Tagore: A Short Biography PDF

# Tagore: A Short Biography ## Ancestry Rabindranath Tagore, the founder chancellor of Visva Bharati, was born in an old aristocratic family of nineteenth century Calcutta. The Battle of Plassey (1757) had taken place one hundred and four years before Rabindranath was born. As a consequence of tha...

# Tagore: A Short Biography ## Ancestry Rabindranath Tagore, the founder chancellor of Visva Bharati, was born in an old aristocratic family of nineteenth century Calcutta. The Battle of Plassey (1757) had taken place one hundred and four years before Rabindranath was born. As a consequence of that battle, the administration of Bengal, and subsequently that of India, gradually passed into the hands of the English. English here strictly means the East India Company, a trading enterprise established in England, on which trading right was conferred by an act of the British Parliament. The Company came on pretexts of trade and commerce and usurped from the Nawab also the power and authority to rule this country. Calcutta at that time was nothing but an expanse of open country. On the east of the Ganga lay the three villages - Kalikata, Govindapur and Sutanuti. Rabindranath's forefathers left Baropara of Khulna and came to Govindapur where they settled down. The Seths and the Basaks were then the leading traders and they carried on trade with the English Company. Rabindranath's ancestor Panchanan Kusari worked in alliance with them. The Kusaris were Brahmins and the low caste employees under them addressed Panchanan as 'Thakur masai' or 'Thakur'. This 'Thakur' anglicized in the English captains' pronunciation, became 'Tagore' and Panchanan Thakur became Panchanan Tagore. In course of time, 'Kusari' fell into disuse and 'Tagore' became the familiar surname. Panchanan Tagore's grandsons - Nilmoni, Darpanarayan and Govindaram bought land in the Pathuriaghata area and permanently settled there (1765). Nilmoni and Darpanarayan worked as revenue officers of the British and thereby earned handsomely. And from these two respectively originated the two renowned Tagore families of Calcutta - the one of Jorasanko and the other of Pathuriaghata. After the Battle of Plassey, Nilmoni Tagore and Darpanarayan Tagore together maintained for a long time a joint family at Pathuriaghata. In 1784, they split into two separate families. Nilmoni Tagore had three sons Ramlochan, Rammoni and Ramballav and a daughter, Kamalmoni. After Nilmoni's death in 1791, Ramlochan became the chief of the family. Ramlochan and Rammoni together initiated the purchase of estates. Rammoni's son Dwarkanath (1794-1846) who was also Ramlochan's adopted son added immensely to the landed and other properties of the family. ## It was a time when new systems of education were yet to be introduced in our country. Persian was still the court language and the language learnt by the aristocracy. Dwarkanath's contact with the English prompted him to learn the English language alongside Persian. His contact with the employees of the Company moreover fostered a commercial acumen in him and even in the prime of his youth he embarked on his own commercial venture. Initially he helped the Macintosh & Co. in the purchase of silk and indigo. Thereafter he started to work independently in the same field. At the same time, he achieved considerable experience in conducting the affairs of his estate. It was a period of transition when the administrative and legal system of the Nawabs was being replaced by English laws in which also Dwarkanath became versed. Because of this proficiency, he was chosen as advisor by a number of zamindars in both Bengal and Bibar. At the age of twenty-nine, he was appointed the Collector of 24 Parganas and the 'Salt Agent' and in a few years became the revenue officer of the tax and excise departments. Apart from these services, he was engaged in independent business which fetched him a lot of money. He held shares of Macintosh & Co. He was also the first Bengalee to found a bank; in 1829 in association with some Europeans he started the Union Bank. ## In accordance with a parliamentary directive, the East India Company abandoned its commercial enterprises in 1833 and turned exclusively to administration. Dwarkanath took the opportunity of setting up a new firm- Carr-Tagore Company. He secured a lease of the Ranigunj coalmines, carried on a trade in indigo and also in sugar. He went on adding also to his landed property, an extensive North Bengal estate being one of his acquisitions of that period. This material success, however, did not