Written by: Prakarsha Tabdar - 25010, Grade X
Posted on: 22 December, 2022
On May 7, 1861, Rabindranath Tagore was born in Calcutta, India. Rich landowner and social reformer Dwarkanath Tagore was his grandpa. The Brahmo Samaj, a new religious movement in nineteenth-century Bengal that sought to revive the supreme monistic foundation of Hinduism as outlined in the Upanishads, was led by his father, Debendranath Tagore. In every field, the Tagore family was a gold mine of ability. In addition to hosting literary magazine publications, they frequently presented theater performances and recitals of Bengali and Western classical music. The father of Tagore invited a number of seasoned musicians to remain at the residence and instruct the kids in Indian Classical music.
Dwijendranath, Tagore's elder brother, was a poet and philosopher. The first Indian to be appointed to the hitherto all-European Indian Civil Service was another brother named Satyendranath. Jyotitindranath, another brother, was a writer, composer, and musician. His sister Swarnakumari went on to publish novels.
Oriental Seminary School served as Rabindra Nath Tagore's first place of formal education. But he disliked the traditional curriculum and began taking classes at home from other teachers. His siblings primarily instructed him in literature as well as in sports like gymnastics and martial arts. Gandhi, the political founder of modern India, was a close friend of Tagore. He occasionally took part in the Indian nationalist struggle, though in his own non-emotional and visionary style.
Rabindranath Tagore founded Visva Bharati University in 1921 and donated all of his Nobel Prize and book royalties to this institution. Tagore was well-versed in Western culture, particularly its poetry and sciences. In a 1930 argument about the then-emerging concepts of quantum mechanics and chaos, Tagore was able to hold his own because of his solid understanding of current, post-Newtonian physics. Meetings and recorded talks with his contemporaries, including H.G. Wells and Albert Einstein, best illustrate his intelligence.
As one of the designers of contemporary India, Tagore eventually gained recognition. Tagore was primarily a poet, while writing successfully in many literary forms. Manasi (1890) (The Ideal One), Sonar Tari (1894) (The Golden Boat), Gitanjali (1910) (Song Offerings), Gitimalya (1914) (Wreath of Songs), and Balaka (1916) are a few of his fifty or so volumes of poetry (The Flight of Cranes). The Gardener (1913), Fruit-Gathering (1916), and The Fugitive (1921) are only a few of the English translations of his poems that don't always correspond to specific Bengali volumes. The four major plays of Tagore are Raja (1910), The King of the Dark Chamber, Dakghar (1912), Achalayatan (1912), The Immovable, Muktadhara (1922), and Red Oleanders (1926).
Rabindranath Tagore altered the perception of Bengali literature by leaving readers with a lasting impression.Many nations have statues of him and hold numerous annual events as a way to honor the illustrious author.Thanks to a large number of translations by numerous renowned worldwide authors, many of his works have become widely known.Five museums are devoted to Tagore. The remaining two are in Bangladesh, while the other three are located in India. Millions of people visit the museums each year where his well-known pieces are on display.
Tagore passed away on August 7, 1941, in the same mansion where he was raised, after a protracted period of agony.
Reference:
Clearias Team, “Rabindranath Tagore:Biography”.Clear IAS February 20, 2022
https://www.clearias.com/rabindranath-tagore/
