CHAPTER-V

THE CONCEPT OF NATURE IN TAGORE AND BENDRE

What is beautiful is beneficent:

O goddess Nature, in your beauteous world

No harm can ever happen.

- Tagore

Nature has in general been conceptualised broadly in two

forms: first as a power external to man, which includes earth and sky

and sea and the other environs around man. It is looked at as a force

which evolution has shown to be more powerful than man. However,

there exists a relation between them. It is a power that men have

alternately feared as man's most cruel enemy, and worshipped as his

gentle master or caring saint. The other form of nature includes the

whole universe that includes the Creator, the cosmos and its

creatures, man, and all that is, or may be imagined. In this sense,

every man, poet and thinker is consciously or unconsciously an

interpreter of Nature, and every being and thing a symbol of her.

However from these two broad divisions, the meaning of Nature

can be narrowed down to be more specific; the word ‘Nature’ may

connote various meanings and interpretations. It has been projected

through different contexts and in various forms, for instance,

microcosmic, macrocosmic, orthodox and heterodox. With the passage

of time ideas about nature have continuously changed. The Greek

employed the word ‘Nature’ for macrocosmic (outer universe), while

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the medieval people had the view that God created this universe where

nature was favourable to men. In neo-classical age, there existed the

idea that God created this world and Nature was the reflection of God.

But with the emergence of Renaissance, we find a great change in the

concept of ‘Nature’. The Romantic era revealed Nature in a different

way. The external expressions of Nature were accepted as guardian

mother, teacher, nurturer and nurse. Thus the idea of Nature has

evolved over the centuries and can be said to mirror the evolving man

Raymond Williams says, “The idea of nature contains, though

often unnoticed, an extraordinary amount of human history. Like

some other fundamental ideas which express mankind's vision of itself

and its place in the world, 'nature' has a nominal continuity, over

many centuries, but can be seen, in analysis, to be both complicated

and changing, as other ideas and experiences change."1 (p.67)

Thus, Raymond Williams feels that it is not only very difficult

but futile to give a precise, pin- pointed meaning to such a ever

transforming, multi-dimensional concept. He feels: “What matters in

them is not the proper meaning but the history and complexity of

meanings: the conscious changes, or consciously different uses and

just as often those changes and differences which, masked by

a nominal continuity, come to express radically different and often at

first unnoticed changes in experience and history.”2 (pp.67-68)

At the beginning there was only Creation. Over millennia there

came to be the Creator, Nature and Man. This was the result of the

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process, when the intellect of man made him carve out a life for

himself.

Raymond Williams quotes Burke:"In a state of rude nature there

is no such thing as a people.... The idea of a people is the idea of

a corporation. It is wholly artificial; and made, like all other legal

fictions, by common agreement. What the particular nature of that

agreement was, is collected from the form into which the particular

society has been cast."3 (p.68)

In the course of 'development' - farming, constructing dams,

roads, houses, - man started alienating himself from the natural order

of things. Along with this alienation man's idea of Nature too started

changing

From many early cultures we have records of what we would

now call nature spirits or nature gods: beings believed to embody or

direct the wind or the sea or the forest or the moon. When Nature

herself, as people learnt to say, became a goddess, a divine

Mother.God is the first absolute, but Nature is His minister and

deputy.4 (Raymond Williams, p.69)

When we speak of Nature in Indain context, it is about the

meaning of Nature that has come down to us from the Vedic times.

Throughout the long history of India, Hindus have shared

a fascination with, and respect for, Nature and animals. Hinduism

has always been an environmentally sensitive philosophy. The

Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the Bhagavad Gita, the Vedas, the

Upanishads, Puranas and Smritis contain the earliest messages for

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preservation of environment and ecological balance. Nature, or Earth,

has never been considered a hostile element to be conquered or

dominated. In fact, man is forbidden from exploiting Nature. He is

taught to live in harmony with Nature and recognize that divinity

prevails in all elements, including plants and animals. The Rishis of

the past have always had a great respect for Nature. They perceived

that all material manifestations are a shadow of the spiritual. The

Bhagavad-Gita advises us not to try to change the environment,

improve it, or wrestle with it. If it seems hostile at times, tolerate it.

Ecology is an inherent part of a spiritual worldview in Hinduism.

Indians regard everything around them as pervaded by a subtle divine

presence, may it be rivers, mountains, lakes, animals, flora, the

mineral world, as well as the stars and planets. It is so because the

Divine reality is present as Prana/Shakti, energy, power, in every

electron, particle, atom, cell and in every manifestation of matter. Just

like the sparks of a fire are of the same essence as the fire they were

issued forth from, so is the entire creation, of the same essence as the

Divine. Just as Hindus greet each other saying "Namaste", which

means: I recognize and salute the Divine within you, so do they

recognize the same Divine essence, in all around them.

This attitude went beyond the usefulness. It had to do with

reverence for all of God's creation. Our ancestors worshipped trees,

rivers, birds and stones. As we are growing more materialistic, we are

losing this connection. Our ancestors saw Nature as being

a manifestation of God. There was, therefore, gratitude towards nature

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In the ancient spiritual traditions, man was looked upon as part

of nature, linked by the indissoluble spiritual and psychological bonds

to the elements around him. This is very much marked in the Hindu

tradition, the oldest living religious tradition in the world. The Vedas,

the oldest hymns composed by great spiritual seers and thinkers

which are the repository of Hindu wisdom, reflect the vibrancy of an

encompassing world-view which looks upon all objects in the

universe, living or non-living, as being pervaded by the same spiritual

power. Hinduism believes in the all-encompassing sovereignty of the

divine, manifesting itself in a graded scale of evolution. The human

race, though at the top of the evolutionary pyramid at present, is not

seen as something apart from the earth and its multitudinous life

forms.5 (www.hinduwisdom.info)

In today's society which is highly civilized and therefore,

artificial, man has completely alienated himself from Nature. However

to relocate himself has become very problematic says Williams as "We

have mixed our labour with the earth, our forces with its forces too

deeply to be able to draw back and separate either out." Furthermore

he continues,"If we alienate the living processes of which we are

a part, we end, though unequally, by alienating ourselves.” 6

(Raymond Williams, p.84)

Thus man finds himself isolated but at the same time wishing to

be part of the whole, to be able to find the lost harmony, to find his

identity in Nature. It is a process that calls for a facilitator. It is left to

the sensitive minds of seers and poets to gratify this yearning and find

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the original relation with Nature that was harmonious and self-

realising.