represent the whole of Dwarkanath. He employed his talent and discernment to various acts of public welfare. The propagation of English education and cultural values naturally ushered in a period of changes and movements in the Bengali Society. We shall here refer to three of those incidents. In 1814, Rammohan Roy came to Calcutta and settled down. Secondly, in 1817, the Hindu College, the well-known institution for imparting English education, was founded. And thirdly, the year 1818 marked the first publication of two Bengali periodicals: Samachar Darpan, published by the Serampore Mission was one and Bangal Gazetti published by Gangakishore Bhattacharjee was the other. These are the incidents which in due course set in motion a number of social movements and social conflicts. Dwarkanath remained variously associated with these movements. ## Soon after Rammohan's arrival in Calcutta two memorable trends became manifest. In 1815, he published his *Vedanta Grantha* and freshly reintroduced the monotheistic Hinduism in this era of ours. At that time communal pseudo-religious worship of gods of legendary and popular origin was prevalent; propagation of Christianity continued in full swing while Islam too by then was well-entrenched. Rammohan had no conflict with these two major religions; rather he was influenced both by Christian moral ideals and Islamic monotheism. He wished to reform the religion of the Hindus so as to restore to it the old doctrine of the Brahma based on the Upanishads. This doctrine of the Brahma inspired him to a concept of a universal religion. The traditional Hindu Society was stirred by these attempts at religious reforms by Rammohan. At the same time Rammohan also tried to bring about the abolition of discriminatory social customs. His efforts of bringing about the prohibition of *Sati* is one of the memorable events of the nineteenth century. In respect of all these noble efforts, Dwarkanath stood by Rammohan. They, in fact, were close friends and Rammohan's ideals created a living tradition carried forward successively by Dwarkanath, his son Devendranath and Devendranath's son, Rabindranath. Dwarkanath did not get initiated to Rammohan's monotheistic faith, but he was Rammohan's associate in such reform movements as the *Sati*. ## There were definite reasons for which Rammohan could not maintain a direct link with the Hindu College which was established in Calcutta. But the establishment of Hindu College meant the introduction of modernist educational principles. Young men who came through this modern system of education assumed the leadership in propagating liberal ideas in various spheres of our social life. Students of H.L.V. Derozio and D.L. Richardson, who taught at this college remained active up to the fifth or sixth decade of the nineteenth century in bringing into being a new Bengali literature, in various reforms and in propagating various political and nationalistic ideas. Pearychand Mitra, Krishnamohan Bandyopadhyay, Michael Madhusudan Datta, Bhudev Mukhopadhyay- and a little later on- Dinabandhu Mitra. Bankimchandra and many others were students of Hindu College. Rabindranath's father, Devendranath too belonged to this college. Rammohan as well as the Hindu College made an immeasurable contribution towards the development of ideas and attitudes of this century. Medical College, Public Library and various societies and associations came into existence one by one. The mediaeval serenity of village life fed merely on Mangal Kavya and folk poetry came to an end, yielding place to a new- and naturally unprecedented- urban culture and civilization. ## A medium which carried the message of this newly developed urban culture was the Bengali periodical which also sprouted into life at the same time. *Bangal Gazetti* enjoyed a brief existence but *Samachar Darpan* carried on for a long time. Other periodicals made their appearances soon. *Samvad Kaumudi* of Rammohan and *Samachar Chandrika* of Bhavanicharan Bandyopadhyay launched debates on religious issues of the day. *Iswarchandra Gupta's Sangvad Prabhakar* made an impression on the educated Bengali mind as much by its news items as by diverse literary compositions of the editor. These journals presented news and also became debating forums relating to issues like the new educational principles at the Hindu College, the impact created by the teaching of liberal-minded scholars like Derozio, the movement against *Sati*, activities of Brahma Sabha and Dharmasabha. This periodical literature is a reflex of the stirring that characterized the Bengali life of