"The Collection of Flying Birds" is a philosophical collection of English aphorisms and poems. It contains 325 poems (***326 in the English version and 263 in the Chinese translation). It was first published in 1916. Year completed. Some of them were translated by the poet from his collection of Bengali aphoristic poems, The Broken Jade Collection (1899), and the other part were improvised English poems written by the poet when he visited Japan in 1916. The poet has been staying in Japan for more than three months, and ladies are constantly asking him to inscribe fans or commemorative books. Considering this background, it is not difficult to understand why most of these poems only have one or two lines. The poet once praised the simplicity of Japanese haiku, and his "Asuka Collection" was obviously influenced by this poetic style. Therefore, its distinctive features are profound wisdom and short length. Mr. Zhou Cezong, a Chinese-American scholar, believes that these small poems are "really like crystal pebbles on the beach, each one has its own world. They are fragmented and short; but they are rich and profound." This can be said to be reasonable. .
[Edit this paragraph] About the author
Raindranath Tagore (1861-1941) was an Indian poet, philosopher and Indian nationalist. In 1913, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature, the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Rabindranath Tagore was born into a wealthy aristocratic family in Calcutta, India, on May 7, 1861. His father, Debindernath Tagore, was a famous philosopher and social activist. My brother and sister are also celebrities. Under the influence of such a literary family, Tagore began writing poetry at the age of 8 and scripts at the age of 12. He published his first long poem "Wild Flowers" at the age of 15 and the narrative poem "The Poet's Story" at the age of 17. The talented Tagore embarked on the path of literary creation since childhood. In 1878, he followed the wishes of his father and brother and went to England to study. He initially studied law, and then transferred to the University of London to study English literature and Western music. He returned to China in 1880 and specialized in literary creation. In 1884, he left the city and went to the countryside to manage his ancestral property. In 1886, he published "Crescent Moon Collection", which became a must-select literature textbook in Indian universities, middle schools and primary schools. During this period, he also wrote many political articles criticizing American colonial rule. In 1901, Rabindranath Tagore founded a school for children's education experiments in Sandiniketan. The school developed into an international university for Asian cultural exchange in 1912. In 1905, Tagore devoted himself to the national independence movement and composed patriotic songs such as "Flood". "The Will of the People" has been designated as the national anthem of India today. In 1910, Tagore published the novel "Gola". In 1916, he published the novel "Family and the World". In 1912, Tagore won the Nobel Prize for Literature for his collection of lyric poems "Gitanjali". In 1913, he published the well-known "Collection of Birds" and "Collection of Gardeners". In the 1920s, Tagore visited abroad many times and organized anti-war peace groups with cultural celebrities from around the world. In the 1930s, when the German, Italian, and Japanese fascists launched a war of aggression, Tagore stood up and shouted to the world: "Before I leave, I appeal to every family - prepare to fight and resist the people who are wearing robes." This world-famous and versatile writer has written more than fifty collections of poems, 12 novels, and more than one hundred short stories in his long creative career of more than sixty years. There are more than a hundred scripts and many papers on literature, philosophy, politics, memoirs, travel notes, letters, etc. Among them, the famous collection of poems "Gitanjali" published in 1912 won Tagore the Nobel Prize for Literature. "Story Poem" and "Two Acres of Land" are immortal poems that the Indian people love to hear and read widely. The popular "People of Kabul", "Suba" and "Mahamaya" are all masterpieces of short stories in the world. "Atonement", "The Stubborn Fortress", "Red Oleander", etc. are all famous drama scripts that ruthlessly exposed and flogged the social reality of India at that time. Tagore was not only an accomplished writer and poet, but also an accomplished composer and painter. He composed more than 2,000 exciting, beautiful and melodious songs throughout his life. Among them, many of his passionate patriotic songs composed during the period of the rise of the Indian national liberation movement became powerful weapons to inspire the Indian people to fight against colonial rule. "The Will of the People" was adopted as the national anthem of India in 1950. Tagore learned painting when he was 70 years old, and the 1,500 paintings he painted have been exhibited as art treasures in many famous places around the world. Tagore passed away in 1941 at the age of 81.
