Book Description
Gitanjali is an important collection of prose by Rabindranath Tagore, being a key Indian poet, author and of course Nobel Peace Prize winner. Individuals who are intestered in eastern poetry should embrace this book as it was written with eastern philosophy in mind. Tagore has long been known as an important author of works related to eastern philosophical beliefs, and has written an excellent collection of poetry which is featured in this publication.Download Description
Song Offerings A collection of prose translations made by the author from the original Bengali. Please Note:This book has been reformatted to be easy to read in true text, not scanned images that can sometimes be difficult to decipher.The Microsoft eBook has a contents page linked to the chapter headings for easy navigation. The Adobe eBook has bookmarks at chapter headings and is printable up to two full copies per year.Both versions are text searchable. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (28)

Extraordinary
The shipment and the condition of the book were perfect, and the poems convey unparalleled feelings.

Gitanjali
Simply one of the best books I have ever read. Very moving, and more importantly gives you a real perspective on life.

What a master of words
I don't think I am qualified enough (in Literature) to even comprehend the full meaning of every poem, but his gift is apparent from the first one's. He had an amazing eye for things in life most people will never care to even notice, and he had the talent to put forth those images and feelings in writing. No wonder he is hailed has one of the greatest literary minds in India. for people who want to explore more about Tagore, poetry wasn't his talent..he was a writer (plays and novels), a composer, an artist, and a Humanitarian.

Gitanjali
Extremely disappointing to find that the verses of Gitanjali are not numbered in this edition.Important that numbers be included for referencing in communication with others with whom one is discussing this classic.

Great Indian Poet
I gave this book to an friend of mine who lives in India and she just raves about it.Tagore is a great poet and this is in my opinion his best colletion. ... Read more

Book Description
Sadhana The Realization of Life was written by Nobel Prize Laureate Rabindranath Tagore. Rabindranath Tagore was one of the most important figures in history to bring Indian philosophy and spiritual teachings to western civilization. Sadhana, or spiritual practice when translted from Sanskrit is written to educate those interested in Indian philosophical teachings. Those interested in Indian philosophy and spiritual teachings must not pass up the opportunity to read this important, unmatched work by Tagore. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Beautiful; more than spirit-sustaining.
I am careful in spiritual pursuits--notions of spirituality have to win me by changing me with their beauty and honesty.Tagore's Sadhana does this time and again.

I fell in love with physics and mathematics because of my liking for their perfectness, exactness, and trimness; perfect form.(No large claims; a physics major and math minor, no graduate work.) For the same reasons, vague or inconsistent pictures of the universe are difficult for me to take in--I often take a statement, rework it, rework myself, think carefully, stay honest, and in the end sometimes come up with an expanded understanding of things; almost always the statement and I both must be reworked; there is no problem with that, it is just the natural metabolism of thinking.

But Sadhana is so honest and well thought through that my first reading of it was smooth, beginning to end.And it was expanding.And it was perfect.And it was beautiful because it was true; it was perfectly beautiful; however you want to put it, I was taken.

The book presents a perception of things which goes to their root; fortunately and unfortunately, I find no other words for this than "spiritual;" I must be careful to point out that this spirituality is grounded in the world; it is not pained to explain ugliness; it is honest about things--this honesty does not make it less beautiful; but a rather awe-filled more.The integrity of perception of things is wonderful, and makes it a joy to read;any inch of slack can be overlooked in loo of the expansiveness, truth, and depth of insight provided.

It is the only presentation of a cosmology I have found which seems (to me!) 1. entirely consistent with a physicist's beliefs of the nature of things, and 2. which even encompasses the physicists's awarenesses, without at all attempting to (at least not by the same route).And yet with all this, it is more a work of poetry of the heart than a work of philosophy or analysis.It successfully remains part of the *lived* world.

I would like to continue about how I came to *Sadhana* in the first place, but it is best read in quiet, absent commentary by others.Get to the book.Make it "yours" first, perhaps, and then talk with others (just a thought).

Perhaps I can say this final bit (it only clues you in to the table of contents):

I came to this book a few months after finishing Plato's *Republic*, and I know that Plato's work helped me develop the ideas and questions which led me to find Sadhana.

I felt--coming from my reading and response to *The Republic*--that there was something worthy to pursue related to such notions as beauty, self, soul, and consciousness.Unfortunately, keyword searches on these called up not much helpful; mainly, they were works arrived at with too much fear and desire pushing for a crystallization of philosophy, or which lacked depth of heart.

The best writings I didn't find under these searches, but instead under searches related to poetry, music, or art--nothing directly speaking of "soul," "self," and so forth.Yet I finally queried the library computer for any books which contained all four above words (the initial four).The fact that anything came up at all, with such 'different' notions, was unusual--I approached it warily, yet with subdued and slightly hopeful stride.My wariness soon evaporated away; dissolving.I read.It was Tagore's Sadhana, you assuredly have guessed.

In My Top Ten of World Spiritual Classics
Like the constancy of the great cellestial constellations, Tagore's Sadhana delivers the message of the human connection to universal transcendance in hauntingly beautiful English prose.

Perched as he wasat the cusp of the Twentieth Century, Tagore saw with penetrating insightthe fallacies of the age of science when he wrote,

" The man ofscience knows, in one aspect, that the world is not merely what it appearsto be to our senses; he knows that earth and water are really the play offorces that manifest themselves to us as earth and water -how, we can butpartially comprehend. Likewise the man who has his spiritual eyes openknows that the ultimate truth about earth and water lies in theapprehension of the eternal will which works in time and takes shape in theforces we realize under those aspects. This is not mere knowedge, asscience is, but it is a perception of the the soul by the soul. This doesnot lead us to power, as knowledge does, but it gives us joy, which is theproduct of kindred things. The man whose acquaintance with the world doesnot lead deeper than science leads him, will never understand what it isthat the man with the spiritual vision finds in these natural phenomena.The water does not merely cleanse his limbs, but it purifies his heart; forit touches his soul. The earth does not merely hold his body, but itgladdens his mind; for its contact is more than a physical contact, -it isa living prsesence."

