers of the society)along with such prominent Brahmo leaders as Sivnath Shastri,Pratap Chandra Majoomdar and Rajnarayan Bose.

Already a celebrated poet at the age of twenty five, hecomposed several devotional hymns which were included later inthe Brahma Sangeet, published by the ' Sadharan BrahmoSamaj.' The process of transcending the restricted limits of the AdiBrahmo Samaj was gradually taking place. In fact, Tagore wasgradually releasing himself from the limits of Adi Samaj’s narrownationalism and entering into the nobler visionary world of RamMohun’s and Keshab Chandra’s universalism. The period 1900-1921 witnessed fresh momentum to the process of completechange. Eventually in 1907, Tagore’s great novel Gora was beingserially published in Ramananda Chatterjee’s Journal Prabasi .

The novel Gora embodies the ideology of Brahmouniversalism against the narrow parochialism. This is evident withthe unique realization of Gora, the protagonist in the conclusion ofthe novel. The self-conquest of Gora releases him from all rigidcode of conduct. Through the character of Gora, Tagore expresseshis idea of all-inclusiveness which is also the doctrine of Raja RamMohun, the pioneer of modern Indian Renaissance and the founderof Brahmo Samaj. The novel Gora also highlights the Brahmoviewpoint that effective reformation and revival in India is impossibleif the cultural exchange remains closed to the intellectual andprogressive world of the West.

Indeed, the novel Gora is a many-faceted jewel, eachshining with splendour brilliance. The genius of this novel has beeninterpreted in various ways ranging from the purely literary to theallegorical. With superb artistry, Tagore presents wonderful, life-

like, three-dimensional, individualized and intellectual characters inthis novel. The unified pattern, compactness and uncommonprecision make the novel Gora classical work of art.

Humayun Kabir, the noted educationist and critic in hisassessment of Tagore’s novel Gora comments, “Gora has beenregarded by many critics as not Tagore’s major effort butperhaps the greatest novel written to this day in any Indianlanguage. It is epic in its proportions and shows Tagore’sgrowing awereness of the problems of lndia in the context ofhuman relations that transcend racial or religiousboundaries."32

The debate on spiritualism and religion in the novel Gorareveals the fact that Tagore had a wonderful vision of the UltimateReality which made him a great classic. Tagore's novel Gora is agreat classical work of art in the sense that there is no vulgar, banalor unelevating expression in it. Indeed, it is a great classic as theterm has been described by Matthew Arnold in his considerationof " The Grand Style." Gora is a classic novel as it is universal in itsspirit.

Prof. Sisir Kumar Ghose aptly comments that most peopleare born into a religion; few earn their own. Rabindranath Tagoredid, it was his response to what he considered to be the Real, the‘More-True’. His 'cri de coeur' the poet’s faith was to that extentauthentic, if unusual. He further states,''In spite of a wide-ranging,ecleclic inheritance, Rabindranath’s thinking was more or lesshis own, his path of vedic ancestors led through a lifelong wayfaring to the Endless Further. More temperamental thantraditional more romantic than religious - did not somebodydescribe romanticism as a split religion? Tagore speaks,perforce, more of himself than for others. He has written ofthe Religion of the Artist in the first person singular. That wasperhaps both its strength and weakness. The Tagorean faith



expressed what one man had done with his solitariness ratherthan what one does in society. At heart he was not a conformist,even if he allowed himself to be a cult figure. His confession offaith was not of one who belonged,but one who, forever waylost, did not belong, could not perhaps wholly belong” 33

In Achalayatan (The Immobile Institution, 1911), ahistorical play published two years after Gora. Tagore presentedHindu society symbolically as an institution surrounded by narrowwalls of restrictions and regulated by rigid codes and rituals isolatedfrom the rest of the world, leaving it quite immobile. The story ofthe play Achalayatan (The Immobile Institution) is entirely originaland the historical atmosphere presented is penetrating, life-like andconvincing. It explains the development of Buddhism in EasternIndia centuries ago. Several Buddhistic monasteries grew up wherereligion, philosophy and higher learning were cultivated withexuberant belief in super natural powers obtainable from esotericpractices and extreme penances which were considered as thegoal of intellectual and spiritual achievement. Indeed, this faithbecame universal which created social and intellectual inanition.Eventually, these practices led to social, intellectual and spiritualstagnation in the whole country.

In the novel Achalayatan, there is a sharp reaction againstthe inactivity and the practices of the institution, loss of independenceand spiritual mockery. From this point of view, Tagore's radicalismbecame increasingly more articulate, isolating him from themainstream of Indian politics. However, there is no denying thefact that the play Achalayatan (The Immobile Institution) is apowerful and delightful creation of Tagore which reveals that Tagorewas well-acquainted with Buddhism as he had a sure intuition andtrue perspective of historical facts. Tagore has marvellouslypresented the decline and fall of "Tantric Buddhism", the conflictof the Aryan and the non -Aryan culture and the ultimate fusion of

the two.It is to be mentioned that Tagore's works are the literary

expression of the highest culture of mankind. In addition, there arethree fundamental qualities in the literary works of Tagore. Thesequalities are intellectualism or the intellectual appeal, universalismor the power to comprehend all and imaginativeness, that is thepower to enable one to place himself in other situations and feel athome there.

The entire literary works of Tagore prove that they areremarkable for universalism, i.e. all-inclusiveness as they are notconfined to the momentary and paraphernalia of life. His worksrise above the transient and the ephemeral. It is worthwhile tomention that intellectualism, universalism or all-inclusiveness,imaginativeness, sense of beauty, truth and humanism are thehallmarks of literatures of full human value. But the most importantfactor of a great classic art is the awareness of the Ultimate Realitybehind life. As a mystic poet and a visionary, Tagore could sensethe Ultimate Reality that is behind life, and could realize glimpsesand visions of it. It is very interesting to observe how the innerconflict in the mind of Tagore rise to the idealism which started inhim from the emergence of the doctrine of "Jivan Devata."

The Poems of Sonar Tari (The Boat of Gold. 1893)reflect the inward vision or the spiritual intuition of the poet andimply transitoriness of human life and aspiration. The sublimerealisation of the poet that there is a world beyond the sensuousmaterialistic life has found its wonderful expression in the thoughtfulpoems of The Boat of Gold (Sonar Tari) and The WonderfullyBeautiful One(Citra, 1896). Here, the poet's artistic mission is toestablish a relation between eternal truth and universal beauty. InCitra,(The Wonderfully Beautiful One),Tagore has reached aculminating point where the poet earnestly desires a hankeringafter self-realization and his intimate relation to the cosmic spirit.



This spiritual quest is eternal. The poet's passionate effort to knowthe mysterious spirit working within him is executed in a completesynchronized pattern. The poet strives for self-realization whichultimately leads to realization of God.

The theme of Tagore’s Poetry is human spirit in the greatdrama of existence which comprises love, joy, sorrow, life, deathand ordinary human experience of everyday throbbing with thewarmth of an intense realization. Tagore’s Kalpana (Imagination,1900). Utsarga (Dedication, 1903), Kheya (The Ferry orCrossing the River, 1906), Purabi (She of the East 1924) andMahua (The Mahua or Madhuka Flower, 1934) reveal themagniloquent romantic glamour and splendour of the Elizabethanlyricists and the romantic poets of the 19th century. The freshness,vitality and sweetness of John Keats, the intensity and fervour ofP.B Shelley, the elegance, tenderness and grace of S.T. Coleridgeand the impetuosity of Swinburne are mingled with the grandeur ofthe sage-poets or 'Rishis' of Vedas and of the Greek tragediansand lyricists as well as the mystic approach of Kabir and other Sufiof Arab and Iran.

Rabindranath Tagore was very much impressed with thewonderful mystic songs of Kabir, remarkable for the spontaneousexpressions of his vision and his love. Tagore’s appreciation forKabir is due to the fact that there is a spontaneous overflow ofpowerful feelings and observations which ultimately leads to auniversal appeal. To an extent, Kabir's syncretic views impressedTagore. Like Kabir, Tagore also disliked the religious exclusivismand the barriers between different religions and castes. In the poemsof Kabir a wide range of mystical emotion is explainedenthusiastically, from the loftiest abstractions, the most other -worldlypassion for the Infinite, to the most intimate and personal realizationof God, expressed in common metaphors from everyday life andreligious symbols extracted from Hindu and Mohammedan thought.

It is worthwhile to mention that Tagore’s devotional feelingis different from that of Kabir in some respects. Kabir’s devotionalpoetry there is only an overflow of passionate devotional feeling,spontaneous and direct. This uncontrolled overflow of emotionand passion makes Kabir an indisciplined genius whereas Tagore'scontrolled feeling and expression in his poetry reveals the fact thatit is an artistic achievement of a disciplined genius. Kabir lacks theprecision which one may find artless. In fact, the devotional currentis so powerful in Kabir's poetry that the erotic aspect is almostinvisible. Unlike Kabir, Tagore’s love for God is reciprocal. Indeed,reciprocity of emotions and passions, a characteristic feature ofGitanjali (Song Offerings) is conspicuously missing in thedevotional songs of Kabir.

Interestingly, Tagore translated the songs of Kabir intoEnglish to explain the curiosity of readers and critics whoconsidered that the devotional temper of Gitanijali (SongOffering) has been borrowed from Christian sources. Tagorereacts to the misinterpretation of the critics and clearly explains hismission:'I had to do these translations to point out to mywestern and some Indian critics that sources existed in thiscountry too long before the advent of the British, they existedin Kabir."34

At the same time, there is no denying the fact that Tagore'sthought and ideas are often similar to that of Kabir. Tagore'sGitanjali (Song Offerings) and Poems of Kabir translated byTagore into English have close resemblances. In the collecton ofpoems in Gitanjali, there are examples which illustrate everyaspect of Tagore’s ecstasy, the despair, the eagerness and selfdevotion, the flashes of wide illumination, the moments of intimatelove and detachment, the bondage and liberty, love andrenunciation, pleasure and pain are revealed which are very akinto Kabir’s wide and sublime vision of Universe and the Ultimate



Reality.As Kabir Says, “None but Brahma can evoke its

melodies,”35 the undercurrent of this idea is that all apparentlyparadoxical views of Reality are resolved in ‘Brahma’, so all otheropposites are reconciled in the Ultimate Reality. Tagore shares theview of Kabir that the union with God is brought about by love,not by intellect or knowledge or ceremonial observances.

It is worthwhile to mention that Kabir described himself asa , Bharat Pathik (wayfarer on the road that is India )’, theidea which appealed to Tagore very much. Indeed, the idea deeplyrooted in Tagore’s mind inspired to write an address on Ram MohunRoy as 'Bharat Pathik Ram Mohun Roy.'

Kabir, the son or the adopted son of a Muslim weaver,had a spiritual inquisitiveness since the very beginning of his youth.Surprisingly he found his spiritual guide not in a Muslim sufi ordivine but in a Brahmin Saint, the famous Ramananda who hadabsorbed much of Sufism but was basically an adherent of theisticVedanta of the‘bhakti marga’ originated by Ramanuja. Ramanandahad strived for the religious revival in Northern India whichRamanuja, the great reformer of 'Brahmanism' in twelfth centutyhad initiated successfully in the southern part of India.

Evelyn Underhill in his introduction to Tagore’s Poems ofKabir explicitly explains the religious doctrine of Ramananda andRamanuja which influenced Kabir.“It took in Ramanuja preachingthe form of an ardent personal devotion to the God Vishnu, asrepresenting the personal aspect of the Divine Nature; thatmystical 'religion of love' which everywhere makes itsappearance at a certain level of spiritual culture, and whichcreeds and philosophies are powerless to kill.

Though such a devotion is indigenous in Hinduism, andfinds expression in many passages of the Bhagavad Gita, therewas in its medieval revival a large element of syncretism".36

It is worthwhile to mention that Ramananda, through whomits spirit is said to have reached Kabir, appears to have been a manof wide religious culture, and full of missionary enthusiasm. Themost interesting thing is during the time when the impassioned poetryand deep philosophy of the great Parsian mystics, Attar, Sadi,Jalauddin Rumi, and Hafiz, were exercising a powerful influenceon the religious identity of India, he envisioned a reconciliationbetween intense and personal mysticism Mohammedan and thetraditional doctrine of Brahmanism.

Kabir's poems reveal the fact that there is anacknowledgement of a universe consisting of three orders,Becoming, Being, and which is ‘More than Being’, i.e. the UltimateReality or the Absolute. There is a synthesis between the personaland cosmic aspects of the Divine Nature. Kabir's explanation isthat God is not an abstraction, but the one actuality, the notion verysimilar to Tagore's idea of God in his unique poem " Jivan-Devata". God inspires, empowers, encourages, supports, indeedinhabits, both the durational, conditioned, finite world of Becomingand the unconditioned, non- successional, infinite world of Being;yet utterly transcends them both. He is the omnipresent Reality, theAll- Pervading within whom, “the worlds are being told likebeads." 37

Indeed God or the Ultimate Reality is the Great Affirmation,the fount of exuberant energy, the source of tremendous love , theunique satisfaction of aspiration; so Kabir says that ‘beyond boththe limited and the limitless is He, the Pure Being.’38

The idea of synthetic vision of God which is present inKabir appealed to Rabindranath Tagore very much. The conceptionof synthetic vision of God has resolved the perpetual oppositionbetween the personal and impersonal, the transcendent andimmanent, static and dynamic aspects of the Divine Nature; betweenthe Absolute of philosophy and the devotional religion. Indeed,



Tagore’s , appreciation of the mystic songs of Kabir gave a newimpetus to his poetry. There is no denying the fact that Tagore’sspiritual endeavour is indebted to Upanishads, Brahmoism, theChristian doctrine of love, the devotion and mysticism of Kabirand Vaishnavism. In this context it is important to mention thatthere is a view of some western scholars that Tagore and the restof modern Indian philosophers and thinkers as a whole are theproducts of the Christian philosophy. According to these critics,contemporary Indian poets and philosophers have frequentlyborrowed from Christianity and Western philosophy, Tagore is noexception. As Urquhart Writes, “ The ideas of Tagore, like thoseof so many thinkers of modern India have often been quitewrongly assigned to Indian sources.”39

The Song Offerings (Gitanjali) is the embodiment ofChristian influence according to Urquhart and other critics. EdwardThompson comments "The man henceforward must rank amongthe great religious poets of the world does not call himself aChristian; but in him we get a glimpse of what the Christianityof India would be like, and we see it is something better thanthe Christianity which came to it."40

Another critic Saunders observes that Tagore is anadvocate of Christian theism, He says,"The God of Gitanjali isno impersonal, imperturbable Absolute of Hindu philosophybut in fact, whether He be explicitly Christ or not, He is atleast a Christ-like God, and the experience of His suppliantand lover is one with the deep core of all Christianexperience."41

Tagore was not satisfied with these explanations as he onceexpressed his feeling to American audience that he has not readthe Bible and he has very 'scarcely' borrowed from Christianity.

Though Tagore explicitly makes his stand clear,however, one cannot deny the influnce of Christianity in Tagore’s

writing which acts as an undercurrent of his religious doctrine. Thepoems of Gitanjali (Song Offerings) justify the statement.Besides,there are Biblical references in the essays of Tagore whichreveal the fact that he was acquainted with the doctrine ofChristianity. Tagore finds a close resemblance between the teachingsof Jesus and the doctrine of Upanishads. In his explanation of therelationship between individual and the Universe, Tagore Writes:"...the Upanishads describe those who have attained the goalof human life as 'peaceful' and at-one-with God,' meaning thatthey are in perfect harmony with man and nature, and thereforein undisturbed union with God, we have a glimpse of the sametruth in the teachings of Jesus when he says, ‘It is easier for acamel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich manto enter the kingdom of Heaven'- which implies that whateverwe treasure for ourselves separates us from others; ourpossessions are our limitation."42

Explaining the idea of Jesus Christ ,Tagore says that hewho is bent upon accumulating riches is unable "to pass throughthe gates of comprehension of the spiritual world, which is theworld of perfect harmony."43

The influence of Christ and Christianity on Tagore’sunderstanding of God consisted primarily in strengthening hisreligious doctrine that he already had. This is clear when Tagoreuses the teaching of Christ and Christianity to explain what he himselfbelived sincerely. Rabindranath speaks of Jesus as "He who cameto give us awareness of paternity, "the one who "came to tellus... that all men are children of God,” “preached love whenhe preached the oneness of the Father with the brothers whoare many."44

Perhaps the greatest influence of Jesus and Christianityon Rabindranath concerns the dignity of man manifested by God’sbecoming man in Christ, and the Christian doctrine of the presence



of God in man. He speaks of Jesus as the man who proclaimed thetruth that ‘in the service of man is fulfilled the service of God’.

