5. 'Sudhu bigha-dui'
"Alas, in this world, whoever has the utmost,
will again long for more.
The kings are rich only by exploiting the poor ones.
Therefore, I am now going out.
God has given me the whole world."
In this song, the speaker is going away.
He became a disciple of a spiritual Master.
But he could not forget his home; he was always thinking of that little plot of land.
Now he wants to come back and see the place.
will again long for more.
The kings are rich only by exploiting the poor ones.
Therefore, I am now going out.
God has given me the whole world."
Tagore writes, /‘Namo namo namo sundari mamo … ’/ This section is absolutely the best. Of all the descriptions that Tagore gave of Bengal, this will forever remain unparalleled. Nobody will be able to come near him.
There is a mango tree from his childhood days. Near his lap, two ripe mangoes drop. He says,
"It seems now Mother has recognised me.
Therefore, she is showing her affection.
I bow to the Mother,
the tree, the place where I was brought up,
where I stayed for fifteen years."
Then what happens?
The gardener comes and starts insulting and scolding him to his heart’s content.
He goes on,
Therefore, she is showing her affection.
I bow to the Mother,
the tree, the place where I was brought up,
where I stayed for fifteen years."
"Only two ripe mangoes I have got!
For that you have to scold me so mercilessly?
He could not recognise me and he took me to the zamindar.
The zamindar was fishing.
I shall kill you, the zamindar says.
The more the zamindar screams at me, the more
unbearable scolding his attendant showers on me.
What a scene for only these two mangoes!"
He had given up everything, so he was wearing sannyasi’s garments.
Then the zamindar said, “You are wearing ochre cloth.
You are a thief, indeed!”
Finally the speaker says to the zamindar,
For that you have to scold me so mercilessly?
He could not recognise me and he took me to the zamindar.
The zamindar was fishing.
I shall kill you, the zamindar says.
The more the zamindar screams at me, the more
unbearable scolding his attendant showers on me.
What a scene for only these two mangoes!"
"O great Maharaj, today you have become a saint and I have become the thief."
He did not steal the two mangoes.
They fell near his lap, but the zamindar scolded him, insulted him and was even about to strike him.
Then the zamindar called him a thief.
What a painful story!
Sri Chinmoy, Rabindranath Tagore: the moon of Bengal’s Heart, Agni Press, 2011