When I first read these words over twenty yearsago, they took my breath away.I have read and re-read Sadhana many timesince then. Each reading or re-visting of favorite passages is as fresh asthe first.He says much more that is worth reading in this 164 pagegem.

Sadhana is also an excellent primer on classical Hinduism, as Tagorebeautifully quotes the Vedas and Upanishads with Sanskrit transliterationto convey the lovliness of the vocal cadences of that ancienttongue.

Sadhana ranks with Psalms, the Tao De Ching, the Dhammapada, ZenMind Begginers Mind and other enduring classics of world spiritualliterature for its directness, simplicity and beauty of expression. My copyis beginning to fall apart so I am delighted to find it is again inprint.

Finally, I thank Dr. Purshotam Lal of Calcutta for havingintroduced me to Tagore as Visiting Professor at Hofstra University in the1960's. Lal, a Tagore Scholar, also produced a lovely translation (or as hepreferred, a "transcreation") of the Dhammapada then published byFarrar Straus in New York. Thanks again, Lal.

Joel Freiser Hoboken, NewJersey

Excellent!
My grandfather bought this book in the 1940's while he lived in Japan, his copy was printed in 1919. I eventually inherited it. I read it last year sometime, and I thought that it was one of the best books that I had ever read. If you are fond of Tagore, or just like philosophical/poetic works Istrongly recommend that you buy it! I hope that anyone who buys this willenjoy it as much as I did! Namaskar! ... Read more

Book Description
The poems of Rabindranath Tagore are among the most haunting and tender in Indian and world literature, expressing a profound and passionate human yearning. His ceaselessly inventive works deal with such subjects as the interplay between God and mortals, the eternal and the transient, and the paradox of an endlessly changing universe that is in tune with unchanging harmonies. Poems such as “Earth” and “In the Eyes of a Peacock” present a picture of natural processes unaffected by human concerns, while others, as in “Recovery—14,” convey the poet’s bewilderment about his place in the world. And exuberant works such as “New Rain” and “Grandfather’s Holiday” describe Tagore’s sheer joy at the glories of nature or simply in watching a grandchild play. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Disappointing
Radice's translations do injustice to Tagore and books such as this one (along with Tagore's own inadequate transations of his work) might end up misleading Western critics. The strength of his poetry is in his command on language, the musicality of his verse and, in general, the formal perfection of his work. Although some of his later work was in free verse, Tagore was undoubtedly a formalist. He took the metrical and rhythmic patterns of classical Sanskrit poetry and also traditional narrative Bengali verse and either retained them or experimented with them by splitting whole units into shorter lines (consider, for example, Balaka) as dictated by needs of movement and development. One of the almost insurmountable difficulties of translating formal poetry is that meter (along with sonic devices) is inextricably linked to meaning and the translator, somehow, has to convey both.

This is where Radice fails miserably. Let me simply cite the opening two lines of his translation of "Golden Boat" (Shonar Tari) along with the original.
Translation:
Clouds rumbling in the sky; teeming rain.
I sit on the river bank, sad and alone.
Original:
gagane garaje megh ghana barasha
kule eka boshe achhi, nahi bharasha

In Bengali, unlike in English, it is the consonant count (note that joint consonants are counted as one) and not the syllable count that defines a given meter. Here, we have a truncated fourteen-beat meter with a caesura after the eigth beat. The "ga" sounds are onomatopoeic, after the roaring of the clouds. Subsequently, the use of softer consonants indicates a draining of tension and reflects the loss of hope on the part of the narrator. Radice's version lacks any discernible meter and most importantly, the cohesion of sound and sense. The only device he uses is a slant rhyme and this, by itself, falls short of conveying the music of Tagore's verse. Other weaknesses include the unhappy gerund and the prosaic modifiers.

Although the loss of formalism remains the primary failing of Radice's translations, there are other drawbacks. Reading Tagore aloud is always a pleasure because language in his hands is not only expression but can be read for sound alone. Those long polysyllabic compounds,the internal rhymes, the effortless alliteration are always a delight, no matter what the content, be it some his later abstruse works (of which I am not particularly fond) or his purely narrative poems. Radice's translations lack this linguistic richness and are bland for the most part. Worse, he has a penchant for cliches ("bright as a million suns", "sea of joy surges through his heart" etc.).One might as well ask, "What is the point?"

Submitted incognito, these poems would be rejected by even middling journals. I can only guess what impressions critics unfamiliar with Bengali might form of Tagore's work, particularly in relation to his contemporaries, Yeats, Pounds and Stevens. I would refer them to selected translations by Radice's wife, Ketaki Kushari Dyson. "I won't let you go" (Jete nahi dibo), in particular, is well rendered.

An Excellent Overview of Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), the outstanding Bengali poet, literateur and humanist (and Asia's first Nobel Laureate in 1913), is scarcely read outside his native Bengal because only a small fraction of his works havebeen translated from Bengali into English or indeed into other languages.English translations were those done by Tagore himself and by a few Bengaliliterary scholars well-versed in English. The arrival of Dr William Radiceon the scene of Bengali scholarship in the early eighties brought in acurrent of fresh air. Here was an Englishman admiring Tagore andtranslating him! In this book, Radice applies his deep perception of Tagorein putting together a bouquet, as it were, redolent with the exoticfragrance of Tagoreana. No single collection can ever do justice to Tagore,and this one doesn't either. However, it does give the English-knowingreader a vivid glimpse of Tagore's amazing creativity. Radice has done agood job of choosing competent translators who have applied their hearts tothe task -- Tagore is so subtle that it is enormously difficult totranslate him! This book is strongly recommended for readers of allnationalities. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

The Heart of God
Fabulous collection from many of Tagore's books. Herbert Vetter has done a superb job. More importantly it brings out the greatness of Tagore. Short simple to read but very poignant.

The Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore
this is a wonderful bedside book...the poems are what i would call in depth minimalist style writings...this might be a contradiction in terms but every word is positioned just right in tagors syntax...he is i guess what you would say famous for his going to the core of what he is trying to say...yet he excludes nothing and every poem is titled well...so you can a navigate the book with ease...this is my first tagore book and i have another...fireflies...on the way...pleasant reading

Timeless Prayers of Tagore
This collection of seventy-seven poems of the Nobel Laureate poet of India is taken from seven sources of his poetry. The editor has skillfully degenderized and introduced contemporary language where he deemed appropriate. The beauty of Tagore's spirit and his eloquence will be augmented for some by the editor's gifts. Long familiar with Tagore's own translations of his poetry, I find in this collection extreme satisfaction in accessing the presence of the poet in images of rare beauty.This book is an important addition to the literature, providing
fresh acquaintance with a master poet.

The Heart of God:Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore
In prayers and poems of depth and simplicity,Tagore expresses his very soul...which is somehow the soul of each of us.

Obviously a spiritual master, he speaks for each of our hearts with a depth of compassion and honesty that embraces universal and timeless themes.Human struggle, delight, quest, hope, trust, joy, despair, and peace are expressed in a compelling commitment to Love which draws him only into deeper intimacy with the Beloved.

Tagore puts into words a love which surpasses understanding, time, or any methodology.He speaks in his writings a very human, very real, very tender love letter to the Divine.

I liked this book because it draws me also into the heart of God.

read this if you have a tender heart or in quest of one
everyone will have something to worry about,some unfulfilled ambitions. This is a collection of the poet's mystic prayers.I am sure this will move anyone with a tender heart. He was the composer of the Indian nationalanthem and was also a social reformer and a romantic. This makes me wonderif he wanted to address these questions to god. My immediate goal is tolearn bengali and read his poems in his own language. I am also lookingforward to read his gitanjali which got him the nobel prize. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (7)

The soul of the man
When I was in London in September 2006, I visited the British Museum.The first exhibit I saw as I entered the building was of the paintings and writings of Tagore.I was deeply moved by his inspiring words and decided I needed to read more, know more, about this man.I found this anthology to be just what I was looking for.It contains his words, and gave me insight into the man behind them.Certainly his words reveal the soul.A "can't miss" if that is your aim.

Competent introduction to Tagore
If the only thing that you read in this book were the short play "The Post Office", then it would still be worth the price.The ending of the play is one of many moments scattered throughout the pages that had an almost physical impact on me as a reader.

It a testimony to the sheer strength of Tagore as a writer that the reader is able to have those moments while reading this anthology. It unfortunately suffered from many of the typical problems of this kind of collection. The selections often felt too shallow and abbreviated. The quality of the translations varied wildly from chapter to chapter.

As a reader, I would have appreciated it if Dutta and Robinson had refrained from excerpting the longer prose works and instead had concentrated on deepening the selection of letters, short stories and essays. Reading an excerpt of a longer work is bound to be a frustrating exercise, and the space was used at the expense of material more natural for this kind of collection.

I picked this up to give me an overview of Tagore as a writer. It served that purpose admirably. Recommended for someone with the same task in mind.

Pure Illumination
This anthology was my introduction to Tagore and what a spectacular discovery!It was like being introduced to several writers, each one distinctly different, dependent upon the medium.

Tagore's five short stories in this anthology are folkloric, sometimes sad or humorous, somewhat other worldly, and always entertaining.They expose the hues of Bengal better than paintings with their brilliant characterizations and finite details of place and time.Here's a sampling from The Raj Seal: "An old story came to his mind.An ass was pulling a temple car along the sacred way, and the passers-by, prostrating themselves in the dust before it were offering their pranams. 'They are all worshipping me,' the foolish ass thought. 'There's only one small difference between that ass and me,'the elder brother told himself.'I have at last realized that it is not my person the British sahibs respect, but the jacket weighing on my shoulders.'"

Tagore's play The Post Office is included in its entirety.It's very childlike and simplistic in structure, yet it is poignantly profound with its message that death is serene; "...that great ocean of truth to which all life returns".

The Nobel Prize for literature was awarded to him in 1913.Part of the tribute was for Tagore's poetry, particularly Gitanjali; however, there is too small of a sample (four stanzas) to truly appreciate it.My favorite from the anthology was Flute Music, an autobiographical poem.

Tagore the philosopher is evident in his essays and letters.In his letters he takes on the persona to whom the letter is addressed.The debate with Einstein "On the Nature of Reality" leaves the reader uncertain as to who was more convincing.A rebuke to Gandhi reads like the good counsel of a loving older brother.(It was Tagore who gave Gandhi the honorific title, Mahatma.)

The three excerpts from his novel The Home and the World have induced me to order the book, which is still in print.When Hermann Hesse reviewed the German translation, he praised it for its "purity and grandeur".

Now, I could only hope for more of his writings to become translated and accessible.