When we talk of this form of Nature, it is clear after reading

Tagore and Bendre that the two Indian Renaissance poets have seen

most deeply into her meaning. Naturally enough, we find between

them essential resemblances as also differences. The present chapter

deals successively with both of these, and how their respective

backgrounds have shaped their interpretation of Nature, and then

inquires how the perception of Nature is expressed by each poet.

NATURE IN TAGORE

“The first stage of my realization was through my feeling of

intimacy with nature”.7 (Tagore, p.89) These words of Tagore reveal

the intensity of his relationship with nature, whose movements had

a profound, passionate effect on Tagore’s sensitive mind. This is borne

out by the numerous poems wherein Nature in her various moods,

has been the inspiration. Even as a child, Nature appeared to him

pulsating with life and so contact with Nature became his prime

source of joy. One of the stories recorded by him in his Reminiscences

substantiates his inveterate fondness for Nature. In his words-“I still

remember a day in my childhood when I was made to struggle across

my lessons in a first primer, strewn with isolated words smothered

under the burden of spelling. The morning hour appeared to me like

a once-illumined page, grown dusty and faded, discoloured into

irrelevant marks, smudges and gaps, wearisome in its moth-eaten

meaninglessness. Suddenly, I came to ‘a rhymed sentence of

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combined words, which may be translated thus-‘it rains, the leaves

tremble’. At once I came to a world wherein I recovered my full

meaning. My mind touched the creative realm of expression, and at

that moment I was no longer a mere student with his mind muffled by

spelling lessons, enclosed by a classroom”.8 (Tagore, p. 122.) From his

childhood Tagore had imbibed the spirit of Nature. Nature became his

companion.

In the initial stage of his poetic life, the prevailing sensitivity was

the consciousness of Nature. In his early poems different aspects of

Nature can be found. The vast Nature caught hold of his imagination

when as a boy he was confined to the four walls of the house and

looked longingly at the world of Nature outside the railings of his

veranda with a sense of wonder and mystery. Earth, water, foliage

and sky, they all spoke to him of remarkable things and thus, the

world of Nature forever enchanted him.

As Sankha Ghosh says, “When he was young, he went through

a sequence of parting and union with created nature. At first he saw

things only with his eyes; later, with his entire conciousness.”9

(Sukanta Chaudhuri, p.7)

Divinity in Nature

Recording his religious experience, Tagore observes: “When

I look back upon those days, it seems to me that unconsciously

I followed the path of my Vedic ancestors, and was inspired by the

tropical sky with the suggestion of an uttermost Beyond”.10 (p. 121)

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Tagore’s Nature poems not only treat the transient beauty of

Nature by describing whatever is arresting and stunning in Nature,

but they penetrate the visual beauty within and speak of a divine

presence revealed to him in its splendour. His whole being was

infused by this divine presence. Contacts with Nature, as depicted in

his poems, almost invariably imply the presence of something beyond.

“His nature poems, therefore, do not merely give a description of

whatever is striking and beautiful in Nature. Rather they suggest the

presence of a pervasive principle that is revealed to him in different

movements or beauty spots in Nature. It soon became manifest to him

as an all pervading spirit.”11 (Hiranmaya Banerjee, p.46)

That he was himself conscious of this divine presence, is

confirmed by the following observation recorded by him, “The wonder

of the gathering clouds hanging heavy with the unshed rain, the

sudden sweep of storms arousing vehement gestures along the line of

coconut trees, the fierce loneliness of the blazing summer noon, the

silent sunrise behind the dewy veil of autumn morning, kept my mind

with the intimacy of a pervasive companionship.”12(Tagore, p. 121) The

following lines bring out this feeling very clearly.

Whose robe do I discover spread out in the moon light,

Whose eye in the silent blue sky?

Whose face do I discover veiled in sunlight,

Whose feet on the velvety bed of grass?

Whose touch indeed in the scent of the flowers exhilarating

mind and body,

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Twists round the heart like a creeper? 13

(qtd in Hiranmaya Banerjee, p. 51)

Tagore’s view of Nature was sympathetic and decidedly infused

with a high religious element. However, he adroitly contained and

combined his religious view of Nature with his deep love for it into

a synthetic vision of reality. Being a lover of beauty and harmony, his

poetic mind knew the trick of reconciling contradictions into harmony.

He feels that a single principle was working throughout Nature, giving

it unity and harmony in the midst of apparently conflicting pulls and

forces. The diverse ways of the working of this immanent principle in

Nature became the theme of many of Tagore’s poems. A characteristic

example is given below.

How various are you in the universe:

You are various formed.

In the blue sky you gleam in a thousand lights,

In the flower garden, joy in keen delight,

With swift luxuriance grace both heaven and earth-

You are lively-paced.14

(“The Various- Pictured”, Tr. Sukanta Chaudhuri, p. 100)

His awareness of the divine in all the forms that Nature

displayed - the river, the sky, and the birds - pulsates in his poems.

Even in the seasonal change of Nature Tagore found a divine touch.

He welcomed this change by offering prayer to Almighty. He sang,

In the fragrant days of sunny April through the forest path

he comes, comes, ever comes.

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In the rainy gloom of July nights on the thundering chariot of

clouds he comes, comes, ever comes.15

(Gitanjali,NoA5, p. 57)

Man and Nature

This intimate contact with Nature helped Tagore to discover his

inner being. It made him establish a relation with the Nature outside,

a relation of being a part of the whole. A closer scrutiny reveals to us

the kinship of Nature and spirit, of the not- self and the self. The fact

that we are able to interpret Nature, know it, appreciate it, fight and

conquer it, shows that it is a kin to human consciousness: “We could

have no communication whatever with our surroundings if they were

absolutely foreign to us”.16 (Tagore, p.282). Man is “reaping success

everyday, and that shows there is rational connection between him

and nature, for we never can make anything our own except that

which is truly related to us”17(Tagore, p.282). If we separate man from

nature, “It is like the bud and the blossom into two separate

categories and putting their grave to the credit of two different and

antithetical principles.”18 (Tagore, p.282) “The Indian mind never has

any hesitation in acknowledging its kinship with nature, its unbroken

relation with all”.19 (Tagore, p.282) As S. Radhakrishnan says, “In

India where civilization developed in forest near to nature, there was

no thought of an antagonism between man and nature, no idea of

forcibly wresting treasures from nature”.20 (p. 11)

"Tagore is not a poet of nature in whose hands the crudest stuff

of existence acquires a poetic colouring. The spiritual phases of

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nature leap up to his God-filled eyes, kindle devotion in his heart and

set song on his lips. To his soul touched by God the physical world of

science appears in all its sweetness and simplicity as to a child”.21

(S.Radhakrishnan, pp. 12-13) It is a ‘fairy universe where the stars talk

and the sky stoops down to amuse him, and all nature comes to

window with trays of bright toys’.22 (Tagore, p. 134)

The contrast between the narrow world of man and the ampler

world of Nature, between the home and sky is suggested in these

lines:

My house is small and what once has gone from it can never

be regained

But infinite is thy mansion, my lord, and seeking her I have

come to thy door.23

(Gitanjali, No.87, pp. 72-73.)