that day. ## Devendranath Tagore, who was one of the leading figures of this newly awakened phase of the Bengali society, was born at the beginning of this era (1817). Dwarkanath, his father, was one of Calcutta's rich aristocrats and as his son, Devendranath spent some of his early years in luxury. Before he entered the Hindu College, he had his education at Rammohan's Anglo-Hindu school. Devendranath was a boy of thirteen when Rammohan left for England. Rammohan could not return home from England but Devendranath always remembered Rammohan's strength of character, dedication to ideals and religious devoutness. He was infused with spiritual cravings even at a time his father Dwarkanath was absorbed in his business and estate. This quest for divinity threw him deeply into European and Indian philosophical studies. His long meditation led him to the position that ruth has a natural affinity with purity of heart. As the outcome of his studies in the Upanishads, Devendranath realized truth with a heart of purity, hence he did not accept any of the Sastras in an unmodified form. He passed on to his son, Rabindranath, this important legacy of a combination of untrammelled rationalism and spontaneous realization, a combination which in his autobiography, Devendranath had characterized as the religion of truth illumined by wisdom and confirmed by self-assurance. Rabindranath did not quite feel drawn to the ideal of his grandfather's life. His entire mental world and practical life to their very depths were permeated by his father's influence. In his father, he came across the ideal of worldly life true to Brahma assuming the responsibilities of mundane existence and yet remaining unattached, severe rationalism combined with largeheartedness. ## Dwarkanath died in England (1846). His extravagance there won him the sobriquet 'Prince'. As a result however, Devendranath succeeded to a legacy of a large debt. The two brothers of Devendranath- Girindranath and Nagendranath- were alive at the time their father died, and Devendranath distributed their shares among them so that it would lighten their burdens of debt. He owned the entire liability of his father's debts and eventually paid off all the creditors, which necessitated severe frugality on his part. But this honesty of Devendranath, has been viewed with respect by all. In those days there were several rich aristocrats in Calcutta but with his saintlike character, deep piety and enlightened aristocracy Devendranath lived in splendid isolation. He completed the task of religious reforms begun by Rammohan, and it was he who became the founder-preceptor of Brahmoism. In this family, he introduced, in lieu of conventional rituals, new forms of religious practices in consonance with his own religious realizations. In propagating the Brahmo faith he had the assistance of an enthusiastic young man, Keshavchandra Sen who introduced a variety of reforms in Brahmo Samaj. ## A few other changes brought about in our country around the time Rabindranath was born, were also profoundly significant. The movement which Iswarchandra Vidyasagar launched for the legalisation of widow remarriage, was inspired by Rammohan's ideal of emancipation of women. Vidyasagar's unremitting efforts in establishing women's social rights directed in the form of women's education, opposition to polygamy and casteism inspired the Bengali society with a new sense of values. The introduction of widow remarriage (1856) and women's education under Vidyasagar's leadership following upon the prohibition of *Sati* by the efforts of Rammohan removed the more important obstacles to women's emancipation in our society. To this was added the movement led by Keshavchandra and all these together supplied the momentum for significant social progress in Bengal. There was a link between Vidyasagar on the one hand and Devendranath and the Tagore family on the other. He was a member of the *Tattvabodhini Sabha* founded by Devendranath, and was one of the editors of *Tattvabodhini Patrika*. In this, he was joined in by a powerful prose-writer, Aukshoykumar Datta (1820-86), who happened also to be one of the teachers at Deverndranath's *Tattvabodhini Pathsala*. ## Prior to the establishment of the University of Calcutta in 1857, there was a limited number of schools teaching English. There were pathsalas run in the traditional manner and also tols and chatuspathis for Sanskrit education. Hindu College, Hooghly College and Krishnanagar College were institutions of higher learning. Despite all this, the system of education prevailing in the country