Extraordinairy Selections & Literary Achievement
With immense pleasure and great anticipation I read this Anthology. I feel the world is ready for Tagore's poems, short stories, and plays once more. His interest in world peace, his sensitivity for the human condition, and love of humanity is the kind of message the world needs, perhaps *even* more today than when the author first wrote his words. As with most translations of this author's famous work - there is a wonderful and necessary "Introduction" which gives many examples of his life experiences, interests, and achievements, helping one to sense the broad scope of knowledge and range of ideas to which the reader will be exposed.

Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson so wisely selected his play, "The Post Office" as the first chapter. This play is like a pearl found in an oyster shell ... the outside appearance gives no impression of the valuable gem to be found within. The message is breath-taking in its simplicity and sublime due to its universal message which transcends culture and time. The beauty of this Anthology is the wide range and depth of Tagore's writing to which the reader is exposed. His writing is awesome and inspiring, filled with love for mankind, by one who sees the complete picture, but nonetheless is filled with hope. We read Rabindranath Tagore's memoirs in "My Remininscences" - we learn about his relationship with his father, a journey into the Himalayas, and his boyhood days. Tagore's travel writings about Russia, Japan, England, Java, Persia, and a day at the spa in Balatonfured, Hungary are fascinating to read. We have the privilege of reading Tagore's personal letters to his neice, the poet Yeats, the poet Ezra Pound, many of his friends, the philosopher, Bertrand Russell, and many other people with whom he corresponded. From this one garner's more about the personality of the man whom Tagore was, a person who lived his values and beliefs, not one who merely just wrote about them. We read a fascinating exchange of ideas with Albert Einstein on "The Nature of Reality." Tagore's mastery of the short story has won him recognition in Bengal and throughout the world. He conveys social, political, and human relationships of the villager and city dweller with equal ability. He gradually exposes feelings and conflicts, and carefully builds suspense until the mystery is revealed or thesituation is resolved often with unexpected consequences. Although fewer poems are included than one would expect, two important ones, "The Sick Bed" and "The Recovery", written toward the end of his life are included. Also, "The Ocean of Peace" a song Tagore himself planned to sing after a play, was instead sung for him at his funeral, which he requested while he was ill. If someone is unfamiliar with Tagore's writing this book is highly recommended as a starting point. It contains a full measure of the author's broad interests and truly represents the universal message, "the unity of mankind" which he attempted to convey in his writing.
Erika Borsos (erikab93)

A mesmerizing journey back to the past
As I flipped through the pages of this 400-pg assortment of Tagore's Letters, Essays, Anecdotes and other like items, I could not help comparing the same to Barbara Holland's "Endangered Pleasures". The parallells are quite striking; however, An Anthology is in a completely different league of it's own. It's always a welcoming experience to read about Noble laureates, but Tagore wasn't just another Noble prize recipient - a man whose works had left the indelible etching in the minds of millions of Indians and steered the country to independence, inspired hopeless souls and rekindled the hopes of victory in a god-forsaken land. Striking yet more are the personal letters of Tagore, letters to his nephew Indira Tagore which I must admit were humorous far beyond what we expect out of a man whom we usually associate with sterner and solemn works. The book clearly draws a calm and serene picture of Calcutta back in those days. Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson has produced a magnificent compilation of Tagore's works that appeal directly to the Westerners and Easterners alike. The book begins with a translation of 'Dak Ghar' (The Post office), and recursively descends down the various phases of his life through essays, letters and other small works. I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in learnign more about the man and his most interesting escapades and experiences in life - a truly refreshing journey indeed.

An excerpt - "In certain years in Calcutta, birds strange to the city used to come and build in our banyan tree. They would be off again almost before I had learnt to recognize the dance of their wings, but they brought with them a strange lovely music from their distant jungle homes. So, in the course of our life's journey, some angel from a strange and unexpected quarter may cross our path, speaking of the language of our own soul, and enlarging the boundaries of the heart's possessions. She comes unbidden, and when at last we call for her she is no longer there. But as she goes, she leaves on the drab web of our lives a border of embroidered flowers, and our night and day are for ever enriched." ... Read more

Book Description
Rabindranath Tagore is India's greatest modern poet and the most brilliant creative genius produced by the Indian Renaissance. Tagore's poetry has an impressive wholeness: a magnificent loving warmth, a compassionate humanity, a delicate sensuousness, an intense sense of kinship with nature and a burning awareness of man's plave in the universe. This substantial selection of Tagore's poems and songs has been translated with an illustrated introduction, notes and glossary by bilingual writer Ketaki Kushari Dyson. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

IWon't Let Him Go
A concise report of Tagore's life precedes what can be considered,altogether with Radice's, the most beautifully rendered translations ofTagore by someone else than himself. Don't let this book go neither... God:preserve the translator's life and competence as long as You did for theoriginal author. ... Read more

Book Description
The brilliant and immensely prolific Indian writer Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) is known the world over for his accomplished works in an astoundingly wide range of genres: fiction, short stories, poetry, drama, and essays. During the final year of his life, while suffering from the painful illness that would eventually end in his death, Tagore completed four volumes of poetry that expressed the emotional turmoil of facing one's own imminent extinction. Appearing here for the first time in English is a selection of these extraordinary poems that captures as closely as possible the beauty and subtlety of Tagore's original Bengali verses. A marked departure from Tagore's earlier work, these poems are, as the translators say, "so compact that it is almost as if [he]...were going beyond words, as if language no longer suffices, and yet, of course, the language radiates meaning." Poised between life and death, Tagore is awed by the beauty of this world and glimpses in it the presence of the infinite ("Such splendor illuminates a deathlessness/ hidden in the everyday by our senses' limits"). At other times, "alone by sorrow's last window," he is gripped by the sheer terror of experiencing the relentless approach of death. Tagore was so weak at the end that he had to dictate his poems. Although the pain was often excruciating and the fear and anger overwhelming, he still exulted in life. In these poems, from his deathbed, he conveys the intense joy of living and his ultimate triumph over death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Final poems by Tagore
I cannot recommend a book more than this one. I have read and re read this book so many times.This man's insight, joy, acceptance and fear of his impending death comes forth brilliantly in the Last Poems.Please read them, and read them again.I believe I will get his other poetry as well.WOWand Wendy Barker's translation captures the spirit of the author's work.She has to be commended as well.

