Yes, Gitanjali can be appreciated better by theists. Although the art is of high class, and can be appreciated by athiests, too.
As I said, Tagore wrote a lot of novels, plays, songs, and essays. Tagore's body of creation is formidably vast. I would put the number of people awarded PhD each year for their work on Tagore and/or his work at 10-20.
> Which I suspect Tagore himself would consider his greatest work?
Haha, not really. We have an inside joke that more or less says that he was awarded the Nobel Prize for one of his weaker works.
And I concur. There are much better works by Tagore than Gitanjali. I have one bilingual Gitanjali sitting right on my shelf across the room where I am.
I grew up reciting poems of Tagore since I was literally 3 and a half. I still do it, but I'm special occasions.
As a literature lover, I also appreciate other forms of religious art.
I like reading poems called Vaishnava Padavalis. They are divine songs dedicated to Krishna or Chaitanya [0] with 2-3 meaning per each poem. These are among the best works of art I have ever seen.
Same goes for Charyas, poems written to propagate a special form of Buddhism, written in proto-Bengali, about 1000 years ago.
I also enjoy kirtanas.
These are all religious, and they don't stop me from enjoying them.
Many athiests enjoy religious art. But they have to be art. When it stops being art, and becomes too much about faith or devotion, I stop enjoying it.
> friend of Gandhi
They also disagreed a lot. If you read Gandhi's works, you would see that he is the king of luddites. Rabindranath was more forward-thinking.
Tagore wanted industry, education, uplifting of the masses, and admired science. He opposed Gandhi on the issue of boycotting British industries among others.
I have never really read Tagore in translation. I would not know what to suggest you. But I strongly suggest that you read other works of him.
> Hindu Tagore
Not really. He was a Brahmo [1]. They were the Protestants to Hinduism (this is oversimplified, ofc). They did not believe in statue-worshipping, caste, superstitions, etc. Brahmos were monotheistic and puritan among other things.
My study of Tagore is limited. But it is still non-trivial. I have visited his house (very well-preserved university and museum) multiple times and also Visva Bharati.
I am happy to answer if you have any other questions.
As I said, Tagore wrote a lot of novels, plays, songs, and essays. Tagore's body of creation is formidably vast. I would put the number of people awarded PhD each year for their work on Tagore and/or his work at 10-20.
> Which I suspect Tagore himself would consider his greatest work?
Haha, not really. We have an inside joke that more or less says that he was awarded the Nobel Prize for one of his weaker works.
And I concur. There are much better works by Tagore than Gitanjali. I have one bilingual Gitanjali sitting right on my shelf across the room where I am.
I grew up reciting poems of Tagore since I was literally 3 and a half. I still do it, but I'm special occasions.
As a literature lover, I also appreciate other forms of religious art.
I like reading poems called Vaishnava Padavalis. They are divine songs dedicated to Krishna or Chaitanya [0] with 2-3 meaning per each poem. These are among the best works of art I have ever seen.
Same goes for Charyas, poems written to propagate a special form of Buddhism, written in proto-Bengali, about 1000 years ago.
I also enjoy kirtanas.
These are all religious, and they don't stop me from enjoying them.
Many athiests enjoy religious art. But they have to be art. When it stops being art, and becomes too much about faith or devotion, I stop enjoying it.
> friend of Gandhi
They also disagreed a lot. If you read Gandhi's works, you would see that he is the king of luddites. Rabindranath was more forward-thinking.
Tagore wanted industry, education, uplifting of the masses, and admired science. He opposed Gandhi on the issue of boycotting British industries among others.
I have never really read Tagore in translation. I would not know what to suggest you. But I strongly suggest that you read other works of him.
> Hindu Tagore
Not really. He was a Brahmo [1]. They were the Protestants to Hinduism (this is oversimplified, ofc). They did not believe in statue-worshipping, caste, superstitions, etc. Brahmos were monotheistic and puritan among other things.
My study of Tagore is limited. But it is still non-trivial. I have visited his house (very well-preserved university and museum) multiple times and also Visva Bharati.
I am happy to answer if you have any other questions.
[0]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaitanya_Mahaprabhu
[1]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahmo_Samaj