Rabindranath Tagore

We celebrate the 150th Birth Anninversary of Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), the first Asian
Nobel Laureate who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for ‘Geetanjali’, a compilation of
some of his poems. He was not only a poet but truly a multifaceted genius – a Writer, Painter,
Philosopher, Educator, Businessman, Social Reformer and advocate of Indian Independence. He has
composed over 2000+ songs popularly called ‘Rabindra-Sangeet’ (Tagore’s Songs) which still
continue to top the charts. He is the only composer and lyricist in the world whose compositions are
used as the National Anthems of 2 different nations, India and Bangladesh. He continues to be a
popular literary figure in today’s world. His writings, paintings and songs seem so very
contemporary. This is my humble tribute to this great personality on his Birth Anninversary – a
collection of some photographs featuring Tagore at various stages of his life, photos with which you
are not too familiar with….hope you will get a glimpse of the life of this great persona through these
snaps…..

Early Life:
 Rabindranath Tagore at the age of 12 approx.

Tagore in England in 1879 / 1880

Young Rabindranath:

Tagore playing Valmiki in his drama Valmiki Pratibha, staged at their own house.
“The burden of the self is lightened with I laugh at myself” – Tagore

“Everything comes to us that belongs to us if we create the capacity to receive it” – Tagore
Tagore with his wife Mrinalini Devi, 1883

Tagore with Indira Devi, 1886

In England during his second visit, 1890
“Love does not claim possession, but gives freedom” – Tagore

Tagore in Middle Age:

Tagore with eldest daughter Madhurilata and eldest son Rathindranath

Autographed picture of Tagore at the age of 35 (approx)

Tagore at the age of 40 (approx)

 Rabindranath Tagore with Tripureswar Radhakishor Debmanikya

Rabindranath Tagore, 1905, taken by the poet and artist Sukumar Ray

The Primetime of His Life:

Rabindranath Tagore with his children-(from left)daughter Mira, son Rathindranath, daughter-in-law
Pratima, daughter Bela
 Rabindranath Tagore with with his immediate family

Rabindranath Tagore at the time of writing Bengali Gitanjali

Rabindranath Tagore with eminent Bengali writers, 1912 just before a trip to England.

(from right) Sitting – Satyendranath Dutta, Jatindramohan Bagchi, Karunanidhan Bandopadhay.

Standing – Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhya, Manilal Gangopadhya,
Dwijendra Narayan Bagchi, Charuchandra Bandopadhya.
Rabindranath Tagore at Hampstead, England in 1912

Rabindranath Tagore with Willie Pearson

Tagore (right) as Fakir in his play Dakghar, 1917

Rabindranath Tagore in Kolkata, 1915, the year he was knighted by Lord Hardinge
 Rabindranath Tagore with eldest brother, Dwijendranath

Rabindranath in Gujarat (1920) (from: The Report of the Sixth Gujarati

Sahitya Parishad-1920 (pub.1923))

Tagore at his grand-daughter Pusu’s marriage

With Friends and Admirers:

Gandhi and Tagore, Ahmedabad, 6th Conference on Literature in Gujarat, 3-5 April 1920
Tagore visiting University of Dhaka in 1926. In the right Prof. R. C. Majumder famous indian
historiand and DU teacher

Romain Rolland & Rabindranath Tagore in Villeneuve, Switzerland, 1926

Rabindranath Tagore with Ananda K. Coomaraswamy, about 1930

 Tagore and Victoria Ocampo in 1930

Rabindranath Tagore and Leonard Elmhirst

Rabindranath Tagore at the Galerie Pigalle, Paris, 1930

 Karel with Tagore in 1935

Rabindranath Tagore & Albert Einstein, Aug, 1941

Tagore reading from his works to Hellen Keller

Tagore with Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Gandhi and Kasturba Gandhi with Rabindranath Tagore at Shantiniketan

Professor Tan Yun Shan presenting Chinese books to the poet

 C.F. Andrews with Rabindranath

Rabindranath Tagore with Pandit Bhim Rao Shastri

 Tagore with Indira Gandhi

Tagore with granddaughter Nandita, the daughter of Rabindranath’s youngest daughter Mira
Tagore with Uday Shankar
 Tagore In Berlin

Rabindranath Tagore with a group of Bengalis in Santiniketan, November, 1913, after he was awarded
the Nobel Prize for literature

Tagore (center, at right) visits with Chinese academics at Tsinghua University in 1924.
Tagore (3rd from right) meets members of the Iranian Majlis (Consultative Assembly),Tehran, April-
May 1932

Rabindarath Tagore with the air captain, Mrs P.C. Visser and the second pilot in front of a KLM
airplane
Tagore approaching the Amrokunjo in Shantiniketan after a prayer in Bengali New Year (1940)

Tagore with Indian Students at University of California, Berkeley

 Tagore with Students

Tagore watching a dance programme

Tagore in Leisure:
“Beauty is truth’s smile when she beholds her own face in a perfect mirror” – Tagore

“Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark” – Tagore

“Love is an endless mystery, for it has nothing else to explain it” – Tagore
“We have no time to lose,
and having no time we must scramble for a chance.” - Tagore

Tagore at morning tea

Tagore painting
“Trees are Earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven” – Tagore

“Let us not pray to be sheltered from dangers but to be fearless when facing them” – Tagore

Tagore in Berlin, 1930

 Tagore standing in front of one of his houses in Santiniketan, 1935

“Let your life lightly dance on the edges of Time like dew on the tip of a leaf” – Tagore

TAGOREISMS – PROFOUND - Here are samples of his famous quotes:

• Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark.
• Do not say, "It is morning," and dismiss it with a name of yesterday. See it for the first time as a
newborn child that has no name.
• The soil, in return for her service, keeps the tree tied to her; the sky asks nothing and leaves it free.
• You can't cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water.
• If you cry because the sun has gone out of your life, your tears will prevent you from seeing the
stars
• Death is not extinguishing the light; it is only putting out the lamp because the dawn has come