india perspectives- special issue on rabindranath tagore

8/9/2019 India Perspectives- Special Issue on Rabindranath Tagore

1/68

(1861-1941)

EditorNavdeep Suri

Guest EditorUdaya Narayana Singh

Director, Rabindra Bhavana, Visva-Bharati

Assistant Editor

Neelu Rohra

Vol 24 No. 2/2010 ISSN 0970 5074

India Perspectives is published in Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Bengali, English, French, German,Hindi, Italian, Pashto, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Sinhala, Spanish, Tamil and Urdu.

Views expressed in the articles are those of the contributors and not necessarily of India Perspectives.All original articles, other than reprints published in India Perspectives, may be

freely reproduced with acknowledgement.

Editorial contributions and letters should be addressed to the Editor, India Perspectives,140 A Wing, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi-110001.

Telephones: +91-11-23389471, 23388873, Fax: +91-11-23385549E-mail: [email protected], Website: http://www.meaindia.nic.in

For obtaining a copy of India Perspectives, please contact the Indian Diplomatic Mission in your country.This edition is published for the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi

by Navdeep Suri, Joint Secretary, Public Diplomacy Division.

Designed and printed by Ajanta Offset & Packagings Ltd., Delhi-110052.

Six zoomorphic forms in a line, exhibited in Paris, 1930

IndiaPerspectives

VOL 24 NO. 2/2010


2/68


3/68


4/68

In common with thousands of his countrymen

I owe much to one who by his poetic genius and

singular purity of life has raised India in the

estimation of the world. But I owe also more.

Did he not harbour in Santiniketan the inmates

of my Ashram who had preceded me from

South Africa? The other ties and memories are too

sacred to bear mention in public tribute.

M.K. GandhiSabarmati, Ahmedabad

Winged Surprises:

Lyrics and Melodies of

Tagore

LADLY MUKHOPADHYAY 6

The Poets School

SUPRIYO TAGORE 12

Tagore, Gitanjali

and the Nobel Prize

NILANJAN BANERJEE 20

Rabindranath Tagore

as a PainterSANJOY KUMAR MALLIK 26

In Search of a

New Language for

Theatre

ABHIJIT SEN 38

The Scientist in Tagore

PARTHA GHOSE 46

Tagore:

The Seer and Interpreter

ERNEST RHYS 50

Tagore and

Rural Reconstruction

UMA DASGUPTA 86

Tagore and his Times:

The Idea of Asia

SUGATA BOSE 90

Tagore:

The Golden Bridge between

Great Civilizations of

India and China

TAN CHUNG 96

Tagores Visit

and its Impact onChinas Literary World

YIN XINAN 10

Man at the Centre of

Universe: Tagores Ideas on

Complete Education

UDAYA NARAYANA SINGH 104

Tagore and

Technical Education

B.N. PATNAIK 110

Equal Music:

Influence of Tagore on othe

Painters

INA PURI 116

Tagore:

From the 21st CenturyPerspective

ILKE ANGELA MARCHAL 122

Blessed am I that

I am born to this land:

A Biographical sketch

of Tagore

PURBA BANERJEE 127

The Wayfaring Poet

AMRIT SEN 52

Tagores Religion

SABUJKOLI SEN 60

Gandhi and Tagore

AMARTYA SEN 66

Touched by Tagore

MARTIN KMPCHEN 70

Tagores Swadeshi Samaj:

Debates on Nationalism

BIKASH CHAKRAVARTY 76

Rabindranaths Role inWomens Emancipation

KATHLEEN M. OCONNELL 80

Tagore with Gandhi at Santiniketan

SambhuSaha


5/68

INDIA PERSPECTIVES VOL 24 NO. 2/2010 6 INDIA PERSPECTIVES VOL 24 NO. 2/2010 7

Winged Surprises:Lyrics and Melodies of TagoreLADLY MUKHOPADHYAY

Right: Tagore singing with anaccompaniment by Abanindranath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore had

once said: Our music is

music for one, music forsolitude, but it is not meant

for one in a corner. It is

the one representing the

universal whole. Tagores

music developed upon this

foundation of the increasing

desire to merge individual

oneness with the universal

whole.