was still unplanned. There has been a continuing debate on the desirability of English or the national languages as medium of instruction. In 1844, Hardinge founded Bengali medium schools but they languished for want of official enterprise and closed down. It was Iswarchandra Vidyasagar who during his tenure as the Principal of Sanskrit College, took the initiative in founding Bengali medium schools at different places in the state and they received official patronage for a brief while. In order to train teachers for these schools, Iswarchandra established the Normal School with Aukshoykumar Datta as the headmaster. It was to this Normal School that Devendranath sent his son Rabindranath. ## Devendranath was associated with a number of public welfare activities. He had his own educational ideals, he remained steadily involved also in social and religious reforms. He made frequent visits to the Himalayas in order to devote himself to meditation in seclusion and to spiritual contemplation at a distance from the distracting noise of family life. Such occasional journeys away from home started from 1856. It was in course of one such excursion that on the way to Raipur from Bolpur he stopped for a rest on the lonely meadow of Bhubandanga. The entire area was part of the Raipur estate from which in 1863 Devendranath took the user's right of 20 bighas of land at a yearly land-rent of twenty rupees and established the *Santiniketan* asrama. In 1888, he executed a trust deed for the management of the asrama and dedicated it for the purpose of the worship of the Brahma. ## Several events of historical significance were taking place in the country while, within the Tagore family, alongside the devotional exercises of Devendranath, there was pervasive nationalism and an atmosphere conducive to the creation of a tradition of musical, artistic and literary activities. The *Sepoy Mutiny* (1857) preceded the birth of Rabindranath by four years, and the British crown responded to it by seizing the administration of India from the East India Company. The *Indigo Rising* occurred soon after, which displayed the nationalistic features of the *Sepoy Mutiny*, even though, strictly speaking, it was not directed against the English. The crown had just assumed the administration giving rise to hope which gradually yielded place to powerful patriotic feelings. In the following lines written long after, Rabindranath has recollected the circumstances of those days: "At the time though tentative attempts were being made to gain our national independence, at heart we had not lost faith in the generosity of the English race. This belief was so firmly rooted in the sentiments of our leaders as to lead them to hope that the victor would of his own grace pave the path of freedom for the vanquished. This belief was based upon the fact that England at the time provided a shelter to all those who had to flee from persecution in their own country. Political martyrs who had suffered for the honour of their people, were accorded unreserved welcome at the hands of the English. I was impressed by this evidence of liberal humanity in the character of the English and thus I was led to set them on the pedestal of my highest respect. This generosity in their national character had not yet been vitiated by Imperialist pride." -Crisis in Civilization ## Childhood and Youth Rabindranath was born on 7 May 1861 in the ancestral house at Jorasanko. Little is known about his mother Sarada Devi. He was the fourteenth child of his parents. The only brother younger than him, Budhendranath died in childhood. The eldest brother Dwijendranath was a poet and a philosopher, and the other brothers and sisters in order of seniority were Satyendranath, Hemendranath, Birendranath, Saudamini, Jyotirindranath, Sukumari, Saratkumari, Swarnakumari, Barmakumari and Somendranath. The eldest sister and the brother Punyendranath also died prematurely. ## Dwijendranath, Satyendranath, Jyotirindranath and Swarnakumari are the most notable by virtue of their achievements. Satyendranath went to England and came back as the first Indian member of the I.C.S.; Jyotirindranath was a musical expert and a dramatist; and Swarmakumari was a reputed novelist of that period. The atmosphere of the Tagore family was filled richly with the cultivation of musical, literary and dramatic pursuits. Outside the limits of the family, they were attached to diverse activities at the national level. ## Boys in that large family were brought up in thrift under the supervision of servants. In his reminiscences *Jivansmriti* and *Chelehela*, Rabindranath has attractively depicted those boyhood days. An ancient palatial building surrounded by a garden with a tank in it- and there were spots in the garden which the boys were not familiar with. There were deepening mysteries, as it were, in the unfamiliar and inaccessible nooks and corners in the house. The boy Rabindranath could not evade the strict supervision of the servants and roam about at will, hence his childhood mind with all of figments relating to this vast world. This deep yearning for the far was satisfied later on in his life in many of his journeys abroad as also in many of his poems and songs. ## Hemendranath looked after the children's education. Rabindranath was first admitted to Calcutta Training Academy and then for some years he was a student of Normal School where his education in Bengali was placed on a sound foundation. After that, he studied in an Anglo-Indian School called Bengal Academy and during his days here in 1873, he put on his sacred thread and soon after he accompanied his father Devendranath on a journey to the Himalayas. On the way Rabindranath spent a few days at the asrama which his father had founded at Santiniketan. He was then twelve years old. It was the first occasion on which he left the city and found himself at the centre of a serene natural expanse. The intimate company of the father which he had never earlier enjoyed made this journey specially meaningful. The ideal of an extraordinary personality imprinted itself on Rabindranath's mind during this journey. In the solitude of the Himalayan abode Rabindranath took lessons in Sanskrit from his father who pointed out the planets and the stars on the evening sky to his son whom he also trained up along a different line by dealing out little responsibilities to him. Above all, Rabindranath was moved by his father's love of nature and sense of beauty. ## He came back. His education and literary exercises hereafter became considerably more unimpeded. Jnanchandra Bhattacharya, Ramsarvasva Bhattacharya, Brajanath De were one after another appointed his tutor and gradually he became well-versed in Sanskrit and English literature. He stopped going to school but his literary studies went on apace. His first poem in print 'Abhilash' was published in *Tattvabodhini Patrika* in Agrahayan 1281. But this first poem was not printed in his name. Rabindranath was only fourteen years of age at that time. His literary output between 1873 when he returned from the Himalayas, and 1878 when he went to England was collected in *Kavikahini* (1878), *Banaphool* (1880) and *Saisav Sangeet* (1884). He made his way into *Jnanankur*, a literary journal, which contained contributions from distinguished elders even though he was a mere boy at that time. The poem 'Hindumelay Upahar' which he read at Hindumela brought him this distinction. The first poem printed in his name was 'Hindumelay Upahar' which he read at the ninth anniversary session of the Hindumela at Parshibagan on February 11, 1875. Later it was printed in the *Amritabazar Patrika* on February 25. That was when he came to be known as a poet. In the language and the form of this poem, he mainly followed Hemchandra Bandyopadhyay, a famous poet of that time. In fact, the literally environ of Bengal of that period centered around Madhusudan-Hemchandra. At that point of time Beharilal Chakraborty was also writing poems, but he was yet to be considered as a model. But the beauty and subtility of imagination that was expressed through Rabindranath's introspective pronouncement, was not found in Bengali writings of date excepting those of Beharilal, Hemchandra of course drew the attention of the readers in general by his patriotic and inspiring poems. Rabindranath, a boy of fourteen, wrote 'Hindumelay Upahar' by imitating Hemchandra's 'Bharatsangeet'. ## We should have some knowledge also about Hindumela. The establishment of *Hindumela* owed to the fervour of nationalism which had a spontaneous growth in Devendranath's family. In 1861, Rajnarayan Bose, a friend of Devendranath, founded in Midnapur an association named *Jatiya Gauravechchhasancharini Sabha* with the objective of discussing and propagating nationalist issues. In a few years, he published a booklet bearing the title 'Prospectus for a Society for the Promotion of National Feeling among the Educated Natives of Bengal' (1866). Ideas set forth in this book inspired Navagopal Mitra to plan *Hindumela*, and in this, he was assisted by Ganendranath, the son of Girindranath. The first session of the mela was held in Parsibagan in 1867. It chose for its objective the propagation of the art, literature and music of our own people. It was desired also to encourage physical exercises according to indigenous methods. *Hindumela* played an unforgettable role in the phase of the awakening and the initial development of nationalist consciousness in our country. Manomohan Bose, another poet of the time, had composed at this mela a song describing the sufferings of India in bondage. Several songs were composed in connection with the sessions of *Hindumela*, viz., Satyendranath's "Mile sabe Bharatasantan, ekatan, manapran". Dwijendranath's "Malina mukhachandrama Bharata tomari" and Ganendranath's "Lajay Bharata jash gahiba ki kore". Rabindranath, the youngest poet, read out his poem in which he imagines that Vyasa, on the summit of the Himalayas, plays on his vina and sings of the sorrows of India of the day. Remembering kings like Ramachandra, Yudhisthir, Prihviraj and heroic queens like Durgabati and also thinking of the country in bondage, the poet says- ``` ভারত কঙ্কাল আর কি এখন, পাইবে হায় রে নূতন জীবন, ভারতের ভস্মে আগুন জ্বালিয়া, আর কি কখনো দিবে রে জ্যোতি। তা যদি না হয় তবে আর কেন, হাসিবি ভারত! হাসিবি রে পুনঃ, সে দিনের কথা জাগি স্মৃতিপটে, ভাসে না নয়ন বিষাদ জলে? ``` (Will the mere body of India be reinfused with life? Will India in the ashes be again in flames and again shine? Why will you laugh again if that should not happen? Can the eyes help shedding tears when those days are recollected?) *Hindumela* had created such an atmosphere charged with patriotism. The novels of Bankimchandra, the dramas of Jyotirindranath and others, the poems of Hemchandra were all ringing with the same note. But the segment of society having an English education was simultaneously displaying the two tendencies of loyalty to the ruling power and a strong patriotic individualism. Tagore was from the very start initiated to the second trend of thought and we observe the complete development of this outlook in later phases of Rabindranath's life. *Sanjibani Sabba* was another instance of the same patriotic expression. This was an underground association which yet maintained a link with elderly persons like Rajnarayan Bose. Rabindranath in his reminiscences has given a description of the activities of this association in a lighter vein. But this association played no negligible part in exciting patriotism in the young heart of Rabindranath. ## While his literary pursuits were quite vigorous, his formal education languished. For a brief spell, he was in St. Xavier's School (1875) but irregular attendance brought that to a close. He was spending his time at home in desulory reading when his elder brother Satyendranath proposed that he should go to England and qualify himself as an I.C.S. Prior to his departure for England Rabindranath stayed briefly with Satyendranath at Ahmedabad where the latter was a Sessions Judge. Satyendranath's large library gave Rabindranath an opportunity of reading according as he wished. In his short story *Kshudhita Pashan*, Rabindranath recaptured seventeen years hence the memory of the Shahibag palace here. The publication of the magazine *Bharati* started in July 1877 with Dwijendranath Tagore as its editor. From the very first issue, a number of writings by Rabindranath were published in it. Some of his writings prior to his departure to England have been included in *Kabikahini* (1878), *Banaphul* (1880), and *Saisab Sangeet* (1884). *Kabikahini* is his first book in print. ## In September 1878, Rabindranath left for England in the company of his elder brother Satyendranath. In England, Rabindranath was first admitted to a school in Brighton and later on to the University College, London. But even there the course of study was not completed, and at the end of one year and a half he returned to India. *Europeprabasir Patra* (1881), published in *Bharati*, testifies that Rabindranath's perceptive mind enabled him even during the space of eighteen months to make an intimate acquaintance with life and society in England. He lived briefly with the family of a certain Dr. Scott which was an experience of the broadmindedness of man and this experience helped in developing liberal social outlook in Rabindranath. He accepts this position in the following extract from *Jivansmriti*: "One thing struck me when living in this family that human nature is everywhere the same. We are fond of saying, and I also believed, that the devotion of an Indian wife to her husband is something unique, and not to be found in Europe. But I at least was unable to discern any difference