Rabindranath's religious writings in English

[bhatta_jayanta]

I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
the last great representative of Brahmoism?

[Rahul Dev Sharma]

Dear Jayanta

Whatever non-Brahmos may think, True Brahmos do not weigh Rabindranath
very high in the Brahmo theological pecking order, and particularly in matters
of theological doctrine  It is better not to write any further on this
topic as it
may open a Pandora's box.

Rahul

On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 1:52 PM, bhatta_jayanta
<victorvan.bijlert@...> wrote:
>
> I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
> the last great representative of Brahmoism?
>
>

[biswajit dutta-2]

Dear Mr. Rahul Dev Sharma ,
We all know Rabindranath as a great litterateur , artist , patriot , institution builder & someone with immense contribution in ridding India of British thraldom . To most of us he is one of the greatest Indians & most certainly the tallest Bengali ever . A true global citizen in spirit .

You seem to think otherwise about his standing as a Brahmo . Perhaps occasionally masters too have feet of clay . Instead of sweeping this issue under the carpet , shouldn't you substantiate your arguments ? An honest unbiased debate on "Rabindranath & Brahmo Samaj" can make for some interesting & informed exchange . Why don't you kickstart the proceedings ?

I just have one request . In keeping with the stature of the bard , let's keep our arguments brief , crisp & free of personal prejudices .
 
Biswajit Dutta

--- On Mon, 8/12/08, Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...> wrote:
From: Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...>
Subject: Re: [brahmoconferenceorg] Rabindranath's religious writings in English
To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
Date: Monday, 8 December, 2008, 9:13 PM










   
            Dear Jayanta



Whatever non-Brahmos may think, True Brahmos do not weigh Rabindranath

very high in the Brahmo theological pecking order, and particularly in matters

of theological doctrine  It is better not to write any further on this

topic as it

may open a Pandora's box.



Rahul



On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 1:52 PM, bhatta_jayanta

<victorvan.bijlert@ gmail.com> wrote:

>

> I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath

> Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo

> theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,

> The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,

> Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as

> the last great representative of Brahmoism?

>

>


     

   
   
       
         
       
       








       


       
       


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[Ray, Debanjan IN BLR SISL]

There is an excellent book "Utsa theke mohaanaa" edited by Professor of
Philosophy Dr. Amitava Khastagir, where contribution of Rabindranath
towards Brahmo philosophy is well written ( including Rabindranath's own
writings relevant to Brahmoism) by several authors.

The book starts with the journey from Rammohun, then to Debendranath,
Keshub Chundra, Rabindranath Tagore etc.

Though the name of the book is Bengali, but many of the writings are in
English.

 

Regards,
- Debanjan Ray
 
 

________________________________

From: brahmoconferenceorg@...
[mailto:brahmoconferenceorg@...] On Behalf Of biswajit dutta
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2008 10:08 AM
To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
Subject: Re: [brahmoconferenceorg] Rabindranath's religious writings in
English

 

Dear Mr. Rahul Dev Sharma ,
We all know Rabindranath as a great litterateur , artist , patriot ,
institution builder & someone with immense contribution in ridding India
of British thraldom . To most of us he is one of the greatest Indians &
most certainly the tallest Bengali ever . A true global citizen in
spirit .

You seem to think otherwise about his standing as a Brahmo . Perhaps
occasionally masters too have feet of clay . Instead of sweeping this
issue under the carpet , shouldn't you substantiate your arguments ? An
honest unbiased debate on "Rabindranath & Brahmo Samaj" can make for
some interesting & informed exchange . Why don't you kickstart the
proceedings ?

I just have one request . In keeping with the stature of the bard ,
let's keep our arguments brief , crisp & free of personal prejudices .
 