. . A breath of divine passion passes over the whole world, making

it pure and perfect. He feels, “a thrill passing through the air with the

notes of the far away song floating from the other shore”.24

(Gitanjali, No.21, p.49) “He can never escape the divine presence, twist

and turn as he will. The deep shadows of the rainy July and the

stormy night suggest God’s presence. The mystic soul can hear the

voice of God in the tempest and see his hand in the stilling of the

wave”.25 (S.Radhakrishnan.p.13)

The best way to attain spiritual progress, Tagore believed, was

to live amidst Nature, in the open. He revelled in the open air and whs, / J- 4 ■

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not afraid to stand under the vast canopy of the sky. According to

him the best way to derive divine inspiration would be to lose oneself

in the contemplation of Nature. S. Radhakrishnan concurs: “In silence

and in solitude we have to enjoy the presence of the divine in

nature”.26 (S.Radhakrishnan.p. 13)

Nature was benign and so Tagore was of the view that nature

was not opposed to the self and its aspirations. The two - Nature and

self - are both parts of the Absolute. "Nature and society are

revelations of the divine spirit. The same light dwells in the world

outside and the world within.”27(S. Radhakrishnan.p.16) In Gitanjali

Tagore observed,

The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and

day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures.

It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the

earth in numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultuous

waves of leaves and flowers.28

(Gitanjali, No.69, p.66).

The intimate relation with Nature made the poet feel at home in

her company. There existed no opposition or resistance and thus he

says:

When in the morning I looked upon the light I felt in a moment

that I was no stranger in this world 29

(Gitanjali, No.95.p.75).

S. Radhakrishnan says, “When we perceive the significance of

nature and society we find they are there for the purpose of enabling

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us to reach the infinite. The ideal is to be attained, not by escaping

from the confusions of the world of sense, but by spiritualizing them...

For Rabindranath, man is bound up with nature”.30 (p.43)

An initial reason for this identification with nature, besides the

influence of the ancient scriptures, was Tagore’s direct touch with the

lofty, beautiful natural surroundings of the Himalayas, which he had

visited in the company of his father Maharshi Debendranath Tagore.

The lofty Himalayas had a soothing effect that was akin to

self-realization. It is thus not surprising that he felt that the right

pla'ce to appreciate nature and have a full development of mind would

be a Tapovana. According to him, “A Tapovan gave to our thoughts

their strength, to our sentiments their healthy orientation, to our

actions their dynamic force”. Tagore’s belief in this Tapovan was

translated into reality, when he opened his ashram at Shantiniketan.

One form of Nature that entranced him was the river with its

swirling ripples and ‘the terrific strokes of the immaterial flow’ and his

unusual love for it can be found almost throughout his works. Even

in his childhood the brook where he played with a paper boat,

fascinated him. Later, a long stay on a boat on the River Padma

brought the poet closer to a river and so to minutely enjoy even the

speechless melody of its ripples.

Now it is time to sit quiet, face to face with tree, and to sing

dedication of life in this silent and overflowing leisure. 31

(Gitanjali, No.5, p. 44).

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The collection of poems ‘Banabani’ (Voice of the Forest)

published in 1931 contains some of his best Nature poetry. The poet

has composed more than four hundred songs on the gloiy of Nature.

In all these songs the description of Nature has been vivid. Plants,

spring, autumn, winter, summer, flowers all seem to converse with

Tagore. His approach to Nature is with blended feelings of affection,

gratitude and reverence. Every phenomenon of Nature is described,

eulogized and brought into a tender relationship with humanity. The

poet sings of trees, flowers, shrubs and climbers, the various seasons

of the year, groves and forests. The entire volume is a hymn to the

green earth. In “Amravan” (Mango Grove) the poet speaks of his

communion with Nature.

O mango grove, your heart is stirred

By the same longing for the unknown

That moves my heart.

Through your blossoms you speak the

Same by as mine.

The language of pain and joy.32

(qtd in Narvane, p. 87)

“In the moments of exaltation”, says Radhakrishnana,

“when we silently adore the living presence that reveals itself through

the grandeur of nature, which makes itself heard in the soul through

the contemplation of the world immanent divinity, a great peace

creeps over us. The infinite then murmurs its secret into our ears and

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tells the story of the soul and the legend of the earth”.33

(S.Radhakrishnan, p. 15) Such was also the faith of Tagore.

The sense of expansiveness that inspires Tagore’s poetry was

derived from his faith in the immensity of Nature and man’s life was

always viewed by him in relation to the protracted life of Nature. This

was because Tagore identified himself with Nature, as being merged

with her. The distinctive feature of Tagore as a Nature poet would be

his complete surrender to and identification with Nature. He always

considered himself a part of Nature and constantly used Nature to

illustrate the human and the abstract character. To him, man has

emerged out of Nature. Nature is the mother of man. Therefore,

communion with her is possible. Tagore felt that when approached in

a proper attitude and spirit, Mother Nature is bound to influence the

human soul. The character of Nature would certainly flow into the

soul of man. For this reason, she could be the best teacher and guide

for man.

Furthermore, he was convinced that from ancient time India

had put all her emphasis on the harmony that exists between the

individual and the universal. Tagore believed that man would lose his

balance if he wished to walk upon the single rope of humanity. Being

a combination of nature and spirit, man could not reject Nature. He

needed nature in order to express himself. At the same time, man

was superior to Nature, as Nature had to depend upon man for its

meaning. The creation of God depended upon man for giving meaning

to it. Tagore, as a representative of human beings felt proud about

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this. In his poem, “I”, he wants to show that though God has created

his world with all the objects, for recognition God depends on man.

He says,

It is by the colours of my consciousness

That the emerald is green,

The ruby is red.

I opened my eyes upon the sky,

And light kindled

From east to west...

This is my pride,

Pride on behalf of all humanity.

Human pride is the canvas

For the divine artificer’s cosmic art.34

(Tr. Sukanta Chaudhuri, p.300)

In another poem, “Gitali” he says that if God makes man alive,

then his whole creation would be blessed. Tagore acknowledged the

intimate relationship between man and Nature and also the

interdependence of man and Nature on each other. However, this

intimate relationship between man and Nature was not at all in

conflict with the place of pride man occupied in the world scheme.

