A Socio-Political Debate on the Crisis of Humanity and Tagore’s View
Dr. Rajshree Bhattacharya, Bengal Music College “Naginira charidike feliteche bishakto niswas,Shantir lalit bani shonaibe byartha parihas—Biday nebar age taiDak diye jaiDanober sathe jara sangramer tarePrastut hoteche ghore ghore.”(Prantik, Poem 18) “নাগিনীরা চারিদিকে ফেলিতেছে বিষাক্ত নিঃশ্বাসশান্তির ললিত বাণী শোনাইবে ব্যর্থ পরিহাস—বিদায় নেবার আগে তাইডাক দিয়ে যাইদানবের সাথে যারা সংগ্রামের তরেপ্রস্তুত হতেছে ঘরে ঘরে।”(প্রান্তিক, কবিতা ১৮) Introduction The socio-political crisis of the twentieth century found one of its most profound interpreters in Rabindranath Tagore. His later poetry and prose bear the marks of a deep anguish at the collapse of moral civilization under the weight of aggressive nationalism, imperial expansion, and mechanized warfare. The eighteenth and final poem of Prantik (1937), written on Christmas Day, stands as a prophetic warning against the gathering storm that would culminate in World War II. Tagore’s poetic metaphor of “poisonous serpents breathing venom” while ironically preaching peace is a scathing indictment of political hypocrisy. The poem is not merely lyrical; it Read More …