Product Description

These inspirational poems, devoid of aggression and angst, are like a breath of fresh air, which enlightens the soul. Gitanjali's canvas encompasses life's experiences with an innocence and simplicity that one does not find elsewhere in literature.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #42512 in Books
• Published on: 2004-03-15
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 128 pages

Customer Reviews

As beautiful today as in 1913 when It was published
Rabindranath Tagore offers the discerning reader "manna for the spirit". In truth, this small volume of poetry consists of English translations of Bengali songs of worship. My well worn copy from 1971 (MacMillan and Company, New York) has stood the test of time, being read and reread many times in the past 24 years.

Tagore is my favorite poet, he approaches the deepest most spiritual aspects of life with simplicity, grace, and reverence. Using the imagery of nature, he connects the reader to the truth of living, being, experiencing this world in all its myriad of forms. His poems touch depths within the soul of the reader in unexpected and unimaginable ways ...

Perhaps at the end of the day, the reader can concur with the words of Tagore in poem # 16: "I have had my invitation to life's festival, and my life has been blessed. My eyes have seen and my ears have heard. It was my part to play upon my instrument, and I have done all I could. Now, I ask, has the time come at last when I may go in and see thy face and offer thee my salutations."

Excerpts from Poem # 57 "The butterflies spread their sails on the sea of light. Lilies and jasmines surge up on the crest of the waves of light. The light is shattered into gold on every cloud, my darling, and it scatters gems into profusion. Mirth spreads from leaf to leaf, my darling, and gladness without measure."

Poem # 90 "On the day when death will knock at thy door what wilt thou offer him?"
Erika Borsos (bakonyvilla)

Poems about Life
These are the poems that won Tagore the Nobel Prize for literature. They are poems with simple themes, revolving around our day to day actions, our everyday thoughts, the rainbow of emotions that every human has the capacity to feel. And with all these he connects us to God, and the poems entwine man and God with its simplicity and truth. Gitanjali = (Geet)+(Anjali) - an offering of songs to the Almighty.

Cross-cultural understanding
Tagore is a wonderful example of merging of cultures - for example one of the prose poems is the reflections of the Samaritan women at the well after her encounter with Jesus. Yet other poems reveal the eroticism of longing that one associates with Indian bhakti poets such as Mirabai; others seem to long for a God without form as one associates with Kabir. Tagore thus represents the acceptance of some things Western while retaining a distinctively South Asian bent. The poems themselves are excellent and wide ranging - a few are not specifically religious or spiritual. An excellent book to read to enjoy either the Nobel prize winner Tagore or as an introduction to bhakti (devotional) poetry as a whole.