Author: (India) Tagore
Introduction to birds
It is one of Tagore's masterpieces (1861~1941) and one of the most outstanding poems in the world, including more than 300 beautiful poems. Day and night, streams and oceans, freedom and betrayal are all integrated in Tagore's works. Short sentences express profound philosophy of life and lead the world to explore the source of truth and wisdom. Reading these poems for the first time is like opening the bedroom window in the early summer morning after a storm and seeing a cold and clear world. Everything is so fresh and bright, but the charm is very strong and intriguing. From 65438 to 0905, Tagore devoted himself to the national independence movement and wrote patriotic songs such as Flood. The will of the people is set as the national anthem of India today. 19 10, Tagore published the novel Gora. 19 16 published the novel Home and the World, enthusiastically praising the patriotic spirit of striving for national independence. 19 12, Tagore won the Nobel Prize in Literature for his lyric poetry collection "Gitanjali". 19 13 released famous birds and gardeners.
The English name of a bird is stray Birds. Wandering is wandering, birds are birds, and sometimes people.
[Edit this paragraph] Bird appreciation
Zheng Zhenduo, the translator of Birds, once affectionately called Tagore's prose poems "containing profound truth" after translating them, and vividly pointed out that Tagore's prose poems "are like a bunch of wild flowers on the hillside grass, sticking out one after another in the morning light. No matter what you like, colors and smells are diverse. "
Speaking of Tagore's works, people can always feel an inspiring enterprising spirit. His poems contain many ideological contents, but the profound and extensive enlightenment of life philosophy is the main feature of his poems. In his poetry creation, he eulogized his sincere love for the people with a pure heart and praised the beautiful things of the whole nature, the whole mankind and the whole universe. His poems shine with profound philosophical light like pearls, which not only arouses people's love for nature, human beings and all the beautiful things in the world, but also enlightens people how to persist in the ideal pursuit of real life and make the whole life full of joy and light.
Birds were written in 19 13. At first glance, this collection of prose poems with little thought seems to be all-encompassing and covers a wide range. However, it is in this expression of small thoughts about nature and life that the poet wrote his philosophical thinking about nature, universe and life with lyrical marks, thus giving people all kinds of life enlightenment.
Since coming into this world, from the day of birth, everyone has started his (her) long and short life journey. On the road of life, you will inevitably encounter many unexpected difficulties, even unimaginable difficulties and obstacles. So, how to treat it? Are you lamenting fate or making progress? This is obviously the topic of everyone's life. Reading Tagore's poems will obviously make you choose the latter, because Tagore's life revelation is, don't shed tears because you missed the sun, you should miss today's sun. As long as you can face up to the night and persist in the pursuit of the night, the shining stars in the night sky will still repay you and give you strength and confidence to bravely meet or chase the sun of tomorrow. If you just sigh your fate and shed tears, you will not only be inspired by the stars, but also lose tomorrow and the sun beyond.
This is the charm of Tagore's poems, telling you how to be a strong man in life and how to deal with all kinds of difficulties in life. Right? You see, when it comes to love, isn't that what Tagore told you? "Don't let your love sit on a cliff just because it is high." Be faithful to love. Only when both sides love each other can we get true love. If you play with love and artificially create all kinds of love suspense, it is bound to make love hang on the cliff and may burst at any time. Tagore thinks that good love will add luster to life. So, can't the pursuit of beautiful love in the sense of life make everyone's life more interesting? On the contrary, taking the pursuit of love as enjoyment and life as a child's play is bound to be like chasing love on a cliff, with disastrous consequences.
Tagore not only warned people how to treat life in this way, but also advocated a life spirit of silent dedication to create a better life by praising some unknown people and unknown flowers. Just like the nameless flower, compared with the rustling leaves, it has no stormy sound, but with its simple and gorgeous silence, it shows the inner beauty, decorates the world and brings fragrance to people. People will not look down on the nameless flower because of the magnificence of peony and the gorgeous chrysanthemum. Floret has its own personality, and floret has its own fragrance. Isn't her purity, simplicity and calmness the spirit of silent dedication to life? It is also like a green leaf. Although it doesn't have the dignity of cause and the beauty of flower, isn't its value reflected in the contrast and shade of fruit and flower? This leaf cause is the cause of dedication, and people will not despise it, because there is no leaf cause, no cause, and no flower cause. Tagore deeply felt that this spirit of silent dedication is worthy of life, just as "green grass is worthy of the great world in which it grows", and its intrinsic value will always show the brilliance of life.