No rage against the dying of light
Inheriting a famous family name means nothing unless the bearer of this burden strives to achieve things that are extra-ordinary. I salute & congratulate Saranindranath (Tagore) and the co-author Wendy Barker for taking up the immense challenge of translating Rabindranath's Final Poems. Authors successfully carry the sacred torch of translating Bengali Literature to reach out to the world body in the new millenium that was once ignited by Tagore himself. It is interesting to rediscover this "mystic" poet from India who once became the sensation of America. In 1912, the famous Chicago based "Poetry" magazine ran an issue on Tagore before his visit to the Americas. Tagore became the Poet's Poet and Writer's Writer of many literary protagonists of west such as W B Yeats, Robert Frost and Ezra Pound. It is all the more befitting to publish this book in a time when the world is discovering the great literary genre of Indian English through the works of Rushdie, Roy and Naipaul.

It is a bit unusual to have a 40-page preface (by Wendy Barker) and introduction (by Saranindranath) in poetry book that contains only 59 pages of poems. But after reading these prologues I am convinced that they were necessary. Particularly Saranindranath's lucid explanation of Rabindranath's complex religious philosophy is very interesting. Before his death, Tagore wrote the Final Poems from his sick bed during 1940 and 1941. Through these poems, we understand and feel the maturity of a great genius of all times who explored the human inquiry through thousands of songs & poems, hundreds of essays, short stories, numerous novels & paintings. The Final Poems are divided into three sections: Sickbed, Birthday and Last poems. Being a serious reader of world literature, I completely appreciate the difficulties the translators were subjected to. However one can still smell the aroma original rose in many simple verses such as...Words of emptiness rise, compassion-filled, a meaning beyond understanding...Please read the rest, you will be enlightened. ... Read more

Book Description
1913. Tagore is an artist of rare lyrical powers, who understands the human soul. Tagore's poems and stories are devotions, mystical, sublimated ecstasy. They are the thoughts of a seer, the perfect union of beauty and truth. Partial Contents: The Home; On the Seashore; Unheeded Pageant; Baby's World; Defamation; Playthings; Astronomer; Champa Flower; Fairyland; Paper Boats; Merchant; Little Big Man;Wicked Postman; Hero; First Jasmines; Banyan Tree; Gift; Song; Last Bargain. Illustrated.Download Description
I ask, "But, how am I to get up to you?" They answer, "Come to the edge of the earth, lift up your hands to the sky, and you will be taken up into the clouds." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

very special book
My mom read some of these poems to me as a child. When she was dying, I read them to her. She smiled when almost nothing made her smile. And then later in the process, they calmed her when nearly nothing else could calm her. These poems seem almost sacred to me.

Should be required reading for every loving parent.
I have read several of Tagore's works but nothing has ever touched me as deeply as the lines in these poems about children and their loves.The one on the death of a child is my favorite.I lost my own child with leukemia several years ago and thought the tears had all dried up but these touching words of this great poetic master found some still tender areas.If these poems are so very beautiful in their English translations, I can only guess what they must sound like in the original rhythmic and lyrical Bengali language.Thank you for allowing me to review and recommend this book ... Read more

Book Description
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), also known by the sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali poet, Brahmo Samaj philosopher, visual artist, playwright, novelist, and composer whose works reshaped Bengali literature and music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A cultural icon of Bengal and India, he became Asia's first Nobel laureate when he won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature. A Pirali Bengali Brahmin from Calcutta, Tagore first wrote poems at age eight. He published his first substantial poetry under the pseudonym Bhanushingho (Sun Lion). Tagore's works included numerous novels, short-stories, collection of songs, dance-drama, political and personal essays. Some prominent examples are Gora (Fair-Faced) (1910), Gitanjali (Song Offerings) (1912), and Ghare-Baire (The Home and the World) (1919). His verse, short stories, and novels-many defined by rhythmic lyricism, colloquial language, meditative naturalism, and philosophical contemplation-received worldwide acclaim. His other works include The King of the Dark Chamber (1914), The Gardener (1915), Songs of Kabir (1915), Fruit-Gathering (1916), Stray Birds (1916), The Hungry Stones and Other Stories (1916) and Glimpses of Bengal (1920).Download Description
You walked by the riverside path with the full pitcher upon your hip. Why did you swiftly turn your face and peep at me through your fluttering veil? That gleaming look from the dark came upon me like a breeze that sends a shiver through the rippling water and sweeps away to the shadowy shore. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

the gardener
excellent collection of indian poetry.found it accidently while browsing in a huge 6 story library.quite a lucky find.

Visiting a flower garden in a magic ancient kingdom
"Please, make me the gardener of your flower garden", a lover asks his beloved. He calls himself a servant and his beloved the queen. He dreamsto serve her idle days. He wants to keep fresh the grassy path where she walks in the morning; he wants her feet to be greeted with praise at every step by the flowers.

And what he wants for his reward? He asks to be allowed to hold her little fists like tender lotus-buds and slip flower chains over her wrists; to tinge the soles of her feet with the red juice of flower petals and kiss away the speck of dust that may chance to linger there.