Man's freedom and uniqueness were expressed in his creation. Even

though Nature helped him to cross the limits of Nature and show his

supremacy, he could not separate himself from Nature. Tagore

believed in man completely identifying himself with Nature, for it was

only through Nature that the spirit could realize itself.

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According to Tagore, it was the eye of an artist that was needed

to perceive the inner relation of the objects of Nature. It was by

contemplation of Nature that a man could derive divine inspiration.

Nature was full of meaning, filled with indescribable music. The

trees, the stars and the blue hills ache with a meaning which can

never be uttered in words’, says the poet.

From his extensive writings about the relation of man to nature,

we discover that the experience of the world i.e., “Vishva-bodh’ is not

isolated from the experience of Nature i.e., ‘Prakriti bodh’. Along with

her beauty and appeal, Nature's meaning and purpose were equally

important to him.

Man and Nature were indispensable elements of universal

reality to Tagore. To him Nature depended upon the spirit (man) for

its meaning as much as the spirit depended upon Nature for its

expression. Nature was not merely a showcase of objects but

a habitation wherein man’s place was splendid and significant. Nature

without man would be a ‘broken arch’ and man without Nature

a ‘deserted land’. As Sankha Ghosh says, Tagore “ built up pervasive

relationship with nature, mingled intimately with humanity. Engaging

with nature made him feel there is a very deep and far-reaching

acquaintance between us”.35 (p.13)

So how does man approach Nature? Tagore recognized two

approaches to Nature. The one that tended to divide man from" the

objects of his desire and thus separate man from Nature and the other

that tended to establish a contact between man and his destiny; and

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subsequently connect man and Nature. The former was for conquest

of power, the latter for union or sympathy.36 (Tagore, p.511) Man’s

relation to Nature depended upon the attitude of mind towards it. The

attitude of science was one of conquest or domination and the attitude

of knowledge was unity and sympathy. The former approach to Nature

was prevalent in the West and the latter intuitive in the East. Tagore

firmly recognized the kinship between man and Nature and the

relationship of man with every other object of the world through the

famous theory of unity of creation. As every note in music is

necessary to complete a symphony so also every phenomenon of

physical nature like earth, water, light, fruits and flowers etc., are

necessary in the attainment of the ultimate ideal of

perfection.37(Tagore, pp.282-283)

Tagore's love for Nature transcended just appreciation or even

adoration. It was a communion. He had visions and heard voices in

the grandeur of Nature. He never missed a single morning. Every day

he rushed out in to his garden to experience the earliest tremor of the

mo'rning breeze. All through his poems we discover all relations of

love, inseparable from Nature- the love of Nature’s beauty, the animal,

the child, the comrade and the companion. Tagore’s love of Nature

was not pantheistic but mystic. It was simple, natural and subjective.

Nature to him was a great harmoniser and purifier. He was so bound

with Nature that he was one with it. Man must learn to be natural

with Nature, manly with man and social with society, says Tagore.

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A freshness of feeling for Nature, a sensitiveness of soul and

a longing for love of others etc., are some of the main teachings of

Tagore’s philosophy of Nature. A study of Tagore’s works particularly

his early compositions reveal his great love of Nature. His poetic

collections like Saisab-Sangit, Bhagna-Hriday, Sandya Sangeet,

Prabhat etc. sing the glories of Nature. Tagore’s plays too are an

attestation of this deep love.

Tagore sought out the mysteries of Nature that deeply moved

him. He was of the opinion that “there is something in the blue vault

of the sky, in the golden rays of the sun in the wide expanse of the

starlit night, in the processions of the seasons, each bringing its own

basket of flowers which somehow give us an understanding of the

inner music of existence”. 38< Amiya Chakravarthy, p.210). Nature was

not just symbolic but also mystical and metaphysical. The beauty of

Nature was not just a boon to the aesthetic sense of man; on the other

hand it had its own abiding value irrespective of its influence. Thus he

was against all man-made artificialities. Tagore’s Prakritir Prarishod is

a plea for nature’s love. The love and joy of the universe that he

enjoyed were gifts that Tagore got early in life. From the Upanishads

he learnt that life should be lived as close to Nature as possible, from

the Vedas he learnt of the ever-living freshness of life and from

Buddha he learnt of the universal ideals. For him civilization meant

being close to Nature. Nature was closest to his heart."Nature in some

of her grander and vaster manifestations has exorcised its spell over

Rabindranath.” 39 (Edward Thompson, p.23)

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Paradoxically, Tagore loved Nature that came under the perview

of men. For to him Nature was barren without human participation

and enjoyment. Without the perceiving man and his enjoying act,

Nature was void and meaningless. The essence of man was the only

measure in the vastness of Nature and freedom of space.Thus, he

could also sing of an unknown river like Kopai, because it was near to

the petty and trivial daily human activities than the majestic Ganga.

An earlier poetic drama Prakriter Parishodh (The Ascetice,1884)

deals with an ascetic who renounces the world as deterrent to wisdom

and higher knowledge. However he gives refuge to a young orphan girl

who reminds him that wisdom does not lie in renunciation and makes

him recognize the Presence that leads him to all men and Nature. This

drama signifies that human salvation does not lie in an ascetic

segregation from Nature but that it lies in acknowledging humanity as

part of Nature and sharing of its creative joy.

As Sankha Ghosh says, “The Tagore family estates stretched

over large tracts in Orissa and riverine eastern Bengal. Rabindranath

spent much of his time there in 1890’s, looking after his family

property. He would sometimes stay in a suitable house beside the

river, more often on a houseboat upon it. At last he could encounter

firsthand the ‘ever- suffusing, patient, family- nurturing, homestead­

dwelling’ denizens of rural Bengal, whose absence from Bengali

literature he was to deplore. He involved himself in the daily lives of

his tenants. At the same time he immersed himself in the order of day

and night, the cycle of seasons, absorbing from his surroundings

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‘a throb, a tremor, light, a lasting festival of colour and dance and

song and beauty” 40 (p. 13).

Tagore deified nature. His poem ‘Basundara’ recognizes the

image of the earth as the mother who sustains us at every point

Take me back to your lap o earth

Bless me within your shadow

I exist within your beauty and radiate

Myself all around life the joy of spring. 41

(Tr. Amritsen)

In Tagore's poem ‘AhalyaTie depicted a glimmer in Ahalya’s eyes

that “slowly open to the dawn of new forgiven life". The poet here

celebrates the fusion of man and Nature.