With this dedication and enterprising spirit of life, the whole life not only shows its value and significance, but also fully shows the power of humanity and personality, which is the master of the world, thus enhancing people's belief in life and their love for life. Tagore said: "The stars are not afraid to look like fireflies", which shows the eternity of human nature. Honest, noble and pure people may be misunderstood for a while, but they will not be misunderstood forever. As a folk proverb in China says, "Gold shines everywhere." Yes, a noble personality always shows its noble nature. This is one of the important features of Tagore's philosophy of life. Although "I have suffered, been disappointed and experienced' death'", people will still enjoy living in this world, because life evokes people's love for life.
Tagore is undoubtedly a philosopher, and his philosophical enlightenment has many meanings in life. Zheng Zhenduo once said: "Although Tagore's songs are sometimes silent, as long as there are human beings in the world, his delicate and quiet poems will always be sung by people's hearts." Yes, Tagore's poems are from the heart, and they are his sincere feelings for a deep understanding of life. As an Indian said, "He is the first among us: he can tell life itself without rejecting it, which is why we love him."
(Selected from The Edge of the Muse: A Review of Fifty Famous Foreign Literary Works, Zhejiang University Press, 1989)
Writing background
Birds is a collection of philosophical English maxims, including 325 poems. The first edition was completed in 19 16. Part of it was translated by the poet from his own Bengali aphorism collection "Broken Jade Collection" (1899), and the other part was an impromptu English poem written by the poet during his visit to Japan in 19 16. The poet stayed in Japan for more than three months, and the ladies kept asking him to write a fan or a commemorative book. Considering this background, it is not difficult for us to understand why most of these poems are only one or two lines. The poet once praised the simplicity of Japanese haiku, and his Bird was obviously influenced by this poetic style. Therefore, profound wisdom and short space are its remarkable characteristics. Zhou Cezong, a Chinese-American scholar, believes that these poems are "like pebbles shining on the beach, each with its own world. They are fragmentary and short-lived; But it is rich, profound and reasonable.
Brief introduction of the author
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) is an Indian poet, philosopher and Indian nationalist. 19/kloc-won Nobel Prize in Literature in 0/3, and was the first Asian to win Nobel Prize in Literature.
1861On May 7th, Rabindranath Tagore was born into a wealthy aristocratic family in Kolkata, India. His father Tagore was a famous philosopher and social activist. My brother and sister are also celebrities. Influenced by this literary family environment, Tagore began to write poems at the age of 8, began to write plays at the age of 12, published his first long poem "Wild Flowers" at the age of 15, and published a narrative poem "The Poet's Story" at the age of 17. Tagore, a brilliant young man, embarked on the road of literary creation.
From 65438 to 0878, he followed the wishes of his father and brother and went to England to study. He studied law first, then transferred to London University to study English literature and study western music.
1880 returned to China, specializing in literary creation.
1884, he left the city and went to the countryside to manage his ancestral land.
1886 published the New Moon Collection, which became a compulsory literature textbook for Indian schools. During this period, he also wrote many political articles attacking American colonial rule.
190 1 year, Tagore founded a school engaged in children's education experiments in San Niktan. This school developed into an international university for Asian cultural exchange in 19 12.
From 65438 to 0905, Tagore devoted himself to the national independence movement and wrote patriotic songs such as Flood. The will of the people is set as the national anthem of India today.
19 10, Tagore published the novel Gora.
19 16 published the novel Home and the World.
19 12, Tagore won the Nobel Prize in Literature for his lyric poetry collection "Gitanjali".
19 13 released famous birds and gardeners.
In the 1920s, Tagore visited many countries and organized anti-war peace groups with cultural celebrities from all over the world.
In the 1930s, when Germany, Italy and Japanese fascists launched a war of aggression, Tagore stood up angrily and shouted to the world: "Before I leave, I call on every family to be ready to fight that beast in human skin."
This world-famous and versatile writer has written more than 50 poems, 12 novellas, 100 short stories, more than 200 plays, many papers on literature, philosophy and politics, as well as memoirs, travel notes and letters. Among them, the famous poem Jitang Jiali published in 19 12 won the Nobel Prize in Literature for Tagore. Story poems and Two Mu of Land are immortal poems loved by Indian people. The popular Kabul Man, Suba and Moya are all masterpieces of the world's short stories. Atonement, Stubborn Fortress and Oleander are all famous drama scripts that mercilessly exposed and flogged the social reality of India at that time.
Tagore is not only an accomplished writer and poet but also an accomplished composer and painter. He wrote more than 2000 exciting and beautiful songs in his life. Among them, he wrote many passionate patriotic songs during the climax of India's national liberation movement, which became a powerful weapon to inspire the Indian people to resist colonial rule. The song "The Will of the People" was designated as the national anthem of India in 1950. Tagore studied painting at the age of 70, and his 1500 frames of paintings were exhibited as art treasures in many famous places in the world.