This is the way Rabindranath Tagore, the greatest Indian poet of all times, introduce us to this enchanted collection of poems, poems that touch the most profound strings of our hearts. His poems tell us about love and life - and they are rich with the description of nature and beauty. Anybody that loves or has loved cannot remain indifferent to his poems. Some readers "have smiles, sweet and simple, and some a sly twinkle in their eyes. Some have tears that well up in the daylight, and others tears that are hidden in the gloom." But we all have need for him, the poet, who is "ever as young or as old as the youngest and the oldest of the village".

His poems tell us of impossible love - like the love of the free bird and the cage bird: "Their love is intense with longing, but they never can fly wing to wing. Through the bars of the cage they look, and vain is their wish to know each other. They flutter their wings in yearning, and sing, 'Come closer, my love!' The free bird cries, 'It cannot be, I fear the closed doors of the cage.' The cage bird whispers, 'Alas, my wings are powerless and dead.' "

His poems tell us of secret love: "The young traveler came along the road in the rosy mist of the morning. He stopped before my door and asked me with an eager cry, 'Where is she?' For very shame I could not say, 'She is I, young traveler, she is I.' "

His poems tell us of lovers' emotion: "When my love comes and sits by my side, when my body trembles and my eyelids droop, the night darkens, the wind blows out the lamp, and the clouds draw veils over the stars. It is the jewel at my own breast that shines and gives light. I do not know how to hide it."

His poems tell us of the need for love confidence: "Do not keep to yourself the secret of your heart, my friend! Say it to me, only to me, in secret. You who smile so gently, softly whisper, my heart will hear it, not my ears."

His poems tell us of a love story: "Hands cling to hands and eyes linger on eyes: thus begins the record of our hearts. It is the moonlit night of March; the sweet smell of henna is in the air; my flute lies on the earth neglected and your garland of flowers is unfinished. This love between you and me is simple as a song."

His poems tell us of lovers departing: "An unbelieving smile flits on your eyes when I come to you to take my leave. I have done it so often that you think I will soon return. To tell you the truth I have the same doubt in my mind. For the spring days come again time after time; the full moon takes leave and comes on another visit, the flowers come again and blush upon their branches year after year, and it is likely that I take my leave only to come to you again. But keep the illusion awhile; do not send it away with ungentle haste.When I say I leave you for all time, accept it as true, and let a mist of tears for one moment deepen the dark rim of your eyes. Then smile as archly as you like when I come again."

Reading those poems I felt like visiting a flower garden full of scents and beauty in a magic ancient kingdom. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A good introduction to Tagore
The Home and the World has been variously praised and criticized for reasons having little to do with its literary merit.To my mind, the praise comes largely from reviewers' admiration for the author and the totality of his life and works, rather than this particular work.The criticism comes largely from reviewers' disagreement with his political views, or what they think were his political views.

It is, of course, always hard to judge the literary value of a work in translation.Many subtleties of language and reference are necessarily lost.Some reviewers have found the language ponderous.I did not.This is a short book and very readable.I would consider this book as a good introduction to Tagore's thought and style.

Some have said that the main character Nikhil is too good to be believable.I think it is true that Nikhil represents a philosophy of life more than a real flesh-and-blood person.However, a main point of the book is that Nikhil's "goodness" also appears to be weakness.Certainly his wife, Bimala, reacts that way to him at certain points.If Tagore wants to explore the relation between goodness and weakness, then creating a character such as Nikhil seems entirely appropriate, even if it makes the book more a novel of ideas than a novel about real people.There is room in this world for many types of novels.

There is no doubt that Tagore's life work as a whole is monumental.His religious poem, Gitanjali, is more widely recognized than this novel as an expression of his views and writing skill.But poetry is even harder to translate than prose and probably not as accessible to the average reader.

Regarding Tagore's political views, some critics felt that The Home and the World pandered to the British because he did not show support for all elements of the anti-British Swadeshi movement.Tagore was definitely not pro-British.But neither did he support intimidation or terrorism against fellow-Indians as means of fighting British dominance in India.

Tagore had a long and public debate with his friend Gandhi regarding India's future.This correspondence is available in book form (The Mahatma and the Poet: Letters and Debates between Gandhi and Tagore 1915-1941).Those who would judge a person for his political views should learn them first-hand and not just through the opinions of others.

Indelible Drama
Rabindranath Tagore did very well to choose the structure he did for this short dramatic novel.It is successfully written from the three points of view of the protaganists, the chapters interlocked as "Bimala's Story", "Nikhil's Story" and "Sandip's Story".It is a powerful drama of awakening, ideology, courage and tragedy.It would make a terrific opera!
The language has an unfamiliar, florid quality that takes a bit of adjustment but I quickly adapted to the Bengali lushness.It is a very poignant tale of three people enmeshed in the intolerable situation of the British partition of Bengal and foreign occupation.Written early in the 20th Century Tagore foreshadows the Indian independence movement that will come later in the century and the idea of the liberation of women.
The unintended consequenses that result from the relationship of the three main players is predictable and tumultuous and a suitable metaphor for the terrible circumstances that were tearing through Bengal and other parts of India at that time.I was deeply moved by the work in spite of the harsh criticism it received at the time of it's original publication.

Poetic Fog
Ok ok... I know that Tagore is such an important figure in the literature and the history of India's independence struggle. And I recognize that he is a fantastic poet. Thing is, I prefer poets writing poems, not whole novels. Perhaps it is a flaw with my personality, but I found reading The Home and The World and exhaustive experience. The fluffy, poetic language throughout interrupted the flow of the intense drama that Tagore describes. I found this book, thus, incredibly difficult to read. Still, it provides an important metaphor for the struggles of india's independence movement and a good vein for familiarizing oneself with that time and place. Still, approach this book with a lot of patience.