Tagore appreciated the humane values of the westerncivilization originated from the Christian doctrine and the supremeexample of Jesus Christ. In this regard it is worthwhile to mentionthe comment made by Rabindranath Tagore: “The active love ofhumanity and the spirit of martyrdom for the cause of justiceand truth which I have met in the western countries have beena great lesson and an inspiration to me ...I have no doubt thatthe West owes its true greatness, not so much to its marvelloustraining of intellect, as to its spirit of service devoted to thewelfare of man."45

The true image of man for Tagore is the image of God,the Infinite Ideal of perfection. He felt that in Christ this image wasperfectly reflected and this sublime ideal best realized. That therewas a Christian influence on Tagore’s realization of God is evidentfrom the similarities and parallels that one can find in Christianliterature, especially the Bible, and in Tagore’s writings about Godand the relationship between God and man, and God and theuniverse. Both the Bible and Tagore define God as love, and bothexpress the greatest importance on the relationship of eternal lovethat links God and man, and human beings among themselves. Thisis because man is confined within the narrow walls of his limitedacquisitions and his self-centredness which becomes an obstaclein his way to spiritualism. Man's ignorance is responsible for notunderstanding the doctrine of all-comprehensiveness.

Tagore's idea of theSupreme Being as manifested in theheart of man, is very similar to that of the 'Baul Vaishnavas.' Thepoems of Kheya ( The Ferry of the Crossing of the River, 1906)are remarkable for lyric grace, delicacy, intensely passionateexpression, metrical felicity, verification and magical imagery.Tagore’s poetic sensibility and lyricism approaches towards

musicality.It is here that his dominant characteristics- clarity, melody

and dignity are exhibited in their amplest power. The comment madeby Sukumar Sen, a great critic is genuine when he observes. "TheFerry takes the reader easily over to the landing ground of thetemple of the Song Offering.”46

There is no denying that the exquisite mystic songs ofBengal Bauls exercised a great fascination for Tagore. Dr. SukumarSen refers to an important episode in Tagore’s life when he came incontact with a ‘Baul’ during his youth. The song of mystic Vaishnavby the wayside at Santiniketan had acted as a mystic 'mantra' tohim, and it gave him an inspiration for a spiritual quest. “In and outof the cage the unknown bird comes and goes unbekdown; if Icould have but caught it I would have put my heart as a chainround its feet." 47

Tagore’s acquaintance with the mystic Vaishnav poetsplays an important role in the development of his poetic and aestheticsensibility. He had the privilege to meet the prominent Bauls ofBengal including Lalan Fakir of Kustea (at present in Bangladesh)when he was engaged as the manager of the family estate in NorthCentral Bengal. However, it was the song of a Vaishnav womanwho left a tremendous and vibrant impact on the mind of youngRabindranath who would often come to him at Silaidah. In fact,Tagore was very much impressed with the uncommon personalityof this Vaishnav woman. His unique experiences led him to nobleexperiments.

Tagore in his poems deals with the great sentiment oflove in all its manifestations-the dawn of love on either side; theexquisite tenderness of love between a happy husband and wife,the love of an earthly couple which is a reflex of man’s eternal lovefor God and God’s love for man as it has been envisioned by themystics in belief.



Tagore's love poetry reveals that the poet is intenselyhuman and vividly passionate. His love poems reflect not merelythe superb lyrical invention of the poet but his live and intensehumanitarianism. In his splendid lovely lyrics, one may find anatmosphere of luminious beauty and ethereal music. Human lovebecomes the vital inspiration of his art. Indeed love is not an abstractideal, insubstantial or ineffective for the poet. The passion, for allits intensity, is focussed and controlled through splendour of diction.

Professor Suniti Kumar Chatterjee, the eminent Indiancritic, in his appraisement of Tagore’s love poems writes, “Tagore’slove poetry is however not merely ethereal- it soars in thehighest aesthetical sphere— but physical attraction as the basisof human love, with the call of the flesh, is not forgotten. It issublimation of man and woman's love and it is also sensuousin its appeal.”48

There is implication of sex in Tagore’s love poems whichremind us of the sensuousness of Keats, but there is never “anyblatant wallowing in sex” in Tagore which progressive poetsand modern authors consider as the soul of realism. Tagore's lovepoems are free from languorous eroticism and excessivevoluptuousness which one may find in the poems of Elizabethanpoets or in the poems of Romantic poets. Tagore believes that loveis earthly as well as transcendental. His love poems are remarkablefor artistic finesse which lead to the quest of Ultimate Reality. Inthis context Tagore’s concept of the 'Jivana-Devata', the realizationof the Ultimate Reality through beauty and love is worth mentioning.

Suniti Kumar Chatterjee’s analytical view of Tagore’sconcept of 'Jivana-Devata' is comprehensive as well as sublime.He writes,“The Sanskrit expression Jivana-Devata can beEnglished as Life-Godhead and Latined as Vita-Deilas(can itbe Hellenised as Bios-Kai-Theos?). This concept is so beautifuland so unique, and since in a way it forms the crux or central

idea of Rabindranath’s mystic concept of life and the unseenReality, suffused as it is by his sense of love and beauty, that itrequires some detailed consideration. It is in a way his visionof the Divinity that is in life or all life as an expression of theDivinity that is behind it and is encompassing it.”49

Indeed, Tagore never ignored the joys and sorrows andthe good and the evils of life. His philosophy is often pantheistic inexpression. The vitality and beauty of life and nature intoxicatedhim. The joys and sorrows, love and suffering are not detachedfrom the Supreme Reality, the Godhead or Divinity as they areinextricably linked up with each other. Perhaps the concept ofVedanta ( the ancient Indian concept) inspired Tagore whichalso impressed Swami Vivekananda, the pioneer of IndianRenaissance. According to the concept of Vedanta, all life andBeing, whatever exists on this cosmos, are really one the Supreme'the Brahma', which is ageless, deathless and eternal and whoacquires this spiritual knowledge has no distinction between joysand sorrow, pleasure and delusion.

The concept of 'Jivana-Devata' in its various formsand environments recurrently appears in Tagore’s poems which isindeed the basic concept of Tagore's Mystico- Romantic poetry.The poet has visualised a thing of beauty, a woman, not merely anexquisite abstraction and a charming metaphor. She is one of themost remarkable mystic figures that spark the poetic world ofTagore in the form of a young woman. This figure has closeresemblances to the cosmic myths of the ancient and Greek religion,in all their beauty and their grandeur.

Suniti Kumar Chatterjee in his brilliant study of Tagore’sconcept of ‘Jivana-Devata’ explains “Rabindranath’s JivantaDevata has been conceived as a goddess-like woman who isstill human, and who seems to be personal and intimate, andat the same time she is transcendent, and she has become like



a new form of the Indian Ushas and Urvasi, Sri and Uma, andof the Greek Aphrodite and Artemis, she is the ‘Ever-woman-Like’ the Eternal Feminine of Goethe who draws itsupwards."50

Rabindranath had an indirect but a very close and vitalcontact with Greek literature. Through his serious study of Englishliterature, there came to him the modern cultured mind’s heritagefrom the classical- the Hellenic World. Aphrodite Artemis, both ascosmic forces, and as divinities of love and motherhood of beautyand chastity were present in Greek literature. Indeed, there is someindirect influnce of the Greek conception of Aphrodite. In Greekpoetry and drama there is a revelation of Aphrodite as a divineforce which is also the sublimation of all beauty and of humanyearning and aspiration, and which is also expressing herself throughall life.

It is worthwhile to explain in this regard that Aphroditeis the goddess of both spiritual love and idealization and of Physicalattraction and desire, a cosmic force which rises above all humanbindings, symbolizing the eternal or cosmic beauty. Greek poetslike Sopholes and Euripides have praised in elegant language thecosmic force which lies behind the conception of Aphrodite.Sophocles wrote :

“My children, of a surety Cypris isNot Cypris only, but bears many a name;Death is her name, and might imperishable,And maniac frenzy, and unallayed desire,And lamentation loud. All is in her;Impulse,and quietude,and energy;For in the bosoms of all Souls that breatheThis Goddess is instilled”.54

There is a powerful expression of the Greek sense ofcosmic beauty in the poem of Euripides. The figure of Aphrodite is

presented in the marvellous expression of Euripides-“She ranges with the stars of eve and morn,She wanders in the heaving of the sea,All life lives from her- Aye, this is sheThat sows love’s seed and brings love’s fruit to birth;And great Love’s brethern are all we on earth”. 52

Rabindranath Tagore’s concept of ‘Jivana- Devata’has been explained in various ways. The English biographer ofRabindranath, Professor Edward Thompson has discussed theearlier Jivana- Devata poems,and he quotes Rabindranath as givingthe poet’s own interpretation of 'Jivana- Devata:' The idea, thepoet told me,‘has a double stand. There is the vaishnavaidealism-always keeping the separateness of the self-and thereis the Upanishadic Monism.God is wooing each individual;and God is also the ground- reality of all as in the Vedantistunification. When the Jiban- Debata idea came to me, I felt anoverwhelming joy, it seemed a discovery, new with me-in thisdeepest self-seeking expression.I wished to sink into it, to givemyself up wholly to it. Today (in1922),I am on the same Planeas my readers, and I am trying to find what the Jiban-Debtawas”.53

Another great critic Krishna Kripalani in his penetratingstudy of Tagore’s concept of Jiban-Debta observes, “During theseven years from 1894 to 1900, he published as many majorvolumes of verse, besides several of drama, stories and otherprose writing. The first of these volumes of poetry is SonarTari (The Golden Boat) taking its name from the first poem inthe book... The author himself tried to explain that the boatsymbolized for him life, which collects the harvest of ourachievement and goes floating on the stream of time, leavingus behind. The golden boat reappears in the last poem of thebook but now the poet has been taken into the boat. His muse,



the beloved of his dreams, his guardian angel, halfknown andhalf unknown, is at the helm. He asks her again and againwhere she is taking him. She says nothing, but, half smiling,points to the distant horizon where sun is sinking in the west...there are several very long and beautiful poems in the book...one is on Manas-Sundari, the Beauty behind all beauty, hischildhood's playmate, his youth’s dream and now his verybeing... Much as these poems glow with passion, it is passionsuffused with, and subdued by, reflection. This reflective elementwill henceforth be increasingly impressed on his poetry, thepassion subdued will be the stronger, the thought subtler” 54

In his concluding remark, Kripalani says: "Now he isachieving a calm detachment and is learning to discriminatebetween, the self that imprisons and the self that liberates,between the self that separates and the self that unites. Whathe lost in the flesh he will regain in the spirit and will find inthe universal what he sought in the particular".55

Tagore’s exquisite poem The Golden Boat wasfollowed by a collection of poems published in 1896 under the titleCitra (The Wonderfully Beautiful, the Variegated). In TheGolden Boat and The Wonderfully Beautiful, the Variegated,Tagore marvellously executes the themes of life, love and beauty.The poet realizes utterly the insignificance of life devoid of love. Hefeels deeply the dynamic influence of love. Love is, with Tagore, atranscedental force kindling all things into beauty. Love is to reignsupreme, for only in an atmosphere of love, beauty of life can flourishspontaneously. The poet is aware of comprehensive harmony. Thereis a lyrical development of idea that blends perfectly with theexquisite music, making it a thing of thought and beauty all compact.Krishna Kripalani considers that some of the poems in this volumemark the highest reach of Tagore’s poetic achievement during thisperiod though his genius was like a mountain range that revealed

different peaks in different weathers.Kripalani further explores that Tagore’s growing

apprehension at this period of life of this universal Spirit or Realitywas intensely personal and he could only visualize it in terms of hisown direct perception and need of it.

Tagore was a lover who saw beauty in the commonestthings, who felt its concrete touch in the external world and felt it inhis inmost being and knew that at some level of the subconsciousor the superconscious, the two were intimately related. The samespirit that suffused and ruled this cosmos dwelt within him andenlightened his life and genius. He called it ‘Jivan-Devata’ or Lordof my life. In his famous poem of that title, Tagore says, “0 myinmost Being, has your thirst been quenched by coming intomy heart? I have crushed my heart like grapes in the press,and filled your cup with a thousand pouring of joy and sorrow.I have melted the gold of my desires and made of it ever-newimages for your transient sport."56

Tagore goes on to confess his many limitations andfailures and begs the Lord of his life to forgive them. “How can I,0 Master-poet, sing adequately your music?"57 ToRabindranath, the Infinite is God himself. The ultimate Reality isnot an abstraction to Tagore. It is the sincere belief of Tagore thatthere is no fundamental incompatibility between the Infinite and theFinite which is expressed in his delightful song with amazing lucidity.

“Thou the infinite pourestThy music in the finite;That is why thy manifestationIn me so sweet."58

In these lines Tagore's intimate experience of spiritualecstacy is dealt poignantly and graciously. The very personality ofthe singer melts into his song. He becomes a voice, a lyric incarnate.His expression is not unsubstantial or ineffective. The elegant



rhythmic cadence in this religious verse is certainly remarkable.Tagore's profound and intimate feeling of the Ultimate is marvellouslycaptured in this poem. This is, indeed, one of the finest poems ofTagore which is remarkable for sublimity, intensity and vitality.According to Tagore, The Ultimate Reality is not isolated and remotefrom human beings. The Absolute or the Infinite is very muchsignificant to man and there is an eternal relationship between manand the Ultimate Reality as is revealed passionately in this splendidpoem of Tagore.

Like Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore found theroots of his Religion of Man ( Manava-Dharma ) in the conceptof Vedanta. He delved into the depths of the concept of“tattvamasi” in the Upanishads. Tagore’s views on religion areclosely related to the doctrine expressed in Vedanta orUpanishads. The subject matter of Swami Vivekananda’s writingsand lectures are derived from the doctrine of Vedanta orUpanishads. In 1893 Vivekananda went to Chicago and deliveredlectures on Indian philosophy and religion. In fact, in the culturalrenaissance of India, Vivekananda had a major role which ultimatelycreated a sense of nationalism and patriotism among the Indians.Like Tagore, Vivekananda also believed in Spiritual freedom. Hewas also critical of the western materialistic culture based on politicalpower. Both Tagore and Vivekananda were proud of the greatcultural and religious heritage of India, yet there was a fundamentaldifference between Tagore’s doctrine of religion and the viewpointsof Vivekananda.Vivekananda’s profound conviction of renunciationwas not completely acceptable to Tagore as he could not neglectthe world of the senses.

Tagore had certain reservations regarding the doctrine of'Adwaitabada' or 'Mayabada' that there is one Ultimate Reality.Tagore considers 'Maya' as a mere name, a term incomprehensivewithout any explanation. According to Tagore “...Some of our

philosophers say there is no such thing as finitude; it is but amaya, or illusion. The real is the infinite and it is only maya,the unreality, which causes the appearance of the finite."59

Tagore opposes the doctrine of World negation. His is alife of affirming philosophy. There is, indeed a unique blend of theUltimate Reality and its manifestation in Nature i.e., ‘Purush’ and‘Prakriti’. According to‘Adwaitabad’ all that we see around us is‘Maya’ or illusory appearance a view which was not completelyacceptable to Tagore. The world which reveals the many sidedmagniloquent panorama of nature canot be an illusion. The cosmosor the universe is based on the principle of harmony or unity. Thereis a wonderful synchronization in this cosmos and this principle ofunity is the mystery of all mysteries.

Tagore regarded creation as the resplendent expressionand the manifestation of God, the Ultimate Reality. That is why hestrongly opposes the ‘Mayavada’ of Shankaracharya. He doesnot consider ‘Samsara’ or the universe as distortion that hides‘Brahman’ and stains the white radiance of eternity. Tagore saysthat rhythm never can be born of the haphazard conflict of combat.Rhythm is based on integration and not disintegration and repulsion.

In fact, the universe of colours is the rich manifestation ofthe Ultimate Reality and His wonderful glory. Creation of the universeis a unique reconciliation of the Finite and the Infinite. Tagore’sexplicit explanation of the unison or harmony of the creation isrevealed in the following lines :-“We have what we call in Sanskrit dvandva, a series ofopposites in creation, such as, the positive pole and thenegative, the centripetal force and centrifugal, attraction andrepulsion. These are also mere names, they are no explanation.They are only different ways of asserting that the world in itsessence reconciliation of pairs of opposing forces, like the leftand the right hands of the creator, are acting in absolute



harmony, yet acting from opposite directions."60

According to Tagore there is an integral relationshipbetween individual and universe, i.e. between microcosm andmacrocosm. He considers the soul (Atma) of a man great as hissoul comprehends all which fulfils the desire of Ultimate Reality(Paramatma). By this power of all-inclusiveness or comprehension,man is united with the all-pervading spirit (Paramatma). Indeed hisfreedom or manifestation is in the fulfilment of love which is inevitablefor comprehension, man is united with the all-pervading spirit(Paramatma). Indeed his freedom or manifestation is in the fulfilmentof love which is inevitable for perfect comprehension.