194 1 year, Tagore died at the age of 8 1 year.
1, creative thinking
Thought development and artistic achievements Tagore was born in an era of rapid change and was influenced by traditional Indian philosophy and western philosophy. But the most basic and core part of his world outlook is the traditional pantheism in India, that is, "the unity of Brahma and Me". In Colorful Collection, he first put forward the concept of "God of Life". His devotion to God is combined with his love for life, country and people. But it also casts a strong mysticism on his poems. In addition, he advocated the spiritual civilization of the East, but did not obliterate the material civilization of the West. All these make his thoughts full of contradictions, which are manifested in his creation. Throughout Tagore's life thought and creative development, it can be roughly divided into three stages:
① From childhood until around 19 10, he took an active part in anti-British political activities, praised national heroes, preached patriotism and advocated great national unity in India.
② He lived in seclusion to 19 19 and actively participated in the national movement again. His patriotic enthusiasm faded slightly, and his poems with strong political content were replaced by poems with mysterious meanings. These poems were also influenced by western symbolism and aestheticism and advocated love and harmony.
③ From the Amritsar tragedy in 19 19 until his death, he began to care about politics and actively participated in the national liberation struggle. His works are full of political passion, broad vision and great concern for the world and mankind. It can be said that Tagore's life's creation has both "Bodhisattva's compassion" and "King Kong's glare". Influenced by Indian classical literature, western poetry and Bangladeshi folk lyrics, most of his poems are rhymed and unabridged free poems and prose poems. Influenced by western novels, his novels are innovative, especially the combination of poetry and painting to form a unique style.
[Edit this paragraph] 2. Creative process
Tagore showed his talent in his childhood. He was only 14 years old when his patriotic poem "Temple Fair of Hindus" (1875) was published. 1880, Tagore became a professional writer at the age of 19. From 188 1 to 1885, he published a collection of lyric poems, including Song of the Sunset (1882), Morning Song (1883), as well as plays and novels. These early injuries are characterized by more dreams than reality and full of romanticism.
The 1990s was the heyday of Tagore's creation, and Yearning in the Heart (1890) was his first mature work. The publication of the famous poem Two Mu of Land (1894) marked Tagore's transformation from religious mysticism to profound humanitarianism. The poems of this period include Golden Sailboat (1894), Colorful Collection (1896), The Fifth Collection of Lyrics and A Collection of Stories (1900). In addition, he has written more than 60 short stories, including Suba (1893), Moye (1892) and To be or not to be? "(1892) has been included in the world's outstanding short stories.
190 1 year, Tagore founded a school to transform society and engaged in children's education experiments. 19 12, this school has become an international university for cultural exchange in Asia. Due to the British separatist policy in Bangladesh, India set off the first climax of the national liberation movement in 1905. Tagore took an active part in this movement and wrote many patriotic poems. This period is the most brilliant period of his creation. He published eight poems in Bengali and eight poems in English, among which "Gitanjali" won the world reputation for the poet. Important poetry collections in this period include Gardeners Collection (19 13), Crescent Moon Collection (19 15) and Birds Collection (19 16). 19 10, Tagore published the epic novel Gora and the symbolic drama The King.
19 19, India launched the second national liberation movement. In order to seek the road of national liberation, he traveled all over five continents and delivered many famous speeches. The outstanding achievements in this period are political lyric poems, which are collected in Africa Collection (1937), Marginal Collection (1938), Birthday Collection (194 1) and other works.
Tagore wrote more than 50 poems, 65,438+02 novels, 65,438+000 short stories, more than 20 plays, and a large number of literary, philosophical and political works, travel notes and books. In addition, he is a musician and painter with profound attainments. He composed more than 2000 songs and 1500 frames of paintings, among which the song "The Will of the People" was designated as the national anthem of India.
In his artistic career of more than 60 years, he inherited the excellent traditions of classicism and folk literature, absorbed the rich nutrition of European romanticism and realism literature, achieved perfection in his creation, made brilliant achievements, and became a generation of cultural giants. 19 13, "because his poems are sensitive, fresh and beautiful; This poem was written with superb skills and expressed in English by himself, which made his poetic thoughts a part of western literature and won the Nobel Prize in Literature. The British government conferred a title on him.
194 1 April, Tagore wrote his last words, The Crisis of Civilization. On August 7th of the same year, Tagore died in his ancestral home in Kolkata.
[Edit this paragraph] 3. representative works
Important poems
Story poems (1900), Gitanjali (19 10), crescent moon (19 13), birds (19 13).