[Edit this paragraph] 1. Creative thoughts
Ideological development and artistic achievements Tagore was born in an era of rapid change and was influenced by traditional Indian philosophical thought and Western philosophical thought. But the most basic and core part of his worldview is the traditional Indian pantheistic thought, that is, "the unity of Brahma and me." In "Colorful Collection", he first proposed the concept of "God of Life". His devotion to God was integrated with his love for life, country and people. But this gave his poetry a strong mystical color. In addition, he promoted the spiritual civilization of the East without obliterating the material civilization of the West. All these make his thoughts full of contradictions, which are reflected in his creations.
An overview of Tagore's ideological and creative development throughout his life can be roughly divided into three stages: ① From his childhood until around 1910, he actively participated in anti-British political activities, praising national heroes, promoting patriotism, and advocating the great unity of the Indian nation. ② He lived in seclusion until he actively participated in the national movement again in 1919. His patriotic passion faded slightly, and poems with strong political content were replaced by poems with a mysterious meaning. He was also influenced by Western symbolism and aesthetic poetry, which promoted Love and harmony. ③From the time of the Amritsar massacre in 1919 until his death, he began to care about politics again and actively participated in the national liberation struggle. The content of his works was full of political passion, his vision was broadened, and he was very concerned about the world and mankind. It can be said that Tagore's creations throughout his life include both "Bodhisattva's kind eyebrows" and "Vajra's angry eyes". His poems are influenced by Indian classical literature, Western poetry and Bengali folk lyric poetry, and are mostly unrhymed and uncarved free verse and prose poems; his novels are influenced by Western novels and are innovative, especially the incorporation of poetry and painting. Among them, a unique style is formed.
[Edit this paragraph] 2. Creative process
Tagore emerged as a poet in his childhood. When his patriotic poem "Temple Fair for Hindus" (1875) was published, he was only 14 years old. In 1880, 19-year-old Tagore became a professional writer. From 1881 to 1885, he published the collections of lyric poems "Evening Song" (1882) and "Morning Song" (1883), as well as plays and novels. These early works are characterized by more fantasy than reality and are rich in romanticism. The 1990s was a period of vigorous creation for Tagore. The collection of poems "Longing in the Heart" (1890) was his first mature work. The publication of the famous poem "Two Acres of Land" (1894) marked Tagore's transition from religious mysticism to profound spirituality. Humanitarian. Poems from this period include "The Golden Sailboat" (1894), "Colorful Collection" (1896), a fifth collection of lyric poems, and a "Collection of Story Poems" (1900). In addition, he also wrote more than 60 short stories, including "Subha" (1893), "Mahamaya" (1892), and "Most Alive or Dead?" "(1892) and so on are listed among the world's outstanding short story masterpieces. In 1901, Tagore founded a school to transform society and engage in children's education experiments. In 1912, the school became the International University for Asian Cultural Exchange. Due to the British's separatist policy in Bengal, India set off the first upsurge of the national liberation movement in 1905. Tagore actively participated in the movement and wrote many patriotic poems. This period was the most glorious period of his creation. He published 8 collections of poetry in Bengali and 8 collections of poetry in English, among which "Gitanjali" won the poet world-wide reputation. Important poetry collections during this period include "The Gardener's Collection" (1913), "The New Moon Collection" (1915), "The Flying Birds Collection" (1916), etc. In 1910, Tagore published the epic novel "Gora" and the symbolic drama "The King". In 1919, India set off the second climax of the national liberation movement. In order to seek the path of national liberation, he traveled to five continents and delivered many famous speeches. The outstanding achievements of this period were political lyric poems, which were collected in works such as "Africa Collection" (1937), "Border Collection" (1938), and "Birthday Collection" (1941). In his lifetime, Tagore created more than 50 collections of poetry, 12 novels and novels, more than 100 short stories, more than 20 kinds of plays, as well as a large number of treatises, travel notes, and letters on literature, philosophy, and politics. In addition, he is also an accomplished musician and painter. He has created more than 2,000 songs and more than 1,500 paintings, among which the song "The Will of the People" has been designated as the national anthem of India. In his more than 60 years of artistic career, he inherited the excellent traditions of classical and folk literature, absorbed the rich nutrition of European romanticism and realism literature, reached the level of proficiency in creation, made brilliant achievements, and became a cultural giant of a generation. In 1913, "his poetic thoughts have become part of Western literature because of his extremely sensitive, fresh and beautiful poetry, which was produced with superb skill and expressed by himself in English." Won the Nobel Prize for Literature. The British government knighted him. In April 1941, Tagore wrote his last words "The Crisis of Civilization". On August 7 of the same year, Tagore died at his ancestral home in Calcutta.