Biswajit Dutta

--- On Mon, 8/12/08, Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...> wrote:

From: Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...>
Subject: Re: [brahmoconferenceorg] Rabindranath's religious writings in
English
To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
Date: Monday, 8 December, 2008, 9:13 PM

Dear Jayanta

Whatever non-Brahmos may think, True Brahmos do not weigh Rabindranath
very high in the Brahmo theological pecking order, and particularly in
matters
of theological doctrine It is better not to write any further on this
topic as it
may open a Pandora's box.

Rahul

On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 1:52 PM, bhatta_jayanta
<victorvan.bijlert@ gmail.com <mailto:victorvan.bijlert%40gmail.com> >
wrote:
>
> I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
> the last great representative of Brahmoism?
>
>





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[jagannath Chatterjee]

Dear Mr Ray,

Dr Amitava Khastagir is the President of the Brahmo Samaj of India /
Sammillan Samaj and can hardly be expected to have a view acceptable to True
Brahmos. However, if I recall correctly he had admitted a few decades ago
that a) it was Keshab who was responsible for the present decline in
Brahmoism b) Rabindranath's "humanism" was too effete and spiritual to be
considered as Brahmoism. I also recall that both these scholarly views were
also published by the other Samillani Brahmo Conference Organisation (1891).
I shall try and locate the article, otherwise if Dr Khastagir has it he can
email it to all of us.

We should also recall that of the Tagores it was only Satyendranath Tagore
(who was quite close to Keshab Sen) and Rabindranath who were part of the
Sammilan experiment which was otherwise shunned / boycotted by True Brahmos.

Jagannath

--- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "Ray, Debanjan  IN BLR SISL"
<debanjan.ray@...> wrote:

>
> There is an excellent book "Utsa theke mohaanaa" edited by Professor of
> Philosophy Dr. Amitava Khastagir, where contribution of Rabindranath
> towards Brahmo philosophy is well written ( including Rabindranath's own
> writings relevant to Brahmoism) by several authors.
>
> The book starts with the journey from Rammohun, then to Debendranath,
> Keshub Chundra, Rabindranath Tagore etc.
>
> Though the name of the book is Bengali, but many of the writings are in
> English.
>
>
>
> Regards,
> - Debanjan Ray
> ________________________________
>
> From: brahmoconferenceorg@...
> [mailto:brahmoconferenceorg@...] On Behalf Of biswajit dutta
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2008 10:08 AM
> To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
> Subject: Re: [brahmoconferenceorg] Rabindranath's religious writings in
> English
>
> Dear Mr. Rahul Dev Sharma ,
> We all know Rabindranath as a great litterateur , artist , patriot ,
> institution builder & someone with immense contribution in ridding India
> of British thraldom . To most of us he is one of the greatest Indians &
> most certainly the tallest Bengali ever . A true global citizen in
> spirit .
>
> You seem to think otherwise about his standing as a Brahmo . Perhaps
> occasionally masters too have feet of clay . Instead of sweeping this
> issue under the carpet , shouldn't you substantiate your arguments ? An
> honest unbiased debate on "Rabindranath & Brahmo Samaj" can make for
> some interesting & informed exchange . Why don't you kickstart the
> proceedings ?
>
> I just have one request . In keeping with the stature of the bard ,
> let's keep our arguments brief , crisp & free of personal prejudices .
>
> Biswajit Dutta
>
> --- On Mon, 8/12/08, Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...> wrote:
>
> From: Rahul Dev Sharma <rahul.dvsharma@...>
> Subject: Re: [brahmoconferenceorg] Rabindranath's religious writings in
> English
> To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
> Date: Monday, 8 December, 2008, 9:13 PM
>
> Dear Jayanta
>
> Whatever non-Brahmos may think, True Brahmos do not weigh Rabindranath
> very high in the Brahmo theological pecking order, and particularly in
> matters
> of theological doctrine It is better not to write any further on this
> topic as it
> may open a Pandora's box.
>
> Rahul
>
> On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 1:52 PM, bhatta_jayanta
> <victorvan.bijlert@ gmail.com <mailto:victorvan.bijlert%40gmail.com<victorvan.bijlert%2540gmail.com>>
>
> wrote:
> >
> > I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> > Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> > theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> > The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> > Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
> > the last great representative of Brahmoism?
> >
> ________________________________