Important novels
Short stories: Paying off debts (189 1), Abandoning (1893), Suba (1893), Is man alive or dead? (1892), mahamoya (1892), the sun and dark clouds (1894), novella quartet (19 16),
Novels: shipwreck (1906), gola (1910), family and the world (19 16) and two sisters (16).
Important drama
Stubborn fortress (19 1 1), mokdotara (1925), people's oleander (1926);
Important prose
Death trade (188 1), China talk (1924), Russian letter (193 1), etc.
Selected birds
Your sunshine smiles at the winter in my heart,
Never doubt its spring flowers.
Tagore's bird
A bird wishes to be a cloud.
Cloud is willing to be a bird.
Tagore's bird
My flower of the day has dropped its forgotten petals.
In the evening, this flower ripens into the golden fruit of memory.
Tagore's bird
Xiaohua asked, "How can I sing to you and worship you?" The sun? "
The sun replied, "Use your pure and simple silence."
Tagore's bird
This lonely evening is covered with fog and rain,
I feel its sigh in my inner loneliness.
Tagore's bird
Dress yourself up for the love of "imperfection"
Tagore's bird
Birds in summer,
Fly to my window and sing,
And flew away.
Yellow leaves in autumn have no songs.
Wandering around,
With a sigh,
I put it in the window again.
-Tagore's Birds
Let life be beautiful like summer flowers and death like autumn leaves.
Tagore's bird
bird
Tagore
1
Stray birds of summer come to my window to sing and fly away.
And yellow leaves of autumn, which have no songs, flutter and fall there with a sign.
Stray birds of summer come to my window to sing and fly away.
And yellow leaves of autumn, which have no songs, flutter and fall to the ground with a sign.
There is a sigh.
2
Troupe of little vagrants of the world, please leave your footprints in my words.
Troupe of little vagrants of the world, please leave your footprints in my words.
three
The world puts off its mask of vastness to its lover.
It becomes small as one song, as one kiss of the eternal.
The world puts off its mask of vastness to its lover.
It becomes small as one song, as one kiss of the eternal.
four
It is the tears of the earth that keep her smile in bloom.
It is the tears of the earth that keep her smile in bloom.
five
The boundless desert is burning for the love of a blade of grass who shakes her head and laughs and flies away.
The boundless desert is burning for the love of a blade of grass.
Shook his head and flew away with a smile.
six
If you shed tears when you miss the sun, you will also miss the stars.
If you shed tears when you miss the sun, you also miss the stars.
seven
The sands in your way beg for your song and your movement, dancing water. Would you like to take it with you
The lame man under the sand?
The sands in your way beg for your song and your movement, dancing.
Water. Are you willing to bear the burden of lameness?
eight
Her eager face haunts my dreams like the rain at night.
Her eager face haunts my dreams like the rain at night.
nine
Once, we dreamed that everyone was a stranger.
When we wake up, we know that we love each other.
Once we dreamed that we were strangers.
We woke up and found that we were dear to each other.
10
Sorrow is hushed into peace in my heart, like the evening arrival in the silent forest.
Sorrow is calm in my heart, like the night arrival on the earth.
Silent trees.
1 1
Some unseen hands, like an idle breeze, are playing on my heart.
Gurgling music.
Some unseen fingers, like an idle breeze, are playing on my heart.
Ripple music.
12
"What language do you speak, sea?"
"This is an eternal question."
"What's your answer, sky?"
"It's eternal silence."
What is your language, sea water?
The language of eternal questions.
What's your answer, sky?
The language of eternal silence.
13
Listen, my heart, to the whispers of the world with which it makes love to you.
Listen, my heart, to the whispers of the world, it is talking.
Say hello to you.
14
The mystery of creation is like the darkness of night-it is great. But the illusion of knowledge is like morning.
Heavy fog.
The mystery of creation is like the darkness of night-it is great.
The illusion of knowledge is like the fog in the morning.
15
Don't let your love sit on a cliff just because it is high.
Don't seat your love on a cliff just because it is high.
16
I sit at my window this morning where the world like a passer-by stops for a moment, nods to me and goes.
Yes
I sit at my window this morning where the world stops like a passer-by.
After a while, he nodded to me and left.
17
These little thoughts are the rustle of leaves; They whispered happily in my heart.
These little thoughts are the rustle of leaves; They have theirs.
A happy whisper in my heart.
18
You can't see yourself, all you see is your own shadow.
You can't see yourself, all you see is your shadow.
19
My wishes are fools, they shout across your song, God.
Let me hear it.
My wishes are fools, they shout across your song, Lord.
Let me listen.
20
I can't choose the best.
It's the best choice for me.
I can't choose the best.
The best choice is me.