Rabindranath Tagore was born into a wealthy family in Bengal, India, in 1861. He studied English literature at Presidency College in Calcutta and earned his bachelor’s degree there. In 1883, he moved to England where he continued his studies at University College London, graduating with a master’s degree in 1888. Upon returning home, he began teaching at Visva Bharati University, and later became principal of Santiniketan School, a school founded by Nobel Prize laureate Rabindranath Tagores father.
In 1912, Rabindranath Tagoreturned to India and established himself as a leading figure in the nationalist movement. During World War I, he served as a member of the Indian National Congress’ executive committee. In 1920, he was appointed president of the newly formed Indian National Congress.
During the 1930s, Tagore traveled extensively throughout Asia and Europe. In 1935, he visited Japan and met Emperor Hirohito, whom he greatly admired. Later, he spent several months living in China.
Tagore died in 1941, having been diagnosed with cancer earlier that year.
Poetry
Nandalal Boseillustration:
Birpurush (The Hero):
The Crescent Moon:
Gitanjali Bengali:
Tagore, Rabindranath (1861–1941)
Internationally, Gitanjala (meaning “the song of love”) is Tagore’s best known collection of poems, for which he was given the Nobel Prize in 1913. It consists of 30 songs written over a period of about 15 years. Together with his other collections it comprises the main body of Tagore’s poetic work. The book contains some of Tagore’s most famous poems such as “My Song Is Love”, “Song of God”, “The Gardener”, “Only a Pebble”, “The Flute Player”, “The Guest House”, “Anekantavardhini” (“One Hundred Verses”), “The Sea”, “The City of Joy”, “The Sunbeam” and “The Gift”.
Rabindra Sangeet (Songs of Rabindranath), published in 1936, is an anthology of Tagore’s poetry. It includes many of the same poems as Gitanjali, but also includes new ones.
Other works include:
Chaitika (Time)
Brahmacharya (Monastic Life)
Kavya-Kalpataru (Fountain of Poetry)
Kumudini (The Stream of Poetry)
Jibanarayan (The Immortal One)
Mahanirvan (The Great Renunciation)
Mrinalini (The Lotus Blossom)
Natyashastram (The Playground of Poets)
Purnamai (The Ocean of Beauty)
Shakti (Power)
Shakuntala (The Palace of Pleasure)
Shesher Kabita (The Little Book of Verse)
Sri Ramayana (The Story of Rama)
Srikrishna (The Beloved Lord)
Swami Vivekananda (The Holy Man)
Vidyasagar (The Teacher)
Viswamitra (The Sage)
Viswa-Dharitri (The Universal Mother)
Yogeshwar (The Divine Yogi)
Library to Rabindranath Tagore Poems in English
Rabindranath Tagore wrote this beautiful poem to console himself when he was accused of being a traitor during the freedom movement. He explains how his thoughts are far removed from those who accuse him and that he does not feel guilty for what he did.
Tagore writes, “I am not a traitor/ I am not a rebel/ I do not know how to fight/ But I love my country,” and, “if there is no God above me,/then let me die here./ If there is no God above us,/let us live together.”
The poem ends with Tagore saying, “If we speak correctly, we shall never be wronged;/ And if we say nothing, we shall not be blamed;/ So why don’t we speak?”
2. At The Last Watch.
By Rabindranath Tagores
I am sitting alone and thinking,
There are many people here,
But no one seems to care;
They are busy talking, laughing,
And playing games,
While I sit and wait.
The night is darkening fast,
And soon will come the dawn,
When all these lights will go out,
And darkness will prevail.
Then I too must go away,
For I have waited long enough,
To see the sun rise again,
And hear the birds sing.
3. Friend.
In the beginning there was light, darkness and silence. Then out of the darkness came a spark. And from that spark grew a flame. From that flame came a fire. From that fire came a star. And from that star came a planet. On that planet lived a man. He called himself Man. His name was Adam. He had no friends.
Then one day God sent his Son down to earth. “I am Jesus,” he told Adam. “You are my friend.” But Adam did not understand what God meant. So God took him aside and showed him that everything he saw around him was really his son. Everything except his friend.
Adam looked up into heaven and cried out, “Where is my friend?”
God answered, “He is here. I am your friend.”
And so Adam learned that friendship is something you do not find. You make it.
4. Gitanjali.
– Rabindranath Tagores Poems
Gitanjali is a series/collection of 103 poems written by Rabindranth Tagore. These are mostly about the end journey of mankind towards God. This collection of poems contains both religious and secular themes. Some of the poems are based on Buddhist philosophy while some others are based on Hindu religion.
The book consists of four parts:
1. Introduction
2. Songs of Nature
3. Songs of Love
4. Songs of Devotion
5. Give Me Strength.
Ravi Shankar’s Prayer To God In Hindi Language”Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Gitanjali’ – A Poem Of Love And Purity”
In 1912, Ravi Shankar composed a song called “Jana Gana Mana,” or “O my nation, O my motherland.” This song became popular among Indians and inspired Rabindranath Tagore to write a poem titled “Gitanjali” in 1913. The poet dedicated it to India’s freedom movement. In the poem, he writes, “My soul longs for you / My heart thirsts for you… I am yours, O Motherland!”
The song and the poem are both based on the same theme of unity and love. The song tells people how much they love each other and calls upon others to do the same. The poem, on the other hand, asks God to help the nation and the world unite.