Rabindranath Tagores musicadded a new dimensionto the musical concept

of India in general and Bengalin particular. Rabindrasangeet,being the cultural treasurefor Bengalis (includingBangladeshis) has an everlastingand all encompassing appealfor the listeners. It is said thathis songs are the outcome ofcenturies of literary and culturalchurning that the Bengalicommunity has gone through.

Rabindranath Tagore had oncesaid: Our music is music forone, music for solitude, but it

is not meant for one in a corner:it is the one representing theuniversal whole. Tagores musicdeveloped upon this foundation

of the increasing desire tomerge individual oneness withthe universal whole. In fact his

compositions reflect beautifullythe agony of failure to attain thisunion as well as the intense joyupon achieving it.

The body of music created byRabindranath Tagore in the64 years between 1877 and1941 may be broadly classifiedinto two main categories.Those that are melody based Suradharmiand those that arelyric based Kavyadharmi.

Let us first explore the melody-based compositions. Tagoregrew up in the classical traditionof Hindustani classical music(raaga sangeet). From hisautobiographical sketches, wecome to know of the musicaltraining he went through in hischildhood. He was the discipleof Jadunath Bhatta (1840-1883),the famous Pundit of VishnupurGharana. In this gharana ofIndian classical music, theartist excels in unfolding thebeauty of the Raagathroughthe initial introductory notesknown as Aalaap. It is simple,devoid of heavy, cumbersome

ornamentation and is famous for


6/68


7/68


8/68


9/68


An open-air class at the Patha-Bhavanatoda(left) and Basantotsavcelebration (below).

play-acting in the school. They

played games in the afternoon.Tagore thought that man isborn in the world with onlyone advice from God thatis Express yourself! Thereforchildren of the Poets schoolwere allowed to expressthemselves through tune andrhythm, lines and colour, andthrough dance and acting. Ever

Tuesday there would be literarymeetings in the ashramawhere children read out theirstories and poems, sang anddanced and put up short playsin the presence of all theashramites (the inmates of theashrama). In their classes tooit was the self-expression thatwould be encouraged and not

cramming of possible questionsand answers. They wereencouraged to use their limbs

SamiranNand

y,Rabindra-B

havana,Visva-B

harati


10/68


11/68


to everybody. Once Tagore

was asked if he would liketo recommend the kind ofreligious training the schoolsshould ideally impart. Heclearly replied that no religiousinstruction should be given inschools. There should rather bean effort to cultivate a senseof infinity in the minds ofchildren. That we are a part

of a very vast and wonderfulcreation should somehow beconveyed; a sense of awe abouthis huge creativity should begiven to the children.

Santiniketan has always beenlike a big family. Teachers knowall the students personally,and vice versa. The wives of

the teachers are like mothersto the students. Therefore, theinstitution had to be small forTagores ideals to be fruitful.Big institutions have a differentlogic of their own. It is, thusan environment of beauty, loveand co-operation. Competitionhas no place here. Tagore usedthe word becomingwhich he

thought was more importantthan anything else in the PoetsSchool.

The authorwas the Principal of Patha-Bhavana, the school set up by RabindranatTagore at Santiniketan.

Prayer in progress today in the heritageUpasana-griha(Prayer hall).Sa

miranNand

y


12/68


13/68


the mystic vision and rhetoricsplendour of Tagores poetry.Yeats suggested minor changesin the prose translations of theGitanjalisongs. Speaking on

the charm ofGitanjali, Yeatswrote in his introduction:

These prose translations havestirred my blood as nothing hasfor years. I have carried themanuscript of these translationswith me for days, reading it inrailway trains, or on the top ofomnibuses and in restaurants, and Ihave often had to close it lest somestranger would see how much it

moved me.