Tagore's extremely responsive and sensitive mind was always

yearning for man to be in harmony with Nature. Throughout his

songs, poems or dramas we encounter nature in various moods.

“His soul seems to have settled comfortably”, as he says in a letter to

his niece Indiradevi, “in the arms of nature without missing a particle

of its light, its air, its scenery and its song” 42 (qtd in Kalyansen

Gupta, p.58) He seemed to be on the same wavelength as the music of

nature, with the melodies coming from the murmur of rushing water,

from the songs of birds, from the rustling of leaves. “He expresses an

eagerness to enter deep into the great festival of nature, to see and

hear nature in a consummately significant way”.43 (Kalyansen Gupta,

p. 58)

4s(115

We always find Tagore extolling the many -splendoured beauty

of nature not for itself but as a part of her virtues. It is the serene

beauty of nature that constantly figures in Tagore’s songs and poems.

There comes the morning with the golden basket in her right

hand bearing the wreath of the beauty, silently to crown the earth.

And there comes the evening over lonely meadows deserted

by herd, through trackless paths, carrying cool draughts of peace

in her golden pitcher from the western ocean of rest.”44

In spite of all this bonding, Tagore still longs for a spiritual

companionship with Nature herself, for a more complete sense of

identity with it. Those rare and intimate moments of communion,

when nature will enclose his soul with her colours, sounds and

odours fill the poet with infinite joy and delight.

Ah my heart dances like peacock,

the rain patters on the new leaves of summer,

the tremor of the crickets’ chirp troubles the

shade of the tree,

the river overflows its bank washing the

village meadows’

My heart dances.45

(Tagore,Poems, No.20, p.334)

“In verses like these we encounter that dimension of Tagore’s

conception of spirituality where there is realization and extension of

one's being in the open panorama of nature. He talked about natuigjl i^

(Tagore, Gitanjali, No.67, p.66)

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as ‘the most sacred place for pilgrimage’ and expresses his own

profound sense of intimacy with it. This world, he writes, was living to

me intimately close to my life, permeated by a subtle touch of kinship

which enhanced the value of being’.” 46 (Kalyansen Gupta p 60)

The poet himself said emphatically The language of harmony in

nature is the mother tongue of our own soul”. This expressed not only

his axiom but reflected most vividly his realization. This was the

result of his hard disciplined literary works and was also the result of

deep meditation in his quest for truth. Tagore says, Nature “satisfies

our personality with manifestations that make our life rich and

stimulate our imagination in their harmony of forms, colours, sounds

and movements”. 47 (Tagore, p.89)

However, this does not mean that Tagore is a poet eulogising

only the sweeter, lovable friendly side in nature. His love of nature is

realistic, comprehensive and all-inclusive. He loves nature in her more

dynamic, vaster and wilder aspects too. He is also aware of all that is

harsh, ugly and cruel in Nature. Nature in ‘red in tooth and claw’ was

not unknown to him. Picturesque descriptions of nature in her terrible

mood can be seen in the poem “Ocean Waves”. Here Tagore presents

nature’s destructive cruelty towards the human race.

Destruction dances on the vast ocean waves-

A fearful festival!

Beating its hundred wings, the storm wind raves

In furious sqall.

Ocean and sky conjoin- fierce intercource,

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While blackness shuts out heaven’s sight.

Terror struck by lightening, the breakers roar:

inert nature’s laughter, sharp, angry, white.

Unseeing, unhearing, frenzied giants come-

Homeless, loveless forms:

Where do they rush to die, bursting all bonds? 48

(“Ocean waves”, Tr. Sukanta Chaudhuri, p.59)

Thus it may be stated that the microcosmic Nature (inside

world) should be in harmony with the macroscopic form. So humanity

is seen in futile opposition to the great forces of Nature, for it is

a microcosm, or little world, which is a replica of the macrocosm, or

greater world. This mirroring between man and cosmos may explain

why the natural elements correspond also to man's inner world.

Nature is presented as a great facilitator of man in the evolution of his

personality from the uncivilized to civilized to divine. Being in her

proximity helps achieve realisation.

NATURE IN BENDRE

Being a great poet of Nature, Bendre depicted her in various

forms in his works. Nature as a theme was a recurring motif in his

poetry. The colours, the perfume and the beauty of Nature enthralled

Bendre. His poetry captures every seasonal hue, enriched by the flora

and the fauna and reflects Nature in all possible moods. In the

background we sense his persistent concern about human interaction

with Nature. To him the Divine spirit pervaded all creation filled with

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the richness of Nature. Bendre sought to reflect this presence in his

poetry.

Bendre's nom de plume Ambikatanayadatta is evidence enough

of the esteem he held his mother in. He placed her on a high pedestal.

She was his inspiration and his refuge. A mother to him was

instrumental in rearing her children towards divinity. As with the

human mother he found the same closeness to and reverence for the

mother earth. These same attributes he placed in Mother Nature. In

her he found abundant love and solace and protection and was in

close communion with her. This is not surprising to us Indians who

have always held mother in high esteem. This devotion or deification

finds its reflection in all walks of life and thus even in all forms of art.

Having grown up in the bosom of the seven hills and lakes of

Dharwad, a small town of the evergreen tamarind, the huge shady

banyan trees and the seasonal red mayflower blossoms, naturally

Bendre developed a close relationship with Nature. In later years the

gift of a house in the picturesque Sadhankeri by his uncle was

a blessing to the sensitive mind of Bendre. In the beautiful

environment of his new house in Sadhanakeri he enters into an

intense relationship with Nature. His ecstacy in living there is well

expressed in the poem “Sakhigeeta”

A little nest of a house on edge of tropical land

Came to us as a gift and a gesture of love.

There abounded Sampige and Parijata,

The mango and Jasmine,

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The sky- jasmine, the coconut and the jackfruit,

Lush lemon plant all over the place,

A lake within the sight

and hills beyond!

Surrounding it in four sides were

Bewildering paths mixed up with the density of trees....

Stretching their forearms on which

Gambolled the Goddess of woods.49

(Tr.K. Raghavendra Rao, p.7-8)

The last line is a lead enough that Bendre envisioned divinity in

Nature.

As Amur says: “In the early part of his poetic career following

the lead provided by the Irish poet A.E.,Bendre experienced the

manifestation of the divine in the multiplicity of Nature. In the later

part, helped by Aurobindo’s insights, he realised the unity of nature in

the awareness of divine."50 (Amur, p. 20)

In many of Bendre’s Nature poems we notice great power and

adroitness in using a rich variety, freshness and abundance of nature

imagery. Most of his poems make recurrent use of nature’s symbols,

to describe human nature or a philosophical concept.

Commerce between the seen

And the unseen is beautiful.

Living and nonliving

Unite in the divine.51 . ..

(“Ba Bega” (Come Soon), Tr. Amur, p. 67) ^Sjt # <8. 3-

One of the symbols used very potently is that of Light. Light is

a life- giving force. In Bendre’s poem “Belagu” this was not just

a force that banished darkness but it also symbolized the progress of

man towards divinity. When man would attain the light of divinity the

whole world would be illuminated. Bendre compared this very

beautifully to the first rays of the sun that illuminate a man’s home

and consequently the whole world around him. The great German

saint-poet Goethe who said, "Nature is the living, visible garment of

god", expresses adeptly Bendre's feeling about Nature. The poem

“Belagu” (The Dawn) begins with sunrise. Each object, each scene is

described as it gradually becomes distinguishable from the dark. Then

he turns to the now illumined earth to observe various details.

Towards the end of the poem, the poet returns to a magnificent view of

dawn. Nature beckoned him.

In the house of sky, the pearly water was distilled,

And sprinkled all over.

The doors were thrown wide open

And the world was drowned in a flood of light.

The fountain of liquefied topaz

Rose high,

Rising for its own pleasure,

A sweet-scented bud opened up,

Opened up mfor its own pleasure.

On the face of leaves, inside the hearts of flowers,

Dropps of nectar appeared-

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Dropps of nectar, who brought them

From the height of the sky?

Who put them,

Put them here below?...

It was divine rasa of peace

Incarnating itself as dawn

And not mere light. 52

(“Belagu” (The Dawn), Tr. Raghavendra Rao, pp.98-99)

As with sunrise, other moods of nature too delighted Bendre.In

poem “Chaliaake” human emotions are transferred to Nature. In

“Sakheegeet”, the different forms of Nature personify the various

characters of life.

Nature appealed to Bendre both due to her chaste beauty and

as also the sensuous beauty of her most insignificant and ordinary

objects. It was in the larger pure form of Nature that the poet wanted

to find himself. Bendre tried to identify himself with Nature, and to

merge himself into her divine existence. For him the whole Nature was

suffused with the presence of the Divine. Nature to him was

a reflection of the greatness and glory of God and while in her midst

he could be in commune with the Divine

To Bendre where the mother earth differed from a mother was in

that mother earth raised lot of spiritual questions in his mind. She

made him ponder over her different forms of expression. He had seen

her in very terrifying destructive, violent moods. In the end however

she would come back to her basic form that of a mother.It

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She became one with all mothers. As Bendre’s reflections progressed

the human mother and mother earth no longer remained separate in

his poems and he bowed down to both of them or rather to the mother

image envisioned in his mind.

Man and Nature

As already noted, Bendre found a close relation existed between

man and earth. According to him, with his intelligence and

development of science man had always been trying to overpower

Nature and become the sole owner of this earth. But with her

tremendous capacity for destruction and regeneration, Mother Nature

had always shown herself in control of man’s progress and she had

always triumphed. Nevertheless, Bendre always believed in the

benevolent form of Nature as he had firm faith in her as a mother

figure. He could comprehend her long-sighted goal even under

adversities. His adoration of her is apparent when we notice the

outrage he felt when mother earth was refered to as 'soil' or'mud'.

These words sound very harsh, derogative and abusive to him, for to

him this earth was also an abode of gods and goddesses. This mother

from where we spring to life also very lovingly takes us back into her

fold after our death. Such a divine figure deserved our obeisance.

Thus the close relationship between man and earth is apparent and

perceptible, and explains why the relation between man and earth can

be so compatible.

Bendre’s poems about earth trace man’s progress from the early

age to where he stands today and to where he was leading himself.

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According to D.R. Nagaraj, to Bendre the earth represented man’s

turbulent history.53(p.5) The physical, intellectual and spiritual

evolution of man fascinated Bendre. He was influenced by Aurbindo’s

theory of spiritual Darwinism wherein Aurobindo felt that man had

evolved slowly over the centuries from being a savage to the present

intellectual stage; Bendre was positive that man’s creativity would

help him evolve further into a divine being. Bendre also agreed with

Aurobindo that mother earth was the base on which we depended for

our progress towards divinity. She was the force behind the eternal

quest of man for divinity. In his poems the Mother of Aurobindo and

mother earth intermingled and at times merged. Mother earth was

bathed in her own radiance. This radiance led her child on to the

divine path; taking him from ignorance to knowledge, from darkness

to light.

However, breaking away from individual spiritual enlightenment

that emphasized upon each individual raising himself to the highest

spiritual level, Bendre wished to be involved in collective upliftment.

It was also the need of the time to awaken the people and to fight

against foreign rule, rituals which had taken hold of religion, and the

caste division. Indian society was actually at the lowest ebb of

thought. Naturally, sensitive poets like Bendre and Tagore were

greatly disturbed and took the onus upon themselves to ignite

a thought process in the people around. Thus we find poems that

empathize with all the maladies and concerns about the future of the

society and a burning desire to raise the people to a higher level. The

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poems do not seek personal elevation but try to rejuvenate the

subdued Indian populace.

With his intuitive understanding of Nature, Bendre never looked

upon Nature as hostile to man. He was a firm believer in the essential

unity of man and the external universe, of the unity of internal

feelings and the external visions "...an insight of subjective feeling and

external phenomena...' according to Amur.54(p.35) Man was ultimately

bound with nature.'...Prikriti and Purusha in their eternal

relationship' says Amur.55(p.32) Nature and man, Prakriti and

Purusha, the two aspects of the Absolute, and any aspect of Nature

leading to realization of God. Bendre in his conception of nature

seemed to acknowledge the benignity of Nature and the unity and

harmony of the world.

With this feeling of oneness with Nature, a unique unison with

the infinite, the poet echoed the spirit of Indian philosophy. Love for

Nature in his work appealed to all. He found oneness in every living

creature, animal or plant. This identification with Nature is the

defining feeling in all his literary works, in resonance with the ancient

saints singing the glories of Nature. Nature, according to Bendre, was

the melody of God. It ennobled man, who was ultimately bound to

Nature, his soul having been nurtured in Nature's domain.

Naturally this intimate bonding with Nature enabled Bendre to

find solace in Nature. Pondering over human misery and suffering that

are poignantly expressed in a number of poems, comfort was found in

nature that silently provided hope and consolation. The tiny flower

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among the thorns generated hope that the spirit of man would

triumph over the forces of destruction. The flower smiling in its

thorny surroundings shone as a symbol of man’s ultimate victory over

the sorrows and sufferings of life.

