Jacob Hembrom SJ
The birth anniversary of Ravindranath Tagore (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) is being celebrated today. He was one of the greatest figures of Indian Renaissance. He shed the golden luster of his genius through his literary endeavors; poems, dramas, short stories, essays, songs, paintings and so on.
Tagore’s view of life, literature and art is vast and varied and in that his social philosophy has been completely submerged. He was a great poet as well as a great visionary. He realizes the ideal of universal brotherhood irrespective of cast, community, colour, religion, sex, race or country. He was a man of big heart for every human person and a real “Deshbhakt”. He has expressed his views of universal love and compassion for mankind in his writings. That is why he is appreciated and loved all over the world.
Regrettably, in India, over the years, tolerance has been replaced by the rising menace of intolerance which strikes at various fields of human creativity: writings, music, drama, paintings and movies. There is threat to freedom of speech and expression. In an intolerant society cannot tolerate expression of ideas and views which challenge its current doctrines and conventional wisdom. Consequently, unconventional and heterodox thoughts and views have to be suppressed.
Today, in this cut throat competition everyone is busy with himself. We have become so individualistic that we hardly have time to think of the other. This can be witnessed very intensely specially during this time epidemic, we tent to implore gods whom we have preserved them in the temples, churches, mosques, gurudwaras etc. In this context Tagore’s words are really apt as he says, “leave this chanting and singing and telling of beads! Whom dost thou worship in this lonely dark corner of a temple with doors all shut? Open thine eyes and see thy God is not before thee!”
The poet advises the ascetics to give up chanting of Mantras, singing of Bhajan and counting the beads of a rosary. They cannot find God by alienating themselves from the rest of humanity. Hence, God’s remembrance with half-shut eyes in the dark corner of a temple is the least helpful in the realization of God. If they really want to search for God, they should search Him within the lives of those who plough the hard land or break stones in the sun. God lives in the company of those who toil in sun and shower and whose clothes are soiled with dust. Priests should give up their holy clothes and work with farmers and labourers in dust.
In this time of pandemic, for every human person and all the more, for the close followers of God, there is an invitation to look with the eyes of kindness and hear the cry of those in agony and find God in their distress, in the dying, and in the people who need our help most. It’s the need of the hour.
Let’s forget all our differences and do our best to save and serve the anguished humanity. Let’s come out of our comfort zone and do the needful who deserve our care.