While the Bengali Gitanjali hadone hundred and eighty three

poems, the English versioncontained one hundred andthree poems from ten previouslypublished anthologies includingfifty three poems from its

Bengali namesake. It was dueto Rothensteins efforts thatthe India Society of Londonbrought out these translationsas a book. A limited editionof seven hundred and fiftycopies was printed, amongwhich two hundred and fiftycopies were for sale. Thebook was received with much

enthusiasm in England and theMacmillan Press of London didnot miss the opportunity of

Where the mind is without fear!: A poem from Gitanjaliin Tagores calligraphy

buying its rights, publishing ten

subsequent editions of the titlewithin nine months betweenMarch and November, 1913.While the Bengali Gitanjaliwas brought out without anydedication, Tagore dedicated hisfirst English anthology of poemsto Rothenstein as a token oftheir friendship that lasted tillthe death of the poet in 1941.

Tagore, left England in October,1912 for America before hisEnglish Gitanjalicould bepublished and returned to Indiain September, 1913. Ezra Poundand Harriet Monroe (1860-1936)

took the initiative in publishing

six poems of Tagore in theprestigious American magazinePoetrywith a note by Poundin December, 1912. Gitanjalireceived wonderful reviews insome of the leading newspapersand literary magazines includingThe Times Literary Supplement,Manchester Guardian, and TheNationamong others, shortly

after the publication of thebook.

The British littrateur ThomasSturge Moore, in his individualcapacity as the Fellow of theRoyal Society of Literature of the

Nobel Prize citation


14/68


15/68

INDIA PERSPECTIVES VOL 24 NO. 2/2010 27

The multifarious personality of Rabindranath

covered diverse terrains of creative expression,

but he ventured into the world of painting

quite late in life.

SANJOY KUMAR MALLIK

RABINDRANATH TAGORE

AS A PAINTER


16/68


17/68


whitewash on the walls, and

these would induce a range ofvisual forms in his imaginationas he drifted off to sleep. Onemay infer that Rabindranath didpossess the elemental faculty ofvisual imagination.

By 1930, however, Rabindranathwas relatively confident of hisefforts as a painter. In a letter

dated 26th April addressed toIndira Devi (1873-1960), hewrote that it would surprise

the latter to learn the entire

story of how the once-poetRabindranaths current identitywas that of a painter, though hewould rather modestly wait forposterity to bear that news toher rather than declare his ownachievements. He went on tomention that the inaugurationof his exhibition was scheduledon the 2nd of May, 1930 that

the harvest at the year-end hadbeen collected together onthese foreign shores. But, he

wrote, he would prefer to leave

them behind, considering itfortunate that he had been ableto cross over with these fromthe ferry-wharf of his own land.

Rabindranaths acclaim fromthe series of foreign exhibitions(1930) even before one washeld in his own country hasbeen the other long-standing

cause for suspicion of indulgentpraise. What counters thesedoubts is the consistency of


18/68


his pictorial quest and the

enormous output scholarsclaim that he had broughtalong as many as fourhundred paintings for the1930 exhibitions. What is ofinterest beyond numbers,are the choices exercised byRabindranath as a painter.In a period when nationalistrevivalism was triumphant

in the country, he had thestrength of will to propose

a larger vision beyond the

restrictive criteria of national/geographical boundaries inmatters of creative expression.In fact, it is tempting to viewRabindranaths pictorial practiceagainst the phrase that assumedthe role of a guiding motto forVisva Bharati, the university heinstituted:yatra visva bhavatieka nidam where the whole

world comes to meet as in asingle nest. This catholicity

distinguished Rabindranaths

creative process, and hisapproach to the notion oftradition was thereby liberated.Coupled with this, his Europeantours had probably contributedconsiderably to make the artof those lands a directly feltexperience. But even whenone identifies, for instance,echoes of the expressionistic in

the paintings of Rabindranath,the images in their ultimate


19/68


well. The pictures that he drew

for his own books SheyandKhapcharaare in the true spiritof illuminations, independentexpressions in their own right complementary, rather thansupplementary, to the text.