[bhatta_jayanta]

--- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
<victorvan.bijlert@...> wrote:
>
> I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
> the last great representative of Brahmoism?
>

My thanks to all contributors regarding this message. I am a bit
surprised at the sometimes sectarian stances that the replies show. I
am aware that Rabindranath himself was not always regarded favourably
by all Brahmos. Still, his extensive religious writings in English,
were read all over the world and they are regarded as contributions to
liberal Indian thinking. Actually, I was more anticipating Marxist
criticism of my suggestions in the original message, than debates from
Brahmos among themselves.
In any case, many thanks and a Happy and Blessed New year.

[sarbajitr]

Dear Jayanta

A Happy New Year to you and your family too.

Rabindranath's religious views do not settle well with conventional
Brahmoism. "For it is evident that my religion is a poet's religion,
and neither that of an orthodox man of piety nor that of a theologian.
Its touch comes to me through the same unseen and trackless channel as
does the inspiration of my songs." As he freely admitted in his
Hibbert lecture his concept of God was developed around his poetic
aspect where he conceived of God as a "Supreme Person" with a female
companion - "Spirit of Life". (Freud, Unitarians and Trinitarians
would go nuts)

"The Isha of our Upanishad, the Super Soul, which permeates all moving
things, is the God of this human universe whose mind we share in all
our true knowledge, love and service, and whom to reveal in ourselves
through renunciation of self is the highest end of life."

Rabindranath's writings can be read at many levels - there is buried
sub-text (as in the above passage) which conveys his internal
vacillations between the widely divergent Brahmoisms of his 2 elder
brothers Satyendranath and Hemendranath.

--- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
<victorvan.bijlert@...> wrote:

>
> --- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
> <victorvan.bijlert@> wrote:
> >
> > I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> > Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> > theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> > The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> > Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be regarded as
> > the last great representative of Brahmoism?
> >
>
> My thanks to all contributors regarding this message. I am a bit
> surprised at the sometimes sectarian stances that the replies show. I
> am aware that Rabindranath himself was not always regarded favourably
> by all Brahmos. Still, his extensive religious writings in English,
> were read all over the world and they are regarded as contributions to
> liberal Indian thinking. Actually, I was more anticipating Marxist
> criticism of my suggestions in the original message, than debates from
> Brahmos among themselves.
> In any case, many thanks and a Happy and Blessed New year.
>

[bhatta_jayanta]

A very useful comment. I was aware of these passages. It should
perhaps be pointed out that the Hibbert Lectures were funded by a
Trust that was founded by a Unitarian, Robert Hibbert, in 1847. It is
also obvious Rabindranath was not a professional theologian. But then,
no form of Hinduism has ever been built on written textual creeds or
fixed scriptures. Even the Brahmo Dharma is not a Bible of Brahmoism.
Similarly, Rabindranath's writings are no strict theological
contributions but seem to broadly fall within the doctrines of
Brahmoism or rather liberal Brahmo spirituality, largely based on a
modernist reading of the Upanishads (at least in Rabindranath's case).

But then, no theologian (whether Christian or Hindu) has ever
enunciated a doctrine that was to be followed by everyone. Also in
Christian theology there are many variations ranging from Deism, even
Atheism, to strict Biblical literalism. The Brahmo Samaj would not be
much different in this respect.

Thanks anyway and once again a blessed New Year to all.


--- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "sroy1947" <sroy1947@...>
wrote:

>
> Dear Jayanta
>
> A Happy New Year to you and your family too.
>
> Rabindranath's religious views do not settle well with conventional
> Brahmoism. "For it is evident that my religion is a poet's religion,
> and neither that of an orthodox man of piety nor that of a theologian.
> Its touch comes to me through the same unseen and trackless channel as
> does the inspiration of my songs." As he freely admitted in his
> Hibbert lecture his concept of God was developed around his poetic
> aspect where he conceived of God as a "Supreme Person" with a female
> companion - "Spirit of Life". (Freud, Unitarians and Trinitarians
> would go nuts)
>
> "The Isha of our Upanishad, the Super Soul, which permeates all moving
> things, is the God of this human universe whose mind we share in all
> our true knowledge, love and service, and whom to reveal in ourselves
> through renunciation of self is the highest end of life."
>
> Rabindranath's writings can be read at many levels - there is buried
> sub-text (as in the above passage) which conveys his internal
> vacillations between the widely divergent Brahmoisms of his 2 elder
> brothers Satyendranath and Hemendranath.
>
> --- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
> <victorvan.bijlert@> wrote:
> >
> > --- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
> > <victorvan.bijlert@> wrote:
> > >
> > > I am interested to know if the religious writings of Rabindranath
> > > Tagore are still being read and regarded as contributions to Brahmo
> > > theology. I am thinking of English books like Sadhana, Personality,
> > > The Religion of Man and Man and in Bengali of Dharma, Santiniketan,
> > > Manusher Dharma and Mana-satya. Is Rabindranath not to be

regarded as

> > > the last great representative of Brahmoism?
> > >
> >
> > My thanks to all contributors regarding this message. I am a bit
> > surprised at the sometimes sectarian stances that the replies show. I
> > am aware that Rabindranath himself was not always regarded favourably
> > by all Brahmos. Still, his extensive religious writings in English,
> > were read all over the world and they are regarded as contributions to
> > liberal Indian thinking. Actually, I was more anticipating Marxist
> > criticism of my suggestions in the original message, than debates from
> > Brahmos among themselves.
> > In any case, many thanks and a Happy and Blessed New year.
> >
>

[sarbajitr]

Another difficulty in associating Rabindranath with Brahmoism is the
appellation "Gurudev" attached to him. Since technically Brahmoism is
opposed to not only "Gurus" but also the incarnations of  "Devs".

The Brahmo Samaj of cyberspace is not much different in these
respects. Some of us had discussed a bit of this a few months back at
the other e-group, and there some views expressed there that Brahmoism
was only limited to "Theism" - and as a consequence subscribers to the
"Deism" of Rammohun or the "Atheism" / "Communism" of a few eminent
Brahmos I had named were heretics / anti-Brahmos. We also had some
dissension on the precise nature and role of the 'Brahmo Dharma' in
todays Brahmoism to the extent that we were unable to agree on even
what constitutes the essentials of Brahmoism or who is a Brahmo.
Introducing Rabindranath as a Brahmo non-theologian makes such
discussion even more entertaining.

--- In brahmoconferenceorg@..., "bhatta_jayanta"
<victorvan.bijlert@...> wrote:

>
> A very useful comment. I was aware of these passages. It should
> perhaps be pointed out that the Hibbert Lectures were funded by a
> Trust that was founded by a Unitarian, Robert Hibbert, in 1847. It is
> also obvious Rabindranath was not a professional theologian. But then,
> no form of Hinduism has ever been built on written textual creeds or
> fixed scriptures. Even the Brahmo Dharma is not a Bible of Brahmoism.
> Similarly, Rabindranath's writings are no strict theological
> contributions but seem to broadly fall within the doctrines of
> Brahmoism or rather liberal Brahmo spirituality, largely based on a
> modernist reading of the Upanishads (at least in Rabindranath's case).
>
> But then, no theologian (whether Christian or Hindu) has ever
> enunciated a doctrine that was to be followed by everyone. Also in
> Christian theology there are many variations ranging from Deism, even
> Atheism, to strict Biblical literalism. The Brahmo Samaj would not be
> much different in this respect.
>
> Thanks anyway and once again a blessed New Year to all.
>