A complex allegory in a changing landscape
A prolific Bengalese writer, Tagore structured this novel such that three main characters represent the turbulence of the Partition that was yet to come to India in 1947. Nikhil is married to Bimala, living in the traditional domestic manner; for herself, Bimala has no expectation of her life ever deviating from her wifely path. The concept of "Swadeshi", a renewed appreciation of everything Indian, and a denial of everything British, particularly British imported goods and grains, rages throughout the country.

The egocentric Sandip, a guest in Nikhil's home, is a fierce proponent of Swadeshi. Sandip finds himself passionately attracted to Bimala; he idealizes her as the epitome of "Mother" India, and pursues Bimala without reservation. Flattered by Sandip's attention, Bimala begins to question the nature of her marriage, and the three embark upon an emotional journey that will forever alter their lives, just as India begins a lengthy period of upheaval and unrest.

Of the three, Sandip is transparently shallow, while Nikhil thoughtfully considers every aspect before embarking on a course of action. Both men indulge in lengthy discourses, but the introduction by Anita Desai does much to frame this novel in the appropriate perspective. The allegorical nature of this tale is evident as the characters plunge headlong into the future. (pp)Luan Gaines/2005.
... Read more

Book Description
Poems published 1926-1940s. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Not Haiku, but dissimilar
A friend gave me a copy of this book when I was entering the India X Peace Corps training project in 1964."To be read in times of stress, but also happiness," it says inside the flyleaf.That just says it all.You don't need to think you enjoy poetry to treasure this book.Tagore captures moment after moment of the human experience, pierces each with an insight of his own and shares it with the reader.In a sense it bears a similarity to those little books of daily prayers or 'thoughts for the day' people used to hand you when they came to the door uninvited to explain to you what you should believe to mold yourself to a nearer model of what they, themselves believed.But it's a lot more than that.Tagore isn't pushy.He soaks in to your conciousness the way water enters a sponge, and he stays there.

I think a copy of this book ought to be by the bedside in every home in America to be read during those times when the weight of our submersion in this reality seems too heavy to bear, or when the joys lift us too high.

Meaningful beyond words
This book speaks directly to the soul. Its poems are concise yet beautifully eloquent. When I read them, I am re-awakened to an inner knowing of beauty and love and creative spirit. I am also reminded of the timelessness and constancy of truth. "Fireflies" is a book to return to again and again.

Marvelous Though Little Read Now
Fireflies by Rabindranath Tagore is one of the most beautiful books that I have ever read. I am not an expert on Asian literature; so, I cannot give very much background on the poems presented her. What I can say is that every poem in here is a beautiful and is a perfect thought no matter where it came from or who is reading it. This collection by the Nobel Prize winner is made up of fireflies. They are each only three to six lines long and present a single thought. The poems flow together very cohesively. Tagore covers many different subjects. He speaks of innocense, nature, power, bigotry, freedom, death, and love. In short, Tagore writes about life. My favorite was the last:

"Before the end of my journey/may I reach within myself/the one which is the all,/leaving the outer shell/to float away with the drifting multitude/upon the current of chance and change."

I also liked:

"Love is an endless mystery,/for it has nothing else to explain it."

Few books flow as well as this one does. It enlightens the reader through the entire book and will express into words some feelings that all people have (as good poetry should do). Anyone who loved The Prophet by Gibran would love this book as well. It is somewhat forgotten among readers of today (I'm 18, and I guarantee that no other person in my high school has read this), but it should definately not be. ... Read more

Book Description

Tagore is unequivocal in his faith. He appreciates the intellectual triumphs of science, but he writes as a poet and philosopher. Man must always be a music-maker and dreamer of dreams; he must never lose, in his material quests, his longing for the touch of the divine. He traces the growth of the idea of God from primitive notions to universality. Today, as he says, all barriers are down and the "the God of humanity has arrived at the gates of the ruined temple of the tribe." His book rings with joy and affirmation overstepping all limitations of race and creed.

"His estimates of western civilization are searching and some of them written in acid…one reads much between the lines-but Tagore recognizes the true strength of the west and the faults of the east. The lectures are actually a superb and haunting criticism and evaluation of life from the viewpoint of an immemorial philosophy by a wise man."-Christian Century

Customer Reviews (3)

one of my favorites
Read this book a few years ago and it still haunts me. Tagore is a poet and his writing hits you in the heart as much as the head, regardless of your religion. Just finished Unamuno's Tragic Sense of Life and it reminded me of this wonderful book, which I will be re-visiting soon.

A book that promotes spiritual growth
In this beautiful book, Rabindranath Tagore sets forth a new religion, which he calls the "Religion of Man." The Religion of Man differs radically from most organized religions, in the way it defines God; in its views on the origins of man and the cosmos, on revelation, and on authority; and in its commandments.

God is defined as the Universal Spirit, the Spirit of Life, the Eternal Spirit of human unity beyond our direct knowledge, the Super Soul that permeates all moving things, the Supreme Person, Man the Eternal. This God dwells not in the heavens but in the heart of every human being.

The creation myth of this religion is the story of evolution. The first stage of Life's evolution was the physiological process, which seems to have reached its finality in man. The second stage of evolution, the spiritual process, is continuing. The evolutionary process has as its ultimate goal, not the attainment of Heaven or of nirvana or satori, but the release of each individual's consciousness from the illusory bond of the separate self and the realization of the spiritual unity of all human beings.

Truth in the Religion of Man is not that which was revealed only to a chosen few in the distant past. It is not reached through the analytical process of reasoning. It does not depend for proof on some corroboration of outward facts or the prevalent faith and practice of a group of people. Rather, the truth is revealed to every person every day, if we but listen. Truth comes like an inspiration and brings with it an assurance that it has been sent from an inner source of divine wisdom. This truth comes through an illumination, almost like a communication of the universal self to the personal self.