Then there are faces bothmale and female and theseare not illusive portraitsstanding in for an individual.They may have taken off froma particular individual, but inthe final rendering becomerather character studies thanvisual impressions. It is thusthat they do not lack in

personality but instead have

distinctly personal presences,with expressions ranging fromthe sullen and sombre to thecalm and contained, and rareinstances of the joyful or themerry. However, whicheverbe the particular expression,the painted faces invariablyexude a feeling of untoldmystery, as if the whole of a

personality is beyond completecomprehension.

Very similarly, Rabindranathslandscapes are hardlydescriptive passages such thatit may be nearly impossible to

totality of visual language are so

utterly individual that they defycategorization into strait-jacketsof stylistic periodization ormovements in world art.

It is, therefore, necessary tocomprehend Rabindranathschoice of themes in conjunctionwith, and as a logical corollaryof, his choice in the realm of

pictorial language. Not onlydid he opt not to hark backto past pictorial traditions, healso rejected associations of

the literary. Even when his

pictorial compositions deal withdramatic ensembles of multiplehuman figures, the narrativeis entirely contained withinthe perimeter of the paintedpage, without drawing directreference to literary allusions,whether belonging to a sharedtradition or to those of his owncreation. What unfolds in front

of the viewer of these paintingsis a narrative told exclusivelythrough the visual language and meant to be read so as

determine the inspiring source

in actual locations. Nonethelesssome of the glowing yellowskies behind the silhouetteof trees in the foregroundmust invariably be the resultof natures manifestation atSantiniketan. Once again, thefact, that despite a broadlygeneral identification thelandscapes remain largely

non-specific. These paintingsrendered with a dominant toneof chromatic emotions, wherenatures mysteries unfurl beforeus through the liquid tones ofcolour.


20/68


But above all, what drawsour attention from amongsthis entire collection is a series

of reworked photographs.The May 1934 issue of theVisva-Bharati Newscarried aphoto-portrait of Rabindranathon the cover. A number of thesecovers were painted over byhim in ink, pastel and watercolour, transforming each ofthe faces into distinctly differingidentities. In many of these, the

ink scribbles and colour tonesspare the eyes which continueto glow piercingly out from

beneath the cloak of pictorialtransformation, but in a few hehad even painted over them.

Not only does this exerciseaddress the issue of the realas an illusory appearance thatsubstitutes an object, it alsointroduces within the samedebate the issue of identity,especially when one realizesthat a couple of these reworkedfaces tend to look distinctlyfeminine.

Addressing questions ofconsiderably wider implications

than those that were ofimmediate concern to hiscontemporaries in the field

of visual arts, Rabindranathpersonified a vision of muchlarger dimension. Approachingpictorial language from thevantage point of a widerhorizon, he indexed a directionand a possibility in pictorialpractice that was exemplarywithin the modern in Indian art

The author teaches Art History at

Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan and taughtat the Maharaja Sayajirao University ofBaroda.


21/68


22/68


did not seem to care much for

the contemporary professionaltheatre. He was envisaging aparallel theatre, distinct fromthe contemporary professionaltheatre.

This search for a paralleltheatre kept Rabindranathpreoccupied throughout hisentire dramatic career, thoughhe began with early dalliances

with the Western model first,the operatic experimentationsin Valmiki-Pratibha(1881),Kalmrigaya(1882) and MayarKhela(1888); next, his useof the Shakespearean five-act

tragic structure in blank verse,

in Raja O Rani(1889) andVisarjan(1890). Most of theseearly performances weremarked by their use of overtrealistic stage-conventions,whether it was the illusion ofa forest created with actualtrees for the staging ofValmiki-Pratibha(1890), or the stagestrewn with realistic stage

properties for the mounting ofVisarjan(also 1890).