between Mrs. Scott and an ideal Incian wife." (Reminiscences). ## He returned without a degree or a professional qualification but his talent found another outlet on the strength of his experience in England. He developed a keen interest in Western music, and undertook a musical drama *Valmiki Pratibha* (1881). On his return home, he wrote a composition and they were set to tune in a new fusion of Indian and Western musical styles which constituted a fresh contribution to the musical tradition of Bengal. *Valmiki Pratibha* was staged (1881) before the Vidvajjansamagam and Rabindranath played in the role of Valmiki. Earlier in Jyotirindranath's play *Eman Karma ar karba na* Rabindranath had acted as Aleekbabu. *Valmiki Pratibha* was the signal for Tagore to devote himself fully to music and literature. *Sandhyasangeet* (1882) was composed at that time. This was followed in 1883 by *Prabhatsangeet*. There was a very special occasion connected to *Prabhatsangeet* which Rabindranath remembered not only in his *Jivansmriti* but also in the late years of his life, in *The Religion of Man* (1931) and *Manusher Dharma* (1933). He was then living with Jyotirindranath at Sadar Street. One morning at the moment of sunrise he had in a flash a mystic vision in which he saw the world, nature and man bathed in streams of joy which submerged the whole world. He wrote his famous poem *Nirjharer Swapnabhanga*. The poet, released from the world inside him, stepped out into the world of man. From this moment he achieved an insight into his own inner being and the poetic genius of Rabindranath achieved its true liberation. Thereafter he composed in succession *Chhabi o Gan* (1884), *Prakritir Pratisodh* (1884), *Kadi o Komal* (1886), *Mayar Khela* (1888), *Manasi* (1890). Along side there was also a profuse output of prose articles and criticism and novels. According to Rabindranath's own view, his poetry achieved its distinctive individuality from the stage of *Manasi*. He never entirely over came his diffidence with regard to his earlier works. ## Before Fifty Rabindranath married (December, 1883) Mrinalini Devi when he was twenty-three. It was a stage when besides his poetical pursuits, he had started sharing his father's vast responsibilities. He was the Secretary of Maharshi's *Adi Brahmosamaj*, and did his part enthusiastically. There were conflicts and uncertainties in the Brahmosamaj movement. Devendranath's differences with Keshabchandra, were by now a matter of the past but Keshabchandra's own faction too fell into inactivity and ineffectiveness. Young Brahmosamajists like Sivanath Sastri who were admirers of Keshabchandra founded *Sadharan Brahmosamaj*. Devendranath however continued to be held in esteem irrespectively of whether one was a follower of Keshabchandra or Sivanath Sastri. The Hndu society too was showing signs of life and activity. The saintly Ramakrishna Paramahansa of Dakshineswar and his disciple of world-wide reputation, Vivekananda, had generated new faith in the traditional Hindu religion. Vivekananda at a particular stage of his life felt drawn to the Brahmosamaj movement and he never quite lost this interest. Rabindranath devoted himself wholeheartedly to the duties regarding Brahmosamaj during the ninth decade of the nineteenth century which was a period marked by religious movements. Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay was seeking to explain Hinduism in rational terms; he was the leading novelist of Bengal and was at the same time an eminent intellectual leader. He was also a friend and contemporary of Rabindranath's eldest brother Dwijendranath. Bankimchandra paid respectful attention to the ideals of *Adi Brahmosamaj* though he had basic differences with Dwijendranath in matters of religion. There was actually a debate between Bankimchandra and Rabindranath on the ethical ideals of religion. This however must not make us forget that Bankimchandra was deeply impressed by the promise of Rabindranath's genius, he had admired his performance in *Valmiki Pratibha* and was eloquent in praise of *Sandhyasangeet*. He was intently observing the progress of the manifestation of Rabindranath's genius. The idea of the historical novel introduced by Bankimchandra furnished the model for *Bauthakuranir Hat* (1883) and *Rajarshi* (1887) of Rabindranath. Rabindranath paid his tribute of profound respect to Bankimchandra in an article on the occasion of Bankimchandra's death in 1894. ## Around this period, another chapter started in the life of Rabindranath. In September 1890, he left for England along with