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47 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A taste of spiritual honey from a giant of world literature, November 2, 2002
"Gitanjali" is a collection of prose poems by Indian author Rabindranath Tagore. The Dover Thrift Edition contains an introductory note on the life of Tagore, who lived from 1861 to 1941. According to this note, Tagore, who wrote poetry in Bengali, translated "Gitanjali" himself into English. The Dover edition also contains a 1912 introduction by William Butler Yeats.This English version of "Gitanjali" is a series of prose poems that reflect on the interrelationships among the poet/speaker, the deity, and the world. Although Tagore had a Hindu background, the spirituality of this book is generally expressed in universal terms; I could imagine a Christian, a Buddhist, a Muslim, or an adherent of another tradition finding much in this book that would resonate with him or her. The language in this book is often very beautiful. The imagery includes flowers, bird songs, clouds, the sun, etc.; one line about "the riotous excess of the grass" reminded me of Walt Whitman. Tagore's language is sensuous and sometimes embraces paradox. Like Whitman and Emily Dickinson, he sometimes seems to be resisting traditional religion and prophetically looking towards a new spirituality. A sample of Tagore's style: "I surely know the hundred petals of a lotus will not remain closed for ever and the secret recess of its honey will be bared" (from section #98). As companion texts for this mystical volume I would recommend Jack Kerouac's "The Scripture of the Golden Eternity" and Juan Mascaro's translation of the Dhammapada.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Boundless Love & Devotion, July 19, 2000
With Tagore, very little can go wrong if you're looking for some poetry to heal your heart and soul. Tagore's poetry appeals to the highest spiritual plains yet at the same time appeals to the human heart to the highest order. To achieve something like this will require a person of high spiritual attainment. Gitanjali, or 'Song Offerings', is a collection of prose written with the Creator in mind, reflecting Tagore's wish to be united with the Creator. In his poetry one cannot miss his show of devotion and his pure love for the Creator, using variuos metaphorical subjects like flowers, rivers etc. One cannot but admire the beauty and art in it. To give you a feel of his poetry, the Gitanjali starts with this : "Thou hast made me endless, such is thy pleasure. This frail vessel thou emptiest again and again, and fillest it ever with fresh life..." W.B. Yeats, who contributed greatly to the exposure of Tagore to the Western world and subsequently to Tagore's award for the Nobel prize in Literature, has this to say, "...these prose translation from Rabindranath Tagore have stirred my blood as nothing has for years...". Highly recommended.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A treat to the spirit, June 29, 2002
The word and the deed were never far from each other in Tagore's life and not surprisingly he advocated the Universal Man. He was a polymath: a poet, fiction writer, dramatist, painter, educator, political thinker, philosopher of science. He was also a genius in music, choreography, architecture, social service and statesmanship. Over six decades Tagore gave the world some 2,500 songs, more than 2,000 paintings and drawings, 28 volumes of poetry, drama, opera, short stories, novels, essays and diaries and a vast number of letters. I would enthusiatically recommend this book by my favorite author. Like the Psalms of David, Gitanjali is a soothing balm to the spirit. I read this entire book in less than two hours and has been my long-trip travel companion ever since. The introduction to the book by W. B. Yeats is magical and all the poems in this book transcend your imagination. The variety and quality of the poems are unbelievable!
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