Between Visarjanof 1890 andSarodatsavof 1908, despitesome sporadic attempts atplaywriting, there was virtually

Tagore (left) and with Indira Devi (below) in Valmiki Pratibha.


23/68


24/68


25/68


26/68


27/68


28/68


29/68


popularity as a poet can be

gauged from Rothensteinsletter to him, When you lastcame, it was as a stranger, withonly our unworthy selves tooffer our friendship; now youcome widely recognized poetand seer, with friends knownand unknown in a hundredhomes. Tagore left for India inSeptember, 1913.

The award of the Nobel Prizetransformed the reputation ofTagore and he was invited allacross the globe. His ideas ofinternationalism also spurredhis desire to travel and interact

with cultures. In 1916 he

visited Rangoon and Japan,stopping at Kobe, Osaka,Tokyo and Yokohama. Tagorewas keen to locate in Japan amanifestation of modern lifein the spirit of its traditionalpast, and he was moved by theaesthetic consciousness of thepeople. Tagore was, however,disappointed by the emergence

of nationalism and imperialismin the country.

In September 1916 Tagorewas invited to the USA todeliver a series of lectures. Hetravelled to Seattle, Chicago

Tagore with dignitaries on a visit to Japan, 1929 Tagore addressing people during his visit to Singapore, 1927

and Philadelphia delivering

his critique against the cult ofnationalism. Although he waswarmly received, his viewsgenerated a lot of hostility.

Tagore returned to Europein 1920. In England, he wasdisappointed to find thathis strident stand againstnationalism and war had cooledthe ardour of his friends. He

travelled to France and wasdeeply moved on his trip tothe battle ground near Rheims.At Strasbourg, he delivered hislecture titled The Message ofthe Forest. His subsequent

visit to USA to generate funds

for Visva-Bharati proved to beunsuccessful. Not only did hefail to raise significant funds,he also encountered a distinctlyhostile audience for his criticismof materialism and nationalism.In 1921, Tagore travelled toParis to meet Romain Rolland,immediately warming to thevision of internationalism

that both shared. Tagore alsovisited Holland and Belgium,Denmark and Swedendelivering an address at theSwedish academy. He travelledto Germany looking with


30/68


Ocampo (1890-1979). The

voyage to South America wassignificant for Rabindranathspreparation of the manuscriptofPurabiwith its copiousdoodlings. It was from this pointonwards that Tagores career asan artist would find expression.In 1926, Tagore visited Italyat the invitation of Mussolini(1883-1945). He received a

rapturous reception, but oncehe realized the fascist leaningsof Italy he severely denouncedthe Italian government. Tagore

proceeded to Oslo, Belgrade,

Bucharest, Athens and Cairo.At Germany he interacted withAlbert Einstein (1879-1955).The translations of his poetryensured that he receivedrecognition and appreciationwherever he went.

In 1927, Tagore undertook atrip to South East Asia, visiting

Malaya, Java, Bali, Siam andBurma. The overarching motifof this voyage was to study therelics of an Indian civilization

Tagore with students in Russia, 1930A photograph from Tagores USA visit, 1916

interest at the Universities

there and proceeded to Viennaand Prague. Tagores poetrywas now being translated anddiscussed all across Europe andoffered a significant acceptanceamong a population that hadbeen ravaged by war. Hereceived a rapturous welcomeeverywhere as he spoke aboutpeace and world unity.

In 1924, Tagore travelled to China.He visited Shanghai, Beijing,Nanking and Chufu. Tagore

interacted with a number of

poets, educationists once againreviving the notion of an Asiansolidarity. He visited the tombof Confucious and addressedthe Chinese youth on severaloccasions reminding them of thetradition of cultural exchangebetween China and India.

Tagores visit to South America

took him to Buenos Aires,Chapadmalal and San Isidro. Anailing Rabindranath recuperatedat the residence of Victoria

and to forge closer cultural ties

with these regions. Tagorestravelogue on this trip shows hkeen interest in the music anddance of this region.