Thus, it is obvious from the foregoing discussion of Tagore’sconcept of religion that it is yet another attempt to integrate life onearth with spiritual possibilities to the fullest. To Tagore, the worldwas not just a stage man plays a role but it was a means to achievea vision of reality in which the values of truth, beauty and goodnesscould be developed to its fullest.

Tagore was neither an ascetic who deliberately renouncedthe world nor a hedonist who felt that life is meant to be enjoyed inthe frills or fretted over trifles. Far from it he envisaged a conceptof synthesis in which man’s self-consciousness merged fully withthe world consciousness in the best possible manner. There wereindeed many mystical elements in Tagore’s religious thought but itis also matched by his immediate concern with affairs of practicallife. Thus, for him personal salvation and the salvation of humanrace were not opposed to each other but manifestations of sameurge for freedom and liberation.

Tagore’s integrated vision and his keen political sensibilityconvinced him that a synthesis of the East and the West, reasonedemotion, thought and action must be co-ordinated to the fullest.Perhaps Tagore’s religion could be described as a quest for universalhumanism. In fact, while he drew substance from various Indian

sources such as the Upanishads, Vaishnav philosophy, songs ofBauls and various personalities of ‘Indian Bhakti Movement’, hewas equally fascinated by Christianity and other westernmovements.

In Tagore’s conception of religion, the unity of mankindand his awareness of contributions of individuals who attaineduniversal salvation without losing one’s identity must be blendedtogether. That is why in stead of putting emphasis on the muchmaligned doctrine of ‘Maya’ and transmigration, he preferred toput emphasis on individual freedom of action with a selflessdetachment.

In fact, if a comparison is needed, Tagore’s effort could beparalled with W.B. Yeats’ constant seeking for what he called ‘Unityof Being’ in many of his prose writings. Yeats often talked ofstriving for a Unity of Being, Unity of image and Unity of Culture ina world which was rent by various conflicts and dissensions. Yeatswrote in his autobiography:I am very religious and deprived byHuxley and Tyndall, Whom I detested, of the simple-mindedreligion of my Childhood. I had made a new religion, almostan infallible church of Poetic tradition... with some help fromphilosophers and theologians." 61

Tagore similarly admitted "My Religion is in thereconciliation of the superpersonal man, the universal humanspirit, in my own individual being." 62

000





Ahmedabad. This was Gandhi’s lifelong passion and also the nucleusof his colossus national activity.

Gandhi plunged into active politics in 1919 through hisprotest against the Rowlatt Act which eventually resulted in thekilling of Lala Lajpat Ray and the subsequent ‘Jallianwallah BagMassacre’. However, before that Gandhi had organized a firstmassive mass movement in Champaran in 1917 against theatrocities of British rulers in charge of indigo farming.

After Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa and hisemergence in Indian politics culminating in the Non-cooperationmovement and Tagore propagating his ideology ofall-comprehending universalism during and after the First WorldWar, a major controversy started between Tagore and Gandhi. Itwas Gandhi’s social and political movement in South Africa whichmade him known to Tagore, and in this context Tagore’s closefriend C.F.Andrews and one of his colleagues at Santiniketan, W.W.Pearson, played an important role. At the end of 1913, Andrewsand Pearson resolved to visit Gandhi and to advance his cause inSouth Africa. Tagore received information regarding Gandhi’s socialand political activities in South Africa from C.F.Andrews.

The years between 1914 and 1922 were crowded withimportant political episodes in the national life of India. In 1914-15, Gandhi entered public life in India with passionate enthusiasm.The Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress in 1916revived hopes of co-ordination between the moderate and extremistgroup and between Congress and the Muslim League. Thedeclaration by the British in August 1917 regarding the future policyof promoting self-governance and a “responsible government ofIndia” raised expectations which was shattered by the enactmentof the Rowlatt Act of 1919 which weakened the fabric of basiccivil liberties.

‘The Khilafat movement’ and ‘Non-cooperation

CHAPTER-VTagore, Gandhi and the vision of a new India

The greatest glory that Mahatma Gandhi’s name hasacquired in Indian history is his being called ‘the Father of theNation’. At a time when India was politically subjugated by theBritish, the advent of Gandhi marked an epoch in her history. LikeRabindranath Tagore, Gandhi was also a visionary activist. Gandhi’sactive participation in politics was not an immediate reaction to anysocial or political event. He had experienced the imperialist designin South Africa where he launched his first movement what heexplained as sword of the spirit against the machine guns andweapons. In stead of asking the natives to fight against the whiterulers, Gandhi stimulated them with his idealism of obedience,patience, forbearance, long and continuous suffering, courage andgoodwill. The establishment of Tolstoy farm was the first importantstep to inspire the local people for the cultivation of these moraland spiritual values.

It is worthwhile to remember that Gandhi did not plungeinto politics immediately after coming home completing his successfulmovement in South Africa. He observed contemporary Indianpolitical scenario without any active participation or expressing anystatement. By the time he got an invitation from Gokhale, the eminentnationalist and political personality to join the servants of Indiansociety and Gandhi was also willing but the death of Gokhale in1915 compelled Gandhi to drop the idea. In stead Gandhi foundedhis ‘Satyagraha Ashram’ on the banks of ‘Sabarmati’ river near

movement’ launched by Mahatma Gandhi between 1919 and 1922made Tagore uncomfortable. Tagore could not appreciate Gandhi’spolitical agenda, actions and practices which included “boycott ofgovernment schools” and of “inducing the people to give upforeign clothes and take to swadeshi products.”1 However,Gandhi and Tagore, keeping aside their differences continued toenjoy each other’s confidence and support on some political, socialand religious issues.

It is an important event in Indian history when the twocelebrities of modern Indian renaissance, Tagore and Gandhi metfor the first time at Santiniketan in 1915. The meeting was organizedby Charles Freer Andrews who was the most intimate personallink between Tagore and Gandhi till his death in 1940. Hence, thereis no denying the fact that C.F. Andrews played a significant role tohighlight the marvellous visions of Gandhi and Tagore. It isworthwhile to mention that Andrews came to India in 1904 to workas a missionary teacher at St. Stephen’s College, Delhi.

In 1912 Andrews met Tagore at the house of WilliamRothenstein where Tagore recited his translated poems fromGitanjali. This meeting with Tagore changed Andrews’ course oflife as he later on concentrated his mission to uplift the social, culturaland religious life of Indian people with earnest service. On hisreturn to India, Andrews visited Santiniketan in the year 1913 whenTagore received the Nobel Prize for Gitanjali (Song Offerings).Impressed with serene atmosphere of Santiniketan, Andrewsdecided to settle there as he felt a unique inclination for Tagore.However, before his settlement at Santiniketan, Andrews was askedby Gokhale to visit South Africa to know about the contemporarysituations. In South Africa, Andrews came in close contact withGandhi. Andrews described Tagore’s noble vision andextraordinary personality to Gandhi and he wrote letters to Tagorevividly projecting Gandhi’s thoughts and social and political

activities.Returning from South Africa, Andrews started his living at

Santiniketan since June 1914 and remained dedicated to his missiontill his death in 1940. By the time Andrews kept in touch with Gandhi,eventually Gandhi came to Santiniketan on 17 February 1915 buthe could not meet Tagore who was away in Calcutta. On 6 March1915 he came again to stay for six days and it was then that Gandhiand Tagore met for the first time. Gandhi along with the students ofhis Phoenix School in South Africa (having disbanded his phoenixsettlement and school in South Africa, decided to send the inmatesto India) visited Santiniketan when Andrews persuaded Tagore tooffer them temporary accomodation at Santiniketan.2 Gandhirecalled his visit to Santiniketan later on in his speech at Santiniketanin February 1940. “It was here that the members of my SouthAfrican family found warm hospitality in 1914, pending myarrival from England, and I too found shelter here for nearly amonth.”3

Gandhi was primarily a social and political activist. Hiswritings emerged mainly during the varied processes of social,economic and political actions. During his entire lifetime, Gandhiwrote only three books. These books are Autobiography,Satyagraha in South Africa and Hind Swaraj. At first sight wemight be inclined to place Gandhi in the category of ideologists.The literary form of his work is a secondary matter. He is primarilyconcerned to promulgate certain social, cultural, political andreligious ideas and theories in his books and he uses the form whichseems to him the most convenient or suitable for the moment toeffectuate his mission. Gandhi has a definite theory of life, which,whatever be the merits or demerits, gives a homogeneity to hiswork. His writings are purely argumentative and they are variedand continuous expression of a distinctive systematised outlook.

George Woodcock thinks that the popularity of Gandhi’s



political ideas was essentially due to his reputation as an activist.The comment made by Woodcock seems partial judgement onGandhi’s creative works. There is no denying the fact that Gandhi’sHind Swaraj, like Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s Samya (Equality)is an important contribution to modern political ideas. It is recognizedas being Gandhi’s most fundamental work. The earliest and mostwell-known formulation of Gandhi’s critique and alternative visionwas explained in Hind Swaraj (Indian Home Rule 1909). Indeed,the political, economic, educational and ethical thoughts presentedby Gandhi in Hind Swaraj are evocative as well as refined andsuggestive.

Gandhi’s vision and activity during the last forty years (1908-1948) of his life are reflected in his book Hind Swaraj. K.R.Srinivasa Iyengar rightly observes that Hind Swaraj is verily the’locus classicus’ among Gandhi’s writings. It is cast in the form oftwenty brief dialogues between ‘Reader and Editor’ and coversthe panorama such as Indian subcontinent and England, Italy andIndia, Civilization, Swaraj, Machinery, Hindu-Muslim amity, Lawand Medicine, Education, Violence and Non-violence and thedoctrine of Satyagraha.

It is worthwhile to mention that a close reading of influencesof Ruskin, Tolstoy and Thoreau is essential to the understanding ofboth Gandhian thought and techniques of action. Gandhi owed toRuskin that an unequal social order isolated from realities of labourcannot allow for the possibility of Non-violence. Besides, Tolstoy’sfaith in love and teachings of Christ, particularly Sermon on theMount and The Bible (The New Testament) and Thoreau’s notionof Civil disobedience influenced Gandhi in evolving his concept of‘Satyagraha’. Following Thoreau,Gandhi advocated emancipationof man from the outside bondage, from the self-imposedimprisonment which he terms as civilization, for it had infected themind and soul of the modern man. As a keen observer, Gandhi

could not fail to see the intellectual poverty of modern life, the clingingby the masses to mouldering traditions, the alternate yielding to apolicy of inertia and to blind instinctive passions. The most strikingthing of Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj is his power of concrete presentment.Here Gandhi is critical of the modern industrialised westerncivilization. Gandhi considered the advent of technology andindustrialization as the fundamental cause of human misery in modernsociety. Gandhi writes,“Civilization is like a mouse gnawing, while it is soothing us,when its full effect is realized, we will see that religioussuperstition is harmless compared to that of moderncivilization. I am not pleading for a continuance of religioussuperstitions. We will certainly fight them tooth and nail, butwe can never do so by disregarding religion.”4 Gandhi proclaimsthat only with the abolition of industrial civilization, the eradicationof the evils of industrialization was possible. Like Wordsworth,Gandhi was convinced that man’s salvation lies in a return to Nature.Gandhi’s perspective to Nature is very similar to Wordsworth. LikeWordsworth, Gandhi was also a moralist at heart, with one steadypurpose in view, and leaving aside much that was fascinating andperplexing. Gandhi’s ideology reminds us of Wordsworth’s splendidsonnet The world is too much with us where the poet retains thefresh simplicity and austere endurance of Nature and discards thenarrow idea of mere accumulation of wealth and superficial life ofentertainment.

Gandhi wanted to limit industrialization. For Gandhi a freeIndia would be one which would be free from the political andeconomic institutions. India, in Gandhi’s view, can achieve salvationonly if she could grow without the pressure and strains of moderncivilization. This autonomous development of Gandhi’s articulateideas is the fullest expression of the native roots of modern Indianpolitical doctrine. From Raja Ram Mohan Roy to Rabindranath,



the effort is for the assimilation of western culture and Indiantradition. In twentieth century, Tagore and Gandhi, the twooutstanding personalities of modern world history tried to establisha congenial cultural and moral atmosphere against the catastrophicdisaster of the west under the trampling tread of contendingcommerce and politics, the aggressiveness, intolerance andcynicism. Like Gandhi, Rabindranath the visionary activist tried toeradicate social evils like poverty, illiteracy, sickness, insecurityand injustice. Tagore’s grave concern for this global problem isrevealed in his address delivered in reply to a felicitation organisedby the soviet writers:“...the world problem of civilisation today has taken man faraway from his moral humanity. It has torn individualpersonality away from society. Modern civilization has givenbirth to an extraordinarily artificial life, it has created diseases,evoked specific suffering and given rise to many anomalies. Ido not know what ought to be done to cure modern civilizationof its ills. I do not know if the path you have chosen in thiscountry for the solution of this problem is the right one. Historywill judge the extent to which you have been successful...1 amfilled with enthusiasm for the way in which you have for thefirst time afforded to all, the opportunity of acquiringeducation. For this I would applaud you...In your country youare not only giving the individual scientific education, you aremaking him a creative personality. In this way, you are realisingthe greatest, the highest ideal of humanity. For the first timein history you are giving the hidden wealth of the human minda chance to express itself.”5 Later on in a discussion with ProfessorPetrov, Tagore has said, “Education to vast multitudes of yourpeople who were kept imprisoned in the darkness of ignorance,millions of human beings who never got any chance to realisetheir humanity and were obliged to yield to exploitation and

oppression in order to preserve their precarious existence, youhave made an invaluable contribution to human progress. Youare creating a new world of humanity, and for the first time inhistory, acknowledging the dignity of man in your scheme ofpractical work.”6 Tagore further stated frankly, “Today we haveto remember this: India is now going through a revolution.There a struggle is going on between the government and thepeople. The suspicious government is very careful in thisenvironment. Even an ordinary incident with which there is noconnection with politics, is viewed as propaganda... The onlyaim of my life is to spread the light of education. I am not apolitician.”7 Tagore addressed the Pioneer Commune on 14thSeptember 1930:“Believe me I have come here not so much to see what youhave done and doing now which is great, but to visualise thefuture which you are creating with such fervor for the welfareof the whole community.”8

It is significant to mention that the social, political andreligious doctrine of Tagore and Gandhi have become importantfor India as well as the developed countries of West. Tagore’sdenunciation of the cult of nationalism and Gandhi’s doctrine ofdecentralized, participatory and self-sufficient polity have relevantfactors for restructuring the political and economic status of thecontemporary world.

Tagore and Gandhi, the two most important pioneers ofIndian Renaissance, influenced the modern world with theirmarvellous original thinking. In this materialistic age ofdehumanisation and depression, the hopes and aspirations of humanbeings throughout the world receive a new impetus with theevocative ideas of these two thinkers. Gandhi, primarily a man ofaction, gave emphasis on the close inter-relationship between endsand means whereas Tagore discards the cult of aggressive



nationalism and passionate defence of the primacy of reason as thebasis of human emancipation. While Gandhi’s life was densed withpolitical episodes, Tagore’s life was enlightened with intellectual,artistic and literary events. Even though Gandhi was a political activistand Tagore a poet and artist, there was a peculiar consistency. Theessence of Gandhi’s entire political philosophy can be found in hisbook Hind Swaraj as Tagore’s socio-political thinking is revealedin his brilliant rendering Swadeshi Samaj published in 1904. Thebook Swadeshi Samaj makes it clear that there is an element ofanarchistic thinking in Tagore as much as Gandhi.Tagore is concernedwith the intellectuals and creative artists’ role in national politicallife. He raises two important points. First, that unlike in Europe, theState has never been in India a Central force in the life of the nation.Unlike European civilization, which assigned a central position tothe state, Indian civilization emphasized on society guided by‘Dharma’. “The European state is founded upon theacquiescence of society as an essential part thereof- the statehas evolved from the inherent tendencies therein... In ourcountry (in British India) the state is no part of our society, it isexternal to society.”9

Rabindranath Tagore reacted against the tendencies ofthought elevating the state above society, and that applied equallyto political struggle to capture state power. Tagore reiterated thenecessity of extending the political struggle into a struggle for intellectand the inner strength of the nation. To Tagore, the movement didnot consist of political stratagem for capturing state power. It is akind of philosophical anarchism. In this regard, mention may bemade that Gandhi has also been described by many critics as ananarchist.

Gandhi who was fundamentally a pragmatic political leadercould not accept Tagore’s approach to Swaraj and the state. Gandhiclarifies his object of Non-cooperation movement which was

basically a political programme. Gandhi writes:“It had become disloyal, almost sacrilegious to say ‘no’

to the government. This deliberate refusal to co-operate is likethe necessary weeding process that a cultivator has to resorthe sows... The nation's non-cooperation is an invitation to theGovernment to cooperate with it on its own terms as is everynation's right and every government's duty.”10

Tagore’s statement of Non-cooperation movement issignificant what he expressed in a letter to Gandhi. From EuropeTagore expressed his anxiety over the issue of Non-cooperationmovement. He wrote three letters to his friends in India whichappeared in Modern Review. The first letter he wrote to Gandhion 12th April 1919. Tagore makes his stand clear when he says,“Power in all its forms is irrational... Passive resistance is aforce which is not necessarily moral in itself; it can be usedagainst truth as well as for it. The danger inherent in all forcegrows stronger when it is likely to gain success, for then itbecomes temptation... Evil on one side naturally begets evilon the other, injustice leading to violence and insult tovengefulness. Unfortunately such a force has already beenstarted and either through panic or through wrath, ourauthorities have shown us their claws whose sure effect is todrive some of us into the secret path of resentment and othersinto utter demoralisation.” 11

Tagore earnestly believed that the power of good mustprove its truth and strength by its fearlessness and by its refusal toaccept any imposition. Tagore further explains his idea that “moralconquest does not consist in success, that failure does notdeprive it of its dignity and worth. Those who believe inspiritual life know that to stand against wrong hasoverwhelming material power, behind it is victory itself, it isthe victory of the active faith in the ideal in the teeth of evident



defeat.”12

Rabindranath Tagore’s experience as an active participantin the Swadeshi Movement following the Partition of Bengal in 1905made him aware of the limitations of the Pre-Gandhian Congressand its Politics. Tagore was hopeful of Gandhi’s promise to transformthe movement of Indian independence into a new direction.

It is relevant to mention that in 1901, at the Calcutta sessionof the Indian National Congress, M.K. Gandhi moved an importantresolution “as a petitioner on behalf of the hundred thousandBritish Indians in South Africa.” 13 During the convention, Gandhimet Jyotirindranath Tagore, the elder brother of Rabindranath. Lateron, a translation of Gandhi’s article on the Indian settlers in SouthAfrica was published in the journal Bharati, with which highlyenlightened Tagores were associated. There is no record of personalconfrontation at this juncture between Rabindranath and Gandhi.On the contrary, Tagore had a compassionate feeling for the Indianstruggle which is evident in his writing, “God save us from thedisastrous notion that dharma is not for the powerless. Let usnot depart from the path of Truth (Satya) that which is Right...It is regrettable that the terror and upheavals of Europe arethe only models before us... Dharma can help us surpassoppression...”14 In the above statement there is similarity betweenTagore’s ideology and Gandhi’s thought.

Indeed, Tagore and Gandhi had a great reverence for eachother. Tagore addressed his younger contemporary as ‘Mahatma(The Great Soul)’ while Gandhi acclaimed Tagore as ‘Gurudev(The Divine Teacher)’. However this mutual affinity and reverencedid not become a hindrance for both to express their views freelyand frankly on contemporary social reality and political associationsand movements. Ironically, Tagore and Gandhi, each in his ownway, observed some deadening threats in the modern materialisticcivilization. The Industrial Revolution has acquired a typical

frightening momentum. The main goal of modern mankind is toacquire possession and power. Human beings have turned into onedimensional individuals. The whirlwind of modern materialisticcivilization puts mankind into a motion which actually generatesdeeper and deeper isolation.

Gandhi’s perception, like Tagore’s were essentially spiritual.Tagore and Gandhi were, each in his own way, deeply religiouspersons. Indeed each has made his own significant contribution tothe spiritual traditions of India. Gandhi’s political ideology cannotbe evaluated except in relation to his doctrine of truth, duty andnon-violence and his vision about man, society and state. Moreover,for Gandhi, the primary object of life was self-realization, whichrequired one’s identification with the mankind, the ultimate missionof welfare to all. Indeed there may be several obstructions likepolitical subjection, unhealthy political institutions and political evilsin the realization of the greatest good. Gandhi’s profound andsuggestive comment that “those who say that religion has nothingto do with politics do not know what religion means,”15 givesemphasis on the fact that the eradication of social and political evilsis only possible when the citizens of a country sincerely participatein active politics. Gandhi’s statement reveals the fact that he is awriter with a purpose, and a dealer in problems related to society,politics and religion. According to him, in a spiritual organic universe,good ends cannot be achieved by evil methods. He, therefore,insisted on nobility of actions to fulfil the marvellous visions.Obviously, Gandhi’s ideology is based on the Hindu concept of‘Satya’ i.e. his religion is the religion of truth. This is the reason thatGandhi had equal reverence for every religion. Explaining his attitudeto religion Gandhi said, “For me humanitarian service, or ratherservice of all is religion. And I draw no distinction betweensuch religion and politics. Indeed, I cannot conceive a life fullof service without its touching politics. I believe that the time



is fast coming when politician will cease to fear the religion ofhumanity and humanitarian will find entrance into politicallife indispensable for full service.”16 The religious conflictaccording to him is only a momentary phenomenon related tocontemporary social and political circumstance and not a permanentfeeling or expression. The religious rituals or dogmas of each ofthese religions or communities induce directly or indirectly an attitudeof apathy, if not contempt, towards the principles of other religions.Fundamentalists and fanatics of one religion or community insistthat the followers of other religions or communities are misguidedand that their only chance of salvation is possible in embracingone’s true religion. Eventually the congenial social atmosphere ishampered and there is a rise of prejudice.

However, Gandhi did not discard the significant role ofreligion as it could vitalize and elevate the inner life of human beings.The primary task of all religions is to awaken the spiritualconsciousness of mankind. Organized religions should be able toactivate the inner spiritual life of their followers so that it may expressitself in universal dimensions. In the words of Gandhi, “Unlessand until we realize this fundamental unity, wars in name ofreligion will not cease. These are not confined to Hindus andMussalmans alone. The pages of world history are soiled withthe bloody accounts of these religious wars. Religion can bedefended only by the purity of its adherents and their gooddeeds, never by their quarrels with those of other faiths.”17

Indeed, God is not a mere abstract ‘idea’ to Gandhi. Farfrom being so, He is a living presense as well as an inner voice tohim. For Gandhi, the finest way to realize the existence of God is towork for the uplift of humanity through rendering service to thelarger community. Like Tagore, Gandhi’s spiritualism washumanistic. Gandhi was conscious of his mission. He writes, “I amconfident that God has made me instrument of showing the

better way.”18 Gandhi represents the message of a new socialorder, an alternative possibility to the contemporary industrial politicaldemocracy. Prof. Shiv Narayan Ray, for example, is explicit in hisstatement that the alternative which Gandhi and Tagore envisionedwere in many respects different from one another, but they sharedin common an unambiguous emphasis on decentralization. Thesociety, they proposed, would be a “network of grassrootdemocracies, each of a size and structure in which all themembers would be able to participate directly and effectivelyin the decision making process.”19

Gandhi believed in the supremacy of the individual. Heinsisted on widest diffusion of power. Under the British rule, theeconomic system of India was adjusted to the needs of the Britishand the interests of the common Indians were completely ignored.The introduction of modern industries and British manufacturedgoods gradually threatened Indian traditional village based oneconomic system. There is no denying the fact that in this crucialcircumstance, Gandhi’s constructive programme aiming atreconstruction of the rural economy and improvement of peasants’material life, his social reform agitations to uplift the social level ofthe downtrodden untouchables and lower castes, and his‘Satyagraha movement’ at winning freedom from British rulechanged India’s social and political pattern to a great extent. Indeed,Gandhi emphasized on the political potentiality of the masses againstelitism. The movement he launched actually changed the course ofIndian public life which was centralized earlier in cities now movedto rural areas. He was concerned with the serious social problemssuch as concentration of wealth, exploitation of the poor, increaseof unemployment, alienation of labour etc. In his view, these seriousissues were caused by monstrous industrial development and assuch he thought that technology could not solve these problemsbut would only intensify the tension, chaos and discrimination. The



solutions to the threatenings caused by industrial civilization, Tagoreand Gandhi envisioned, were, in many respects, different from oneanother but they shared in common their faith in decentralization ofeconomic power, cooperative management and utilization ofresources. Like Gandhi, Tagore’s preference was for co-operativeefforts and constructive programmes. Tagore emphasized co-operative agriculture and was against small holdings. He consideredthe co-operatives as the most significant instrument to fight abjectpoverty. Gandhi believed that the propagation of his ideology wasmore relevant than mere political action. Indeed Gandhi was morecritical of western materialistic civilization. In his view, the modernWest devalued the moral foundations of traditional rich culture andcivilization, advocated agressive materialism and encouraged self-interest, the object of human life.

Gandhi distinguished western civilization from Indiancivilization and believed that “the tendency of the Indiancivilization is to elevate the moral being, that of the westerncivilization to propagate immortality.20

Gandhi was pre-occupied with keeping up India’s culturalidentity and moral courage. He was sharply opposed to thedoctrines of materialism, industrialism, consumerism and self interestof western civilization. Indian civilization, in Gandhi’s view, is asreligious and sacred as life in which the individual seeks truth. Hemaintained that the Indians must preserve the value of their way oflife through’ Satyagraha’ that manifested a religious concern in thepursuit of truth rather than the pursuit of power and wealth. Gandhi’sargument is that modern western civilization takes note neither ofmoral values nor of religion or spiritualism. Furthermore he pointsout, “According to the teaching of Mahomed, this would beconsidered a satanic civilization, Hinduism calls it the BlackAge.”21

In opposition to Gandhi, Tagore was an unofficial

ambassador of Europe. He had a global vision which stressed culturalexchange between the East and the West. Tagore was also criticalof Gandhi’s action and vision at the international level. Tagorebelieved that Gandhian ideology would create a disastrous alienationby closing our doors to western knowledge and advancement.Tagore is explicit in his view, “Universal humanity has sent usits call today. In the West, a real anxiety and effort of theirhigher mind to rise superior to business considerations isbeginning to be seen. I have come across many there whomthis desire has imbued with the true spirit of the Sannyasin,making them renounce their home-world in order to achievethe unity of man by destroying the bondage of nationalism;men who have within their own soul realized the advaita ofhumanity.”22

Tagore envisioned a united mankind and universal humanitywhich is manifested in his songs, poems, short stories, novels, dramasand essays. Tagore’s comprehensive vision about religion and hisclear conception of God is revealed at the end of his article TheCall of Truth. He writes, “Shall it not be our first duty in thedawn to remember Him, who is one, who is without distinctionof class or colour, and who with his varied shakti makes trueprovision for the inherent need of each and every class..."23

Obviously, Tagore was against any narrow parochialismor nationalism. His conception of 'Mahamanav’ or ‘ Visvamanav’reveals his global outlook. Tagore’ s universalistic vision and hiseffort as an activist to create a space beyond the narrow limits ofdominant paradigm of nationalism, though partially influenced bythe West, remained far removed from the realities of politics andthe political awareness that framed India. In fact, Tagore differedwith Gandhi’s aggressive nationalism and the alternative he had inmind was “universal humanity”. In his last message to the world,Tagore with his sure intuition declared: “A day will come when



unvanquished man will retrace his path of conquest, despiteall barriers, to win back his lost human heritage.”24

It is important to mention that Gandhi’s rejection of westernindustrial civilization also reflected his rejection of the world-viewof modern science. To Gandhi, a culture which did not have adoctrine of transcendence could not be morally or cognitivelyacceptable. Ashis Nandy points out that Gandhi knew “thelegitimation of the modern West as a superior culture camefrom an ideology which viewed secularized societies as superiorto the non-secular ones; once one accepted the ideology, thesuperiority of the West became an objective evaluation.”25

Gandhi could not appreciate the effort of the West regardingthe invention of machinery. He is firm in his conviction of Indiantradition when he says, “It was not that we did not know how toinvent machinery but our forefathers knew that. If we set ourhearts after such things, we would become slaves and lose ourmoral fibre. They, therefore, after due deliberation decided thatwe should only do what we could with our hands and feet.”26

There are some confrontations between Tagoreand Gandhi in respect of their approaches to science and technology.In contrast to Gandhi, Tagore emphasized the positive role ofscience and technology in the liberation of mankind from povertyand ignorance. He writes, “One thing is certain, that the all-embracing poverty, which has overwhelmed our country cannotbe removed by working with our hands to the neglect ofscience.” 27

Elaborating his idea, Tagore further says, “If thecultivation of science has any moral significance, it is in itsrescue of man from outrage by nature, not its use of man as amachine but its use of machine to harness the forces of naturein man’s service.”28 Gandhi, however, like Rousseau and Tolstoy,expresses his negative view of science. He observed that science

and technology has made the human life more complex and isolated,inevitably encouraging concentration of power and exploitation.Unlike Gandhi, Tagore, however, believed that without growingscientific knowledge and its application, human life is miserableand static. At the same time, like Gandhi, Tagore realized that scienceand technology without moral enlightenment may cause destructionand disorder. Hence he was quite objective in his critical evaluationof contributions of science and technology for the solution of humanneeds. Tagore in the debate on the ‘charkha’ contended that thegifts of modern technology or science must not be judged by criteriawhich are irrational to science: “Where Mahatma Gandhi hasdeclared war against the tyranny of the machine which isoppressing the whole world, we are all enrolled under hisbanner.”29

However, Tagore is explicit in his statement that he is notmoved with Gandhi’s ‘Charkha’ agitation. In his sarcastic comment,Tagore reveals his disgust for ‘Charkha’. Exactly when Tagorewas engaged in the twenties on the debate of ‘Charkha’, heproposed his ideas on science and technology in his symbolic playThe Freed Waterfall (Mukta Dhara. 1922) explicitly. Indeed,the play The Freed Waterfall is an allegory about the abuse ofscience for purposes related to exploitation and domination. Therevolt of a subject against the king is to be viewed within theframework of a moral allegory.

In the play The Freed Waterfall, Tagore presents a conflictbetween the state of Uttarakut versus the people of Shiv-tarai plainsto the neighbouring kingdom of Uttarakut. Muktadhara is a mountainspring which is very important to irrigate the plains of Shiv-tarai.The king of Uttarakut has had a large dam erected to prevent thewaters of Muktadhara coming down the slopes of Uttarakut whichis main Muktadhara source of economic development of the mass.Tagore depicts a new phenomenon- the cult of machine worshippers



shouting the slogan’ 'Machine, we worship thee' in the opening ofthe play. The citizens ofUttarakut participate in the festival with theking without knowing the consequence. Ultimately, King Ranjit andhis associate Vibhuti, the advocate of the machine are destroyedby the mass upsurge led by Vairagi Dhananjoy, a follower ofGandhian ideology and the heir-apparent Abhijit. Evidently the kingRanjit there stands for the ruthless power of the modern state.Indeed, the symbolic play Mukta Dhara is a dramatic expression,a noble tribute to the personality of Gandhi and his ideology ofnon-violence. Tagore broods on the socio-political scenario of thecountry and he brilliantly executes his political doctrine withdirectness and tremendous vigour. His reaction against tyranny andexploitation and his conviction that tyranny can be effectively resistedby non-violence is clearly evident in the play Mukta Dhara. MuktaDhara, as the title indicates, is a tremendous vindication of theinvincible spirit of man vis-a-vis the collective ruthless arroganceand brute power of collective man embodied in the State.

In his various plays and lectures Tagore wrestled in variousforms with the central idea of conflict between the individual manand the collective man or sometimes between man and machine. Inhis lecture, Tagore declared: “Manual work mechanicallyperformed stultifies the mind and blunts the intellect...Therecan be no dignity in slaving for a wage... A peasant who isonly a vassal or slave can claim no dignity... He puts his handto the job- but only as a machine or automation and that isnot conducive to his development as a complete humanbeing.”30 Further more Tagore says: “When the time comes forour thinkers and intellectuals to take agricultural activitiesunder their responsibility, the schism that at present existsbetween the hand and the brain for a large section of ourpopulation, will vanish!”31

Red Oleanders (Rakta Karabi) is yet another proposition

play of Rabindranath Tagore. It is more complex than the previousplay Mukta Dhara but thematically it also symbolizes the growingpower of the state which is managed, controlled and manipulatedby a ruthless governor or police chief armed with almost absolutepowers. Tagore, like W.B. Yeats, was one of those poets, andauthors who could correctly anticipate the menace of Fascism,enveloping both Asia and Africa along with many peace-lovingdemocratic states of Europe. In a letter, Tagore explained the genesisand the gist of the just written play Red Oleanders (Rakta Karabi).According to Tagore, “The people of the country of Kuvera areengaged in digging out with all their might precious gold,tearing it out from the underground world. Driven by thecovetous rage for cruel hoarding, the people have banishedall the sweetness of life from the place.”32

Tagore further adds, “that is why he has forgotten thevalue of joy is greater than the value of gold; he has forgottenthat there is no fulfilment in might, that there is fulfilment onlyin love.”33 In other words, Red Oleanders is also a ‘propositionplay’ which offers a point of view through the device of symbolicpresentation of two opposing ideas represented by two differentcharacters.