Every human being is capable of experiencing such illumination (the mystical experience). Although some people are more successful at actualizing this potentiality than others, most people have had at one time or another at least a partial vision of the universal unity. Furthermore, we can each increase our power of realization through "disciplined striving"--through our participation in nature, literature, arts, legends, symbols, and ceremonials, and through the remembrance of heroic souls who have personified this truth in their lives.

The truth, Tagore says, is inside us, like a song which has only to be mastered and sung. It is like the morning which has only to be welcomed by raising the screens and opening the doors.

Tagore calls Zarathustra the first prophet of the Religion of Man. Zarathustra, who spiritualized the meaning of sacrifice, was the first to address his words to all humanity, regardless of distance of space or time. He emancipated religion from the exclusive narrowness of the tribal God, the God of a chosen people, and offered it the Universal Man.

The only commandment in the Religion of Man is that the individual who has realized the Divine Truth accept his or her responsibility to communicate this truth in word and deed to others.

Tagore stresses that his understanding of the Religion of Man came to him through his personal experience of the holy, not from knowledge gathered or through any process of philosophical reasoning. However, he acknowledges that certain factors enabled him to be receptive to these visions. One was the feeling of intimacy with Nature that he had from early childhood. Another formative experience was the songs he heard from wandering village singers, belonging to a popular sect of Begal, called Bauls. The Bauls, who have no images, temples, scriptures, or ceremonials, express in their songs an intense yearning of the heart for the divine which is in Man. In addition, from childhood, he was immersed in the philosophy of the Upanishad, which holds that the world is pervaded by one supreme unity and that true enjoyment can be found only through the surrender of our individual self to the Universal Self.

Tagore, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, believed that the task of the poet and artist is to direct our attention to the Infinite and to remind us that it ever dwells within each of us. He performs this task admirably in this book.

A Beautiful, Enlightening Book
This is a great book of spirituality with a nearly musical presentation. ... Read more

Book Description
Out of Bengal and the Hindu spiritual tradition comes a Nobel prize-winning mystical poet whose time for broad, popular acceptance has come. William Butler Yeats fell in love with these poems almost a 100 years ago, the Nobel Committee honored them with their literature prize in 1913 and just recently The Utne Reader cited Tagore as one of today's most overlooked spiritual writers.This new editionis important because its lyrical translation has been made from Tagore's original Bengali and because it makes theentire collection of 157 Gitanjali, or "song offerings" available to a wider audience for the first time. Rabindranath Tagore wrote with the insight and emotion that so characterizes Kahlil Gibran, with the mystical passion that has made Jalaluddin Rumi so popular and with a simplicity and depth that remains fresh and attractive to today's seekers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

fabulous poems and translation
Gitanjali by Rabindranath Tagore is a series of poems exposing Tagore'ssearch for union with the divine.Tagore, a Bengali Hindu, writes with great beauty, emotion and simplicity.Reading the poems in order (there are 157 poems, each about a page or less long) shows the waxing and waning cycles of Tagore's spiritual life.Sometimes God is present to Tagore, only to leave later.A Christian spiritual seeker myself, I could easily relate to the pendulum swing that Tagore writes about: the joys, frustrations and patience.Tagore himself made an English translation of these poems for which he won the Nobel prize for literature in the early 20th century (the first non-European to win the literature prize).Here the translation is by a Catholic monk who spent most of his adult life in Bengal, and many scholars think his translation is better than Tagore's, due to his absolute fluency in both languages.I have read beautiful poems by many spiritual writers, and I found Tagore's Gitanjali the most approachable and meaningful.Highest recommendation. ... Read more

Book Description
This novel is Rabindranath Tagores classic exposition of an extramarital affair that takes place within the confines of a joint family.This is the story of the rich, flambouyant Mahendra and jis simple demure wife Asha - a young couple who are befriended by the pragmatic Behari.Their cozy domestic scenario undergoes great upheaval with the introduction of the vivacious Binodini, a young, attractive widow.The novel is a sensational account of two illicit relationships: Mahendras infatuation with Binodini and Binodinis secret passion for Behari.A compelling portrayal of the complexity of relationships and of human character, this landmark novel is just as powerful today as it was 100 years ago. ... Read more

Book Description
Discover How Tagore's Spiritual Life and Vision Can Enlighten Your Own

Rabindranath Tagore is one of the most influential mystic poets and teachers of his time. Deeply spiritual and profoundly sensitive, his verse speaks to people from all backgrounds who seek a deeper understanding of self, country, creation, God, and love.

This beautiful sampling of Tagore's two most important works, The Gardener and Gitanjali, offers a glimpse into his spiritual vision that has inspired people around the world. Poems from The Gardener explore youth and earthly love, while excerpts from Gitanjali express divine love and Tagore's difficulty in satisfying it.

Overwhelmingly mystical and lovely in its simplicity, this unique collection offers insight into Tagore's heavenly desires, his ongoing quest for Brahama Vihara, the joy eternal, and illuminates the remarkable diversity that made him the most important bridge between the spirituality of the East and West in the first half of the twentieth century.

Rabindranath Tagore's philosophical and spiritual thoughts transcend all limits of language, culture, and nationality. In his writings, the poet and mystic takes us on a spiritual quest and gives us a glimpse of the infinite in the midst of the finite, unity at the heart of all diversity, and the Divine in all beings and things of the universe.

—from the Preface by Swami Adiswarananda, Minister and Spiritual Leader of the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York ... Read more

Book Description