In 1930, Tagore travelled forthe last time to Europe. On thistrip he exhibited his paintings aseveral cities including Paris anthey were warmly applauded.

He travelled to the Universityof Oxford to deliver the Hibberlectures, later published as TheReligion of Man. He travelled


31/68


32/68


33/68


34/68


35/68


36/68


37/68


38/68


39/68


40/68


41/68


42/68

INDIA PERSPECTIVES VOL 24 NO. 2/2010 81

RabindranathsRole inWomens Emancipation

KATHLEEN M. OCONNELL

Rabindranaths role in the liberation of Bengali women was

a seminal one. Initially, he exposed the plight of women and

argued for their autonomy through his letters, short stories,and essays. Through his novels, he was able to construct new

and vital female role models to inspire a new generation of

Bengali women. Later, by his act of admitting females into

his Santiniketan school, he became an innovative pioneer

in coeducation.

This essay displays Tagores paintings

T

he Jorasanko Tagorefamily played a seminal

role in almost all theinnovative socio-culturalchanges that occurred in19th century Bengal, andfemale emancipation was noexception. Dwarkanath Tagore(1794-1846), the grandfather ofRabindranath, was advocatingwomens education and socialreform regarding women as

early as 1842, following histrip to Europe. Rabindranathsfather, Debendranath (1817-1905), though conservativeby nature, supported theBethune school for womenseducation, and permitted theparticipation of his daughtersand other female members ofthe family in various forms of

education and social work.

Most notable was the liberatingrole of Rabindranaths brother,

Satyendranath (1842-1923),whose wife Gnanadanandini(1851-1941) became a rolemodel for modern femalebehavior. Not only didGnanadanandini redesignBengali female dress to make itmore appropriate for travellingbeyond the antahpur(innercourtyard) she contributed

articles on female educationaland social reform to severaljournals and travelled toEngland with her three childrenwithout the accompaniment ofher husband. Rabindranath thusgrew up in a household wherethe norms concerning womenwere changing rather rapidly.

Rabindranath made his firsttrip to England in 1878, at theage of 17, and some of his


43/68


44/68


45/68


46/68


47/68


48/68


49/68


Benoy Kumar Sarkar, writingin the Modern Reviewin the

1910s, stressed both sea-lanesand land-routes in creatingwhat he called anAsia-sense.By the 1920s most contributorsto the same journal weremore enamored of the oceanicconnections that spread Indiancultural influences to SoutheastAsia. I have sought to make adistinction between two strands

of cultural imperialism and amore generous universalism thashaped early twentieth-centurydiscourses on this subject.During the modern age it hasbeen a constant struggle not toallow universalist aspirationsof the colonized degenerateinto universalist boasts andcosmopolitanism be replaced

by bigotry. The tussle goes onin new post-colonial settings.The outcome is yet uncertain,but the ethical choice before usseems clear enough.

The author is Gardiner Professor of Historyat Harvard University, USA. The grandson oSarat Chandra Bose, he has authored severbooks on the economic, social and politicalhistory of modern South Asia.

Tagore with the students at Karuizawa, Japa


50/68


Tagore:The Golden Bridge

between Great Civilizationsof India and China

Tagore acted as the golden bridge between two ancientcivilizations. He was in favour of a seamless world

where all barriers, including the political and the

geographic, must be obliterated to create a united

mankind. He showed how following in the footsteps of

Buddhism, barriers could become pathways leading to

long-lasting friendship and mutual appreciation.

TAN CHUNG

Geographical boundaries havelost their significance in themodern world. People of theworld have come closer. Wemust realize this and understandthat this closeness must befounded on love the Eastand West must join hands inthe pursuit of truth. The man,Rabindranath Tagore, who

made this observation, had hisintellectual realm encompassingSanskrit civilization, Englishculture, and Bengali folklore inaddition to family affinities withIslamic traditions and Persianliterature. He had also a Chinadimension in his universaloutlook as he said in Beijingin 1924: I have been reading

translations from some of yourbooks of poetry and I havebeen fascinated by something inthe quality of your literatureI have not seen anything likeit in any other literature that Iknow of.

Inspired by the Vedic mantrayatra visvam bhavati

ekanidam(where the wholeworld meets in one nest),Tagore named the institutionhe founded at Santiniketan in1921 Visva-Bharati. This ideal,Tagore shared, in a letter, withthe Chinese writer, Xu Dishan(Su Ti-shan), who visitedSantiniketan in December 1920:Let the illusion of geographicalbarriers disappear from at leastone place in India let ourSantiniketan be that place.Left: Tagore with Tan Yun Shan and family


51/68


52/68


53/68


54/68


Man at the Centre of Universe

Tagores Ideas on Complete EducationUDAYA NARAYANA SINGH

A set of four words here aspiration, power, freedom and

moral communion, define how Tagore would like to place

man at the centre of his universe as he spelt out his ideas

on education.

While talking about his childhood and education

Rabindranath Tagore (1929) had once written: I wasbrought up in an atmosphere of aspiration,aspiration

for the expansion of the human spirit. We in our home sought

freedom ofpower in our language, freedom of imagination in

our literature,freedom of soul in our religious creeds and that

of mind in our social environment. Such an opportunity has

given me confidence in the power of education which is one with

life and only which can give us real freedom, the highest that isA painting by Rabindranath Tagore


55/68


56/68


57/68


58/68


as ethics, which lie outside thescope of science, but for that

reason are not dispensable.Ethical sense is invaluable notjust for living a good life, butfor survival too. Fourthly, astudent of technology mustbe enabled to appreciate thatthe most valuable technologyis that which brings relief tothe labourer, and the farmer,and which helps the physically

challenged in differentways to negotiate with theworld with relative ease.Development of text-to-speechand speech-to-text systems inthe local languages is a case inpoint.

A conservative objection tosuch broad based technical

education has been that itwould reduce the quantumof technical knowledge tobe imparted to the students,and would thereby dilute thequality of technical education.This view is based on thewrong premise that technicaleducation serves a society bestwhen it delivers competent

technical manpower. On thecontrary, from its educationalsystem, that does not excludetechnical education, a societyexpects knowledgeable,competent, balanced, sensitiveand empathetic personswho can provide it creative,constructive leadership. Yetanother conservative view

is that there is no need forhumanities and human sciences


59/68


60/68


Equal Music:Influence of Tagore on other Painters

Distanced by time,geographical locale,personal histories, it

came as a surprise when thepainter in Manjit Bawa (1941-2008) spoke ever so often,of the deep spiritual kinshiphe shared with Rabindranath

Tagore, a man he regardedas one of the most influentialforces in modern years. Wewere working in Dalhousieon Manjits memoirs and as hepainted, he spoke of his firstacquaintance with Tagore andhis art. For an artist it was butnatural that the young manshould get to learn about the

great poet, musician, playwright,litterateur, philosopher, savantthrough his art. Manjit was amere adolescent then, growingup in an era brimming overwith optimism, when hediscovered quite by chance,the paintings of Tagore, at histeacher, Abani Sens (1905-1972)class. The surreal landscapes

and intensely sensitive portraitsof women were to leave a

lasting impression on his mindthat time would only strengthen.He found himself deeply drawnto the brooding faces of womenespecially, their eyes darkenedwith inner turmoil and pain. Ashe read his poems and plays,and listened to his songs, his

reverence for Tagore deepened.As always, his life followed itsusual routine in Delhi, school,art classes, working on studiesfor his assignments, yet, in hissecret life, he could hear thesong of the bard encouraginghim to break away from themundane and follow his heartschosen path. Eklaa cholo rey...

jodee tor daak shuney keyu naaaashey(Move ahead aloneeven if no one comes listeningto your call!) became Manjitsanthem, words he replayed inhis mind when he was facedwith hardship and strife.

