Of Love, Nature, and Devotion: Selected Songs of Rabindranath Tagore

The work of Rabindranath Tagore–poet, dramatist, novelist, short story writer, philosopher, and educationist–represents the intense flowering of Bengali into a modern language. This comprehensive volume comprising over three hundred of his song-poems in translation includes lyrics from all sections of Gitabitan, the definitive collection of Rabindranath's songs. Showcasing some of the most loved and eternal lyrics – including 'tobu mone rekho', 'na chahile jaare paoa jay', 'shei bhalo, shei bhalo, aamare na hoy na Jano', and 'shey din dujaune dulechhinu bone' – Kalpana Bardhan brings together what is perhaps the largest systematic collection of Rabindranath's song-poems to have appeared in translation. Arranged chronologically, according to the date of composition of the original, every translated song-poem includes a short introduction, rhyme scheme, phonetic transliteration of the original Bengali lyric and Rabindranath's own translation of the lyric where available. Further, instead of using free verse, Bardhan's translations follow the original Bengali lyrics in formal structure, line arrangement, and rhyming pattern. When read alongside the phonetic transliteration of the original lyrics, it enables one to follow the songs' verbal artistry. Apart from the very perceptive and analytically rich Introduction by Kalpana Bardhan which discusses the various aspects of Rabindranath's song-writing career, the book includes excerpts from essays on rabindrasangeet by the foremost experts in the field. 'Of Love, Nature, and Devotion' will appeal not only to general readers and students of Indian literature and translation studies, but also to those who wish to know more about Rabindranath's lyrics that combine, harmonize, and blend so many aspects of life: the rhythm of ordinary existence, the cycle of nature, the cosmic being, disembodied beauty or grace, and life's enigma and ineffability.