[Edit this paragraph] 3. Representative works
Important poems: "Collection of Story Poems" (1900), "Gitanjali" (1910), "New Moon Collection" (1913) ), "The Birds Collection" (1916), "The Edge Collection" (1938), "The Birthday Collection" (1941); Important short stories: "Repaying Debt" (1891), "Rejection" (1893), "Suba" ( 1893), "Is Man Alive or Dead?" "(1892), "Mahamaya" (1892), "The Sun and the Clouds" (1894), the novella "Four People" (1916), the novel: "The Shipwreck" (1906), "Gola" (1910), "The Family and the World" (1916), "Two Sisters" (1932); important plays "The Stubborn Fortress" (1911), "Mokdotara" (1925), and "The Red Oleander" (1926); Important essays include "The Trade of Death" (1881), "Conversations in China" (1924), "Russian Letters" (1931), etc.
[Edit this paragraph] Tagore and China
Tagore has always emphasized the necessity of unity, friendship and cooperation between the peoples of China and India. In 1881, he wrote the article "The Trade of Death", condemning Britain's crime of dumping opium into China and poisoning the Chinese people. In 1913, Tagore won the Nobel Prize for Literature for his poetry collection Gitanjali. In 1915, Chen Duxiu published four of his translations of "Hymns" in the second issue of "Youth Magazine" ("New Youth"). The ideas of "faith in love, childlike innocence, and maternal love" in the work, his broad and kind mind, and his unique charming personality have won the admiration of countless Chinese readers. In 1916, he gave a speech in Japan criticizing Japanese militarism for its aggression against China. In 1924, Tagore visited China at the invitation of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and the "Tagore fever" reached its climax. When he was in Xu Zhimo's hometown, "there was a crowd of spectators. Hundreds of students from each school sang and sang in unison, and the crowd saluted, which was quite a moment." He met Liang Qichao, Shen Junru, Mei Lanfang, Liang Shuming, Qi Baishi, and Puyi Waiting for celebrities from all walks of life. In 1924, he visited China and published "Conversations in China" after returning home. After the Japanese imperialists launched a war of aggression against China in 1937, he repeatedly published open letters, speeches and poems, denounced Japanese imperialism, and sympathized with and supported the just struggle of the Chinese people. In 1956, Premier Zhou Enlai recalled: "Tagore was a genius poet who made outstanding contributions to world literature..." He inspired a group of China's most talented poets and writers, among whom Guo Moruo and Bing Xin were the most deeply influenced. Guo Moruo is the first person to write new poetry in China. He said that "the first stage of his literary career was Tagore-like". Bing Xin is the first female writer of new literature in China. Her early creations were obviously influenced by Rabindranath Tagore, especially the poetry collections "Stars" and "Spring Water". She said: "When I wrote "Stars" and "Spring Water", I was not writing poetry. I was just influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's "Birds" and collected many 'fragmented thoughts' into a collection. "Guo Moruo, Bing Xin and others have influenced generations of Chinese readers with their works. Numerous Chinese translations and reviews of his works have been published over the past decades. In 1961, to commemorate his 100th birthday, People's Literature Publishing House published a 10-volume "Collected Works of Tagore".