Edward Bulwer Lytton, a well known novelist and playwright wrote the much popular phrase, 'The pen is mightier than the sword in the year 1839 for his historical play Cardinal Richelieu. Perhaps the phrase was written while keeping the master of words like Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore in mind.
Today the world marks the 161st anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, a polymath who believed in the idea of universal fraternity and humanism, an artist who redefined literature in his own style and also a philosopher and a social reformer whose ideas taught the world “where the mind is without fear”
Tagore gathered the attention of masses in his early twenties. In his autobiography ‘Jeevan Smriti’ Tagore writes that Bankim Chandra Chatterjee once greeted Tagore with the garland that was offered to him in his respect. Chatterjee then praised Tagore a lot and said that more than him(Chatterjee) it was Tagore who deserved such a greeting.
Many times people argue that the national anthem written by Tagore was actually written for Lord George V , the then King of the UK and British Dominions. However, Nityapriya Ghosh, in his book ‘Rabindranath Tagore A Pictorial Biography’ states that one of his friends requested Tagore to write a piece of art for the king to which the polymath refused. Instead, Tagore wrote this piece for the energy residing in the hearts of the countrymen. However, the former incident hit the streets and thus created controversy.
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high, Where knowledge is free, Where the world has not been broken up into fragments By narrow domestic walls, Where words come out from the depth of truth, Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection, Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit, Where the mind is led forward by thee Into ever-widening thought and action Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake
