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| Rabindranath Tagore—A Seer and Mystic |
Mysticism, a Striking Feature of Tagore's Poetry:
Tagore was not only a poet, he was also a seer, a mystic. He was intensely self-conscious and had an unusual capacity for feeling. He lived a life of inward excitement and passion, and this emotional excitement of Tagore was due to his mystic or spiritual experience. The vision of unity or oneness in all things—of the one inseparable in the separate phenomena of the universe— was the mystic experience of Rabindranath Tagore. His mysticism is neither a creed nor a philosophy but a practical way of looking at the world with a pure soul. He reveals his vision of life which is an attempt at the purification of soul and the realism of inherent unity with all.
His Firm Faith in the Principle of Unity:
Tagore's mysticism is seen in his firm faith in the principle of unity, rhythm and harmony. Even scientist believes that the distinguishing feature of life is in the complex inter-relationship of atoms which make up matter. All matter consists of atoms, but in living matter these atoms enter into complex groups to form molecules. It is this inter-relatedness which distinguishes life from inert matter. There is unity between inert matter and life, because life grows out of matter. There is unity in all nature, and laws of science study the principles of this unity.
Communion between Poet's Soul and the Eternal Soul:
Mysticism is the spirit of communion between the individual soul and the eternal soul. When this sense of communion is expressed in poetry, we say that there is mysticism in this poetry. The entire Gitanjali is pervaded by this feeling of communion between the soul of the poet and the eternal soul whom he call by different name as the friend, the comrade, the lover, the Lord and Master. All the songs in this book are offerings of the poet at the feet of God, the divine Master. These poems reveal the different moods and thoughts, desires and feelings, hopes and disappointment of the poet.
His Faith in God:
As a mystic Tagore feels that the visible world of 'eye and ear' which seems so diverse in animated by an invisible spirit. It animates man as well as the different objects of nature. He sees "one undivided changeless life in all lives, one inseparable in the separate." The imminence of God fills him with wonder and he feels Him everywhere:
"Spirit of Beauty, how could you, whose radiance overbrims the sky, stand hidden behind a comdle's ting flame? How could a few vain words from a book rise like a mist, and veil her whose voice has hushed the heart of earth ineffable calm."
Revelation of a Highly Personal Quest for the Divine:
Tagore sees God as 'unbroken perfection' as the given of 'simple great gifts' which 'come to me only on these small hands of mine. Ages pass and still thou pourest and still there is room to fill'. But he may also appear as the king of the fearful night' armed with the mighty 'sword flashing a flame, heavy as a bolt of thunder'. He is omnipresent.
Tagore's Belief in the Immortality of Soul:
Profoundly influenced by the Gita Tagore believes in the immortality of soul. It is transcendental and it fulfils itself by reaching forward to what lies beyond itself, to what should be and what might be. The finite looks forward to the infinite, and individual to the universal. Human soul, the finite, seeks fulfilment through union with the universal, and is filled with boundless bliss whenever such a union takes place. The body dies and the soul is reborn in a new shape. Since soul is 'immortal, mortality is no tragedy. Death is God's servant and messenger who come to make him one with his creator.
Finding a Mystic Quality in Children:
Like Blake and Wordsworth, Tagore too finds a mystic quality in children. He found in them beauty, innocence, humour and charity. He gives us the typically romantic view of childhood. The child, just come from heaven, is near to heaven and sces on earth the light of heaven. He writes in The Crescent Moon:
"Bless this little heart, this white soul that has won the kiss of heaven for our earth.
He loves the light of the sun, he loves the sight of his mother's face.
He has not learned to despise the dust, and to hanker after gold. Clasp him to your heart and bless him.”
In The Child, the poet holds out the hope that one day the new-born divine child will usher the world in an era of glorious fulfilment.
Essential Oneness of Man, God and Nature:
Tagore never looked upon Nature as hostile to man. Like all mystics he was a firm believer in the essential unity of man and the external universe. Nature and man, in the Vedantic terminology, Prakriti and Purusha, the two aspects of the Absolute. Meditation on Nature or an aspect of Nature leads to realisation to God. Tagore, in his conception of nature, seems to acknowledge the benignity of nature and the unity and the harmony of the world. Nature, according to Tagore, is the melody of God. It ennobles man. Man is ultimately bound up with nature
Unity in Diversity:
Though Tagore is a firm believer in the union of man and god, he has no faith in absolute identity. He is a dualist who believes in a mysterious identity in difference. Rhythm and harmony is the universal law governing all matter and all life, and this faith enables Tagore constantly to reconcile and harmonise the opposites of life. In his poetry there is a constant synthesis of opposites. Thus, freedom means freedom from bondage, but it can be realises only through bondage.
Tagore's Belief in Self-Purification:
According to Tagore, man can achieve God through self-purification, self-surrender, that is through Love and Devotion to Him. Tagore says, "In love, we find a joy which is ultimate because it is the ultimate truth." Therefore it is said in the Upanishads that the advaitam is anantám—"The One is Infinite" that the advaitam and anandam, the One is Love."
Supreme Spirit Ruling the Whole Universe:
A leading tenet of Tagore's mysticism is that there is a supreme spirit at the heart of all universe. This spirit is all pervading and the sole motive for harmonising power behind all creation animate and inanimate. The operation of this spirit in the universe is eternal. Not only all creation springs from it, but ultimately returns to it and again becomes one with it. The souls of God's creatures are a part of the Supreme Soul.
Tagore's Belief in Karma:
Tagore is an exponent of the philosophy of Karma. He believes that God can be realised in this very life of ours. Hence, he does not favour asceticism and self-denial. God is at all times present within man's own soul, one can find him by bestowing one's love upon one's wife, husband, children and other creatures of God. One need not wander away from them. This is what "At midnight the would-be ascetic announced; God says in Tagore's song:
"At midnight the would-be ascetic announced;
"Why does my servant wander to seek me, forsaking me?"
Thus, Rabindranath Tagore's poetry is the culmination of his mystic experiences, of his inherent faith in the fundamental unity of all creation. He disapproved of all fragmentation and segregation in the name of religion, caste, nationality and false sense of superiority. As a mystic, Tagore believes in the unity of mankind. He is an internationalist. Tagore is a spiritual realist and his greatness as a mystic and romanticist lies in humanising spiritualism. He seeks union with God through union with his fellow men and nature.