6. Let Me Not Forget.
– Rabindranath Tagoresanjana
Life has always had innumerable things to offer us in different situations. In such circumstances, we are often faced with losses, sorrows, disappointments, etc. We cannot remain unaffected by these losses and sorrows. They affect our life deeply. But there is something within us that enables us to overcome all these losses and sorrows; it is called self-forgetfulness. Self-forgetfulness helps us forget our own problems and concerns. It makes us feel free from the burden of our problems. And, thus, it gives us a sense of freedom.
Let me not forget, let me not forget, let my heart not forget the joys I once knew.
7. Lamp Of Love.
The Rabindranath poem collection Gitanjali has a poem called Lamp of Love, where it talks about how there are many dark nights in life and we shouldn’t just wait for them to go away because hope is what keeps us alive. In fact, hope is something that makes our lives worth living, and holding onto it during those times when everything around us seems hopelessly bleak is one of the most important things we can do.
8. Fool.
Rabindranath Tagore wrote Gitanjali during World War I. He wanted to give people some inspiration in such dire times. The poem consists of eight stanzas and each one ends with “Gitanjali”. In English, the word means ‘Song of the Beloved’ or ‘The Song of Divine Love’.
Tagore was born in 1861 into a wealthy family in India. His father died when he was just five months old. After finishing school, he went abroad for further education. While there, he met many Indian thinkers like Ram Mohun Roy, Swami Vivekananda and Annie Besant. Later, he joined the Brahmo Samaj and became a teacher.
In 1913, Tagore won the Nobel Prize for Literature. He had written over 50 books including novels, plays, poems, essays, biographies and travelogues. He also translated Shakespeare’s Macbeth into Bengali.
He lived in Santiniketan till his death in 1941.
9. Innermost One.
The speaker begs God to come down into his soul, as if it were a desert land where there are no springs, rivers, or lakes; as though he had been born in a place without water, food, or shelter. He longs for God to take him up into himself, as if he were a bird flying high above the earth.
He wants God to make his heart like a garden, filled with blossoms and fruits, so that he could enjoy the blessings of God.
11. Clouds and Waves.
“The Cloud and the Sea,” translated by John Stratton Hawley, courtesy of the University of Chicago.
Rabindranath Tagore wrote “Clouds and Waves” in 1913. He was inspired by his daughter Meghna. She had just turned six years old. In this poem, he describes her innocent view of the world around her. It is one of his most popular poems.
12. Free Love.
Love is the strongest weapon and can literally correct everything in the world. This is what the rich poet of India says about it in his latest book titled “Free Love”. In this book he has written a poem called ’12’ where he has tried to explain the concept of free love. He has tried to make people understand that love is the most powerful force in the world. And if we use it correctly, nothing can stop us.
In the poem, the author talks about how love is like a laser beam and can cut through anything. He also talks about how love can change our lives completely. The author writes, “Love is the strongest weapon/and can literally correct everything in world. /Here, with this poem,/the richest poet of India wants/to convey a message on it/by demarcating the possessive love/of humans and the selfless/love of god.”
The author also writes that love is something which changes our life completely. For example, if someone loves you, then he will never do anything wrong against you. Even if he does all those things, he will still love you. So, love is the best thing in the world.
14. The Child
– A Poem By Rabindranath Tagoreshows us how we are born again and again
Rabindranath Tagore wrote his famous poem “The Child” in 1913. This poem depicts the birth and death of human beings and how every person is reborn again and again. The poet describes the process of reincarnation in detail. He says that we are born again and we die again. But he also adds that there is something beyond the death. We shall be reborn again. And it is because of this reason that he writes that no matter what happens to us, we must continue living. If we do not live, we cannot die. In fact, we can never really die. There is always something beyond death.
The poet uses the metaphor of the seedling to describe the process of rebirth. Every seedling dies and grows up again. Similarly, every individual dies and is reborn again. This process continues forever. As long as there are seeds, there will be trees. As long as there is water, there will be plants. So, just like a seed, each person is born again and again.
In the beginning, the poet tells us that we start off as ignorant children. Then, we grow up and become adults. After that, we get older and eventually die. When we die, we go back to the source from where we came. That is why the poet calls it the child. He says that when we die, we come back to the source.
15. Freedom.
The freedom struggle began in 1857 when British East India Company tried to conquer Indian subcontinent by force. In 1885, the government introduced the Rowlatt Act, which allowed the police to arrest anyone without warrant. This act led to the First World War. After independence, the Nehruvian era saw a lot of social reforms like abolishment of untouchability, reservation of jobs for women and many others. But it was the 1950s when the most radical changes took place. The communist movement was born in Bengal and spread across India. People had to face mass arrests, torture, imprisonment and even death. The government was forced to release prisoners under POTA (Prevention Of Terrorism Act). Many leaders of the movement were killed during the period. The Emergency was declared in 1975. During the emergency, many people lost their lives due to curfews and restrictions.
In 1980, Indira Gandhi imposed martial law in Punjab. She wanted to control the situation and she did it successfully. But the biggest blow came in 1984 when she sent out army personnel to kill Sikhs. Thousands of innocent civilians were killed in Delhi alone. On January 30th, 1990, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam). Congress party won the elections in 1991. They promised to bring justice to the victims of 1984 riots. But they didn’t do anything. And finally, in 1998, Narasimha Rao resigned as prime minister. He was replaced by Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Today, the world knows India as a democratic nation. Millions of people live happily here. There is no discrimination based on caste, creed, religion, race etc. The economy is growing fast. The literacy rate is increasing day by day. The youth is educated. Women are empowered. We are proud of our culture, traditions and heritage. Our democracy is working well. Today, we are free.
