Tagore's Concept of Death

TAGORE’S CONCEPT OF DEATH

By RATNA ROY, M.A.

Aldous Huxley writes about Homer: “We are now in a position to explain what we mean when we say that Homer is a writer who tells the whole truth. We mean that the experiences he records; correspond fairly closely with our experience or potential experiences and correspond with our experiences not on a single limited sector, but all along the line of our physical and spiritual being.” What Huxley wrote about Homer can perhaps equally be said about Rabindranath Tagore. Rabindranath Tagore commanded world respect, perhaps not so much because of his poems or the novels, or the short stories or the plays; the fact that placed him so high in the world was his search for truth eternal. He was an explorer of Truth and Beauty.

Being a true worshipper of Truth and Beauty, Tagore does not feel anything devoid of joy. Death, the very presence of which threatens the existence of Man, does not evoke a feeling of fear in him at all. He tries to draw the picture of Death after removing all its horrible appearances. According to the poet, the sorrows and melancholies of Life end in Death. An individual life springing out of the Great Divine Life is like a spark originating from a great fire. It perishes within the spot of its origin. The present life is not the whole picture of our life. Life is nothing but a succession of deaths. Every moment a great change is taking place within our system in a cyclic order, namely, childhood followed by youth, youth by old age, and old age by death.

Tagore visualises Death as one nearest and dearest to Man. He pretends himself to be the bride of Death; and so he addresses Death as a lover. He wants to rest, closed in the arms of the lover, Death. He, therefore, sings:

“Maranare, tunhu mama shyama saman.”
(Death! you are my lover.)

Existence of life is realised through the continuity of changes; and Death is one of these changes. While staying within the mother’s womb, the embryo cannot recognise the mother, but, coming out of the womb, it knows its mother as its nearest and dearest in the world. Similarly, before knowing Death, we are afraid of Death for no reason. Death is a true benefactor of life. The poet advises Man not to fear Death although Death is a stranger to us. He writes emphatically:

“Achenake bhoy ki amar ore……”

(I am not afraid of the unacquainted Death; my Life will be blessed in making friendship with the Unknown.)

Tagore’s concept of Death does not materially differ from that of most Indian philosophers. To the poet, it seems that, although Death exists physically, in the truest sense it does not. We are continually undergoing changes through births and re-births. Thus, while passing through the changes, Life approaches its goal. Death is only a passing phase between two births–birth and re-birth. Therefore, it is wrong to be afraid of death. Life is mixed of sorrows and happinesses. Death is one of these sorrows. We must overcome sorrow by sorrow. We must win Death by dying several times. Hence the poet says:

“Dukkho jodi na pabe to…...
Dukkho tomar ghuch be kave”

(If now you are unable to overcome sorrows, you cannot win them at all.)

Death does not mean a permanent exit from this world. Both the body and the soul exist here in a different form. Even after Death there will be morning and evening, changes of seasons, passing of years, even the people on this earth may forget us, still our inner soul does not perish here. So the poet sings:

“Jakhan parbena mor payer chinyha ei bate...”

(When my footprints will not be here in this hut, when I shall not sail the boat here in this river, at that time you may not even remember me–still I shall be here, my soul will be here.)

The eternal journey of life is for union with Death. The poet is joyous because he is preparing for an unknown journey. He has sufficient courage to rebuke Man for not caring to know the Unknown. He does not hesitate to know and make friendship with the Unknown–with Death. In his ‘Balaka’ he says:

“Speak with a fearless heart–
I am not afraid of you.
Everyday I win over you in this world
I am truer than you; see, I can die with this belief.”

Life coming in a stream from the Great Life is flowing down to the door of Death. Death is the saviour of Life. Life is sailing in a boat stared by Death. The poet sings the boat-song:

“Megh balechey jabo jabo...”
Raat balechey jai

(The cloud is muttering that he will accompany; the night will follow;...and Death will steer the boat of Life in this journey.)

The poet now imagines Death and Life united in their life-partnership as husband and wife. Therefore, the poet urges Man to join in the festival in the other world where Death–the groom–is to meet his bride–Life. The Life-Bride is always waiting eagerly to meet her lord–Death. In this journey to Death, Man is not alone. The Almighty God is following Man. So the poet recites:

“Jabe maran asey nisitha grihadare,
Jabe panchiter koal hote se kareh,
Jeno jani go sei ajana parabare
Ak tarite sei tumio bhesecho.”

(In the dark night, when Death comes to the door to take me away from my dearest ones,–I shall not be afraid of Death because the Almighty God is accompanying me in the same boat with Death.”

It is painful for us to take leave of our dear and near ones in this world. For this reason, Death comes to free us all from these bondages and to take us to our dearest, the Almighty God. Therefore, Death is not horrible. He is an ambassador of joy and happiness. The poet sings:

“Charanadhani suni taba nath jibanatire...”

(Oh Lord! I hear thy footsteps at the dusk of my life; my eyes, lips, ears–the whole body of mine–awaits eagerly to meet thee through Death.)

Once the poet remarked humorously: “I know, if the theory of re-birth be true–then the capital of Bengal will pull me again to go there:

“Parajanma satya hole,
ki ghate mor seta jani,
abar amai tanbe dhare
Bangla desher e rajdhani.”

The poet believes in re-birth. He once again sings:

“Abar jadi ichha karo…….
Abar asi gire.”

(If you so desire, I shall again come to this life–to the shore of this sea of life full of waves of sorrow and happiness.)

Tagore expressed his belief in re-birth in many places in his literary works. In Gitanjaliand Gitalithis expression is very emphatic. In the compositions of the later period of his life he tried to explain the theory of re-birth. The poet remarks that life becomes narrow in its outlook and short-lived if one fails to recognise death as the symbol of life. In Gitanjalithe poet writes: “Oh death! Thou art the last goal of my life. Please converse with me.” Of Death, the English poet, Keats, also writes in the same way as Tagore:

“Death is life’s high need
Death is the crown of life.”

Finally, the poet says that although there are sorrow, despair and death in this world, still there is peace. In spite of the sadness of death, there arise the sun and moon; there come the autumn and the spring; the flowers bloom; the bees come to collect the honey from the flowers. And the poet comes to this world again and again. The thoughts have been expressed in the following song of the poet:

“Achhe dukkho, ache mrityu……”