As Prof. S.K. Desai observes, Red Oleanders is the mostcomplex of Tagore’s proposition plays and hence to many the most‘obscure’ or ‘puzzling or elusive’. However, the fact remains thatthe play in question offers an example of Tagore’s determined effortto make a comprehensive statement about his philosophy of life.Obviously Tagore presents a forceful contest between two sets ofvalues or ideals one of which the poet approves while the other hedismisses as quite irrelevant and positively evil as well. The dramatisthere presents an elaborate parallelism between those two worldsand values. The material value or pursuit of power is representedin its worst form by the king who is supported by other seekers or



co-shares of power and material glory and they include ProfessorGosai, the preacher, of course the governor, the chief agent andexecutive of the king. On the other side there are characters likeNandini and Ranjan and their supporters among the subjects. TheKing lives behind a rich network of intricate pattern the elaboratesecurity precautions and arrangements that have become the orderof the day since the time of Hitler and Mussolini. Naturally, the kingis quite cut off from his subjects and has no commerce with humanity.The kingdom lives on its gold mines run by indentured labour.

The enslaved subjects are too demoralized and helpless to askwhat they have lost in the process. Tagore wrote: “They acceptedtheir surroundings as king, priest, professor and governorordered or taught. They took for granted the perpetualdomination of the strong, the continued oppression of the weak,and that, in the effort to pile up material wealth, they should,by their own fellows, be transformed from men intomachineries; to the mutilation of their own humanity.34

According to Tagore, the real conflict is between man andmachine, between personality and organization. Man needs bothmachine and organization, but they must be mastered and humanizedby him in stead of his being mechanized and dehumanized by them.“Man's real danger,” Tagore warns us “lies not in the risk ofour material security but in the obscuration of man himself inthe human world.”35

Yakshapuri is the symbol of capitalism and imperialism asexplained by Tagore time and again. It is obvious from Tagore’sstatement when he says, “a work of this nature springs from avision that is vivid to (author) himself and a feeling that belongsto his direct experience.”36 By the term “direct experience” Tagoremeant “the darkest hour of dismay” as he considered capitalismis the root of destruction in the modern time. The king in the playRed Oleanders is ‘not an individual but a doom’ the symbol of

international capitalism. In Tagore’s words “The world has becomethe world of Jack and Giant- the Giant who is not a giganticman, but a multitude of men turned into a gigantic system.”37

The voice of the king in the play Red Oleanders is thevoice of gigantic system, the system of capitalism as indicated byTagore himself. Tagore writes, “now we have an organizedavarice- frightfully simple in its purpose, mechanicallycomplicated in its process. Its messengers who come to us- bethey Lord Birkenhead or Lord Curzon- are never for us ourfellow beings in flesh and blood... They are abstractions atonce far and near and therefore awful; they are obscure to usin the dark scenery of their political laboratory and yet grimlyconcrete in their grasp upon our vitals.” 38

In the play Red Oleanders, Nandini and Ranjan are bothsymbolic characters though they are individualized with brief strokes.The play provides a fitting climax in which the Yakshapuri isdestroyed. Though Ranjan dies in the struggle, he succeeds inchanging the king who himself revolts against his own system. Inthe end, jail is broken and the governor is unable to contain therebels who all cry with passionate enthusiasm “Victory to Ranjan”and “Victory to Nandini,” victory to life, victory to love.

Thus the theme of the play Red Oleanders is a titanic strugglebetween spirit and matter. Tagore does not present a clear-cutvictory of Nandini and Ranjan over the king and the governor. Herather shows that love and beauty joined by joy can bring about amiraculous transformation in the whole world. Nandini is thechallenge of beauty and love to a world dominated by money andpower. The question now arises: Has Tagore succeeded in makinghis idea explicit and convincing?

Nandini is at once a real and a symbolic character. Tagorewas convinced that Nandini has definite feature of an individualperson and she cannot be dismissed as an abstraction. To him, she



is a real person but this is only partially true. As long as she talks tothe common folk, she speaks like a real person. But the momentshe confronts the king, her language becomes mystical and symbolic.This creates a confusion about her real identity. Even Tagore admitsthat Nandini is the female principle which alone restores the humanto the desolated world of man. This is quite understandable. ButNandini seems to be giving her love to Ranjan and the king as well.However, Tagore fails to create a proper language and situation sothat the double relationship or significance is not realized. To thatextent the play fails, in spite of its wonderful organization, becauseof its unsteady movement on the slippery path between the humanrealistic emotional planes and intellectual-allegorical symbolicalplane. However, as a proposition play, the play Red Oleandersstates some of the Tagore’s considered views with amazing clarity.It has an optimistic note, represented by the transformed king, “Bebrave, Nandini, trust me. Make me your comrade today tofight against me, but with your wand in mind. Let your handunite with mine to kill me, utterly kill me. That will be myemancipation."39

Thus, like Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound, RedOleanders, the play of Tagore projects a vision of hope of love forhumanity. In the plays Mukta Dhara (The Freed Waterfall) andRakta Karabi (Red Oleanders) Tagore reasserted his faith in man.Tagore communicates his idea that spiritual crisis can be resolvedonly through the acceptance of love. The basic theme in both theplays is man’s revolt against the bonds that seek to curl his nature.It is only when power is united to knowledge and love that wehave the flowering of man’s personality in all its splendour. Tagorepointed out that spiritual exaltation invariably leads to material glory.Those who are engrossed in the world here and now are equallydoomed with those who deny the world in pursuit of some unearthlyglory in the world beyond.

It is quite pertinent to view the play Red Oleanders as atitanic struggle between forces of capitalism and imperialism in thelight of Tagore’s own observations made in the Visva BharatiQuarterly as early as October 1925. In the following lines Tagoreelaborates his precise ideology: “Today another factor has madeitself immensely evident in shaping and guiding human destiny.It is the spirit of organisation, which is not social in character,but utilitarian... Naturally, in all organisations, variation ofpersonality is eliminated, and the individual members in so faras they represent the combination to which they belong giveexpression to a common type and very little to their uniquenessof individuality... this aspect of it is forcibly presented to us,causing the spread of dumb sadness over a vast portion of theworld and the dread of a devastation of its future into an utterlybankrupt life.”40

Not only this, in an early but celebrated essay Nationalismpublished in 1917, Tagore had clearly anticipated a growing menacewhich could rock the modern civilization in not too distant future.In fact, in a language which clearly voices the view of Karl Marx,Tagore had diagnosed the modern ailment as a scenario where“the competition grows keener, organization grows vaster, andselfishness attains supremacy. Trading upon the greed and fearof man, it occupies more and more space in society, and at lastbecomes its ruling force.” 41

Here the expression ‘organization’ clearly expresses theMarxist view of interminable economic war waged between'capital and labour’ and resulting into 'eternal feuds’. The playRed Oleanders written few years later highlights the conflict betweencapital and labour which was first outlined in the essay Nationalism.Here it is worthwhile to quote again from his essay Nationalism:“The power has become too abstract- it is a scientific productmade in the political laboratory of the nation, through the



dissolution of personal humanity.”42

Hence, Tagore’s ideal in the play Red Oleanders becomesNandini who embodies the message of the grim reality as well asthat infinite personality. Perhaps, it is not too much to say thatTagore’s exploration of the greed and fear of man in an abstractsystem approximates Marxist theory of class. Conflict and the needfor withering of the state resulting into the creation of the proletariatas the real builder of power. In fact, Red Oleanders refers to theinherent danger as well as points to the remedy in the form ofrestoration of man’s true personality. As Tagore put it beautifully,“I have a stronger faith in the simple personality of man thanin the prolific brood of machinery that wants to crowd it out.”From this remark as well as from his play Red Oleanders, itbecomes obvious that Tagore was no hedonist or a simple spiritualascetic but a visionary activist who could see beyond the imagesand present the furthest possibilities of universal man.

Like Gandhi, Tagore desired a reconciliation between hisinnate vision and activity. Both Gandhi and Tagore believed thatthe integration of personality is achieved with proper co-ordinationof thinking and action. Krishna Kripalani, in his assessment ofTagore and Gandhi, is genuine as he writes, “Eighty years laterwhen Tagore died, the face of India had changed. Culturallyshe had recovered her self-respect and politically she was aboutto launch the great rebellion of August 1942. True, the creditfor this political awakening must go mainly to the IndianNational Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi.But political awakening and cultural consciousness do not growin water-tight compartments. Their roots are linked togetherand are ultimately led by a common stream of creativeinspiration. Of this creative inspiration, Tagore was one of themain channels.”44

In his assessment of Gandhi as an Indo-Anglian author,

M.K. Naik observes that Gandhi is not only an Indo-Anglian authorin his own right, but also “a colossus who best rides almost overthe entire field of Indian writing in English in several forms,appearing either as a character or as a subject or as a pervasiveinfluence upon the social and political scene depicted by thewriter.”45

In fact, Mahatma Gandhi has left a permanent impact uponmodern Indian renaissance. His essays on education, politics andreligion have a perennial effect on the readers. Gandhi’s strength asa writer lies in its utter sincerity and transparent authenticity. It ispossible to differ with Gandhi’s political or religious doctrine or hisview on education but there is no denying the fact that theauthenticity of his convictions gives a new dimension to his writingand makes him a master of English prose style. Paradoxicallyenough, Gandhi had no pretentions to be an author as he franklyconfesses in his writing published in Harijan on1st May, 1937.Gandhi wrote: “My writing should be cremated with my body;what I have done will endure, not what I have said or written.”46

Indeed, one cannot deny Gandhi’s significant contributionto Indian writing in English as he ushered in a style which isconfessional and completely functional. Gandhi’s prose-style isremarkable for its directness, simplicity and clarity. Spiritual fervour,sharp intellect and preoccupation are the hallmarks of Gandhi’sprose writings. Gandhi’s style is individual, competent, vigorous,adroit and perspicuous. Gandhi’s prose, like his personality, isthoroughly instinct with simplicity and evinces to an intellect, bothspiritual and sublime. His endeavour appeal to as many readers aspossible determines the characteristic of his impassioned prose.Before Gandhi, Indo-Anglian prose writing was rhetorical andperiodical. The prose-style was characterized by balancing andskilful marshalling of clauses, learned quotation and classical allusion,dignified and sonorous oration. To Gandhi goes the credit for



simplifying Indian English, for loading every idea with spiritualityand for fusing thought with feeling. The following prose passage isan example of Gandhi’s evocative prose-style.

M.K. Naik in his objective analysis of Gandhi’s prosewriting comments that as a writer of English prose, Gandhi lacksthe rhetorical aptitude of Radhakrishnan, the wonderful poeticsplendour of the great poetess Sarojini Naidu, the burning zeal ofVivekananda, the imaginative and emotional overtones of Nehru,but the vibrancy and vigour of his direct and simple prose-styleestablishes him as a great Indo-Anglian prose writer. It is Gandhi’sunified sensibility that can amalgamate his doctrine of politics andreligion, art and science etc. Gandhi’s prose writings, indeed, isthe prose of conviction and confidence with an ease and spontaneityof an English author. Regarding creative art, the most striking factin Gandhi is that his views are narrow and conservative. They arealmost Tolstoyian view of art. In this context one may recall Tolstoy’scomment on Shakespeare’s literary works as ‘insignificant andsimply bad’ as they induced in him 'repulsion, weariness andbewilderment.' Tolstoy considers Shakespeare’s work as immoralas they lack religious essence.

Unlike Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore was a creative artistand the’ alternative life style’ which he visualized and personallyexemplified derived much of its extraordinary richness andrefinement from his "profound appreciation of the aesthetic andartistic dimensions of human personality?"

On the contrary, Gandhi’s work resembled the moral-likeTolstoy and it rejected whatever was sensuous and erotic. Indeed,Gandhi’s approach to art and aesthetic experience was not liberal.Tagore, on the other hand, believed that art was one of the highestexpressions of human freedom. He envisioned in the sensuous,aesthetic and the multivalent the presence of a richness from whichto be deprived was disastrous. This presence he found both in

nature and in works of art but most distinctively of all, in the playfulworking of the human imagination. The theory and practice of hiseducational experiments in visvabharati highlighted his aestheticdoctrine that the human personality replenished itself through itsaesthetic relation with nature.

000



CHAPTER- VITHE CONCLUSION

Rabindranath Tagore was not only an author and a poetbut also an educationist, a social and economic reformer andrehabilitator, a political leader of the highest type with vision, amusician and a composer, and a dramatic producer as well as aplastic artist, a painter. It is worthwhile to mention that over andabove being a poet, novelist and dramatist, Tagore was aneducationist, and quite early in his life, round about his fortieth year,armed with the blessings of his father Maharshi DevendranathTagore. he started Santiniketan, an open-air School in 1901.

Tagore’s life-long interest in education flowed mainly fromhis dissatisfaction with the morbid commercialised education ofmodern time, and he accordingly strove to make Sriniketan andSantiniketan the focal points of a new experiment in living.Santiniketan was thus at once a home for retirement and meditation,and an ‘ashram’ for cultural and spiritual realisation. Tagore wastrying to give shape of a centre of Indian culture and an EasternUniversity where thinkers, scholars and creative minds wouldassemble and where, western ideas and values would also begenerated in this institution. Indeed such an education would notbe confined within narrow domestic walls nor could it be whollyjob oriented just for the creation of clerks, doctors, lawyers andengineers. In fact, he wanted to reform humanity through education.Like Tolstoy, Tagore believed that education should cultivate a lovefor mankind and to look beyond the frontiers of race, nation andcivilization. Education, to him, was a process of identification. Hebelieved that education had a spiritual meaning. Rabindranath Tagore

and Tolstoy, both of them believed that aggressive nationalism andpatriotism should not be encouraged in education. They regardedcensorship and suppression of new ideas as absolute evils.

Tagore regretted that the universities in India are not rootedin the native soil and alienated from the mainstream of nationalenvironment and were neglecting the problems of common men ofthe country. His idea of Visva-Bharati is a symbol of intellectuallearning and humanism which encompass a global co-operativecommunity. He was appreciative of the intense aspiration and thespirit of adventure of European countries which has, in fact,enlightened the whole universe. With his passionate mind Tagorefounded his famous international university Visva Bharati, anextension of his school in 1921. Its memorable Memorandumincluded a splendid ideal: “ To study the Mind is a vision of Manin its realization of different aspect of truth from different pointsof view."1

These words express the mission of the poet to establishan educational institution, a place where India was to meet the restof the world for mutual benefit in the domains of intellectual, artisticand spiritual culture. Tagore’s deepest aspiration is revealed in hisstirring expression: “Visva-Bharati represents India where shehas her wealth of mind which is for all. Visva-Bharatiacknowledges India’s obligation to offer to others thehospitality of her best culture and India’s right to accept fromothers their best”.2

In 1925 on his way to Europe, Tagore writes from theship: “For me the method of Education lies along the way ofthe renunciant. We have to move out, along with our students,as seekers of the unknown and keep education in tune withthe flow of life.”3

Tagore’s essay“My school” is an important document ofhis views on education and as a visionaty activist, Visva-Bharatihas been one of his great constructive works in life. The highesteducation, according to Rabindranath Tagore, is that “which does



not merely give us information but makes our life in harmonywith all existence."4

Tagore considered Education as an inspiration and heemphasized the need for drawing out the potentialities instead ofpouring some information. Tagore undertook the difficult job ofeducating the multitude of people. He repeatedly reiterated thateducation remains incomplete if there is no psychological andspiritual freedom. He believed that love is the main source ofinspiration. It works like a magic wand and creates interest. Tagorestressed the personality of the teacher. The teacher should beinterested in all aspects of life. If the teacher was hostile towardsthe students, he would become a negative influence. According toTagore, if the teacher really loved his vocation and had regard forthe personality of the student, and if he considered education as acontinuous process, only then he would become a source ofenlightenment and empowerment. The teacher, in his opinion, shouldhave a love for the children and for themselves. Otherwise theycan never be good teacher. That is why Tagore always suggested asystem of education conductive to self-expansion and self-realisation. He had infinite faith in the individual and he believedthat to love man and to love God was the beginning and end of allknowledge. Tagore's essay "My School" highlights marvellouslythe psychological needs of children. The children, according to him,are like angels, full of life and purity. So, they should be guided bythe spirit of love, kindness, co-operation and compassion.

