Rukhaya M.K

Rabindranath Tagore’s “The Child” was originally written in English in a single night and later translated into Bengali as Sishutirtha (Iyengar, p. 119). Tagore’s “The Child” was originally written in English in a single night, and later translated into Bengali as Sishutirtha. The poem is significant as it is Tagore’s only poem written in English. Tanusree Shankar’s interpretation depicts it as “a flowing, rhythmic, spiritual journey of Man through the ages, from the bondage of ignorance, ultimately to the freedom of enlightenment and self realization. At the same time, it may also be considered a celebration of the mother – the feminine principle in the universe. “

The poem portrays man’s journey from the futility of existence and darkness of ignorance to the sprouting of new life as represented by the child. The first flush of dawn reflects on the dew-dripping leaves of the forest. ‘Flush’ connotes a strong emotion and a question, the response of which the sky seeks. The light of sky gets reflected in the objects of the earth. Parallel to this phenomenon is the man who reads the skies, forecasts the climate or predicts the future. “Friends, we have come!” Parallel to this is the saying that they have arrived.

In response to the earlier question, the ripe corn endeavours to respond reaching to the skies. The companions also have a searching gaze as though they are in a quest. On both sides of the road, one finds the corn. The time is ripe and so is the harvest. The ripe golden corn is the glad golden answer of the earth to the morning light. The corn is ripe and golden, and doubly because sunlight shines on the corn. On both sides of the road, the corn is ripe. In between the current of daily life moves on. ‘Current’ signifies kinetic as opposed to static. The word ‘current’ also signifies the latent energy beneath the Life that moves on between the village near the hill and the one near the bank. Here, the high and the low, and the terrestrial and aquatic are abridged. The motion also gives a zig-zag graph that is again representative of current. The word ‘daily’ makes the affair a quotidian one, and hence mechanical. The potter’s wheel goes round and round, and also symbolizes the routine revolution of the earth. The cow-herd takes his cattle to the pasture, and the woman with the pitcher on her head walks to the well.

However, one fails to fathom where the King’s castle is: this quest alludes to the kingdom of God. One fails to dig the mine of Gold, or locate the secret book of magic in this expedition of life. One cannot comprehend where the sage is, who knows love’s utter wisdom .The reader of the sky holds the conviction that the stars cannot be wrong. Their signal points to that spot. Their signal points to the ultimate destination or aim.

With all reverence, the person walks to the wayside spring from which a stream of water emerges. The morning melts into a chorus of tears and laughter. The heterogeneous people are united in their emotions. The chorus comprises of everything that is high key and low key. The poet portrays the soul as it unites with the paramatma, and all human emotions are no longer balanced, as one gains precedence over the other. It is in a neutral or inert state. The light is portrayed as liquid light. Just as liquid can assume the shape of the container it fills; this light suits any person who is in search for it and is kinetic and capable of radiating and generating energy like liquids do. The poet utilizes the word melting to show how transition takes place smoothly. Adjacent to it, in a palm grove surrounded by a strange hush, stands a leaf-thatched hut. The palm is a symbol of peace and serenity; and the palm branch symbolizes triumph.
The date palm was a symbol of the Tree of Life in many traditions including the Genesis story of the tree in the Garden of Eden (Gen 2:9,; 3:22-24). It was sacred to Greeks, Egyptians, Babylonians, Phoenicians, and Romans. The date palm flourished throughout the Middle East as long as 5000 years ago. At the time of Christ, forests of date palms grew in Palestine.

The palm tree, because of its height and its fruit clusters, symbolized fertility, the sun, growth, stature, sexual satisfaction, and female beauty (Song 7:7-8). The Lord compared idols to palm trees which could not speak or move or indeed do anything of their own volition (Jer 10:5). The phrase “palm branch and bulrush” meant “from the greatest to the least” (Isa 9:14; 19:15).

Godly wisdom, the righteous, a wholesome tongue, desires fulfilled, and those who win souls are referred to as “trees of life” (Prov 3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4). For Jews, the “Tree of Life” came to represent Old Testament Law, but for Christians it symbolized the restoration of Paradise. In the Book of Revelation, the Tree of Life is said to bear leaves “for the healing of the nations” (Rev 22:2). It grows “in the midst of the Paradise of God” (Rev 2:7). And those who overcome and who keep His commandments are rewarded by being permitted to eat from it (Rev 2:7; 22:14).At the gateway, the poet of the unknown shore sings to the Mother to open the gate. The idea of the poet belonging to an unknown shore exemplifies the universality of Motherhood here.

A ray of the morning sun strikes in a slant manner at the door. This signifies a ray of hope that knocks on the door. The assembled crowd feels in their blood, the raw and elemental chant of creation. They transcend into primitivism or their roots as they do .They come from the Mother, and aspire to go back to her again as they ask her to open the entrance. The gate ultimately opens. The mother seated with the baby on the straw bed is reminiscent of Mother Mary with the miracle child Jesus Christ. Further, Mother Mary is considered to be the paradigm of Motherhood. Rabindranath Tagore was considerably influenced by the ideals of Christianity during his lifetime. Morning star is the name given to the planet Venus when it appears in the East before sunrise (as though heralding the arrival of the morning). Just like Jesus Christ attributed significance to Mother Mary, the morning star heralds the all-encompassing dawn. Morning star has also been used to describe the star Sirius, which appears in the sky, just before sunrise. With the metaphor of the star are linked ideas of radiation of energy, and with the dawn the idea of a new beginning and a sense of freshness. “Reach high, for stars lie hidden in you. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal.”

The sun ray falls on the head of the child like a divine blessing or halo. It may also indicate that this child was meant to be in the spotlight. Not only is mankind waiting for the child for redemption, the sunlight representative of nature and the universe also awaits his being. The poet strikes a lute and sings. The word ’lute’ may have two meanings here. Like the Pied Piper of Hamelin, the poet leads the people to their destination. ‘Lute’ also means ‘Liquid clay or cement used to seal a joint, coat a crucible, or protect a graft.’ In such a context, this ‘lute’ may be the tool or solution to heal the trials and tribulations of mankind.
He sings:”Victory to Man, the new-born, the ever-living!”This newborn is a representative of mankind that is new-born but never dead connoting the resurrection of Christ. Here also, the idea of a man leading his people to their ultimate destination holds significance. The adjective ‘ever-living’ applies to God. In such a stance, all distinctions are blurred, all hierarchies seem pointless. The king and the beggar, the saint and the sinner, the wise and the fool all sit and cry. At this juncture, they are united in their act of crying and complete submission to God’s will.
“Victory to Man, the new-born, the ever-living!”

The poem ends on a note of positivism and a prophetic statement as the old Man from the East asserts: “I have seen!”The old man from the East may stand for Tagore himself as the poem culminates in this ultimate vision. At another level, the quest may be the pursuit for freedom from the imperial rule, a struggle that had all members irrespective of distinctions take part in it. In such a reading, the old man stands for the Father of the Nation .In such stance, the revelation stands for Gandhi’s Ram rajya Nehru’s vision.

“I have seen!”

The child is an emblem of purity, untapped potential and a new beginning. Tagore himself had said: “Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.”

© Rukhaya MK 2013

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