With his superb power of identifying himself with nature,

Bendre believed that the entire world of Nature was man’s home and

the kinship between man and Nature was not forced or fanciful, but

age old and real. In this respect he was akin to the ancient sages and

had certain similarities with the Vedantic idea. The poem “Beladingala

Noda” (Look, the Moonlight) depicts not only the beauty of moonlight

but also accentuates on the close binding between man and Nature.

“It concludes with a statement relating rather binding man to

nature.”56 (K. Raghavendra Rao, p. 27)

This binding that compounds

What material structure is this

What style

What style ?

The breath blended with sweetness of music.

What is its name

What is its name?57 (Tr.K. Raghavendra Rao,p. 27)

Another recurring metaphor is of the month of ‘Shravana’ which

is seen as the offspring of the mother earth. The mother - son

relationship is described in the poem ‘Shravana’. All the hardships

and pains and qualms that a mother undergoes in bringing up her

child are described here.

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Bendre celebrated the arrival of Shravana in the poem

‘Shravanabantu’. Adoration of shravana symbolized the coming of new

life. According to Bendre shravana was the season for man to

breakout of his shackles and start walking towards meaningful

freedom. Just as a newborn baby brought happiness and assured

man of a new future very different from the old, Shravana too was

accompanied by the utopian dream of a happy, bright and prosperous

future. It symbolized the bright and positive attitude that man carried

within himself. Bendre was indeed an optimist.

Nature was indeed an extended unbroken part of a poet. He did

not need to describe it as a subject apart from him, he being

a continuity of Nature. There existed no borderline among Nature,

man and animal world. The song of a bird from the tree seemed like

emanating from the bark of the tree itself. As Masti analysed the

lines,

From the throats of trees and bushes

Rose the songs of birds.58

(“Belagu” (Dawn), Tr.Amur,p.31 )

‘Such an expression is not merely matter of skill. It reveals

a new mode of experiencing nature. It is the result of emotional

experience.”59(qtd in Amur, P.31) According to Masti the bird, the

tree, the wind may each be differentiated by some or taken as a whole

by others. However, a poet like Bendre just felt and the experience

needing no analysis or theory. There was just no differentiation

between man, Nature, and animal.

127

Among the three none was superior or none inferior. The

biological process was the same in all of them, being a little more

pronounced in man, but this did not make any difference in their

identical status. Neither did the gift of speech raise man above the

mute creatures, for silence was equally important to Bendre.

As all creation is derived from a common source, in

“Mahaprasthan” Bendre elaborates how having evolved from a single

cell man has been and could be instrumental in rising to the level of

divinity itself. The same concept can be found in 'Atmaprajne' where

he speaks of the soul consciousness and universal consciousness

being one and the same, there being absolutely no difference between

them. Bendre always had a panoramic view of oneness; nowhere do

we 'see a restricted view.

As said earlier, Bendre considered himself to be extended part of

Nature, and thus the continuity of Nature held his own continuity too.

Man and Nature being the manifestation of the same force, could not

be different from one another. Thus man was part of a greater truth.

Man and Nature were bound to each other, interdependent and there

existed an uninterrupted continuity between them. Amur identifies

this as 'Sadbhava' and selects a few lines from “Drishti Shrishti” to

illustrate his view:

On every twig and every branch

A different flower

The source is one but names are many.

You and 1’ are both in ‘they’60 (Tr.Amur,p.67)

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Nature reflects man, his moods, his ways, illustrating that both

are interlinked, and more a part of a greater whole. In the poem

“Pataragitti” (The Butterfly) the poet creates a magic world of nature

that man can communicate with and relate to.

And fly away, with the wind.

Fly away - wither?

Perhaps to the enchanting gardens of paradise,

Perhaps to a heavenly gardens afar-unseen.61

(Tr.K. Raghavendra Rao, p. 2)

It can thus be stated that Nature was not the objective of his

poems but a means of an expression of his thoughts and feelings. She

was the language of his life. The poems on Nature were thus the

poems on life of man. The depiction of nature stood for the depiction

of life.

There are several features of Nature in his poetry that strike us

immediately. Firstly for Bendre, Nature was never a mere backdrop or

an inanimate presence. When Bendre adored Nature in his poems, it

was not for her beauty but as the root of creation, as the mother of

man. More than her beauty it was her protectiveness and care that he

adored. To him Nature was inundated by a Divine presence of which

he too was a part. To him Nature was filled with joy and vitality.

Bendre’s poems show that he did not deal with any particular aspect

of Nature but that he explored Nature in all her forms, her seasonal

cycles and phenomena and different roles in his wide range of poetry.

Bendre in his poems visualized nature very often in the role of

129

a caring mother. At times, the earth was the mother and at other

times, Nature was mother whose benevolent, affectionate presence

and healing touch was not only enjoyed by the poet but also equally

shared by the readers. She not only loved her offsprings but appeared

to be angry, ruthless and harsh in her behaviour on certain occasions.

She was a curious combination of kindness and harshness.

The poem “Modalagitti” compares mother earth to a new bride

full of expectation and happiness as she enters her new home.

Further, he compared mother earth to the exuberance of an expectant

mother about to create a new life. This was shown by the burst of

tender leaves, colourful flowers especially in the month of Shravana. •

Bendre’s philosophy of nature was extensive and varied. At

different stages of life he had realized its meaning in various ways. His

philosophy of nature clearly underlined evolution that presupposes

attitudinal changes. In keeping with this, his attitudes to the human

soul were at times contradictory and at times conciliatory. In Bendre

we find a complete identification of the human soul with nature.

"Bendre never denied the world but there was a radical change in the

perspective of looking at it. In the language of Sankhya, Bendre

sought Purush in the beginning but in the changed perspective when

he saw Prakruti in her true form in the light of his knowledge and

awareness of Purush. Metaphorically the process may be visualised as

ascent and descent which are recurring symbols in Bendre’s poetry.”62

(Amur, p. 20) “A.E.showed him a new way of experiencing nature.

His was ‘a psychic realisation of nature’.”63 (Amur, p.21-22)

130

Furthermore, Bendre was convinced that a sense of beauty and

worthiness in Nature could free us from slavery from our

circumscribed present and lead us from necessity to freedom, from

narrowness to expanse

Conclusion

The remarkable similarity in feelings regarding Nature in Tagore

and Bendre is striking. It is obvious that their description of nature

was the result of personal experience. Tagore and Bendre were great

nature poets. Their love of Nature was all-inclusive, many angled and

realistic. Nature was regarded as the primeval storehouse of all life,

and hence they constantly identified themselves with Nature and

always tried to illustrate human nature through her. Both the poets

found great inspiration from Nature and they celebrated her various

forms. For them Nature in all her aspects was an allegory of human

life- as well as of divine ideals. Above all, they believed in a divine

presence in Nature. Their feeling of admiration turned into the deeper

emotion of wonder at the mysteries of Nature whose stimulating

influence they sought and endeavoured to interpret. Tagore himself

ruminated that his poetry began with a simple appreciation of Nature,

but transcended beyond it to God and thus ultimately to the divine in

man. Bendre's works too took the same path.

Nature represented an intriguing philosophy with her

innumerable faces to Tagore and Bendre. She included everything that

could be grasped with the senses. Nature was not only the entire

131

cosmos with all creatures but was also to be found in the smallest

detail.

To Tagore and Bendre, Nature was majestic, wild, destructive,

as well as graceful, charming and life giving. Nature was as eternal as

it was transitory and unpredictable. It symbolised death as well as

rebirth.

The relationship between the human mind and Nature is part

of Tagore and Bendre philosophic doctrine. The moods of man are

mirrored in the moods of Nature. Thus Nature was interwoven in their

writing and changed with the changes in the plot of the narrative.

In theirs spiritual view of Nature, there was an intimate,

interdependent relationship between man and Nature.

It is obvious, that each brought to his study and interpretation

of Nature certain qualities—those of close and devoted observation,

deep understanding and sympathy, and added to these a profound

and luminous imagination. It is also evident that in the final

interpretation of these qualities, they resemble one another greatly

while differing in some particular aspects. Imaginative delight in

Nature is, indeed, no new thing in the history of poetry; it appeared in

forms of perfect beauty as long ago as in the works of Kalidas.

However, Nature achieved full consciousness in these two poets,

especially in Tagore. It helped them to a deeper understanding of her,

thus forming the base of some of the greatest of modem poetry. The

poetry carries in it a transcendent faith and a profound philosophy of

life. This faith or philosophy embodies the conception of Nature.

132

They have a harmonious view of Nature embracing man’s

existence into her fold. Also noteworthy is that they carried forward

the spiritual kinship that they found in the culture and literature of

the India. These aspects of Tagore and Bendre's thought process

enables us, to understand their contemporary relevance.

REFERENCES:

1) Raymond Williams, “Ideas of Nature”, Problems in Materialism

and Culture, London:Verso,1980, p.67.

2) Ibid., pp.67-68.

3) Ibid., p.68.

4) Ibid., p.69.

5) <http:/ /www.hinduwisdom.info / >

6) Raymond Williams, op.cit., p.84.

7) Rabindranath Tagore, Religion of Man, The English Writings of

Rabindranath Tagore, Vol. 3, New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 2008,

p. 89.

8) Ibid., p.122.

9) Sankha Ghosh, Introduction, Rabindranath Tagore: Selected

Poems, Sukanta Chaudhuri (Ed), New Delhi: Oxford University

Press,2004, p.7.

10) Tagore, Religion of Man, op.cit., p. 121.

11) Hiranmaya Banerjee, How Thou Singest my Master, Calcutta:

Orient Longmans, 1961, p.46.

12) Tagore, Religion of Man, op.cit., p. 121.

13) qtd in Hiranmaya Banerjee, op.cit., p. 51.

133

14) Sukanta Chaudhuri, op.cit., p.100.

15) Tagore, Gitanjali, No.45, op.cit., p. 57.

16) Tagore, Sadhana, op.cit., p.282.

17) Ibid.

18) Ibid.

19) Ibid.

20) S. Radhakrishnan, op.cit., p.ll.

21) Ibid., pp.12-13.

22) Rabindranath Tagore, “Baby’s world” , The Crescent Moon, The

English Writings of Rabindranath Tagore, Vol.l, NewDelhi:

Sahitya Akademi, 2008, p .134.

23) Tagore, Gitanjali, No. 87, op.cit., pp. 72-73.

24) Ibid., No. 21, p.49.

25) S. Radhakrishnan, op.cit., p.13.

26) Ibid.

27) Ibid., p.16

28) Tagore, Gitanjali, No.69, op.cit., p. 66.

29) Ibid., No.95, p.75.

30) S. Radhakrishnan, op.cit., p.43

31) Tagore,Gitanjali, No.5, op.cit., p. 44.

32) qtd in Narvane, op.cit., p. 87.

33) S. Radhakrishnan, op.cit., p.15.

34) Sukanta Chaudhuri, op.cit, p.300.

35) Sankha Ghosh, op.cit., p.13.

134

36) Rabindranath Tagore, Creative Unity, The English Writings of

Rabindranath Tagore, Vol.2, New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 2008,

p.511.

37) Tagore, Sadhana, op.cit., pp.282-283.

38) Amiya Chakravarthy, (Ed). A Tagore Reader. Macmillan and Co.

Ltd., 1961, p.210.

39) Edward Thompson, Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Dramatist,

Humphrey Milford: OUP, 1926, p.23.

40) Sankha Ghosh, op.cit., p. 13.

41) Basundara, sanchayita, 188.Translation Amritsen.

42) qtd in Kalyansen Gupta, The Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore,

Hampshire England: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.,2005, p 58.

43) Ibid.

44) Tagore, Gitanjali, No.67, op.cit., p.66

45) - Rabindranath Tagore, Poems, No.20, The English Writings of

Rabindranath Tagore, Vol. 1, New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 2008,

p.334.

46) Kalyansen Gupta, op.cit., p 60.

47) Tagore, Religion of Man, op.cit., p.89.

48) Sukanta Chaudhuri, op.cit., p.59

49) K. Raghavendra Rao,(Tr.) Spring Fire, Hubli:Ambikatanayadatta

Vedike, 1986, pp.7-8.

50) Amur, Dattatreya Ramachandra Bendre ,op.cit., p. 20.

51) Ibid., p. 67

135

52) Raghavendra Rao, (Tr) “The Dawn”, Bendre: The Poet and Seer,

V.K.Gokak, op.cit., pp. 98-99.

53) D.R. Nagaraj, op.cit., p.5.

54) Amur, Dattatreya Ramachandra Bendre, op.cit., p.35.

55) Ibid., p.32.

56) K. Raghavendra Rao, The Peacock smile, op.cit., p. 27.

57) Ibid.

58) Amur, Dattatreya Ramachandra Bendre, op.cit., p.31

59) Ibid.

60) Ibid., p.67.

61) K. Raghavendra Rao, (Tr) Spring Fire, op.cit., p.2.

62) Amur, Dattatreya Ramachandra Bendre, op.cit., p.20.

63) Ibid., pp.21-22.

136