Rabindranath Tagore explicitly states his views onEducation in his essay The Centre of Indian Culture. The mostimportant factor in Education is the inspiring atmosphere of creativeactivity. According to Tagore, the primary function of a universityshould be the constructive work of knowledge. He expresses hisdissatisfaction over the prevalent system of education in India whichdoes not provide scope for intellectual exploration and creation.He believes that the main object of teaching is not to explain themeaning but to knock at the door of the mind. Indeed, teaching

should be spontaneous and inevitable flow of culture. The educationwhich is isolated from the main stream of national life, is , in fact,worthless. Hence, education should be in perfect harmony withmen’s complete life, economical, intellectual, aesthetic, social andspiritual. Tagore writes, “Our educational institutions should bein the very heart of our society, connected with it by the livingbonds of varied co-operations. For true education is to realizeat every step how our training and knowledge have organicconnection with our surroundings."5

The ideology as well as the practical aspects of a universityof the ordinary type was something which he did not approve of,and therefore, he tried to implement his own ideals of education,which were in the first instance, to allow the students full freedomin developing their faculties in an atmosphere of Nature and openlife. Tagore’s idea was to create a centre for a harmonious studyand for a mutual acceptance of the permanent and universal elementsin the different cultures which Humanity has evolved in differentcountries and under different environments. It was to be a centrefor a Higher Humanism embracing all people and cultures, on thebackground of the Indian philosophy of life and the reality and theIndian experience. He emphatically advocated the importance ofphysical science which he considered necessary for the fullestachievement of human personality but he was critical of the scientificstudy which was meant for comfort, convenience and materialsuccess completely neglecting the idealism of understanding orrealisation.

Tagore was not a mere theoretician, but he had also a stronginclination towards the practical and the useful. His anotherconstructive work is the establishment of Sriniketan, the institutionfor training in agriculture and service for the uplift of rural areas.Indeed, Tagore’s contribution as a social and economic rehabilitatoris unique. Sriniketan was an institution for rural economic and culturaldevelopment, and there Tagore started a number of village craftsfor their revival and expansion within an atmosphere of progressive





development. The institution Sriniketan has been doing its goodwork as a very effective way of helping the rural mass in maintainingthe beauty as well as the usefulness of their crafts and in givingtraining to a number of young and energetic students in theorganisation of village uplift. It is worthwhile to mention the act ofgenerosity when Tagore gave all the money which he obtained fromthe Nobel prize to help the economic rehabilitation of his tenants inEast Bengal through co-operation in banking.

Rabindranath was not only the founder and organiser ofVisva- Bharati, but he was all along an enthusiastic and a successfulteacher, who earned the love of his students., teaching them bothEnglish and Bengali literature and Sanskrit language, andoccasionally giving talks on Elementary Science before the schoolchildren of Santiniketan. Moreover, he wrote useful textbooks toteach English, Bengali, Sanskrit and Science books.

Tagore's theory and experience of his educational activityin Santiniketan highlight his belief that the human personalityreplenished itself through its aesthetic relation with Nature. As acreative artist, Tagore considered art as one of the highestexpressions of human freedom. There is no denying the fact thatthe two most important aspects of man are creativity and freedom.Tagore emphatically asserted on the spontaneous self- activity ofthe children and encouraged to unfold the essence of their innateimpulses. In establishing the Visvabharati University, Tagore had inhis mind the idea of the development of the youth through aestheticand artistic dimensions of human personality. Hence, he correlatedcultural and artistic activities with academic studies. He had alwaysaspired to foster culture and not the so called education. Thedevelopment of a critical outlook alongwith a humanitarian lovewas the sole objective with which he started Santiniketan. Hewanted to develop the sense of refinement among the students andto elevate their selves through co-operation and co-ordination andeventually his dream was cherished in establishing Sriniketan as aseparate unit.

Rabindranath Tagore was a multi-faceted personality, notmerely a thinker or philosopher, but also a creative artist, a man ofaction, a man engaged in a diversity of pursuits, and in each one ofthem reaching new heights and opening new possibilities. Unlikeprofessional philosophers, he refrained from constructing a system.Instead, he brought to bear upon each issue a multiplicity of insights.It would be a grievous error to seek to present him as a one-dimensional intellectual trying to simplify and systematise whatrefuses to be simplified and systematised. In trying to understandhis view on any issue, one has to take into account his differentinsights as expressed in his various works and activities.

Tagore not only had a long life, but to the very end he alsokept renovating himself through daring new experiments andexplorations. This transformation is evident in his different activitiesand expressions. One has, for example, only to compare the poetryof Manasi (1890) and Chitra (1896) with that of Gitanjali (1910),then Balaka (1916), then Mohua (1929) and Sesh Lekha (1941)to realise how the world within him changed time and again withoutlosing any of its richness of texture and significance. In fact Tagore'slife is full of experiments and renovations.

Tagore was an orthodox Hindu when he wrote Naivedyaand founded his school at Santiniketan which he regarded as a‘Brahmacharya Asrama’ modelled on the schools of vedic learningin ancient times. Amongst some of the amazing practices inculcatedor permitted in this school was that of the students saluting theBrahman teachers by taking the dust of their feet, but saluting allnon-Brahmin teachers merely by raising their folded hands. WhenTagore was asked for his opinion, he replied, “what is contraryto institutional Hindu practice cannot find a place in this school;the students will touch the feet of their Brahmin teachers andonly salute (Namaskara) the other teachers in accordance withthe injunctions of Manu Samhita.'6

The reverential attitude and idealised view which Tagorehad towards Hindu India’s traditional Brahminical culture and social



CHAPTER - 1Notes and References

1. The Religion of An Artist, Rabindranath Tagore, from ContemporaryIndian Philosophy, edited by Radhakrishnan & J.H. Muirhead, Allen& Unwin, London, 1958, pp.25-26.

2. Rabindranath Tagore, Humayun Kabir, Pankaj PublicationsInternational, Delhi, 1987.

3. Banglar Itihas Sambandhe Kayekti Katha (some thoughts on theHistory of Bengal), Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyayai, published inBangadarshan, 1882-83 included in Bankim Rachanavali, Vol. II, p.336.Translated and quoted by Dr. Meenakshi Mukherjee in her bookRealism and Reality; The Novel and Society in India, Oxford UniversityPress, 1985.

4. Ibid.5. A New Renaissance, Sib Narayan Ray, Minerva Associates Pvt. Ltd.,

Calcutta, 1998.6. Ibid.7. Ibid.8. The Religion of An Artist, Rabindranath Tagore from Contemporary

Indian Philosophy.9. The Religion of Man, Rabindranath Tagore, Unwin Books, London,

1963 (First Pub. in 1931), p.105.10. The Religion of An Artist, Rabindranath Tagore from Contemporary

Indian Philosophy.11. Ibid.

organisation when he founded the Brahmachary Ashram atSantiniketan in 1901 did change almost radically by the time thefoundation stone ofVisvabharati was laid in 1918.

Suffice it to say, Tagore was opposed to all kinds ofregimentation, exploitation and injustice and he could hit hard atthe perpetrators of tyranny and dogmatism both in his countty andoutside India.

Tagore’s views on education resulting into the founding ofVisvabharati and his social, political and religious views visualizingan integrated world, quite free from all tensions and confilicts arereflected in his thought provoking essay The Centre of IndianCulture. Tagore writes, “All great countries have their vitalcentres for intellectual life, where a high standard of learningis maintained, where the minds of the people are naturallyattracted to find their genial atmosphere, to prove their worth,to contribute their share to the country’s culture, and thus tokindle on some common altar of the land a great sacrificialfire of intellect which may radiate the sacred light in alldirection... And this is why the inner spirit of India is calling tous to establish in this land great centres, where all herintellectual forces will gather for the purpose of creation, andall her resources of knowledge and thought, Eastern andWestern, will unite in perfect hannony”.7

Rabindranth Tagore stood against the universal oppressionand servitude of the intellect. His intellect took a definite part in themanifestation of the thought of Europe. He was very muchconcerned with the welfare of humanity. In fact, as a visionaty activist,Tagore was engaged in this constant pursuit till the last moment ofhis life and even though he died before the country gotIndependence, he had already outlined a blueprint of India’s allround programme where she would achieve an unprecedentedglory in spheres of thought and action. This view was expressed inhis numerous poems and songs, novels and prose writings.

000



CHAPTER - IINotes and References

1. The Religion of An Artist, Rabindranath Tagore from ContemporaryIndian Philosophy, edited by S. Radhakrishnan & J.H. Muirhead, Allen& Unwin, London, 1958, pp.25-26.

2. Bankim Chandra: His Continuing Relevance, Gopal Haldar from BankimChandra: Essays in Perspective, p.141.

3. Reminiscences, Rabindranath Tagore (A translation by SurendranathTagore of Rabindranath Tagore’s autobiographical writing JivanSmriti), Macmillan, London, 1917.

4. The Pioneer, Mulk Raj Anand from Bankim Chandra Chatterjee:Essays in Perspective,Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, 1994, p.154.

5. Raj Mohan’s Wife: The First Indian English Novel, MeenakshiMukherjee from The Perishable Empire, pp.30-32.

6. Ibid.7. Ibid.8. Western Fiction And Bankim Chandra, Mohit Kumar Roy, published

in Bankim Chandra Chatterjee: Essays in Perspective.9. Raj Mohan’s Wife: The First Indian English Novel, Meenakshi

Mukherjee from The Perishable Empire, pp.30-32.10. The Artist in Chains: The Life of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Sisir

Kumar Das.11. History of Bengali Literature, Dr. Sukumar Sen, SahityaAkademi, New

Delhi, 1960, p.237.12. Indian Literature in English, K.R. Srinivas Iyenger, Sterling, New Delhi,

1983, p.314.13. Rishi Bankim Chandra, Sri Aurobindo from Bankim Chandra: Essays

in Perspective,Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, 1994, pp 4-6.14. The Artist in Chains: The Life ofBankim Chandra Chatterjee, Sisir

Kumar Das.15. Realism and Reality, The Novel And Society in India, Meenakshi

Mukherjee, Oxford University Press, 1985, p43.16. The Art Form, Kshetra Gupta, published in Bankim Chandra: Essays

in Perspective, p.484.17. Raj Singha, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, first edition in 1882, published

by Radhanath Bandyopadhyai, Jonson Press, Calcutta and revisedand expanded fourth edition in 1893.

18. Quoted by Ujjal Kumar Majumdar in his essay The Artist and TheMoralist published in Bankim Chandra: Essays in Perspective, pp.471-472.

19. The Artist in Chains: The Life of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, SisirKumar Das.

20. Ibid.21. History of Bengali Literature, Dr. Sukumar Sen, pp.229-235.22. The Mantra and The Monastery: Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, S.K.

Bose quoted in Builders of Modern India, Bankim ChandraChatterjee, Publications Divisions, New Delhi, July 1972.

23. Ibid.24. Ibid.25. Mantrer Janma (The Birth of Mantra), B. Dutta, Ananda Bazar

Supplement, Aswin 12, 1376 (B.S.).26. Amrita Bazzar Patrika, September 27, 1937.27. Modern Review, October 1937.28. Modern Review, Notes, November 1937.29. In the eyes of a Non-Hindu, Rezaul Karim, published in Bankim

Chandra: Essays in Perspective, p.178.30. Ravindra Jiban Katha, Prabhat Kumar Mukherjee (Biography),

revised edition, Ananda Publishers, Calcutta, 1988.31. Modern Review, November 1937.32. Our National Song, Publication Divisions quoted in Builders of Modern

India, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee by S.K. Bose.33. Ibid.34. Constituent Assembly Proceedings, Jan.24, 1950. Published in Builders

of Modern India, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee by S.K. Bose.35. Bankim Chandra: Essays in Perspective, Bhabatosh Chatterjee,

Introduction, p.xxv36. A View of the Highland, MohitIal Majumdar from Bankim Chandra:

Essays in Perspective, p.115.37. Bankim Rachanabali.38. Bankim Chandra: Essays in Perspective.



CHAPTER - IIINotes and References

1. Nationalism in India, Rabindranath Tagore (A speech delivered inAmerica by Rabindranath Tagore and published in Lectures AndAddresses by Rabindranath Tagore), Macmillan and Co. Limited,London, 1950, p.116.

2. Ibid; p.102 [Guru Nanak was the founder of the Sikh religion (b.1469,d.1538); Kabir was a mystic and a poet in medieval India (b. 1440,d.1518); Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a modern Hindu Vaishnavareformer (b.1485, d.1527), who died in Bengal. The main part of hisreligious doctrine was to abolish all caste distinctions among hisfollowers].

3. Ibid; pp.102-103.4. Ibid; pp.104.5. Ibid; p.102.6. Rabindra Bhabana, Aug.-Sep. Issue, 1984, Tagore Research Institute,

Calcutta.7. Ibid.8. A New Renaissance, Sib Narayan Ray, Minerva Publishers, Calcutta,

1998.9. Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Ghosh (Tagore’s letter to the viceroy

is published in this book), Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi.10. A Vision of India’s History, Rabindranath Tagore, Visva Bharati,

Calcutta, 1962, pp.45-46.11. The Centre of Indian Culture, Rabindranath Tagore, Visva-Bharati,

Calcutta, 1962.12. Nationalism in India, Rabindranath Tagore, p.110.13. Gitanjali, Rabindranath Tagore, (poem no.108)14. Kalantar, Rabindranath Tagore, Visva-Bharati (B.S. 1390).15. The Telegraph, 7 Aug., 1991.16. Ibid.17. Ibid.

18. Ibid.19. Hindu-Musalman, Rabindranath Tagore, 1922 quoted in The

Telegraph, 7 Aug., 1991(Translated by Paromita Ukil).20. Lokahit, Rabindranath Tagore, quoted in The Telegraph, 7 Aug., 1991.21. Hindu- Visva Vidyalaya, Rabindranath Tagore, 1911, quoted in The

Telegraph,7Aug., 1991.22. Thy Hand Great Anarch, Nirad C.Chaudhari (1987), Chatto and

Windus, London, 1987.23. Lokahit, Rabindranath Tagore, 1914 (quoted in The Telegraph, 7 Aug.,

1991).24. Ibid.25. The Home And The World, Rabindranath Tagore.26. Ibid.27. Ibid.28. Samasya (The Problem), Rabindranath Tagore (quoted in The

Telegraph, 7 Aug., 1991).29. Hindu-Musalman, Rabindranath Tagore, 1922.30. Kalantar, Rabindranath Tagore, 1937.31. Samasya (The Problem), Rabindranath Tagore.32. Ibid.33. Hindu-Musalman, Rabindranath Tagore.34. Ibid.35. Hindu-Musalman, Rabindranath Tagore.36. Ibid.37. The Telegraph, 7 Aug., 1991.38. Hindu- Visva Vidyalaya, Rabindranath Tagore.39. Ibid.40. Hindu-Musalman, Rabindranath Tagore.41. Gora, Rabindranath Tagore (Translated by Sujit Mukherjee from

Bangla, Introduction by Meenakshi Mukherjee), SahityaAkademi, firstpub. in 1997.

42. Ibid.43. Gora, Rabindranath Tagore.44. Gitanjali, Rabindranath Tagore, poem no.106.45. Lullaby, W.H. Auden from The Penguin Poets, Penguin Books Pvt.

Limited, London, 1958.46. In Memory of W.B. Yeats, W.H. Auden.47. Dear Mr. Tagore, (Ninety five letters written to Rabindranath Tagore

from Europe and America 1912-1941), Visva-Bharati, Calcutta, 2000

(Romain Rolland wrote this letter to Tagore on 26 August, 1919), p.54.48. Buried Treasure of Tagore, Nirad C. Chaudhari, The Telegraph, 7 Aug.,

1991.49. Ibid (The citation is from Tagore’s Bengali in Nirad C. Chaudhari’s

English translation).50. Ibid.51. Ibid.52. Ibid.53. Ibid.54. The Home And The World, Rabindranath Tagore.55. Ibid.56. Rabindranath Tagore, Krishna Kripalani, p.252.57. The Home And The World, Rabindranath Tagore.58. Ibid.59. Ibid.60. Ibid.61. Ibid.62. Four Chapters, Rabindranath Tagore (Tr. by Surendra Nath Tagore

into English from Bengali Car Adhayai and published first serially inthe American magazine Asia in 1936-37, later in the book form pub. in1950), Visva-Bharati, Calcutta, 1961 (Rpt).

63. Ibid.64. Ibid.65. Ibid.66. Tagore the Novelist, G.Y. Raj, Sterling Pub. Pvt. Limited, New Delhi,

p.96.67. Ibid.68. Rabindranath Tagore, Krishna Kripalani.69. Ibid.70. Gitanjali (Song Offerings), Rabindranath Tagore, poem no. 35.71. The Cult of the Charkha, Rabindranath Tagore, Modern Review,

September 1925, quoted in The Mahatma and The Poet, p.l07.72. Pluralism, Cultural Conflict and Rabindranath, Sibnarayan Ray from

Ripeness is All, Reflections of A Radical Humanist, RenaissancePublishers Private Limited, Calcutta, 1999, pp.88-92.

