My song has put off her adornments
by
Rabindranath Tagore
(Summary)
This is the 7th song of Tagore’s
poetry-collection, Gitanjali.
My song has put off her adornments
My
song has put off her adornments.
She
has no pride of dress and decoration.
Ornaments
would mar our union;
they
would come between thee and me;
their
jingling would drown thy whispers.
My
poet’s vanity dies in shame before thy sight.
O
master poet, I have sat down at thy feet.
Only
let me make my life simple and straight,
like
a flute of reed for thee to fill with music.
Summary
This
song shows characteristics of Tagore's poems. He says, that his poems and his
poetic art is devoid of all types of ornamental elements. The poet says, that
this song is like a woman, who feels no pride in dressing herself up or using any
ornaments. Tagore says that ornaments and decorations would spoil the union
between the song and singer or the woman and the lover. The jingling and
tinkling sounds of the ornaments would disturb the soft whispers of the lovers.
Tagore
says, that he has a pride of his own but his pride vanishes, when he comes in
the presence of God. He says, that he sits down at the feet of God, the master
of all poets, to learn. He has given himself to the lord. He prays God to make
his life simple, like a reed, which is straight and simple and from which a
flute is designed for God to play and make music.
Tagore
says, that earlier his style was ornate, but now it has become simple and more
austere as a woman who sheds her ornaments and decorations, leaving aside all
her pride and vanity in her decorations because she knows that her dresses and
ornaments would spoil her union with her lover. Tagore's poetry is like a
woman, and his songs have discarded its ornate elements in order to come in the
presence of God. It means, that one has to give up all worldly attachments in
order to surrender oneself to God. The poet lays himself at God's feet, giving
up all vanity and pride. Flute is the symbol of Tagore’s life, which needs to
be straight in order to make a flute out of it. He prays God for divine
inspiration to fill the flute with music.
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