Rabindra Rachnavali
3 total works
Described by Rabindranath Tagore as revelations of my true self, the poems and songs of "Gitanjali" established the writers literary talent worldwide. They include eloquent sonnets such as the famous 'Where the mind is without fear', intense explorations of love, faith and nature in 'Light, oh where is the light?' and tender evocations of childhood in 'When my play was with thee'. In this new translation to mark the 150th anniversary of Tagore's birth, William Radice renders with beauty and precision the poetic rhythm and intensity of the Bengali originals. In his arrangement of Tagore's original sequence of poems alongside his translations, Radice restores to "Gitanjali" the structure, style and conception that were hidden by W. B. Yeats' edition of 1912, making this book a magnificent addition to the Tagore library.
[Madhav's House] Madhav. What a state I am in! Before he came, nothing mattered; I felt so free. But now that he has come, goodness knows from where, my heart is filled with his dear self, and my home will be no home to me when he leaves. Doctor, do you think he- Physician. If there's life in his fate, then he will live long. But what the medical scriptures say, it seems- Madhav. Great heavens, what? Physician. The scriptures have it: "Bile or palsey, cold or gout spring all alike." Madhav. Oh, get along, don't fling your scriptures at me; you only make me more anxious; tell me what I can do. Physician [Taking snuff] The patient needs the most scrupulous care. Madhav. That's true; but tell me how. Physician. I have already mentioned, on no account must he be let out of doors. Madhav Poor child, it is very hard to keep him indoors all day long.
1 STRAY birds of summer come to my window to sing and fly away. And yellow leaves of autumn, which have no songs, flutter and fall there with a sigh. 2 O TROUPE of little vagrants of the world, leave your footprints in my words. 3 THE world puts off its mask of vastness to its lover. It becomes small as one song, as one kiss of the eternal. 4 IT is the tears of the earth that keep her smiles in bloom. 5 THE mighty desert is burning for the love of a blade of grass who shakes her head and laughs and flies away. 6 IF you shed tears when you miss the sun, you also miss the stars. 7 HE sands in your way beg for your song and your movement, dancing water. Will you carry the burden of their lameness? 8 HER wistful face haunts my dreams like the rain at night. 9 ONCE we dreamt that we were strangers. We wake up to find that we were dear to each other.