CHAPTER - IVNotes and References

1. My Philosophy of Religion, Approaches to the Philosophy of Religion,edited by D.J. Bronstein and Harold M. Schulwies, Prentice Hall Inc.,1960, p.43.

2. A Critiques of Religion and Philosophy, Faber and Faber, London,1958, p.251.

3. Reminiscences, Rabindranath Tagore (A translation by SurendranathTagore of Rabindranath Tagore’s autobiographical writing Jivansmriti),Macmillan, London, 1917.

4. The Vision, Rabindranath Tagore from The Religion of Man, UnwinBooks, London (First edition 1931),1963, p.58.

5. Ibid.6. Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Ghose, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi,

1986, p.34.7. Spiritual Union, Rabindranath Tagore from The Religion of Man, p.42.8. Reminiscences, Rabindranath Tagore.9. Rabindranath Tagore, A Critical Introduction, K.R. Srinivas Iyenger,

Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1965, p.72.10. Contemporary Indian Philosophy, P. Naga Raja Rao, Bharatiya Vidya

Bhavan, Bombay, 1970, p.57.11. The Creative Spirit, Rabindranath Tagore from The Religion of Man,

p.29.12. Gitanjali (Song Offerings), Rabindranath Tagore, poem no.77, p.71.13. Ibid, poem no.65, p.61.14. Ibid, poem no.ll, p.9.15. Rabindranath Tagore, S.K. Ghose, pp.46-47.16. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore, a Critical Introduction by K.R.

Srinivas Iyenger, p.15.17. Ibid.18. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore by Krishna Kripalani, p.234.19. The Problem of Evil, Rabindranath Tagore from Sadhana (The

Realisation of Life), pp.56-57.



20. Gitanjali (Song Offerings), Rabindranath Tagore, poem no.11, pp.75-76.

21. Realisation in action, Rabindranath Tagore from Sadhana, p.131

22. Gitanjali (Song Offerings), Rabindranath Tagore, poem no.ll.23. The Problem of Evil, Rabindranath Tagore, from Sadhana, pp. 7 5-7 6.24. The Problem of Self, Rabindranath Tagore from Sadhana.25. Personality, Rabindranath Tagore, Macmillan, London, 1951, p.64.26. Sadhana, Rabindranath Tagore, p.52.27. Ibid, p.30.28. Ibid, p.10.29. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore by Rama Shankar Srivastava, Oriental

and Foreign Book sellers and Publications, Delhi, 1965.30. Sadhana, Rabindranath Tagore.31. The Statesman, 15 January & 1 May, 1886.32. Rabindranath Tagore, Humayun Kabir, Pankaj Publication

International, Delhi, 1987.33. Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Ghosh.34. Poems ofKabir, Rabindranath Tagore, Macmillan, 1979 (First edition

1915).35. Ibid.36. Ibid, p.l.37. Ibid, p.9.38. Ibid.39. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore by Rama Shankar Srivastava.40. Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Dramatist, Edward Thompson,

Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, 1948.41. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore by Rama Shankar Srivastava.42. Individual and Universe, Rabindranath Tagore, from Sadhana, pp.15-

16.43. Ibid.44. Rabindra Rachanavali, vo1.27 (quoted in Jose Chunkapura’s The God

of Rabindranath Tagore), pub. by Visva-Bharati, 2002, pp.304-305.45. Creative Unity, Rabindranath Tagore, pp.l04-105, quoted in The God

ofRabindranath Tagore.46. Ibid, p.306.47. History of Bengali Literature, Dr. Sukumar Sen.48. World Literature and Tagore, Suniti Kumar Chatterjee, p.175.

49. Ibid, p.176.50. Ibid.51. From Sophocles, translated by Sir George Young into English and

quoted by Suniti Kumar Chatterjee in World Literature and Tagore,p.192.

52. From Euripides, translated by Gilbert Murray into English and quotedby Suniti Kumar Chatterjee in World Literature and Tagore, p.193.

53. Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Dramatist, Edward Thompson, p.l04.54. Rabindranath Tagore: A Biography, Krishna Kripalani, Grove Press

Inc., New York and Oxford University Press, 1962.55. Ibid.56. The English Writings of Rabindranath Tagore, Vol. 1, Poems (edited

by Sisir Kumar Das)57. Ibid.58. Ibid.59. Realisation in Love, Rabindranath Tagore, From Sadhana, p.95.60. Ibid, p.97.61. Autobiographies, W.B. Yeats, Macmillan, 1956, p.115.62. The Religion of Man, Appendix 2; (Note on the nature of reality, a

conversation between Albert Einstein and Rabindranath Tagore on4th July, 1930, p.223.).

CHAPTER- VNotes and References

1. The Mahatma and the Poet, Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, National BookTrust, India.

2. It is worthwhile to mention that the boys of Phoenix School stayed atSantiniketan from 4 November 1914 to 3 April 1915 (reference is fromThe Mahatma and the Poet by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya)

3. Harijan, 9 March, 1940.4. Mahatma Gandhi, K.R. Srinivas Iyengar.5. Various Influences upon Rabindranath, Dhirendranath Bhattacharjee,

Kolkata.6. Ibid.7. Ibid.8. Ibid.9. Swadeshi Samaj, Rabindranath Tagore, 1905 published in Ravindra



Rachanavali (collected works of Rabindranath Tagore, Vol. III,Calcutta.

10. The Poet’s Anxiety, Gandhi, Young India, 1 June, 1921.11. Tagore to Gandhi from The Mahatma and the Poet (compiled and

edited by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya), p.49.12. Ibid.13. The History of the Indian National Congress (1885-1935), B. Pattabai

Sitaramayya, Madras, 1935, p.78.14. Rabindranath Tagore’s statement first published in Pravasee, 16 April,

1908, quoted in The Mahatma And The Poet (translated by SabyasachiBhattacharya from Bengali), p.3.

15. An Autobiography or the Story of My Experiments with Truth, M.K.Gandhi, Navajiban Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 1927 (rpt.1956),p.591.

16. Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, vol.xx, pp.52-53.17. Harijan, 13 July, 1940.18. Harijan, 29 September, 1940.19. Tagore, Gandhi And Roy: Three Twentieth Century Utopians, Sib

Narayan Ray from A New Renaissance, Minerva Associates Pvt. Ltd.,Calcutta, pp.100-109.

20. Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule, M.K. Gandhi, p.63.21. Ibid, p.37.22. The Call of Truth, Rabindranath Tagore (This long rejoinder from

Tagore to Gandhi originally appeared in Pravasee in Bengali and laterin Modern Review in English), quoted in The Mahatma And The Poetby Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, pp.86-87.

23. Ibid.24. Crisis in Civilization, Rabindranath Tagore, Visva-Bharati, Calcutta,

1950, first pub. May 1941 (written on the occasion of the poet’s eightiethbirthday, three months before his death, the paper has a historic interestas his last message to the world), p.18.

25. Tyranny and Utopias, Ashis Nandy, pp.129-130, quoted in PoliticalIdeas of Mahatma Gandhi (edited by Subrata Mukherjee and SushilaRamaswamy), Deep & Deep Publishers, New Delhi, 1998.

26. Hind Swaraj, M.K. Gandhi, p.62.27. The Cult of the Charkha, Rabindranath Tagore, Modern Review,

September, 1925.28. Ibid.



29. The Call of Truth, Rabindranath Tagore from The Mahatma And thePoet by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya.

30. Marx and Engels: Selected Works, Moscow, 1982, p.23.31. Red Oleanders (Author's Interpretation), Rabindranath Tagore.32. Red Oleanders (Rakta Karabi), Rabindranath Tagore, The Visva-

Bharati Quarterly, October, 1925.33. Ibid.34. Red Oleanders, An Interpretation, Rabindranath Tagore, The Visva-

Bharati Quarterly, Nov. 1951, Jan, 1952.35. Quoted in Rabindranath Tagore by Krishna Kripalani, p.51.36. Red Oleanders (Author's Interpretation), Rabindranath Tagore.37. Ibid.38. Ibid.39. Red Oleanders, Rabindranath Tagore.40. Red Oleanders, Author's Interpretation.41. Nationalism, Rabindranath Tagore, p.5.42. Ibid, p.6.43. Red Oleanders, Rabindranath Tagore.44. Rabindranath Tagore, Krishna Kripalani.45. Gandhiji And Indian Writing in English, M.K. Naik from Critical Essays

in Indian Writing in English, Karnatak University, Dharwar, 1972, p360.46. Harijan, 1 May, 1937.

CHAPTER - VINotes and References

1. Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Ghose, pp.l02-103.2. Ibid, p.l 08.3. Ibid.4. My School, Rabindranath Tagore, published in Personality, Macmillan

and Co. Limited, London, 1943, p.116.5. The Centre of Indian Culture, Rabindranath Tagore, Visva Bharati,

Calcutta, (First pub.in 1919), p.2.6. Tagore's Quest, Abu Sayeed Ayyub, Papyrus, Calcutta, 1980. 7. The

Centre of Indian Culture, Rabindranath Tagore, pp.32-33.

14. Collected Poems and Plays of Rabindra Nath Tagore, Macmillan,London, 1950.

15. Buddhadeva (In B.engali), Rabindra Nath Tagore, Visva- Bharti, 1956.16. Four Chapters, Rabindranath Tagore (Translated by Surendra Nath

Tagore into English from Bengali Char Adhyaya and published firstserially in the American Magazine Asia in 1936-1937, later in the bookform pub. in 1950), Visva- Bharti , Calcutta, 1961 (Rpt.).

17. Rabindra Rachanabali (Rabindranath’s collected works) Visva Bharati,Calcutta, September, 1939, (Ashwin 1346).

18. The Oxford Tagore Translations. selected writings on literature andlanguage, Rabindranath Tagore (edited by Sisir Kumar Das, SukantaChaudhuri), Oxford University Press. (First Pub.2001).

19. Reminiscences (A translation by Surendra Nath Tagore ofRabindranath Tagore’s autobiographical writings-Jivansmriti),Macmillan, London, 1917.

20. My Boyhood Days (A translation by Marjorie Sykee of RabindranathTagore's autobiographical writings Chelebala), Visva Bharti,Santiniketan, 1940.

21. One Hundred Poems of Kabir (Translated by Rabindra Nath Tagore),The India Society, London, 1914.

22. Creative Unity (Essays and Lectures), Macmillan, London, 1922.23. A Flight of Swans (Translations by Aurobindo Bose of poems from

Balaka and one poem from Gitanjali), John Murray, London, 1955.24. A Tagore Testament (Translations by Indu Dutta of a few of Tagore's

autobiographical essays included in Atmaparichay, the essays), JaicoPublishing House, Bombay, 1984.

25. Citra (A translation by the author of the drama Citrangada), The IndiaSociety, London, 1913.

26. Fruit Gatherings (Translations by Tagore of a selection of poemsfrom Gitimalya, Gitali, Balaka etc.) Macmillan, London, 1916.

27. Later Poems of Tagore (Translations of selected poems by AurobindoBose), Orient paperbacks, Delhi, 1987.

28. Letters from abroad (consisting of letters to C.F. Andrews from May1920 to July 1921), S. Ganesan, Madras, 1924.

29. Letters from Russia (A translation by Sasadhar Sinha of Rasiyar Cithi),Visva- Bharti, Calcutta, 1984.

30. Letters to a Friend (consisting of letters to C.F. Andrews during 1913-1922, this is a revised and enlarged edition of Letters from Abroad),Allen and Unwin, London, 1928.



BIBLIOGRAPHYPRIMARY SOURCES :(TAGORE, BANKIM &

GANDHI’S WRITINGS)

1. Gitanjali (Song offerings), Rabindranath Tagore, Macmillan And Co.Limited, London, 1945 edition (Rpt.) (First Pub. by the India SocietyLondon, 1912).

2. Sadhana, (The Realisation of Life) Rabindra Nath Tagore, MacmillanAnd Co. Limited, London, 1966 (First edition 1913).

3. Personality (Lectures delivered in America), Rabindranath Tagore,Macmillan And Co. Limited, London, 1943.

4. The Centre of Indian Culture, Rabindra Nath Tagore, visva Bharati,Calcutta, 1962 (First Pub. 1919).

5. A Vision of India’s History, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Visva-Bharati,Calcutta, 1962, (First Pub. 1951).

6. The Religion of Man, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Unwin Books, London,1963 (First published in 1931).

7. Crisis In Civilization, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Visva-Bharati, Calcutta,1950, (First Pub. May 1941).

8. Lectures and Addresses, Rabindra Nath Tagore, (Edited by AnthonyX, soares), Macmillan And co. Limited, London, 1950.

9. The Home and the World, Rabindranath Tagore, (Translated bySurendra Nath Tagore from Ghare Baire, 1916) Macmillan, London,1919, Rpt. Madras, Macmillan 1976.

10. Gora, Rabindranath Tagore (Translated by Sujit Mukherjee), SahityaAcademy, New Delhi. 1997.

11. Chaturanga, Rabindranath Tagore (Translated by Asok Mitra tromChaturanga 1916), Sahitya Akademi, 1963.

12. The Diary of Westward Voyage, Rabindra Nath Tagore (Translated bylndu Dutt from the original Bengali Paschim Yatrir Diary), AsiaPublishing House, 1962.

13. Red Oleanders, Rabindranath Tagore, Macmillan, London 1925 (Rpt.1948).

31. Lover’s Gift and Crossing (Translations by Tagore of a selection ofpoems from the Bengali books Balaka, Ksanika. Kheya etc. ) MacmillanIndia, Madras, 1980.

32. Mahatmaji and Depressed Humanity (Lectures), Visva- Bharti, Calcutta,1932.

33. Sacrifice and other Plays, Rabindra Nath Tagore,Macmillan lndia ,Madras, 1985.

34. The King of the Dark Chamber (A translation of the drama Raja byK.C.Sen), Macmillan Pocket Edition, Madras, 1988.

35. The Golden Boat (Translation by Bhabani Bhattacharya), Allen andUnwin, London, 1932.

36. The Child, Rabindranath T agore (This long poem was originally writtenin English), Allen and Unwin, London, 1931.

37. Towards Universal Man, Rabindranath Tagore, Asia Publishing House,Bombay, 1961.

38. Three Plays (Translations by Marjorie Skyes of the plays MuktadharaNatir Puja and Candalika), Oxford University Press, Bombay, 1950.

39. Selected poems (Translated by William Radice), Penguine Books,London, 1987.

40. Poems, Rabindranath Tagore(Edited by Krishna Kripalani), Visva-Bharati, Kolkata,October 2003 (First Published in 1942).

41. Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule, M.K. Gandhi, NavajeevanPublishing House, Ahmedabad 1946.

42. Communal Unity, M.K. Gandhi, Navajeevan Publishing House,Ahmedabad, 1951.

43. An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments With Truth, M.K.Gandhi Navajiban Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 1956 First publishedin 1927).

44. Anandamath, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (Earlier translated by SriAurobindo upto 15th chapter of Part 1; Subsequent Pages trans. byhis brother Barindra kumar Ghosh) tr. by Basanta kumar Roy VisionBooks, New Delhi, 1992.

45. Devi Caudhurani, Bankim Chandra Chaterjee (translated by Subodhchunder Mitter) Chuckkervertty, Chatterjee and co. Calcutta. 1946.

46. Renaissance and Reaction in Nineteenth Century Bengal: BankimChandra Chatterjee (A translation of the Bengali Essay Samya) byM.K. Haldar) Minerva Associated Publictions Pvt. Limited, Calcutta,1977.

47. Krishnacaritra: Part 1. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Pub. by Umacharan

Bandopadhyay, Printed at Hare press Calcutta. 1886.48. Dharmatattva: Part 1, Bankim chandra Chatterjee, Pub. by umacharan

Bandyopadhyay, Printed at Herald Printing works Calcutta, 1888.49. Bankim Rachanavali, Bankim chandra Chattetjee Vol. 1 Sahitya

Sansad, Calcutta, (First Pub.-1955). 9th edition 1980.50. Bankim Rachanavali, Bankim Chandra chattetjee Vol, III New Delhi-

1996.51. The English writings of Rabindra Nath Tagore Vol.1. Edited by Sisir

Kumar Das,Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi 1994.52. The English writings of Rabindranath Tagore Vol.II (Plays, stories,

Essays) edited by Sisir Kumar Das, Sahitya Akademis New Delhi.1996.

53. The English writings of Rabindranath Tagore, VoL III: A Miscellary(Edited bySisir Kumar Das) Sahitya Akademic, New Delhi, 1996.