Satyendranath. This was his second trip to the country. It was for only a month, and he returned in October to take up, at his father's direction, the charge of looking after the family estates. Rabindranath seemed to enjoy greater confidence of his father even though Dwijendranath was the eldest brother. This peculiar responsibility, however, opened up new vistas of literary work for him. His literary work so far was based purely on idea and imagination. He had now the opportunity of living in close proximity to the life of common folk. He had a direct and intimate experience of the life of the poor achieving an authentic knowledge of their social problems, their customs and rites and their general social manners. From the world of poetic fancy he descended into the immediacy of real life, and this in turn led to the composition of the short stories of *Galpaguchchha*, a wonderful contribution to the literature of Bengal. In his letters, compiled as *Chhinnapatra* and *Chhinnapatravali*, written to his niece, Indira Devi, the nature of North Bengal found its literary presentation. He stayed in a boat on the stream of the river and in this boat moved about from Patisar to Kaligram and from Kaligram to Silaidah in North Bengal. ## Some have marked out this period as that of Sadhana. Rabindranath was the chief contributor to *Sadhana* (published in 1891), a magazine edited by Sudhindranath, son of Dwijendranath. His short stories, essays and poems published in *Sadhana* emitted the full radiance of the genius of Rabindranath, In *Sadhana* were set forth the matured ideas on education and in it also he started his political discussions. These ideas on education and politics were stated boldly and lucidly. In 1892, in an article 'Sikshar Herpher' he pleaded for adoption of Bengali (mother tongue) as the medium of instruction- an opinion from which he never budged. While many did not agree with his political views, but these could not be ignored. At a time when political discussions were confined to a small urban minority in Calcutta with a background of English education, Rabindranath proposed that the provincial congresses should be held in different parts of the country and the proceedings conducted in the mother tongue so as to ensure a spontaneous link with the common people. Throughout his life Rabindranath stressed constructive activities, and what he chiefly sought to impress upon was that one should intimately know one's country and one's people, one should correct one's faults from a moral sense generated by a liberal humanism, one should not depend on the charity of foreign rulers but should, on the other hand, be inspired by one's own inner strength. It was a time when on the one hand he was thinking deeply on diverse aspects of the Bengali life and offering leadership, and on the other, writing articles in order to drive home to his readers the truths about the ancient Indian tradition, its essentially spiritual character and the continuity of its quest for unity. ## Rabindranath was a lofty patriot though he was not much involved in political activities strictly so called. He never took himself off from the spontaneous nationalist activities characterizing the whole family from the Hindumela period. He inaugurated the session of the Congress held in Calcuta in 1896 by singing the 'Vandemataram' song. The Congress had not yet quite rebelled against the English rule, the rebellious spirit developed in the wake of a different course of activities. Bal Gangadhar Tilak had made his appearance in Maharashtra, and intoduced a social festival celebrating Sivaji. Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar took his inspiration from it and enkindled patriotic flames in Bengal. Rabindranath wrote his famous poem *Sivaji utsav* (1904). Rabindranath was one of those who from Bengal sent aids to Tilak when the court presided over by the British judge sentenced Tilak to incarceration (1897). He was present at the provincial congress held at Dacca in 1305 B.S. (1898) at which he sang the national song. This was a period when the atmosphere was being increasingly charged with the spirit of conflict with the ruling power. He skilfully analysed the political situation in the columns of *Sadhana*, *Bangadarsan* and *Bharati*. ## The outcome of this patriotic upsurge was the partition of Bengal (1905). The modern period had started on a note of confidence in the British rulers. This confidence remained long unshaken in spite of the *Hindumela* of Nabagopal Mitra in the nineteenth century and the patriotic dedication of Bankimchandra and