As one of midnights children,growing in the immediate

decade post-Swaraj (with thetrauma of partition), Manjits

INA PURI

In the words of the Poet, What is rhythm? It is the movement

generated and regulated by harmonious restriction. This is

the creative force in the hand of the artist. So long as words

remain in uncadenced prose form, they do not give any

lasting feeling of reality.

Self-portrait by Tagore


61/68


childhood years were a collageof different experiences thatshaped his adult character.

Theirs was a large familybut one that shared a warmand close bonding despitethe occasional financialupheaval. His older brotherwas instrumental in gettinghim started on art and to makesure he remained interestedset him interesting assignmentsthat included travel to places

of historic and archaeologicalsignificance. As Manjit cycledto destinations through thehinterland of the country, heoften read Tagores writings,during breaks. The cadmiumyellow mustard fields and fieryorange blossoms ofpolashwould make their way to hiscanvas but so would be the beat

and rhythm of tribals he wouldencounter en route. Long after

his passing, I discovered hiscompanion of those journeys,in a torn and tattered volume

written by RabindranathTagore called What is Art?(Kessinger Publications, 2005edn). Revisiting the pages, Ithought this must have been afavourite read, for the leaves ofthe pages were now frayed andbrittle. Holding it in my hand,I heard Manjits voice again ashe drew parallels between the

two lives and journeys. Whilein distant Birbhum, in anotherage, Tagore paid his tribute tothe wandering minstrels, thebaul through his work, so didManjit celebrate the Sufi saintsand poets. For both, it was themetaphysical aspect of the faiththat mattered, not any religiousconnotation. Interestingly,

Sikhism was Manjits familysreligion, Bramhoism, Tagores

Paintings by Tagore (above & right)


62/68


63/68


At the turning point ofthe year two thousand,we entered into a new

century. But essentially, aswe turned a page toward anew millennium that, in manyrespects, imposed on us radicalchanges in our ways of living;and more so: a revolution, inan unconscious manner, of

perceiving the world, of feelinglife and of how to envision our

futures. And this prompted usto proceed, without noticingit, to change our mentalities, ifnot our consciousness. Seen inretrospect, Rabindranath Tagore,with the immense stature of hispoetry, literature and creativity,proved to be deeply rooted even if it was in an unconsciousmanner, in his Zeitgeist, the

acting principal of a time, whichgave birth to real upheaval, the

Tagore:From the 21st Century Perspective

ILKE ANGELA MARCHAL

Inhabitant of his time, advocating Unity and Universality,

underlining the part of the Unconscious as well as the

Subconscious, Tagore did not need to follow the phases and

vagaries of the construction of the new science in order

to herald great truth by which the basic values of his own

tradition had nourished him all along.

concrete effects of which tilltoday alter more than ever our

daily lives.Rabindranath Tagore almost wasa voice in the desert, despitehis travels and his encounterswith many a great man inthe Occident and the wholeworld, where he was seen,often wrongly, as a typicalrepresentative of the Orient; justas back home in India, where

he called for the necessity ofchange and evolution in hisown cultural, religious andpolitical context.

After his meteoric rise followingthe Nobel Prize in 1913, he

nearly sank into oblivion. Asimilar misfortune occurred

with Johann Sebastian Bach(1685-1750), to name only oneamong many, and he neededto be rediscovered. This seemsquite incomprehensible but atthe same time is perfectlypossible, because this is whatoften happens to those who arevery original and innovative andwhose ideas are so fundamental

that the mentalities of a giventime cannot receive themwithout a deep questioning ofits own values. As a reformerhe was hitting hard on ourchains and urging for changesinconceivable at that time.

Punascha: Tagores house in Santiniketan


64/68


65/68


66/68


67/68


68/68

india perspectives- special issue on rabindranath tagore

Documents