Secondary Sources (General Studies and Criticisms)

1. World Literature and Tagore. Suniti Kumar Chatterji, Visva Bharati,Santiniketan, Calcutta, 1971.

2. Rabindranath Tagore, Humayun Kabir, Pankaj PublicationsInternational, Delhi, 1987.

3. History of Bengali Literature, Dr. Sukumar Sen, Sahitya Akademi,New Delhi, 1960.

4. Indian Literature in English, K.R.Srinivas Iyengar, Sterling Pub. Pvt.Ltd., New Delhi, 1983.

5. Rabindranath Tagore: A Critical Introduction, KR. Srinivas Iyengar,Sterling Pub. Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1965.

6. Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Ghose, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi,1986.

7. A New Renaissance, Sib Narayan Ray, Minerva Associates Pvt. Ltd. ,Calcutta, 1998.

8. Ripeness is all: Reflections of A Radical Humanist, Sib Narayan Ray,Renaissance Publishers Pvt. Ltd, Calcutta, 1999.

9. Tagore’s Quest, Abu Sayeed Ayyub, papyrus, Calcutta, 1980.10. The Mahatma And The Poet, Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, National Book

Trust, India (First edition 1997) Rept. 200111. The Essence of the philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore, Prof. S.N.Dutt,

Research and Publication Centre, Calcutta, 1979.



12. Contemporary Indian philosophy, P.Nagaraja Rao, Bharatiya VidyaBhavan,Bombay, 1970.

13. Tagore and the world, Prof Srinibas Bhattacharya, Sitaram & Sons,StephenHouse, Calcutta, 1961.

14. The Perishable Empire, Meenakshi Mukherjee,Oxford Universitypress (first Pub.2000) Oxford lndia Paper backs 2002 New Delhi. 2002.

15. Realism and Reality, The Novel And Society in India. MeenakshiMukherjee,Oxford University Press, 1985.

16. Contemporary Indian philosophy, Rama Shankar Sriastava, Orientaland Foreign booksellers and publishers, Delhi, 1965.

17. Tagore and Radhakrishnan : A study in Religious Perspective, JayaMukherjee, Janaki Prakashan, Patna- New Delhi, 1992.

18. Tagore The Dramatist, A Critical study,Vol.4, BishweshwarChakravarty, B .R.Publishing Corporation, Delhi.

19. Tagore The Novelist, G.V. Raj, Sterling pub. Pvt. Ltd. , N.Delhi.20. Rabindranath Tagore, A Biography, Krishna Kripalani, Oxford

University Press,London, 1962.21. From the Broken Nest to Visva-Bharati, Sibnarayan Ray, Renaissance

publishers pvt. Ltd., Kolkata, 2001.22. Rabindra Nath Tagore- A centenary volume (1861-1961), Sahitya

Akademi, New Delhi, (Third Printing 1987)23. Moral and Religious philosophy of Mahatama Gandhi, D .K.Dutta,

Intellectual Book Corner, New Delhi, 1980.24. Mahatma Gandhi: Essays and Reflections on His life and works,

S.Radhakrishnan, Allen ad Unwin, London, 1939.25. Mahatma Gandhi: 100 years, S.Radhakrisnan, Orient Longmans, Delhi,

1968.26. Mahatma Gandhi, R. Rolland, Allen and Unwin, London, 1924.27. Talking of Gandhi, F. Watson, orient Longmans, Calcutta, 1957.28. The Moral and Political Thought of Mahatma Gandhi, R.N.Iyer,

Oxford University press, Oxford, 1978.29. Socio-Religious Thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi, K.S. Bharathi,

Dattsons Publishers, Nagpur, 1989.30. Studies In Gandhism, N.K.Bose, Navajeevan publishing House,

Ahmedabad, 1962.31. The Political Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, G.Dhawan, Navajeevan

Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 1962.32. Political Ideas of Mahatma Gandhi, Edited by Subrata Mukherjee

and Sushila Ramaswamy, Deep & Deep publications, N.Delhi, 1998.

33. Contemporary Indian philosophy, Edited by Radhakrishnan &J.H.Muirhead, Allen & Unwin, London, 1958.

34. Bankim Chandra: Essays in perspective, Edited by BhabatoshChatterjee, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, 1994.

35. Builders in Modern India, Bankim Chandra Chatteriee, S.K.Bose,Publications Divisons, New Delhi, July 1972.

36. My philosophy of Religion (Approaches to the philosophy ofReligion), Edited by D. J. Bronstein & Harold, M.Schulweis PrenticeHall. 1960.

37. A Critiques of Religion and Philosophy, Faber and Faber, London,1958. Penguin Poets, W.H.Auden, Penguin Books Pvt. Limited, London,1958.

38. Bankim Chandra Chatteriee, S.C.Sengupta, Sahitya Akademi., NewDelhi

39. The Artist in Chains: The Life of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, SisirKumar Das, New Statesman Publishing Company, New Delhi, 1984.

40. Chekhov and Tagore: A Comparative study of Their short stories,Shankar Basu, Sterling publishers Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, 1985.

41. Contemporary Indian Philosophy, Basant Kumar Lal, Motilal BanarasiDass, Delhi, 1989.

42. Rabindranath Tagore, Krishna Kripalani, Grove Press, New York, 1962.43. Rabindra Nath Tagore: Prophet Against Totalitarianism, Rajendra

Verma, Asia Publishing House, London, 1964.44. Rabindranath Tagore, K.S.R.Sastri, Ganesh & Co., Madras, 1916.45. Rabindranath Through Western Eyes, A.Aronson, Kitabistan,

Allahabad, 1943.46. Passage to America: The Reception of Rabindranath Tagore in the

United States (1912-1941). Sujit Mukherjee Bookland Private,Calcutta, 1964.

47. The History of the Indian National Congress 1885-1935, B.PattabaiSitaramayya, Madras, 1935.

48. Ravi-Jibanee, Prasanta Kumar Pal, Vol. VI, Calcutta, 1993.49. The Philosophy of Rabindra Nath Tagore, S.Radhakrishnan, Good

Companions, 1961.50. Upanishader Patabhumikay Rabindra Manas, Sasibhushan

Dasgupta, A.Mukherjee & Co., 1961.51. Rabindra-Jivani, Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhyaya, Vol.I,Visva-Bharati,

1961.56.52. Rabindra Sahityer Bhumika, Nihar Ranjan Ray, Vol. I, New Age, 1965.



W.B.Yeats and Tradition, F.A.C.Wilson, University Paperbacks,Methuen’ London, 1958.

53. Yeats: The Man And The Masks; Richard Ellmann, London, 1948.54. W.B.Yeats: Man And Poet; AN.Jeffares, London, 1949.55. The Permanence of Yeats, edited by James Hall and Martin Steinmann,

New York, 1950.56. The Poetry ofW.B. Yeats, Louis Macneice, London, 1941.57. How Thou Singest My Master: A Study of Tagore’s Poetry, H.Banerjee,

Orient Longman, Bombay, 1961.58. Rabindranath Tagore,M.M.Lago, Twayne Publishers, Boston, 1976.59. Rabindranath Tagore and Universal Humanism, S.Tagore, Standard

Vacuum oil Co., Bombay, 1961.60. Tagore’s Vision of a Global Family, VRBhattachrya, Enkay Publishers,

New Delhi, 1987.61. Rabindranath Tagore,a Guru with a difference, RN.Bose, Tagore

Research Institute, Calcutta, 1976.62. Rabindranath Tagore:His Mystico-Religious Philosophy ,

P.Bhupedranath, Crown Publications, New Delhi, 1985.63. Rabindranath Tagore, his Mind and Art. B.C.Chakrovarty, Young India

Publications, New Delhi, 1971.64. The Universal Man: Tagore’s Vision of the Religion of Humanity,

S.M.Chattopadhyaya, Naya Prakash, Calcutta, 1987.65. Tagore and the Problem of God, P.Chaudhury, Santiniketan Press,

Santiniketan,1959.66. Rabindranath Tagore, His Religious, Social and Political Ideals,

T.Das, Saraswati Library, Calcutta, 1932.67. Rabindranath: Poet-Laureate of Humanity, A.C.Das Gupta, Khadi

Pratisthan, Calcutta, 1948.68. Rabindranath Tagore, the Man and his works, S.Dasgupta, N.Daniel

Oliagi, Bombay, 1961.69. Rabindranath Tagore, His Early Life and Works, D.N.Ghose, Modern

Book Agency, Calcutta, 1947.70. The English Writings of Rabindranath Tagore, Edited by Sisir Kumar

Das, Vol.III, Sahitya Academy, New Delhi, 1996.71. The God of Rabindranath Tagore, Jose Chunkapura, Visva-Bharati,

Kolkata, 2002.72. Rabindranath. S.Ghose, Bookland, Calcutta, 1966.73. Makers of Indian Literature: Rabindranath Tagore, S.Ghose, Sahitya

Akademi, New Delhi, 1990.

74. Poet and Ploughman, L.K. Elmhirst, Visva-Bharati, Calcutta, 1975.75. The Poet of Hindustan, A. Elanjimattom, orient Book, Calcutta, 1948.76. Rabindranath Tagore:The Myriad-minded Man, K.Dutta and A.

Robinson, Bloomsbury, London, 1995.77. The Religion of Tagore: In the Light of the Gospel, S.Estborn, The

Christian Literature Society for India, Madras, 1949.78. Rabindranath Tagore and the challenges of Today, Edited by

B.Chaudhury, Indian Institute of Advanced study, Shimla, 1988.79. The Golden Book of Tagore: (A Homage to Rabindranath Tagore

from India and the World in Celebration of his seventieth Birthday),Edited by R. Chatterjee, The Golden Book Committee, Calcutta, 1990(First Pub. in 1931).

80. Himself a True Poem: A study of Rabindranath Tagore, H.Mukherjee,Peoples Publishing Home, Delhi, 1986.

81. Rabindranath Tagore, his Mystico-Religious philosophy, B.Nath,Crown Publications, New Delhi, 1985.

82. The Poet and The Seer, S.C. Sarkar, Papyrus, Calcutta, 1982.83. Wit and Wisdom of Gandhi, Nehru, Tagore, N.B.Sen, New Book Society

of India, New Delhi, 1970.84. Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay: His Life and Works, Vera Novikova,

(translated from the original Russian by Nishitesh Banerjee) NationalPublication Calcutta, 1976 (see ed. 1982)

85. A critical study of the life and Novels of Bankim Chandra, JayantaKumar Dasgupta, Calcutta University, 1937.

86. Bankim Paricay (Bengali) Amarendranath Ray (comp)CalcuttaUniversity Publication, WBB, Calcutta, 1938.

87. Bankim Sahityer Dhara, Kshirod Kumar Dutta, Dutta and MukherjeePublishers, Calcutta, 1350 B. S.

88. Rabindranath Tagore : Poet and Dramatist, Edward Thompson, (FirstPub. 1962) Oxford India Paperback, 1991.

89. Homage to Rabindranath Tagore, Writers’ Workshop, Kolkata, 1995.90. Rabindranath Tagore, (Ravi-Jibanee) Vol VI, Prasanta Kumar Pal.

Calcutta 199391. Translation as Recovery, Sujit Mukherjee, Pencraft International, Delhi,

2004



Journals

1. Rabindra Bhabana Aug-Sep. Issue 1984, Tagore Research InstituteCalcutta.

2. The Statesman June 25, 1994, Calcutta.3. Behar Herald (125th Tagore Birth Anniversary Number), November,

1986, Patna.[From the Cage to Infinity: Tagore's Personal Flight, AshisSen]

4. Sunday Press, September, 1985, Bombay.5. Visva-Bharati News, April 1940.6. Harijan, 2 March 1940.7. The Modern Review, September 1925.8. Visva-Bharati News, Jan. 1938.9. Amrita Bazar Patrika, September 27, 1937.10. Modern Review, October 1937.11. Modern Review, November, 1937.12. The Statesman, 15 January & 1 May 1886.13. Harijan, 13 July 1940.14. The Telegraph, 7 August 1991, Calcutta15. Indian Literature, Vol. 4. 1961.16. The Visva Bharti Quarterly,October 192517. The Indian Nation, May 10, 1986, Patna.18. Indian Journal of English studies, 2003, New Delhi.

000

Index

Achalayatan - p.130Aeschylus - p.61Agincourt -p.16Alaler Gharer Dulal -p.21A Modern Utopia -p.97Anand, Mulk Raj -p.31Andrews, C.F -p.96,151,152,153Annals of Rajasthan - p.45Anticipations- p.97Arnold Matthew -p.129Auden, W.H -p.p 88-89Banerjee, Brojendranath -p.35Banerjee, Durga Charan -p.52Banerjee, Krishna Mohan -p.21Banerjee, Surendranath -p.52Bangadarshan -p.33,60Bauthakuranir Hat - p.34Bible, The -p.138Bose, Raj Narayan -p.128Bose, Subhas Chandra -p.54,80Brooke -p.18Buried Treasures of Tagore -p.94Carey, William -p.17Chaitanya -p. 68Chatterjee, Suniti Kumar -pp.140,141Chatterton -p.30Char Adhyay (Four Chapters) -p.56Citra -p.144Crime and Punishment -p.41Crisis in civilization -p.165,166Cromwell -p.13



Dante -p.92David Copperfield -p.41David Drummond -p.18David Hare -p.19Dayananda Swami -p.76Deb, Radhakanta -p.20Debi Chaudhurani -p.59Derozio -pp.18,19Desai, S,K -p.169Dharmatattva -p.59Dutta, Romesh Chandra -p.43Einstein -p.96Euripides -p.142Eyre, Jane -p.40Ghare Baire (The Home and the World) -p.56,98,99,100,107Ghose, Sisir Kumar -p.113Gitanjali (Song Offerings) -p.76,120,121,122,133,136,137,139,152Goethe -p.92,142Gokhle -p.150Gora -p.63,64,85,87Gupta, Kshetra -p.43Halder, Gopal -p.33Halhead -p.16Hind Swaraj -p.154Ibsen -p.104Indian Field -p. 35Ivanhoe -p.42Iyenger, K. R. Srinivas -p.154James Long -p.20Kabir -pp.132-134Kabir, Humayun-p.129Kalantar -p.82Kalpana -p.132KapalKundala -p.40Karim, Rezaul -p.53Karmakar, Panchanan -p.18Keats, John -p.92,132,140Kheya -p.132King Lear -p.61

Kipling, Rudyard -p.87Kripalani, Krishna -p.99,108,145Krishna Charitra -pp.57-59Krishna Kanter will -p.60Kabuliwalah-p.115Leth bridge -p.16Laxness-p.121Macbeth -p.61Madam Bovary -p.41Majoomdar, Pratap Chandra -p.128Malgonkar, Manohar -p.31Marshman -p.16Maxmuller -p.17Mill -p.59Mitra, Kishori chandra -p.35Mitra, Naba Gopal -p.50Mitra, Peary Chand -p.21Modern Review -p.52Mrinalini -p.61Mukherjee, Meenakshi -pp.36-37, 43, 86Muktadhara (The Freed Waterfall) -pp.167-169Nandy, Ashis -p.166New Worlds for old -p.97Nastanir (The Ruined House)-p.115Othello -p.61Pather Dabi -p.56Pound, Ezra -p.95Prometheus Unbound -p.172Radhakrishnan -p.176Rajarshi -p.34Raj Mohan's Wife -pp.34-37Raj Singha -p.45, 46, 52Rakta Karabi (Red Oleanders) -pp.169-174Ray, Sib Narayan -p.109Religio Medici -p.28Reminiscences -p.114Rolland, Romain -p.92Rousseau -p.166Rowley Poems -p.29



Roy, Raja Ram Mohan -p.13Sadhana -p.110, 123Samya -p.154Santayana, George -p.110Scott, Sir Walter -pp.40-43Sen, Keshab Chandra -p.25Sen, Ram Kamal -p.20Sen, Sukumar -p.49Shakespeare -pp. 61-62,65,66Shankaracharya -p.147Shaw, G. B. -p.96Shelley, P. B -p.92,172Sikdar, Radhanath -p.21Sitaram -pp.59-60Sophocles -p.142Sonar Tori (The Golden Boat) -p.144Stuart Mill -p.16Swami Pranavananda -p.76Swami Vivekananda -p.76, 146Tagore, Devendranath-p.126, 127Tagore, Dwarakanath -p.27Tagore, Satyendranath -p.50The Awakening of the Waterfall -p.111The Brother Karmazov -p.41The Invisible Man -p.97The Religion of An Artist -p.25,26,29,32The post office-p.116, 117The Religion of Man -pp.26-27The Situation And the Remedy -p.72The Time Machine p.96The world is too much with us -p.155Thoreau -p.154Vanity Fair -p.40Visbriksha (The Poisoned Tree) p.40Wells, H.G. -pp.96-98Wilkins, Charles -p.17Wilson, H.H -p.20Wuthering Heights -p.40Yeats, W.B. -p.89, 92, 95, 96, 149, 169

Rabindranath Tagore, the visionary activist: A critical studyin synthesis of Religion and Politics208

rabindranath tagore, the visionary activist: a critical study in synthesis of religion and politics

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